A Kadiluk, in some cases equivalent to a Kaza

Qadaa

Kaza or caza , meaning "jurisdiction" and often translated "district," is a term for a second-level administrative division in Iraq and Lebanon and for a third-level administrative division in Jordan and the former Ottoman Empire....

, was a local administrative subdivision

Subdivisions of the Ottoman Empire

The subdivisions of the Ottoman Empire were administrative divisions of the state organisation of the Ottoman Empire. Outside this system were various types of vassal and tributary states....

 of the Ottoman empire

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...

, which was the territory of a Kadı

Qadi

Qadi is a judge ruling in accordance with Islamic religious law appointed by the ruler of a Muslim country. Because Islam makes no distinction between religious and secular domains, qadis traditionally have jurisdiction over all legal matters involving Muslims...

, or judge.

There could be several kadiluks in a sanjak

Sanjak

Sanjaks were administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire. Sanjak, and the variant spellings sandjak, sanjaq, and sinjaq, are English transliterations of the Turkish word sancak, meaning district, banner, or flag...

. The kadı's duties extended beyond those of a modern judge

Judge

A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...

; in addition to law enforcement, kadiluks were relevant to matters such as taxation and conscription.

Although every Kaza had a Kadı

Qadi

Qadi is a judge ruling in accordance with Islamic religious law appointed by the ruler of a Muslim country. Because Islam makes no distinction between religious and secular domains, qadis traditionally have jurisdiction over all legal matters involving Muslims...

, not every Kadı was in charge of a Kaza; Kadı's positions moved, over time, with demographic and political changes. In the Tanzimat

Tanzimat

The Tanzimât , meaning reorganization of the Ottoman Empire, was a period of reformation that began in 1839 and ended with the First Constitutional Era in 1876. The Tanzimât reform era was characterized by various attempts to modernize the Ottoman Empire, to secure its territorial integrity against...

reforms of 1864, Kadiluks were decoupled from Kazas.