A kadiluk (Ottoman Turkish: قاضیـلق, kadıluk) was the jurisdiction of a kadi,[1] an Islamic judge under the Ottoman Empire. They typically consisted of a major city and its surrounding villages, although some kadis occupied other positions within the imperial administration.[2]
Legal issues
Kadis oversaw administration of imperial justice, which was particularly important for maintaining order and local control over the sipahis granted fiefs (timar) during the early Ottoman expansion.[citation needed]
Kazas
Within the imperial administration, kadiluks also initially functioned as the kazas, the main subdivisions of the sanjaks,[3] with the kadi overseeing his district's taxation and military conscription.[4][5] These functions were eventually handed over to a separate official called the kaymakam, and the empire's kazas were fully distinguished from its kadiluks in 1864 as part of the Tanzimat reforms.[3]