The Europeans called him "The Magnificent," but the Ottomans called him Kanuni, or "The Lawgiver." The Suleymanie Mosque, built for Suleyman, describes Suleyman in its inscription as Nashiru kawanin al-Sultaniyye , or "Propagator of the Sultanic Laws." The primacy of Suleyman as a law-giver is at the foundation of his place in Islamic history and world view. It is perhaps important to step back a moment and closely examine this title to fully understand Suleyman's place in history.
The word used for law here, kanun, has a very specific reference. In Islamic tradition, the Shari'ah, or laws originally derived from the Qur'an , are meant to be universally applied across all Islamic states. No Islamic ruler has the power to overturn or replace these laws. So what laws was Suleyman "giving" to the Islamic world? What precisely does kanun refer to since it doesn't refer to the main body of Islamic law, the Shari'ah ?
The kanun refer to situational decisions that are not covered by the Shari'ah . Even though the Shari'ah provides all necessary laws, it's recognized that some situations fall outside their parameters. In Islamic tradition, if a case fell outside the parameters of the Shari'ah , then a judgement or rule in the case could be arrived at through analogy with rules or cases that are covered by the Shari'ah . This method of juridical thinking was only accepted by the most liberal school of Shari'ah , Hanifism, so it is no surprise that Hanifism dominated Ottoman law.
The Ottomans, however, elevated kanun into an entire code of laws independent of the Shari'ah. The first two centuries of Ottoman rule, from 1350 to 1550, saw an explosion of kanun rulings and laws, so that by the beginning of the sixteenth century, the kanun were a complete and independent set of laws that by and large were more important than the Shari'ah . This unique situation was brought about in part because of the unique heritage of the Ottomans. In both Turkish and Mongol traditions, the imperial law, or law pronounced by the monarch, was considered sacred. They even had a special word for it: the Turks called it Türe and the Mongols called it Yasa . In the system of Türe and Yasa , imperial law was regarded as the essential and sacred foundation of the empire. When this tradition collided with the Islamic Shari'ah tradition, a compromised system combining both was formed.
The Sultanic laws were first collected together by Mehmed the Conqueror. Mehmed divided the kanun into two separate sets or laws. The first set dealt with the organization of government and the military, and the second set dealt with the taxation and treatment of the peasantry. The latter group was added to after the death of Mehmed and the Ottoman kanun pretty much crystallized into its final form in 1501. Suleyman, for his part, revised the law code, but on the whole the Suleyman code of laws is pretty identical to the 1501 system of laws. However, it was under Suleyman that the laws took their final form; no more revisions were made after his reign. From this point onwards, this code of laws was called, kanun-i 'Osmani , or the "Ottoman laws."
Hope this helps
1. New producers entering the market. (More businesses producing a product or service will mean a greater supply of that product or service.)
2. Government taxes and subsidies. (High taxes on a product may discourage suppliers, whereas government subsidies will encourage more of the product to be supplied. A recent example was government subsidy for the production of ethanol, which caused a strong increase in ethanol production and supplies.)
4. Cost of the product or services. (High input costs to provide the product or service will tend to decrease supply, as profit margins for producers are affected.)
5. Future expectation of prices. This one is tricky to call a "non-price determinant," but it's not a current, actual price. It's the anticipation that prices and sales will be strong at some future point. So, for instance, if there is an expectation that flying cars (or personal helicopters) will someday be a high-demand item that will sell for high prices, that will spur development and supply of such an item.
<em>The only one I left out was #3, effect of mass media advertising -- because that is something that is a determinant of demand rather than supply.</em>
Brazil to Mexico: Latin America's image problem. Infiltration of organized crime in Mexico's local police forces and controversies surrounding the highest levels of government have tarnished the country's image as a model reformer. Argentina is still reeling after its recent default.
