Otman Baba (c. 1378 – 8 Receb 1478) was a 15th-century dervish who traveled throughout the Ottoman Empire, acquiring a following among Muslims in Bulgaria after 1445 that has developed into his veneration as a saint. After Otman Baba's death, a pilgrimage complex grew around his grave in the present-day Bulgarian village of Teketo, which was made a museum during communism. The hagiography of Otman Baba, written by his disciple Küçük Abdal and regarded by his followers as a canonical text, maintains that Otman Baba performed miracles that proved his superiority to other dervishes and Ottoman authorities, particularly Sultan Mehmed II. Straying from orthodox Islamic tenets, Otman Baba asserted his unity with God and his mastery of divine secrets—as the embodiment of monotheistic religious figures such as Muhammad, Jesus, and Moses. Sources Written five-and-a-half years after his death, the vilâyetname (hagiography) of Otman Baba provides the most thorough if biased depiction of the mystic's life. It differs from similar hagiographic accounts, as it more prominently presents historical information during Otman Baba's lifetime. Written by a direct disciple of Otman Baba named Küçük Abdal (also Köğçek/Köçek Abdal), the original vilâyetname was entitled Haza Kitab-i Risale-i Vilâyet-name-i Sultan Baba, kaddes' Allahu sırruh ül-aziz (This book is a book with description of the miracles of Sultan Baba, let Allah consecrate his tomb). Known manuscripts of the vilâyetname include a 260-page one transcribed by Şeyh Ömer (Umar) bin Dervish Ahmed in 1758 and one from the Bulgarian village of Gorna Krepost taken to Turkey with the Alevi emigrants. A modern Turkish retelling based on various sources also exists. Other sources include the vilâyetname of Otman Baba's successor Demir Baba, which refers to Otman Baba as the "pole of poles" and "Pole of the Universe and Time", symbols of his high spiritual rank; the vilâyetname also avouches Otman Baba's ability to instantly appear and disappear. Another source is the work of Evliya Çelebi, which cites Otman Baba as a leader of ascetic dervishes and a gazi (religious warrior) who helped conquer the Ottoman Empire's European province of Rumelia. Life According to the vilâyetname, Otman Baba was born in 1378 or 1379. He belonged to the Amuca tribe, and spoke an Azeri-accented Oghuz language with few Persian and Arabic influences, like the Muslims in northeastern Bulgaria. Küçük Abdal characterized Otman Baba spiritually as a saint and prophet and physically as imposing, strong, and brave. While those