See Muqatta'at

Muqatta'at

Muqatta'at are unique letter combinations that begin certain suras of the Qur'an. Muqatta'at literally means abbreviated or shortened. Their meanings remain unclear and are considered by most Muslims to be divine secrets....

 for the letter combinations of the Qur'an.

One of the most important topics of the Ottoman

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 financial

FINANCIAL

FINANCIAL is the weekly English-language newspaper with offices in Tbilisi, Georgia and Kiev, Ukraine. Published by Intelligence Group LLC, FINANCIAL is focused on opinion leaders and top business decision-makers; It's about world’s largest companies, investing, careers, and small business. It is...

 history is the institution of muqata'ah which functioned as an instrument in financing state expenses. The Ottoman bureaucrats of finance, by means of this institution, tried to meet state currency needs, raise loans in the interior and incorporate private entrepreneurship in the financing of the state.

The system of muqata'ah was a form of tax farming

Tax farming

Farming is a technique of financial management, namely the process of commuting , by its assignment by legal contract to a third party, a future uncertain revenue stream into fixed and certain periodic rents, in consideration for which commutation a discount in value received is suffered...

where a district or individual agreed to pay the state a fixed sum in return for fiscal autonomy and limited state intervention.