Thispublication resultedfrom alarge-scaleresearch project IRCICA undertookon thesubjectof the waqf institution.The waqfasatypeof foundation was born in the Muslimworld to serve a variety of functions ranging from the provision of basic means of subsistence to education, from charitable deeds to building mosques. The waqf also served as a model and found application outside the Muslim world with certain adaptations. In this research project IRCICA aims tocollect theoriginal sourceson waqfs such as theestablishmentdeeds, thedocuments resultingfrom theiroperationsandifany, thereports on their functions, to study them and to make them available for researchers. Special consideration is given to the waqfs which are at present located outside the OIC member countries, in particular those addressing the Muslim communities and minorities. The project started with a focus on the waqfs datingfrom the Ottoman periodin the Balkan countries. The firstoutcome is a three-volumepublication devotedtothe waqfs in Bulgaria. In thisproject the Centre collected and transliterated the deeds of 290 waqfs established in Bulgaria and published these transliterations together with the reproductionsof theoriginaldocuments.Thedeedsof10of these waqfsarein Arabicandallothers in Ottoman Turkish. In thebookthetextsof thedeeds are grouped according to the cities or districts. A summary of each document is provided, to make it useful also for those who do not read the Ottoman language.