NEF'I

born c. 1572, Hasankale, Ottoman Empire died 1635, Constantinople pseudonym of mer, also called Nef'i of Erzurum one of the greatest classical Ottoman poets and one of the most famous satirists and panegyrists in Ottoman Turkish literature. Little is known of Nef'i's early life; he served as a minor government official in the reign of the sultan Ahmed I (160317). Not until the time of Sultan Murad IV (162340), himself a poet, did Nef'i gain court favour. He became famous as a court panegyrist and as a powerful satirist. Except for his patron, the sultan, Nef'i attacked the highest public figures with his vituperative pen. These sketches, often obscene and vulgar, reveal his most candid opinions of those in power. He often satirized a figure he had eulogized earlier in his career. Nef'i's biting invective earned him many enemies at the court; Bayram Pasa, deputy prime minister and brother-in-law of the sultan, finally secured his execution in 1635. Nef'i is considered one of the finest qasida (ode) writers of Ottoman literature. His famous divan, or collection of poems, contains many examples of his eloquent poetic style. Though his qasidas, mainly eulogies, are considered to be extremely tasteful and proper, his satiric works are held to be calumnious and abusive. Nef'i also left a Persian divan praised by his patron, Murad IV, who was a great admirer of Persian letters.