author
Mustafa Naima
1655–1716
An Ottoman court historian from Aleppo, he is best remembered for the sweeping chronicle later known as Tarih-i Naima, a major source for the empire’s 17th-century past. His writing stands out for blending court record, political reflection, and a strong sense that history should explain why states rise and decline.
1 Audiobook
Annals of the Turkish Empire, from 1591 to 1659
by Mustafa Naima
About the author
Born in Aleppo in 1655, Mustafa Naima went on to build a career as an Ottoman bureaucrat and historian. He served in the imperial administration in Constantinople and became closely associated with high-ranking patrons, which helped bring his historical work into official circles.
He is best known for the chronicle commonly called Tarih-i Naima or Naima's History, covering events roughly from 1591 to 1659. Because of this work, he is often described as the first official historian of the Ottoman Empire, or at least as the figure most closely identified with the beginnings of that role.
Naima died in 1716 in Patras. His reputation has lasted because his history was more than a simple list of events: it tried to make sense of politics, disorder, reform, and the forces that shaped Ottoman power.