Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi

Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi
Born	Ahmed 1609 Constantinople, Ottoman Empire
Died	1640 (aged 30–31) Ottoman Algeria
Nationality	Ottoman
Occupation	Scientist
Known for	first sustained unpowered flight
Relatives	Lagâri Hasan Çelebi (brother)

Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi (Ottoman Turkish: هزارفنّ أحمد چلبی,, lit. 'Polymath Ahmed the wise'; 1609 – 1640) was an Ottoman scientist, inventor, chemist, astronomer, physician, Andalusi musician, and poet from Constantinople, reported in the writings of traveler Evliya Çelebi to have achieved sustained unpowered flight.

Etymology of name

The title "Hezârfen", given by Evliyâ Çelebi to Ahmed Çelebi, is from Persian هزار hezār meaning -a thousand- + فنّ fann meaning -science together making it together Ahmed having talents in "a thousand of sciences (polymath).

Non-powered flight

Flight path, as described by Evliya Çelebi

The 17th century writings of Evliyâ Çelebi relate this story of Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi, circa 1630–1632: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For other meanings of the title, see the Hezarfen (disambiguation) page. Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi

A picture depicting the moment of flight from Hezârfen Ahmed's Galata Tower. Birth Ahmed 1609 Constantine, Ottoman Empire Death 1640 (ages 30–31) Algeria, Ottoman Empire Nationality Turkish Alias Hezârfen Citizenship Ottoman Empire Ottoman Empire Profession Scientist, engineer Active years 1630s Period IV. Murad period Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi or Ahmed Çelebi (Ottoman: هزارفنّ أحمد چلبی , d. y. 1609 – d. 1640) is a Muslim Turk scholar who was rumored to have lived in the Ottoman Empire in the 17th century, included in Evliyâ Çelebi's famous work called Seyahatnâme.[1][2]

According to the narrative set in Seyahatnâme, Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi left himself in the void by wearing a vehicle similar to bird wings from the Galata Tower in a southwestern air in 1632, and gliding 3,358 meters in the Bosphorus and went down to Doğancılar Square in Üsküdar and was known among the people with this event. While it is argued by some historians and engineers that it is a "myth" by showing why the story is scientifically inconsistent and not mentioned in any other historical source, it is argued by some researchers that this flight took place on various grounds. The majority of modern Ottoman historians, on the other hand, state that the flight is most likely "real", but that Evliyâ Çelebi probably reported this incident by "exaggerating" a little.[3]Still, the conclusive and clear evidence that Ahmed Çelebi was flying or not has not yet been found by historians.[4]

Names The word hezâr in the name of Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi is excerpted from the Persian word hazār (هزار) and means "1000 (thousand)".[5]The word is of co-origin with the word hazaŋra-, which has the same meaning in Avesta, and this word is of co-origin with the word sahásra (सहस्र), which has the same meaning in Sanskrit.[5]The word is also used in Armenian and Kurdish (Kurmancî) in the form of caspian.[5] Hezârfen, on the other hand, has the meanings of "a thousand sciences", that is, "with a thousand skills, knows a lot, ingenious".[6][7] The word Çelebi, on the other hand, is a title of Syriac origin, which means "supreme person, master, lord" and was used in almost all periods of the Ottoman Empire.[8][9][10]

Sources related to the incident Ottoman Empire, yet IV. Starting from the Murad period (1623–1640), especially in the Tulip Period (1718–1730), he tried to renew himself; In parallel with the scientific, technological and cultural developments in the Western world, he tried to realize a new Renaissance move. In this sense, IV. The first flight attempts of Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi and Lâgarî Hasan Çelebi, who were thought to have lived during the reign of Murad, in the capital Kostantiniyye between 1630-1633, gained an important place in both Ottoman and Turkish cultural history and belief.[11]

In this Istanbul engravure, which belongs to the first half of the 17th century, the Galalata Tower is seen, which is believed to be the place where Hezârfen Ahmed flew at the bottom left. These attempts by the Turks to fly in Constantine are first mentioned in the work A Discovery of a New World written by the English clergyman, philosopher and writer John Wilkins in 1638. In this work, Wilkins wrote that Ogier Ghislain de Busbecq, who was an ambassador to Constantine on behalf of Austria between 1554–1562, stated in his sources that "a Turk made a flight attempt".[11]In the work called The Birth of Flight published by the Allen & Unwin publishing house in 1941, the trials of the Turks in Constantine were contacted by citing Busbecq.[11]However, even if this statement of Busbecq is true, it dates back about 75 years before Evliyâ Çelebi and is irrelevant to Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi.[12]Nevertheless, starting from this, it is claimed that the flight trials in the Ottomans started during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent (1520–1566).

The only historical source that has been found so far and mentions Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi is a short piece in Evliyâ Çelebi's 10-volume Seyahatnâme. Evliyâ Çelebi wrote the following in his work:

İptida, like Okmeydanı's pulpit, was strued by staying eight or nine times in the air with eagle wings from the intensity of the wind. While Bâdehu Sultan Murad Han was in contact at the Sinan Pasha Mansion in Sarayburnu, he flew with the southwest wind from the southwest wind from the top of the Galata Tower and went down to Doğancılar Square in Üsküdar. Then Murad Khan gave him a pouch of gold and said, "This man is a man to be very feared. Whatever he wants, he can do it. The wait of such people is not permissible." He nafled him to Gâzir (Cezâyir). He was deceased there.

— Evliyâ Çelebi, Seyahatnâme[13][14] Academic opinions Historical opinions Those who argue that the incident did not happen

Hezârfen's representative flight route. In the archives containing the financial records of the Ottoman Empire, IV. At the time of Murad (1623–1640), there is no information that a pouch of goldcoin was given as a gift.[15]At the same time, many Ottoman historians are skeptical of this story for these reasons, as the only record of this relatively important event is found in the work of the famous Ottoman traveler Evliyâ Çelebi.[15]Those who argue that the narration is not correct say that Evliyâ Çelebi "resorted to exaggerations and fantasies to add color to his work".[15]

Historian İlber Ortaylı has described Hezârfen's flight many times as "Evliyâ Çelebi's tale, fabricated, legend or story".[16][17]While some academics opposed Ortaylı's discourse, some participated. For example, historian Halil İnalcık supported this claim and said the following about the subject:[18]

I totally agree with İlber Hodja's thoughts and analysis. What is wrong is that these legends in the style of novels for years have been included and read in history books as real. We need to fix them.

— Halil İnalcık In a work prepared by academics such as Halil İnalcık, Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu and İlber Ortaylı, the existence of Hezârfen was mentioned with the following sentences:[15]

Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi, who is claimed to have flew from the Galata Tower to Üsküdar by wearing his wings, has no meaning beyond legend, as it is only mentioned in Evliyâ Çelebi's Seyahatnâme and cannot be confirmed by any other source.

Those who argue that the incident happened

According to the belief, Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi made his flight from the top of the Galata Tower in Beyoğlu. After İlber Ortaylı said "fabring, story" about Ahmed Çelebi, some historians objected to this situation by sharing their own personal views. Historian Bahaeddin Yediyıldız, who was the Head of the Department of History at Hacettepe University at the time, stated that "the fact that the events were discussed one by one and said 'This is true, this is wrong' did not comply with the methodology of the science of history, and that it was wrong to explain that there were no documents about Hezârfen in the Ottoman archives as 'It was not in history'.[18]Yediyıldız also stated that it is contrary to the scientific mentality to reject this event strictly because there is no document today.

It is a great provision to say that there is no document. For today, researchers may not have [such a] document, but no one can predict that a document will not come out tomorrow.

— Bahaeddin Yediyıldız[18] Historian Yusuf Halaçoğlu, who was the President of the Turkish Historical Society at the time, stated that he did not agree with what Ortaylı said and said the following on the subject:

There is an exaggeration in Evliyâ Çelebi's travel points, but I don't believe Çelebi will write something that doesn't exist as a fantasy. Ortaylı cannot prove the absence of Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi.

— Yusuf Halaçoğlu[18] This issue was discussed in a part of the Back Room of History program prepared and presented by journalist and history researcher Murat Bardakçı. Murat Bardakçı said that Lagârî Hasan Çelebi's flying with cartridges was historically "correct" due to an engraving from that period, and that Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi's flight was "controversial" because it was only located in Evliyâ Çelebi. The historian Erhan Afyoncu, who was in the program, defended the flight of Hezârfen and IV. He said that the "tip" that Murad was said to give to Hezârfen should be included in the records and that this record will be reached in the future.[19]In addition, Afyoncu expressed his opinion against the allegations that Evliyâ Çelebi resorted to exaggerations and fantasies in his own travel.[19]

In my opinion, why should Evliyâ Çelebi lie? Because these two are not very big aviation technology. These are the shows at the festivals.

— Erhan Afyoncu[19] Aerodynamic views It is thought that Hezârfen Ahmed would not be able to make such a flight in terms of aerodynamics science.The elevation difference between the Galata Tower and Doğancılar Square, which is said to be the place where the flight was made, is approximately 61 meters, and the distance between the two points is about 3,358 meters.[20]In addition, the height of the tower is approximately 66.9 meters from the ground, that is, the height of the water in total is around 127.9 meters. The height of Doğancılar Square from the water is 45 meters.[20]According to these data, in order for Çelebi to perform the flight, it must travel 41 meters horizontally, while lowering a maximum of 1 meter in the vertical, that is, with a 41:1 gidation rate.[20]However, even with flight instruments called "delta wing", which are made with the lightest materials today, it is almost impossible to reach this rate.[15]The average gliding ratio of modern delta wings is 15:1.[20]In addition, southwestern air was expected to affect the flight in the opposite direction.[15]

Experts on the subject say that according to these calculations, this flight will not be possible, while Hezârfen may have flown only with "port force".[15] Academician Mustafa Kaçar, who wrote on the subject in the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, stated that it is not possible for Hezârfen to cover this distance of 3,358 meters with arm and muscle power, by imitating the birds and flaping their wings.[1]Those who defend the flight state that at this point Evliyâ Çelebi escaped to "exaggeration" in the narration; those who do not defend claim that the flight is Evliyâ Çelebi's "fantasy".

Identity Although the only historical source about Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi and his flight is a paragraph in Evliyâ Çelebi'sSeyahatnâme, many different beliefs have evolved about Ahmed Çelebi. Naturally, its historical identity has also been discussed by many historians and researchers.

It is said that Ahmed Çelebi, whose life was almost nothing known, was called "hezârfen" among the people due to his extensive knowledge during his lifetime, that he was a flying enthusiast, that he was affected by the flight of birds, that he made flight attempts over time, that he was inspired by the 10th century inventor İsmail bin Hammâd al-Cevherî, and that he managed to fly after the Berber physicist Abbas Kasım bin Firnâs (c. 810–8887) with the nicknames he developed.[21]According to these beliefs, Hezârfen, who thoroughly examined and learned Cevherî's findings, examined the flight of the birds and prepared false wings before his historical flight, and conducted experiments in Okmeydanı to measure the degree of durability of his wings.[21]

Cultural influences

Postage stamp issued for the Civil Aviation Congress in 1950, referring to the flight of Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi. Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi is seen as one of the most notable people in Turkish aviation history and has gained a very important cultural place in Turkey. He can give examples of some of Hezârfen Ahmed's cultural influences:

The representative picture of the PTT administration's 20 cents, light blue and dark green, of the three commemorative stamps released for the International Civil Aviation Congress held in Istanbul on October 17, 1950, depicts Hezârfen Ahmed's flight from Galata Tower toÜsküdar.[22] Istanbul Hezarfen Airport, which is within the borders of Istanbul'sÇatalca district and is located in the north of Büyükçekmece Lake and has been serving as Turkey's first internationally registered private airport since 1992, got its name from Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi.[23] The 1996 film Istanbul Under My Wings, directed by Mustafa Altıoklar, IV. He covered Istanbul during the Murad period and the flight story of Hezârfen Ahmed.[24]In the movie, Hezârfen Ahmed was played by Ege Aydan, Lagârî Hasan Çelebi was played by Okan Bayülgen and Evliyâ Çelebi was played by Haluk Bilginer.[25] Ahmed Çelebi was the subject of a short three-dimensional animation in late 2010.[26] The story of Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi was told in the Hezârfen Ney Concerto, which was composed by Fazıl Say in 2012. Hezarfen Ney Concerto; It consists of four interconnected parts called Istanbul 1632, Galata Tower, Flight and Algerian Exile.[27] Between 2010 and 2017, a cartoon called Küçük Hezarfen, which tells about Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi's childhood experiences and his curiosity for flight, was broadcast on TRT Children's channel.[28][29][30] He was played by Sercan Tutal in some episodes of the cartoon series called Pırdino, which was broadcast on TRT Çocuk channel for a while.[31] It was played and shown by Ushan Çakır in the Magnificent Century: Kösem series broadcast between 2015-2017 and its flight.[32] Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi was referred to in the 20th episode "In Pursuit of Invention" of the Rafadan Tayfa cartoon broadcast on TRT Çocuk since 2014.[33]

First, he practiced by flying over the pulpit of Okmeydanı eight or nine times with eagle wings, using the force of the wind. Then, as Sultan Murad Khan (Murad IV) was watching from the Sinan Pasha mansion at Sarayburnu, he flew from the very top of the Galata Tower (in contemporary Karaköy) and landed in the Doğancılar Square in Üsküdar, with the help of the south-west wind. Murad Khan then rewarded him for his feat with a sack of gold coins, saying: "This man is uncanny: he is capable of doing anything he wishes. It is not right to surround oneself with such people". True to his word, he then exiled Ahmed to Algeria, where the scientist remained until his death.

— Evliyâ Çelebi

Legacy

• One of 4 airports in Istanbul is named the "Hezarfen Airfield".
• A 1996 feature-length film, "Istanbul Beneath My Wings" (İstanbul Kanatlarımın Altında) concerns the lives of Hezârfen Ahmet Çelebi, his brother and purported rocket aviator Lagari Hasan Çelebi (per the same single source, Çelebi, as the above story), and Ottoman society in the early 17th century, as witnessed and narrated by Evliya Çelebi.
• The Turkish children’s TV show “Little Hezarfen” (Küçük Hezarfen) is about Hezârfen Ahmet Çelebi’s childhood, though the events that occur within the show are likely fictitious and/or exaggerated. A main theme within the show, however, is Hezarfen’s desire to build wings that allow him to fly.

See also

• Lagâri Hasan Çelebi
• Abbas ibn Firnas