Mahmudi

Mahmudi (Mahmudiye) was a Kurdish sanjak and later an administrative unit organized as a kaza, located in the Van region, around Hakkâri, during the Ottoman period; its administrative center is indicated as Hoşab (Hoşab or Seray) in some sources. A Kurdish tribe bearing the same name also lived in the region.

Border Sanjak and Iranian Frontier

In Ottoman archival documents, Mahmudi appears as one of the Kurdish sanjaks along the border and was effectively used in the protection of the Iranian frontier. Mahmudi sanjakbeyi Hasan Bey was assigned to annex Kıran Kalesi, which was under Iranian control, and places like Hizan, Şirvi, and İspa were placed under his command (Volume 3, p. 15). This assignment is an example of the practice of mobilizing sanjakbeyliks affiliated with Van Eyaleti for the annexation of territories under Iranian control (Volume 3, p. 15).

Land System and Administration

The land system in the region was largely based on the yurtluk-ocaklık principle. The reflection in archival documents of a dispute concerning sheepfolds within the yurtluk-ocaklık lands of Abdi Bey, one of the beys of Müküs (Müks), in Mahmudi, indicates that the system of ownership and possession in this region was managed through the yurtluk-ocaklık system (Volume 3, p. 62). Generally, in these border sanjaks, the sanjakbeylik continued from father to son or within the same kinship group (Volume 3, p. 49). From time to time, conflicts occurred in the region between Kurdish tribes and official provincial administrators, and the state resorted to sheikhs who held great prestige among the Kurds to resolve these disputes (Volume 3, p. 40).

Administrative Division

In terms of administrative division, Mahmudi (Mahmudiye) was a kaza counted along with Gevar, Şemdinan, and Beytüşşebab within the Hakkâri Sanjak, which was part of Van Vilayeti (Volume 4, p. 127). According to salname and geographical sources, the administrative center of Mahmudi Kazası is indicated as Hoşab (Mahmudi or Hoşab; Seray) (Volume 4, p. 142); the kaza was recorded in administrative tables as a unit consisting of 83 villages and 5 nahiyes (Volume 4, p. 127). In an older eyalet system, Hakkâri Livası was shown to consist of Hakkâri, İmadiye, and Mahmudi/Hoşab (Volume 4, p. 247); in another salname division, Mahmudi was listed among the kazas of Van sanjak along with Şatak, Adilcevaz, Gevaş, and Erciş (Volume 4, p. 261).

Tribes and Nahiyes

Among the nahiyes affiliated with Mahmudi is the Şemski Aşireti, a nahiye belonging to the Mahmudi Kazası of Hakkâri Sanjak and characterized as a nomadic Kurdish tribe; this tribe consisted of approximately 1,500 people and was known for its courage and warrior spirit (Volume 4, p. 133). Within the scope of the Hamidiye Regiments established in the late 19th century, the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Regiments, composed of the Mukuri and Milan tribes, were formed in Mahmudi (Volume 4, p. 305).