Vilayet

{{Short description|First-order administrative division of the later Ottoman Empire}} {{For|other administrative divisions in Muslim countries using variants of the word|wilayah}} [[File:Législation ottomane ou Recueil des Aristarchi-Bey Grégoire Tome2.pdf|thumb|page=271|[[Law of the vilayets]] ({{langx|fr|loi des vilayets}}; 1867), in Volume II of {{lang|fr|[[Legislation ottomane]]}}, published by [[Gregory Aristarchis]] and edited by [[Demetrius Nicolaides]]]]

A '''vilayet''' ({{langx|ota|{{linktext|ولایت|lang=ota}}}}, '[[province]]'; {{IPA|tr|vi.laː.jet|}}), also known by [[#Names|various other names]], was a first-order [[administrative division]] of the later [[Ottoman Empire]]. It was introduced in the [[Vilayet Law]] of 21 January 1867,<ref name="Birken22">{{cite book | title = Die Provinzen des Osmanischen Reiches | series = Beihefte zum Tübinger Atlas des Vorderen Orients | volume = 13 | last = Birken | first = Andreas | language = de | publisher = Reichert | year = 1976 | isbn = 9783920153568 | page = 22}}</ref> part of the [[Tanzimat]] reform movement initiated by the [[Ottoman Reform Edict of 1856]]. The [[Danube Vilayet]] had been specially formed in 1864 as an experiment under the leading reformer [[Midhat Pasha]]. The Vilayet Law expanded its use, but it was not until 1884 that it was applied to all of the empire's provinces.<ref name="Birken22"/> Writing for the ''[[Encyclopaedia Britannica]]'' in 1911, [[Vincent Henry Penalver Caillard]] claimed that the reform had intended to provide the provinces with greater amounts of local self-government but in fact centralized more power with the [[sultan of the Ottoman Empire|sultan]] and [[Islam in the Ottoman Empire|local Muslims]] at the expense of other communities.<ref>{{EB1911|inline=1 |first=Vincent Henry Penalver |last=Caillard |wstitle=Turkey|volume=27|page=428}}</ref>

==Names== The [[Ottoman Turkish]] ''vilayet'' ({{lang|ota|{{linktext|ولایت‎|lang=ota}}}}) was a [[loanword]] [[linguistic borrowing|borrowed]] from [[Arabic language|Arabic]] ''wilāya'' ({{lang|ar|{{linktext|وِلَايَة|lang=ar}}}}), an abstract noun formed from the [[Arabic verbs|verb]] ''waliya'' ({{lang|ar|{{linktext|وَلِيَ|lang=ar}}}}, 'to administer'). In Arabic, it had meant 'province', 'region', or 'administration' as general ideas, but following the Tanzimat reforms the Ottoman term formalized it in reference to specific areas in a defined hierarchy.<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.icsresources.org/content/primarysourcedocs/CommitteeReportOnMcMahonHussein.pdf |title=Report of a Committee Set Up to Consider Certain Correspondence between Sir Henry McMahon (His Majesty's High Commissioner in Egypt) and the Sharif of Mecca in 1915 and 1916 |date=2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150621130433/http://www.icsresources.org/content/primarysourcedocs/CommitteeReportOnMcMahonHussein.pdf |archive-date=2015-06-21 }}, Annex A, §10. [https://web.archive.org/web/20151024004146/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/4C4F7515DC39195185256CF7006F878C 2nd Source].</ref> It was borrowed into [[Albanian language|Albanian]] {{lang|sq|vilajet}}, [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]] ''vilaet'' ({{lang|bg|вилает}}),<ref>[[:File:Solun Newspaper 1869-03-28 in Bulgarian.jpg]]</ref> [[Judaeo-Spanish]] {{lang|lad|vilayet}}, and [[French language|French]] {{lang|fr|vilaïet}} and {{lang|fr|vilayet}}, which was used as a [[lingua franca]] among the educated [[Jews in the Ottoman Empire|Jews]] and [[Christianity in the Ottoman Empire|Christians]]. It was also translated into [[Armenian language|Armenian]] as ''gawaŕ'' ({{lang|hy|գաւառ}}), Bulgarian as ''oblast'' ({{lang|bg|област}}), Judaeo-Spanish as {{lang|lad|provinsiya}}, and [[Greek language|Greek]] as [[eparchy|''eparchía'']] ({{lang|el|επαρχία}}) and ''nomarchía'' ({{lang|el|νομαρχία}}).<ref name=Straussp4143>{{cite book |last=Strauss |first=Johann |url=https://menadoc.bibliothek.uni-halle.de/menalib/download/pdf/2734659?originalFilename=true |year=2010 |chapter=A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire: Translations of the ''Kanun-ı Esasi'' and Other Official Texts into Minority Languages |editor-last=Herzog |editor-first=Christoph |editor2=Malek Sharif |title=The First Ottoman Experiment in Democracy |publisher=[[Orient-Institut Istanbul]] |publication-place=[[Würzburg]] |pages=21–51 }} ([http://menadoc.bibliothek.uni-halle.de/urn/urn:nbn:de:gbv:3:5-91645 info page on book] at [[Martin Luther University]]) // CITED: p. 41-43 (PDF p. 43-45/338).</ref>

The early [[Turkey|Republic of Turkey]] continued to use the term ''vilayet'' until it renamed them [[Provinces of Turkey|il]] in the late 1920s.{{when|date=September 2023}}

==Organization== The Ottoman Empire had already begun to modernize its administration and regularize its [[eyalet]]s in the 1840s,<ref>{{cite book |last= Birken |first= Andreas |title= Die Provinzen des Osmanischen Reiches |pages= 19–20 |language= de |publisher= Reichert |series= Beihefte zum Tübinger Atlas des Vorderen Orients |volume= 13 |year= 1976 |isbn= 9783920153568}}</ref> but the [[Vilayet Law]] extended this throughout the empire, regulating the hierarchy of administrative units.<ref name=Birken22/><ref name=Krikorian>{{cite book |last= Krikorian |first= Mesrob K. |title= Armenians in the Service of the Ottoman Empire: 1860-1908 |page= 24 |publisher= Routledge |year= 2018 |isbn= 978-1351031288 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Wz9ZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT24 |access-date= 11 February 2022}}</ref>

Each vilayet or province was governed by a [[vali (Ottoman)|vali]] appointed by the [[Ottoman sultan|sultan]].<ref name=Krikorian/> Acting as the sultan's representative, he was notionally the supreme head of administration in his province,<ref name=Birken2324>Birken (1976), p. 2324.</ref> subject to various caveats. [[Ottoman army|Military administration]] was entirely separate,<ref name=Krikorian/> although the vali controlled local police.<ref name=Krikorian/> His council comprised a secretary (''mektupçu''), a [[defterdar|comptroller]] (''defterdar''), a chief justice (''müfettiş-i hükkâm-ı şeriyye''), and directors of foreign affairs, public works, and agriculture and commerce,<ref name=Birken2324/> each nominated by the respective ministers<ref name=Birken2324/> in Istanbul.<ref name=Krikorian/> The ''[[defterdar]]'' in particular answered directly to the finance minister rather than the vali.<ref name=Krikorian/> A separate vilayet council was composed of four elected members, comprising two Muslims and two non-Muslims.<ref name=Birken2324/>

If the vali fell ill or was absent from the capital, he was variously replaced by the governor of the chief sanjak (''merkez sancak'') near the capital,<ref name=Birken2324/> the ''muavin'', and the ''defterdar''.<ref name=Krikorian/> A similar structure was replicated in the lower hierarchical levels, with executive and advisory councils drawn from the local administrators and—following long-established practice—the heads of the [[Millet (Ottoman Empire)|millets]], the various local religious communities.<ref name=Birken2324/>

The ''[[Vilayet Law]]'' (1864) saw a general reorganization, with the hierarchy vilayet—sanjak—kaza—nahiye, the vilayet administrated by the ''Vali'' under whose authority was the ''[[mutasarrif]]'' of the [[sanjak]] appointed by the Sultan, the ''[[kaymakam]]'' of the ''[[kaza]]'' appointed by the Interior Ministry, the ''[[mudür]]'' of the ''[[nahiye (Ottoman)|nahiye]]'', the ''muhtar'' of the village.<ref>{{cite book|last=Çetinsaya|first=Gökhan|title=The Ottoman Administration of Iraq, 1890-1908|publisher=Routledge|year=2006|isbn=978-1-134-29494-7|url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Ottoman_Administration_of_Iraq_1890/Vc5_AgAAQBAJ|p=22}}</ref>

==Lists== ===1870s=== Vilayets, sanjaks and autonomies in the mid-1870s:<ref name=pavet>{{cite book|last=Abel Pavet de Courteille|author-link=Abel Pavet de Courteille|title=État présent de l'empire ottoman|year=1876|publisher=J. Dumaine|pages=91–96|url=https://archive.org/stream/tatprsentdelemp00courgoog#page/n104/mode/2up|language=fr}}</ref> {{div col}} * [[Constantinople Vilayet]] * [[Adrianople Vilayet]]: sanjaks of Adrianople (Edirne), Tekirdağ, [[Sanjak of Gelibolu|Gelibolu]], Filibe, Sliven. * [[Danube Vilayet]]: sanjaks of Ruse, Varna, Vidin, Tulcea, Turnovo, [[Sanjak of Sofia|Sofia]], [[Sanjak of Niš|Niš]]. * [[Bosnia Vilayet]]: sanjaks of Bosna-Serai, Zvornik, Banja Luka, Travnik, Bebkèh, [[Sanjak of Novi Pazar|Novi Pazar]]. * Vilayet of Herzegovina: sanjaks of Mostar, Gacko. * [[Salonica Vilayet]]: sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Salonica|Salonica]], Serres, Drama. * [[Janina Vilayet]]: sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Ioannina|Ioannina]], Tirhala, [[Sanjak of Ohri|Ohrid]], [[Sanjak of Preveze|Preveze]], [[Sanjak of Berat|Berat]]. * [[Monastir Vilayet]]: sanjaks of Manastir (now Bitola), [[Sanjak of Prizren|Prizren]], [[Sanjak of Üsküb|Üsküb]], [[Sanjak of Dibra|Dibra]]. * [[Scutari Vilayet]]: sanjak of [[Sanjak of Scutari|Scutari]]. * [[Vilayet of the Archipelago]]: sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Rhodes|Rhodes]], Midilli, [[Sanjak of Sakız|Sakız]], Kos, Cyprus. * [[Vilayet of Crete]]: sanjaks of Chania, Rethymno, Candia, Sfakia, Lasithi. * [[Vilayet of Hudavendigar]]: sanjaks of Bursa, Izmid, Karasi, Karahisar-i-Sarip, Kütahya. * [[Vilayet of Aidin]]: sanjaks of Smyrna (now İzmir), Aydın, Saruhan, Menteşe. * [[Vilayet of Angora]]: sanjaks of Angora (now Ankara), Yozgat, Kayseri, Kırşehir. * [[Vilayet of Konya]]: sanjaks of Konya, Teke, Hamid, Niğde, Burdur. * [[Vilayet of Kastamonu]]: sanjaks of Kastamonu, Boli, Sinop, Çankırı. * [[Kosovo Vilayet]] * [[Vilayet of Trebizond]]: sanjaks of Trebizond (Trabzon), Gümüşhane, Batumi, Canik. * [[Vilayet of Sivas]]: sanjaks of Sivas, Amasya, Karahisar-ı Şarki. * [[Vilayet of Erzurum]]: sanjaks of Erzurum, Tchaldir, Bayezit, Kars, Mouch, Erzincan, Van. * [[Vilayet of Diyarbekir]]: sanjaks of Diyarbakır, Mamuret-ul-Aziz, Mardin, Siirt, Malatya. * [[Vilayet of Adana]]: sanjaks of Adana, Kozan, İçel, Paias. * [[Vilayet of Syria]]: sanjaks of Damascus, Hama, Beirut, Tripoli, Hauran, Akka, Belka, Kudus-i-Cherif (Jerusalem). * [[Vilayet of Aleppo]]: sanjaks of Aleppo, Maraş, Urfa, [[Sanjak of Zor|Zor]]. * [[Vilayet of Baghdad]]: sanjaks of Baghdad, Mosul, Sharazor, Sulaymaniyah, Dialim, Kerbela, Helleh, Amara. * [[Vilayet of Basra]]: sanjaks of Basra, Muntafiq, Najd, Hejaz. * [[Emirate of Mecca]]: Mecca, Medina. * [[Vilayet of Yemen]]: sanjaks of Sana'a, Hudaydah, Asir, Ta'izz. * [[Vilayet of Tripolitania]]: sanjaks of Tripoli, Bengazi, Khoms, Djebal gharbiyeh, Fezzan. * [[Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate]] * [[Principality of Samos]] * [[Mount Athos]] (part of the [[Sanjak of Salonica]]) {{div col end}}

===1905=== [[File:Table of Ottoman Administrative Divisions 1905 (Tableau des circonscriptions administratives).png|thumb|Table of Ottoman Administrative Divisions, 1905]] By 1905, the Ottoman Empire had lost administrative control over [[Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia & Herzegovina]], [[Principality of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]] and [[Eastern Rumelia]], [[Cretan State|Crete]] and [[British Cyprus|Cyprus]], even though these were all still under nominal Ottoman sovereignty, as was [[Khedivate of Egypt|Egypt]]. In this list, the numbering and place names are indicated as in the French-language source, with present-day names in parentheses where different:<ref>{{citation |url=https://archive.org/details/manueldedroitpu00heidgoog/page/n2/mode/2up |title=Manuel de droit public et administratif de l'Empire ottoman |author=Adolf Heidborn |date=1908 |publisher=C.W. Stern}}</ref> {{div col}} # [[Hejaz Vilayet|Hedjâz]] ([[Hejaz]]): Sanjaks of Mediné ([[Medina]]) and Djiddé ([[Jeddah]]) # [[Yemen vilayet|Yemen]]: Sanjaks of [[Sanaa]], Hodeïda ([[Hodeidah]]), Assir ([[Asir]]), and Ta'az ([[Taiz]]) # [[Basra vilayet|Basra]]: Sanjaks of [[Basra]], Muntefik ([[Al-Muntafiq]]), [[Najd Sanjak|Nedjed]] ([[Najd]]), and Amara ([[Amarah]]) # [[Baghdad vilayet|Bagdâd]]: Sanjaks of Bagdâd ([[Baghdad]]), Divaniyé ([[Al Diwaniyah]]), and Kerbela ([[Karbala]]) # [[Mosul vilayet|Mossoul]]: Sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Mosul|Mossoul]] ([[Mosul]]), [[Sanjak of Shahrizor|Kerkouk]] ([[Kirkuk]]), and Souleïmaniyé ([[Sulaymaniyah]]) # [[Aleppo vilayet|Haleb]]: Sanjaks of [[Aleppo Sanjak|Haleb]] ([[Aleppo]]), [[Urfa Sanjak|Ourfa]] ([[Urfa]]), and [[Marash Sanjak|Marach]] ([[Kahramanmaraş]]) # [[Syria vilayet|Syria]]: Sanjaks of [[Damascus Sanjak|Damas]] ([[Damascus]]), [[Hama Sanjak|Hama]], [[Hauran Sanjak|Hauran]], and [[Karak Sanjak|Kerak]] ([[Al-Karak]]) # [[Beirut vilayet|Beirout]]: Sanjaks of Beirout ([[Beirut]]), [[Acre Sanjak|Akka]] ([[Acre, Israel|Acre]]), [[Tripoli Sanjak|Taraboulus]] ([[Tripoli, Lebanon|Tripoli in Lebanon]]), [[Latakia Sanjak|Lazakiyé]] ([[Latakia]]), and [[Nablus Sanjak|Nablous]] ([[Nablus]]) # [[Vilayet of Tripolitania|Tripoli]]: Sanjaks of Taraboulous ([[Tripoli, Libya|Tripoli in Libya]]), Khams ([[Al-Khums]]), Djebel ([[Jabal al Gharbi District|Jabal al Gharbi]]), and [[Fezzan|Fezzân]] # [[Hüdavendigâr vilayet|Khoudavendiguiâr]]: Sanjaks of Brousse ([[Bursa]]), Ertoġroul ([[Bilecik]]), Kutahia ([[Kütahya]]), Kara Hissâr ([[Afyonkarahisar]]), and [[Sanjak of Karasi|Karassi]] ([[Balıkesir]]) # [[Konya vilayet|Konia]]: Sanjaks of Konia ([[Konya]]), Nigdé ([[Niğde]]), Bodroûm ([[Bodrum]]), Hamid Abâd ([[Isparta]]), and Tekké ([[Antalya]]) # [[Angora vilayet|Angora]]: Sanjaks of Angora ([[Ankara]]), Jozgâd ([[Yozgat]]), Kaissarié ([[Kayseri]]), Kirchehir ([[Kırşehir]]), and Tchoroûm ([[Çorum]]) # [[Aidin vilayet|Aïdin]]: Sanjaks of Smyrne ([[İzmir]]), Saroukhan ([[Manisa]]), Aïdin ([[Aydın]]), Menteché ([[Muğla]]), and [[Denizli]] # [[Adana vilayet|Adana]]: Sanjaks of [[Adana]], Mersina ([[Mersin]]), Djebel-i-Bereket ([[Yarpuz]]), [[Kozan, Adana|Kozân]], and [[İçil Sanjak|Itchili]] ([[Silifke]]) # [[Kastamonu vilayet|Kastamouni]]: Sanjaks of Kastamouni ([[Kastamonu]]), [[Bolu Sanjak|Boli]] ([[Bolu]]), Kengri ([[Çankırı]]), and Sinob ([[Sinop, Turkey|Sinop]]) # [[Sivas vilayet|Sivâs]]: Sanjaks of [[Sivas|Sivâs]], Amassia ([[Amasya]]), Kara Hissar Charki ([[Şebinkarahisar]]), and Tokad ([[Tokat]]) # [[Diyarbekir vilayet|Diarbekir]]: Sanjaks of Diarbekir ([[Diyarbakır]]), [[Mardin]], and Ergana Madeni ([[Maden, Elazığ|Maden]]) # [[Bitlis vilayet|Bitlis]]: Sanjaks of [[Bitlis]], Mouch ([[Muş]]), Saïrd ([[Siirt]]), and Guentch ([[Genç, Bingöl|Genç]]) # [[Erzurum vilayet|Erzeroum]]: Sanjaks of Erzeroûm ([[Erzurum]]), Erzindjân ([[Erzincan]]), Bayézid ([[Doğubayazıt]]), and Khinis ([[Hınıs]]) # [[Mamuret-ul-Aziz vilayet|Mamouret ul-Azîz]]: Sanjaks of Mamouret ul-Azîz / Kharpoût ([[Elazığ]]), Malatia ([[Malatya]]), and Dersîm ([[Tunceli]]) # [[Van vilayet|Van]]: Sanjaks of [[Van, Turkey|Van]] and Hakiari ([[Hakkâri (city)|Hakkâri]]) # [[Trebizond vilayet|Trébizonde]]: Sanjaks of Tarabizon ([[Trabzon]]), Djanik ([[Samsun]]), [[Lazistan Sanjak|Lazistan]] ([[Rize]]), Gumuchkhané ([[Gümüşhane]]) # [[Vilayet of the Archipelago|Archipel]] ([[Aegean Sea]]): Sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Rhodes|Rhodos]] ([[Rhodes]]), [[Sanjak of Midilli|Midilli]] ([[Mytilene]]), [[Sanjak of Sakız|Chios]], and [[Sanjak of Lemnos|Lemnos]] # [[Adrianople vilayet|Andrinople]]: Sanjaks of Andrinople ([[Edirne]]), [[Sanjak of Gümülcine|Gumuldjina]] ([[Komotini]]), Kirkkilissé ([[Kırklareli]]), [[Sanjak of Dedeağaç|Dedeaġatch]] ([[Alexandroupolis]]), Tekfoûr Daġy / Rodosto ([[Tekirdağ]]), and [[Sanjak of Gelibolu|Galipoli]] ([[Gelibolu]]) # [[Salonica vilayet|Salonique]]: Sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Salonica|Selanik]] ([[Thessaloniki]]), [[Sanjak of Siroz|Siros]] ([[Serres]]), [[Sanjak of Drama|Drama]], and [[Thasos]] # [[Kosovo vilayet|Kossovo]]: Sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Üsküp|Uskub]] ([[Skopje]]), Prichtina ([[Pristina]]), [[Sanjak of Sjenica|Senidjé]] ([[Sjenica]]), [[Sanjak of İpek|Ipek]] ([[Peja]]), [[Sanjak of Pljevlja|Tachildjé]] ([[Pljevlja]]), and [[Sanjak of Prizren|Prizren]] # [[Janina vilayet|Janina]]: Sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Ioannina|Janina]] ([[Ioannina]]), Ergueri / Argyrokastro ([[Gjirokastër]]), [[Sanjak of Preveza|Preveza]], and [[Sanjak of Avlona|Berat]] # [[Scutari vilayet|Skutari]]: Sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Scutari|Skutari]] ([[Shkodër]]) and [[Sanjak of Durrës|Dratch / Durazzo]] ([[Durrës]]) # [[Manastir vilayet|Monastir]]: Sanjaks of [[Sanjak of Monastir|Monastir]] ([[Bitola]]), [[Sanjak of Serfiğe|Serfidjé]] ([[Servia, Greece|Servia]]), [[Sanjak of Dibra|Dibré]] ([[Debar]]), [[Sanjak of Elbasan|Elbassan]] ([[Elbasan]]), and [[Sanjak of Görice|Koritza]] ([[Korçë]]) {{div col end}}

The same document added [[Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem|Jerusalem]], [[Ottoman Cyrenaica|Bengazi]], [[Zor Sanjak|Zor]], [[Sanjak of Kocaeli|Izmid]], [[Sanjak of Biga|Biġa]], and {{ill|Çatalca Sanjak{{!}}Tchataldja|tr|Çatalca Sancağı}} as independent departments, but did not mention the [[Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate]] and [[Principality of Samos]], both self-administered under a leader appointed by the Ottoman government. The [[Sharifate of Mecca]] was another special case, coexisting with the [[Hejaz vilayet]] without being subordinate to it.

===1917=== Vilayets and independent sanjaks in 1917:<ref name="rm39">[https://archive.org/stream/handbookofasiami01greauoft#page/226 A handbook of Asia Minor] Published 1919 by Naval staff, Intelligence dept. in London. Page 226</ref>

Vilayets included: {{div col}} * [[Vilayet of Constantinople]] * [[Vilayet of Adrianople]] * [[Vilayet of Adana]] * [[Vilayet of Angora]] * [[Vilayet of Aidin]] * [[Vilayet of Baghdad]] * [[Vilayet of Basra]] * [[Vilayet of Beirut]] * [[Vilayet of Bitlis]] * [[Vilayet of Aleppo]] * [[Vilayet of Bursa]] * [[Vilayet of Diarbekr]] * [[Vilayet of Erzurum]] * [[Vilayet of Syria]] * [[Vilayet of Sivas]] * [[Vilayet of Trebizond]] * [[Vilayet of Kastamuni]] * [[Vilayet of Konia]] * [[Vilayet of Mamuret ul-Aziz]] * [[Vilayet of Mosul]] * [[Vilayet of Van]] {{div col end}}

Independent sanjaks included: {{div col}} * Sanjak of [[Eskishehir]] * Sanjak of [[Urfa]] * Sanjak of [[Izmid]] * Sanjak of [[Ichili]] * [[Sanjak of Boli]] * Sanjak of [[Beylik of Teke|Teke]] * Sanjak of [[Canik|Janyk]] * Sanjak of [[Chatalja]] * [[Sanjak of Zor]] * Sanjak of [[Kara Hissar Sahib]] * [[Sanjak of Karasi]] * Sanjak of [[Dardanelles]] * Sanjak of [[Kaisari]] * Sanjak of [[Kutahia]] * Sanjak of [[Marash]] * Sanjak of [[Menteshe]] * Sanjak of [[Nigde]] {{div col end}}

Vassal states and autonomous provinces: {{div col}} * [[Eastern Rumelia]] (Rumeli-i Şarkî): autonomous province (Vilayet in Turkish) (1878–1885); unified with Bulgaria in 1885 * Sanjak of [[Benghazi]] (Bingazi Sancağı): autonomous sanjak. Formerly in the [[vilayet of Tripoli]], but after 1875 dependent directly on the ministry of the interior at Constantinople.<ref name="1911-Bengazi">{{EB1911 |inline=1 |first=David George |last=Hogarth |wstitle=Bengazi |volume=3 |page=736}}</ref> * Sanjak of [[Biga, Çanakkale|Biga]] (Biga Sancağı) (also called [[Çanakkale|Kale-i Sultaniye]]) (autonomous sanjak, not a vilayet) * Sanjak of [[Çatalca]] (Çatalca Sancağı) (autonomous sanjak, not a vilayet) * [[Ottoman Cyprus|Cyprus]] (Kıbrıs) (island with special status) (Kıbrıs Adası) * [[Khedivate of Egypt]] (Mısır) (autonomous [[khedive|khedivate]], not a vilayet) (Mısır Hidivliği) * Sanjak of [[Izmit]] (İzmid Sancağı) (autonomous sanjak, not a vilayet) * Mutasarrifyya/[[Sanjak of Jerusalem]] (Kudüs-i Şerif Mutasarrıflığı): independent and directly linked to the Minister of the Interior in view of its importance to the three major monotheistic religions.<ref name="ala">[https://archive.org/stream/PalestineAModernHistory/PMH Palestine; A Modern History (1978)] by Adulwahab Al Kayyali. Page 1</ref> *[[Sharifate of Mecca]] (Mekke Şerifliği) (autonomous [[sharif]]ate, not a vilayet) *[[Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate]] (Cebel-i Lübnan Mutasarrıflığı): sanjak or mutessariflik, dependent directly on the Porte.<ref name="1911-Lebanon">{{EB1911|inline=1|first=Albert |last=Socin |first2=David George |last2=Hogarth |wstitle=Lebanon|volume=16|page=348}}</ref> *[[Principality of Samos]] (Sisam Beyliği) (island with special status) *[[Tunis Eyalet]] (Tunus Eyaleti) (autonomous eyalet, ruled by hereditary beys) {{div col end}}

===1927=== The early Turkish Republic had 63 vilayet in the [[1927 Turkish census]]:

{{Div col}} # [[Ankara vilayet]] # [[Istanbul vilayet]] # [[Artvin vilayet]] # [[Edirne vilayet]] # [[Ertuğrul (Bilecik) vilayet]] # [[Erzurum vilayet]] # [[Ordu vilayet]] # [[Erzincan vilayet]] # [[Izmir vilayet]] # [[Eskişehir vilayet]] # [[Adana vilayet]] # [[Afyonkarahisar vilayet]] # [[Aksaray vilayet]] # [[Elaziz vilayet]] # [[Amasya vilayet]] # [[Antalya vilayet]] # [[Urfa vilayet]] # [[Aydın vilayet]] # [[Içel vilayet]] # [[Bayezid vilayet]] # [[Bitlis vilayet]] # [[Bursa vilayet]] # [[Bozok vilayet]] # [[Bolu vilayet]] # [[Burdur vilayet]] # [[Tekirdağ vilayet]] # [[Tokat vilayet]] # [[Canik vilayet]] # [[Cebel-i Bereket vilayet]] # [[Çankırı vilayet]] # [[Çanakkale vilayet]] # [[Çorum vilayet]] # [[Hakkâri vilayet]] # [[Hamîdâbâd vilayet]] # [[Denizli vilayet]] # [[Diyarbekir vilayet]] # [[Rize vilayet]] # [[Zonguldak vilayet]] # [[Siirt vilayet]] # [[Sinop vilayet]] # [[Sivas vilayet]] # [[Saruhan vilayet]] # [[Trabzon vilayet]] # [[Gazi Ayıntab (Gaziantep) vilayet]] # [[Kars vilayet]] # [[Kırklareli vilayet]] # [[Karahisâr-ı Şarkî (Şebinkarahisar) vilayet]] # [[Karesi (Balıkesir) vilayet]] # [[Kastamonu vilayet]] # [[Kırşehir vilayet]] # [[Kayseri vilayet]] # [[Kocaeli vilayet]] # [[Konya vilayet]] # [[Kütahya vilayet]] # [[Gümüşhane vilayet]] # [[Giresun vilayet]] # [[Mardin vilayet]] # [[Mersin vilayet]] # [[Maraş vilayet]] # [[Menteşe (Muğla) vilayet]] # [[Malatya vilayet]] # [[Niğde vilayet]] # [[Van vilayet]] {{Div col end}}

==Maps== <gallery> File:Turkey in Europe and Greece.jpg|Vilayets of Europe in 1870 File:Gray's New Map of the Countries Surrounding the Black Sea Comprising European Turkey, Southern Russia, Asia Minor, Etc. (inset) The Bosphorus and Vicinity. Copyright, 1877, by O.W. Gray & Son.jpg|Vilayets in 1877 File:Turkey in Europe. (with) The Bosporus & Constantinople. (with) Crete or Candia. By Keith Johnston, F.R.S.E. Keith Johnston's General Atlas. Engraved, Printed, and Published by W. & A.K. Johnston, Edinburgh & London.jpg|Vilayets of Europe in 1893 File:Rand, McNally & Co.'s new 14 x 21 map of Turkey in Asia, Asia Minor. Copyright 1895, by Rand, McNally & Co. (Chicago, 1897).jpg|Vilayets of Asia in 1897 File:Turkey in Asia, 1903.jpg|Vilayets of Asia in 1909 File:Turkey in Europe and the Balkans, 1910.jpg|Vilayets of Europe in 1910 File:W. & A.K. Johnston. Asia Minor. 1911.jpg|Vilayets of Asia in 1911 </gallery>

==See also== * [[Provinces of Turkey]] * [[Six Vilayets]], the Armenian vilayets of the empire * [[Vilayet Law]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== * {{cite book|title=Sur la nouvelle division de l'Empire en gouvernements généraux formés sous le nom de Vilayets|author=Sublime Porte|author-link=Sublime Porte|place=Constantinople|date=1867}} - About the Law of the Vilayets

==External links== * [https://archive.org/stream/corpsdedroitott01turkgoog#page/n66/mode/2up Vilayet Law of 1864, official translation to French] pp. 36–45, in Young, George, ''[[Corps de droit ottoman; recueil des codes, lois, règlements, ordonnances et actes les plus importants du droit intérieur, et d'études sur le droit coutumier de l'Empire ottoman]]'', Volume 1, 1905. * [http://anemi.lib.uoc.gr/php/pdf_pager.php?filename=%2Fvar%2Fwww%2Fanemi-portal%2Fmetadata%2F6%2F2%2Fd%2Fattached-metadata-145-0000048%2F143914_02.pdf&rec=%2Fmetadata%2F6%2F2%2Fd%2Fmetadata-145-0000048.tkl&do=143914_02.pdf&width=341&height=538&pagestart=1&maxpage=466&lang=el&pageno=275&pagenotop=275&pagenobottom=273 Vilayet Law of 1867, in French], in ''[[Législation ottomane]]'', published by [[Gregory Aristarchis]] and edited by [[Demetrius Nicolaides]], Volume 2

[[Category:Arabic words and phrases]] [[Category:Vilayets of the Ottoman Empire|*]] [[Category:Subdivisions of the Ottoman Empire]] [[Category:Former types of subdivisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina]] [[Category:Types of administrative division]]