1895 Ali Map of Southeast Asia in Ottoman Script

Ali Şeref Paşa (?? - 1907), also known as Hafız Ali Eşref, was a soldier and cartographer. Little is known about Ali's life, but it is known that he was educated as a cartographer in Paris around 1862. While in Paris he published his first atlas, titled Yeni atlas, which included twenty-two maps. Eventually he returned to Istanbul where he became the chief cartographer for the Matbaa-i Amire Printing Press in Beyazit. Among his achievements are an Ottoman Turkish translation of the Kiepert map of Anatolia and an unfinished gigantic 100-sheet map of Anatolia. Oftentimes, Ali's name is misunderstood or identified as two different people. Turks did not have surnames until the surname law was adopted on June 21, 1934. As children they would be given a first name, in this case Ali, and would be known as the son or daughter of their parents. Once they reached adulthood, individuals were given titles if of a higher class, or names that described their work or class. Names were not inherited by children until after 1934. More by this mapmaker...