TRENDEFRAtlas of the Sultans · Glossary
Term · Provinces and land
Also known as: sancak, liva
A banner; the military unit it represented; and the administrative district governed by a sanjak bey.
The word first meant a banner; because the sanjak bey received a banner as a sign of his authority, the region he governed was also called a sanjak. Sanjaks were subdivisions of the provinces and were divided into kazas. The sanjak bey commanded the timar-holding sipahis of his district.
Source: TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, article “SANCAK” (in Turkish); text condensed for the atlas.