The Problem of Common Pseudonym in Divan Poetry and the Case of Kabûlî

Abstract

In this article, first of all the common pseudonym problem in Divan Poetry has been dealt with, and how the use of common pseudonym was met in the Divan Poetry. The study also deals with the reasons and results of this usage, and what kind of problems it caused during and after the period it existed. The use of common pseudonym with other poets had a negative impact in the Divan Poetry tradition, even the poets changed their pseudonyms for this reason. As a result of using common pseudonyms, poems and poets have been mistaken nowadays and in the past, even there have been quarrels among the poets from time to time. In this regard, the researchers must be very careful, must pay due attention to the details, have recourse to the works of poets, tezkires, the important anthologies of poetry and related publications. This study, then, will examine this question by analyzing the Kabûlî case. In this case, the poets using the pseudonym, "Kabulî", and their poems have been mistaken as Gedizli Kabûlî's, or Sirozlu Kabûlî or Şeyh Mustafa Kabûlî.