Siverek

Siverek, an administrative unit belonging to the Diyarbekir region during the Ottoman period, is referred to in sources sometimes with the status of a sancak and sometimes a kaza. Its name appears in Ottoman archival documents spanning from the 16th century to the early 20th century, in a wide range from tahrir defters to vilayet salnames and correspondence.

Siverek's administrative identity can be traced through tahrir defters in the earliest period. Within the 937/1530 dated Vilayet-i Diyar-i Bekr ve Arap ve Zü'l-Kadiriyye Defteri, Siverek is also located among the sancaks of Amid, Mardin, Sincar, Musul, Arabgir, Ergani, Çermik, Kiğı, Çemişgezek, Harput, Ruha, Ana-Hit, and Deyr-Rahbe (Volume 3, p. 20). Siverek is also recorded in the icmal defters belonging to Diyarbekir Eyaleti; for example, in icmal defter number 251, Siverek kazası is mentioned along with Rakka livası, while in another icmal defter, Siverek, Ruha, and Habur livaları are mentioned together (Volume 3, p. 21). In this context, Siverek is one of the administrative units recorded under the administrative division of Diyarbekir Vilayeti, along with units such as Amid, Ruha, Ergani, and Tercil (Volume 3, p. 50).

Its administrative status in the documents has changed over time. In the Ruus Defteri Kalemi's defter number 1452, it is listed among the sancaks under the heading "Elviye-i Tabi-i vilayeti Diyarbekir" with the phrase "Siverek Elhak" (Volume 3, p. 48). On the other hand, Siverek, along with Hasankeyf, Çemişgezek, Harput, Ergani, Nusaybin, Akçakale, and Sincar, was counted among the units considered to have the status of classical Ottoman sancaks (Volume 3, p. 51). In the 19th century, its administrative affiliation was reorganized, and most likely in connection with issues related to the settlement of tribes in the region, Siverek was annexed to Kürdistan Eyaleti in 1862 (Volume 3, p. 65). In late period administrative tables, Siverek appears as a kaza within Diyarbekir Vilayeti, and in these records, 487 villages and 7 nahiyes were shown to be affiliated with Siverek Kazası (Volume 4, p. 127); during the same period, Siverek, Çermik, and Palu were also mentioned together under the heading of Ergani (Volume 4, p. 119).

Besides its administrative structure, Siverek also appears in regional transportation and security records. In documents concerning state organization at the beginning of the 20th century, there are records related to Siverek Prison, which was affiliated with Diyarbekir vilayeti (Volume 3, p. 81). Documents from 1913 include incident tables concerning Diyarbekir, Siverek, and Midyat (Volume 3, p. 137). In the post-World War I period, Siverek stands out as a transportation route; correspondence from 1919-1920 contains records of passage to Urfa via Siverek and from there to İstanbul (Volume 3, p. 119). Generally, Siverek is considered one of the settlement names that allows access to numerous archival documents concerning Kürt and Kürdistan history when conducting searches with place names such as Diyarbekir, Urfa, Mardin, and Siirt (Volume 3, p. 77).