The pen-name of Cemālī is also used by
Sufi poet Meḥmed Cemāleddīn (d.
1164/1744), which may result in a confusion of the two in mecmū‘a and cönk collections. In many of these the same pen-name also appears for
Cemāl-i
Ḫalvetī (d.899/1494), again leading to a possible confusion.
Cemālī is the nephew of famous
court poet Şeyḫī (d.
832/1428-9).He may have also been called Şeyḫoġlı Cemālī or Şeyḫoġlı, leading to his
confusion with the poet Şeyḫoġlı (d. after
803/1401-- before 812/1409). His date of birth is unknown. However it
is generally accepted that he was born around 813-815 [1410-1412 CE], inferred from the estimation
that he was around the age of twenty when he wrote an appendum to Şeyḫī’s Ḫusrev ü Şīrīn. Cemālī was most probably from
Karaman, although he may also
have been from Bursa.
In addition to the nisba of el-Aḳşehrī,
the nisba of el-Aḳsarāyī also appears in
some manuscripts. Both towns indicate a Karamanid origin. Cemālī may have received his
education in the Germiyān Beylik (Kütahya), the home town of his uncle Şeyḫī. Poems in Arabic and Persian in his Dīvān show that he was well-educated and versed
in these languages. He may also have been a musician. A number of inscriptions in
Bursa composed by Cemālī indicate that he may have
spent part of his life in this city. Cemālī moved to Istanbul during the reign of Meḥmed
II. His Dīvān includes several poems in praise of the conquest of
Constantinople.Cemālī’s own reference to his old
age at the time of his participation in the siege of Albania (Siege of Shkodra) in 883 AH [1478 CE] is our only definite source to the last years of his
life. Cemālī’s Dīvān abounds in poetry dedicated to Meḥmed II to whom his other works
are also dedicated, but no reference is made anywhere to Bāyezīd II. In contrast to the
statements found in biographical dictionaries, where Cemālī is shown to have lived to
the end of the reign of Bāyezīd II,
we must thus conclude that he probably died at the end of the reign of Meḥmed II or in the early years
of the reign of Bāyezīd II.
In Osmanlı Müellifleri it is stated that his grave is located near the lodge of
Emīr Buḫārī outside of Edirnekapı.
Der Beyān-ı Meşaḳḳat-i Sefer ü Żarūret ve Mülāzemet
This mes̱nevī consisting of 73 couplets
figures at the end of Cemālī’s
Dīvān. Its topic is the siege of Albania (Siege of Shkodra) in 883; the hardships the author had in his participation in the siege; the
geoography, climate and people of Albania. Show more
Cemālī’s Dīvān was written after Meḥmed II’s siege of Albania in 883. Its only extant copy consists of 54 folios. It includes
several poems in praise of Meḥmed II and
the siege of Constantinople. Also in
the Dīvān are poems in Arabic and
Persian. Show more
All pages are in golden frame; all headings are illuminated. Couplets in which
figure the name of Meḥmed II are
in gold. The script is in the style of Naskh belonging to the period of Meḥmed II. Facsimile published
in:Derdiyok, İ. Çetin. Cemâlî: Hayatı, Eserleri
ve Dîvânı. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.
Cemālī’s Dīvān was written after Meḥmed II’s siege of Albania in 883. Its only extant copy consists of 54 folios. It includes
several poems in praise of Meḥmed II and
the siege of Constantinople. Also in
the Dīvān are poems in Arabic and
Persian.
A mes̱nevī of 4593 couplets which tells
the love story between Hümā, the son of the
Arabic ruler Menūşek, and Hümāyūn, the daughter of the Chinese emperor.
After several obstacles and adventures, the lovers unite and live happily everafter.
Although the mes̱nevī was commonly known
under the name Hümā ve
Hümāyūn, the name given by the author in the work is Gülşen-i ‘Uşşāḳ. Cemālī also specifies that he was
asked to compose a work for Murad II by
the famous vizier Ḫalīl
Paşa. Show more
The date of composition is 850
An incomplete copy with missing folios, by a careful copyist. This manuscript
used to be under the personal possession of Hayri Akyüz. Description taken from:
67-68, 274-275.
A mes̱nevī of religious, moral, Sufi
content, consisting of 4970 couplets (4913 in the edition, plus 36 Arabic and
Persian, plus 21 couplets not in the manuscript selected as primary). Show more
Cemālī’s Dīvān was written after Meḥmed II’s siege of Albania in 883. Its only extant copy consists of 54 folios. It includes
several poems in praise of Meḥmed II and
the siege of Constantinople. Also in
the Dīvān are poems in Arabic and
Persian.
This is probably the ḳaṣīde referred to
in the Mifṭāḥu’l-Ferec, which Cemālī says to includes strange
arts. According to Cemālī, in
this poem, letters from two couplets make up one couplet; Persian phrases come out
of Turkish phrases, Arabic phrases come out of Persian phrases. In its only copy of
18 folios, the author’s name appears as Cemālī-i
Faḳīh. Show more
Cemālī’s Dīvān was written after Meḥmed II’s siege of Albania in 883. Its only extant copy consists of 54 folios. It includes
several poems in praise of Meḥmed II and
the siege of Constantinople. Also in
the Dīvān are poems in Arabic and
Persian.
An addendum of 109 couplets in mes̱nevī
form to Şeyḫī’s
Ḫusrev ü Şīrīn, consisting of two parts.
In the first part, Cemālī speaks
of the death of Şeyḫī in a
didactic, religious context, making reference to Sufi teachings; the second part is
a eulogy to Murād II. Here Cemālī does not use his pen-name,
but rather refers to himself as Bāyezīd. This
fact, along with the fact that the addendum was written immediately after the death
of Şeyḫī, leads
scholars to believe that the work was composed in Cemālī’s youth. Show more
Cemālī’s Dīvān was written after Meḥmed II’s siege of Albania in 883. Its only extant copy consists of 54 folios. It includes
several poems in praise of Meḥmed II and
the siege of Constantinople. Also in
the Dīvān are poems in Arabic and
Persian.
