Ceylanyar Hanım

Nafiye Ceylanyar Hanım was a consort of Sultan Abdulmecid I of the Ottoman Empire.

Life

She was of Circassian origins and was born in Sochi. Her real name was Nafiye Hanım. She was tall, with long golden hair. Having been presented in the Ottoman Imperial Harem by Adile Sultan, Ceylanyar married Abdülmecid in 1851, that he had fallen in love with her after seeing her dance. Her family received land and income. She was given the title of "Fifth Ikbal". On 31 March 1852, she gave birth to her only child, a son, Şehzade Mehmed Rüşdi in the Old Çırağan Palace. The baby died at the age of nine months. The same year, she was elevated to the title of "Fourth Ikbal".
In early 1853, she was elevated to the title of "Third Ikbal", and in 1854, she was elevated to the title of "Second Ikbal". She died of tuberculosis in the Feriye Palace, on 27 December 1855, and was buried in the mausoleum of Gülistü Kadin, Fatih Mosque, Istanbul.

In literature

Ceylanyar is a character in Hıfzı Topuz's historical novel Abdülmecit: İmparatorluk Çökerken Sarayda 22 Yıl: Roman .