Ilmiye

The Ilmiye ("laicalism") is one of four institutions that existed within the state organisation of the Ottoman Empire, the other three being the Imperial (mülkiye) institution; the military (seyfiye) institution; and the administrative (kalemiye) institution. The function of the Ilmiye was to propagate the Muslim religion, to ensure that Islamic law was enforced properly within the courts, as well as to ensure that it was interpreted and taught properly within the Ottoman school system. The development of the Ilmiye took place over the course of the sixteenth century, absorbing the Ulama, the educated class of Muslim legal scholars, in the process.