Abstract
Basiri’s Prose Leta’ifname
The humorous works of classical Turkish literature
appears in both verse and prose under various genres such
as hezl, satire, ta’riz, şathiyyat, mutayebe, joke, wit,
suhriyya, anecdote and story. One of these genres is the
jokes that are based on humor and amuse by containing a
subtle wit. The journals in which the jokes are brought
together are called leta’ifname. Leta’ifnames, which
usually take their subject from the social life conditions of
their age, are important works that carry the social and
cultural life of the period in which they were written. These
works, the first examples of which can be found in our
literature since the 15th century, have become widespread
especially since the 16th century.
One of these examples is the prose Leta’ifname written
by Basiri, one of the 16th century poets who stands out
with his witty personality and the abundance of his jokes
in biographies and biographical sources. The only known
copy of the work is in the Konya Koyunoğlu Museum
Library, between leaves 3b-13b of Mecmu‘a-i Fevaid with
archive number 14665. According to the temmet record at
the end, the work, which was completed in 941/1534-35,
consists of three sections; the section titled “Ez-Leta’if-i
Mevlana Basiri” in which the division of the kadi was
made, and the section entitled “Ez-Leta’if-i Basiri”, in
which the story of a troubled beng drinker is told in Benginame
and the section in which 59 jokes titled “Latife” takes
place.
In this study, after giving brief information about the
leta’ifname genre, Basiri’s life and literary personality
were mentioned; after analyzing Leta’ifname in terms of
humor elements, the translated text of the work is included.
Keywords
Classical Turkish Literature, Humor, Latife, Basiri, Leta’ifname.