THE FIRST TEXTBOOKS IN THE OTTOMAN LANGUAGE: «KAVAID-I OSMANIYE»

Every field of science has its own history of origin, development, and formation. Over time, its directions and objectives are defined, scientific schools emerge, and academic traditions take shape. One of such fundamental and extensive fields of knowledge is Oriental Studies, a constituent part of which is Ottoman Studies. The main focus of Ottoman Studies is the exploration of the Ottoman Empire and its surroundings; at the same time, it is impossible to ignore the study of the Ottoman language, which is inseparably linked with this scientific discipline. Since the Ottoman language, considered the "ancestor" of modern Turkish, holds a special place in Turkology, Turkish scholars devote considerable attention to research concerning textbooks on the Ottoman language. In this paper, we aim to present information about "Kavaid-i Osmaniye" - the first textbook on the Ottoman language written in a classical style, based on the available sources. Some researchers note that this work cannot be placed on the same level as the Common Turkic written monuments such as "Divan Lugat at-Turk" (The Dictionary of Turkic Dialects), "Codex Cumanicus" (The Cuman Code), or "Kitab al-Idrak li-Lisan al-Atrak" (The Book of Comprehension of the Language of the Turks), since these are not textbooks in the full sense of the word but rather "collections of grammatical commentaries." Moreover, most works of that period are classified by scholars as "lexicographic works." This point of view was also supported by A. N. Kononov, who referred to "Kavaid-i Osmaniye" as "the first grammatical textbook of the Ottoman language." Like other printed works of that time, this book is characterized by a distinctive structure and does not contain a section titled "Contents." The "Preface" section begins with the glorification of the head of state - Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Ghazi Sultan Abdulhamid II. This section widely features expressions of respect and loyalty to the Sultan, as well as words of blessing and prayers "in the name of Almighty Allah," which gives the text a tone of exaltation and reverence for the ruler. It is noteworthy that the book was published with the permission of the first Turkish Academy of Sciences, established by the Sultan's decree and operating on the European model under the name "Encümen-i Daniş" ("Enjümen-i Danish"). The first edition was released in 1864. Thus, the Ottoman language textbook jointly created by Ahmed Cevdet and Kececi-zade Fuat Pasha had a significant influence on the subsequent writing of Turkish language textbooks and contributed to the formation of the Turkish grammatical school. Later, Ahmed Cevdet supplemented and revised this work, publishing it under the title "Kavaid-i Türkiyye" in 1876 in Istanbul. Within the framework of this work, the grammar of the Ottoman language and the process of teaching it were systematized, thereby strengthening the foundation of the Turkish grammatical school of the European type.