SHAH ISMAIL I’S DECREE OF 1512: AN ANALYSIS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE STRUCTURE OF A CLASSICAL WAQF DOCUMENT

This article is devoted to an analysis of the decree issued in 918 AH (1512) by Shah Ismail I, the founder of the Safavid state, through the prism of the structural and legal principles of classical Islamic waqf documents. The main objective of the study is to determine the extent to which this decree corresponds to the institution of waqf in terms of its content and functional characteristics, despite its formal presentation as a soyurghal act. The article systematically examines the religious and moral preamble of the decree, the detailed description of the endowed property, full exemption from taxes and administrative interference, management mechanisms, and elements of legal validation. The research demonstrates that the extensive references to Qur’anic verses, the use of expressions emphasizing “perpetual donation” and “immutability,” as well as the prohibition against requiring annual renewal of the document, are consistent with the principle of permanent and inviolable property inherent in classical waqf law. These features indicate that the document should be regarded not merely as a reward-oriented soyurghal act, but rather as a hybrid legal model reflecting waqf-type relations. The article offers a comparative analysis of the institutions of soyurghal and waqf, clarifying their functional boundaries within the Safavid administrative system. At the same time, the political and military context of the decree’s issuance- namely Shah Ismail I’s campaigns toward Transoxiana- is taken into consideration, allowing for an assessment of the document’s regional strategic significance. Ultimately, the 1512 decree of Shah Ismail I is evaluated as an early and significant example of the formation of waqf thought and the legal-institutional system during the Safavid period.