The Introduction and Development of Nüzul Tax in Ottoman State: Rethinking the Ottoman Economy through a Nüzul Tax in the XVI-XVII Centuries

Abstract

In order to meet the campaign needs in the Ottoman Empire, various taxes were imposed in the course of time. The most recognizable and oldest of these is avarız tax. According to the information in the literature, after the Ottoman State was insufficient in meeting the necessities of the campaign through avarız tax, nüzul tax was imposed. In this context, nüzul tax is important because it is one of the earliest examples of avarız type taxes. However, the information about under which conditions and in which period of time this tax was imposed by the Ottoman State is either outdated or inconsistent. In this framework, this study will try to determine - by using the archive documents - the development of nüzul tax in the Ottoman tax system; how and when the tax was levied and collected. Additionally, the development of the tax will be evaluated within the Ottoman military-financial and economic history.