Saints and Tombs of Ankara

Huseyin Gazi

Huseyin Gazi is a warrior-saint (gazi) believed to have been martyred fighting the Byzantines during the Islamization of Anatolia; folk tradition names him the father of Battal Gazi and a seyyid. His historicity is largely legendary and the sources conflict. His tomb atop Huseyingazi Hill in Mamak originated as a 13th-century lodge, was repaired in 1378 and again under Mehmed the Conqueror (1463). (Sources: Mamak District Governorate; Kultur Envanteri.)

Ahi Elvan

Ahi Elvan (Haci Elvan b. Mehmed Bey) was a figure of late-14th-century Ankara's Ahi (futuwwa) milieu. He built the Ahi Elvan Mosque (Samanpazari/Altindag); per the minbar inscription the mosque was renovated by him in 1413. Sources describe him primarily as the mosque's founder; his grave is associated with the mosque complex. His exact death date is unknown (late 14th century). (Sources: TDV Islamic Encyclopedia, 'Ahi Elvan Camii'; Kultur Envanteri.)

Sheikh Izzeddin

Sheikh Izzeddin was a 14th-century Sufi sheikh and teacher in Ankara whose students were largely within the Ahi organization; an Ottoman waqf document calls him a seyyid. His death date is disputed: the inscription is read either as 705/1306 or 752/1352. His tomb in Ulus/Haci Bayram is a reconstruction built on the foundations of the original demolished in the 1930s. (Sources: Kultur Envanteri, 'Seyh Izzettin Tomb/Mosque'; Konyali, History of Ankara.)

Bunyamin Ayashi

Bunyamin Ayashi (real name Mustafa) was a Sufi sheikh and a founding figure of the Bayrami-Melami branch. He is presented as a successor of either Omer Dede Sikkini or Haci Bayram-i Veli; the Melami line continued through his successor Pir Ali Aksarayi. His death date is disputed (c. 916/1510, 918/1512, or 926/1520). His tomb is in the Dervisimam quarter of Ayas district, Ankara, at the northeast corner of the mosque bearing his name. (Sources: TDV Islamic Encyclopedia, 'Bunyamin Ayasi'; Abdulkerim Erdogan, Ankara Velileri.)

Ahi Sharafaddin (Ahi Sharafaddin Mehmed)

A member of a leading 14th-century ahi (guild-fraternity) family of Ankara; he is buried in the mausoleum built in 731/1330-31 for his father Ahi Hüsameddin. He died in 751/1350-51. The tomb stands beside the Ahi Şerafeddin Mosque, popularly known as the Arslanhane Mosque.

Haji Bayram-i Wali

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He is the founder (pir) of the Bayramiyye, the first Sufi order founded by a Turkish mystic born in Anatolia. Born around 1352 in the village of Zülfazl (Solfasol) near Ankara, he became a disciple of Somuncu Baba and died in Ankara in 833/1430. His tomb stands beside the mosque bearing his name, which he had built shortly before his death.