Kavsnâmeler, genel anlamıyla ok ve yayı anlatan risalelere verilen addır. Kavsnâmelerin içeriğinde; ok atmanın sevabı, dini niteliğe sahip olduğunu ispatlamak amacıyla ok atmakla ilgili ayet ve hadisler, Adem peygamberden başlayarak ok ve yayın tarihi, ok atmanın yay tutmanın nasıl olacağı, yay ve okun ölçüleri, meşhur atıcılar, ok menzilleri, ok yarışmalarına katılan kişilerin isimleri, atış mesafeleri, atıcıların özellikleri vb. bulunmaktadır. Tanıtımını yaptığımız yazılış tarihi ve müellifi bilinmeyen “Kavsnâme” adlı okçuluk risâlesi, Edirne Selimiye Kütüphanesi Elyazmaları Bölümü’nde yer alan bir mecmua içindedir. Otuz üç bâb üzere oluşturulmuştır. Ok atmanın faziletleri, Hz. Muhammed’in ok atmakla ilgili hadisleri, Adem peygamberden itibaren ok ve yayın tarihi, ok atmanın adapları, ok ve yay nasıl tutulur, ok ve yayın ölçüleri, atıcıların vücut şekilleri ve yay talim şekilleri otuz üç bâb içinde verilen başlıklarla anlatılmıştır. Müellif, Kavsnâme’de Murhif ibn ‘Abdü’l-kerîm’in “Kitâbü’r-remy” adlı kitabını kaynak olarak kullanmıştır. Hacimli bir eser olmamasına rağmen, Kavsname’de 23 râvinin adı ve 16 okçu ya da bu konuda kitap yazmış kişinin adı geçmektedir. Bu da eserin kaynak çeşitliliğini ve önemini göstermesi bakımından önemlidir. Çalışmada; kavsnâmeler hakkında genel bir bilgi verilmiş, önemli kaynak olma vasfına sahip ok ve okçuluk tarihiyle ilgili eserlerden bahsedildikten sonra, Edirne Selimiye Kütüphanesi Elyazmaları Bölümü’nde bulunan “Kavsnâme” tanıtılmış, içeriği hakkında bilgi verilmiş, bâb başlıkları altında o bâbda geçen konular özetlenerek anlatılmıştır. Devamında çeviri yazılı metin örneği verilmiştir.

Works describing the rules of manners for shooting arrows, ranges, arrows and bows are called kavsnâme. Originating from the Arabian “kavs” and the Persian “nâme”, kavsnâmes usually narrates about the religious characteristics of arrow and bow, the way of using arrow and bow, the terms for archery, the sizes and dimensions of arrow and bow, shooting arrows and archers. Turks, have used arrow and bow, which belongs to their own culture of war, throughout the geography, stretching out from the Middle East to Anatolia and from Anatolia to Balkans, by adding the characteristics of arrow and bow from the cultures they encountered. As molded with Islamic culture, archery gained a religious and motivational characteristic by the hadiths of Prophet Muhammad. According to the Islamic resources, arrow and bow were first given to Prophet Adam. Nevertheless, it was Prophet Muhammad who specifically supported war sports as archery, wrestling, and equestrianism etc. It is known that there are approximately 40 hadiths describing the religious characteristics of arrow and bow and the virtues of shooting arrows. Sacred terms existing before Islam about arrow, bow and horse, attracted considerable attention as they were supported by the hadiths of Prophet Muhammad, and several works have been translated and copyrighted works were written about this issue. Cahiz, who lived during the 9th century and who was a writer about Islam, tells the mastership of Turks about shooting arrows and equestrianism as follows: “Turk carries his weapon, horse and everything related to harnessing together with him. Turk shoots arrows to the four winds on a fast running horse. More than half of the life of a Turk passes on horse; Turk is a shepherd, and a veterinarian, a cavalry and a warrior.” Chaters on arrows and archery were usually studied in sections of books related to horses and equestrianism. Works written in the Islamic world related to horses and equestrianism were concentrated on two different topics: works related to diseases of horses and their treatments were usually written under the title of baytarnâme; works related to equestrianism, archery, and swordsmanship were written under the titles as kitabu’l-hayl, kitâbul-fürûsiyye, hayl-nâme, feres-nâme, and esb-nâme. Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad used in kavsnâmes and also in this article, as “Power means shooting arrows”, “Learn archery and equestrianism”, “Shooting arrows is a salutary game”, “Shoot! Sons of Ismail, your ancestor was an archer”, “right of a son on his father is to make him teach Kur’an, writing and shooting arrows”, show the importance given to archery by Islam. Word of ‘rema’ in Kur’an-ı Kerim, Enfâl 17 was commented as shooting arrows in kavsnâmes. Books of authors as Ebû Hâşim el-Bâverdî, Tâhir-i Belhî, İshâk er-Reffân, Abdurrahman et-Taberî, Ebû Câ‘fer el-Hîrevî, Ebû Mûsâ Harrâs, Behram b. Bâbek, Kadı Muhiddin were the primary works related to arrow and bow. Books as Hulasa (Kitâb fî İlmi’n-Nüşşâb; Kitâb fî-Riyâzâti’l-Hayl; Kitâb fi’-İlmi’l-Musâbaka), Kavsnâme of Kemânkeş Mustafa Efendi, Telhîs-i Resâilât-ı Rumât (Archery Book) of Mustafa Kânî Bey, Türk Okçuluğu (Turkish Archery), Ok Meydanı ve Okçuluk Tarihi (Arrow Field and History of Archery), Türk Okçuluğu ve Sultan Mahmud’un Ok Günlüğü (Turkish Archery and Arrow Diary of Sultan Mahmud) are among the main resources of modern - day Turkish archery. Especially in recent years, books about arrow and bow and arrow shows and contests draw interest. Foundations and associations are being established about archery; the archery clubs in universities are conducting researches. Archery books written in Turkish are prosaic works, in some archery works parts of poems as beyit and kıta can be found as well. These books are assessed in two groups: works in the first group mention about the importance and good deed of shooting arrows, verses of Kur’an and hadiths related to shooting arrows, prophets starting from Prophet Adam and