The Origin of Umur Bey and Lala Şahin Pasha in the Light of Endowment Documents

Abstract

Of the many important subjects handled by contemporary researchers, two most interesting are the identity of Governor Umur and the question as to whether at Bolu, which lies at the edge of Kastamonu, there was a principality named after him. Contemporany Byzantine and Eastern sources provide relatively consistent information regarding these issues. Still, certain differences between sources and modern scholars’ interpretations of them make it almost impossible to find a solution. Pachymeres, the Byzantine historian, who is the first to mention the Amourioi family, also conveys Osman Gazi’s first appearance in history together with the account of this family. Until recently, prosopographers believed that Amourius and Yavlak Arslan were the same person. However, newly uncovered documents, as revealed in this study, correct misconceptions about the origins of Lala Shahin Pasha, which suggest the Kayi tribe. Endowment documents that assign Umur Bey and Lala Shahin a common ancestry, suggest a contingent linkage between this lineage and Kipchak, or possibly, Mongol ancestry.