Latifî was born Abdüllatif Hatibzâde[1] into a notable family in Kastamonu and was educated there.
He worked as accountant and katib (secretary) in various vakifs (pious foundation), including Belgrade, Constantinople, Rhodes, and Egypt.
[2] His major work was Tezkiretü'ş-Şuara (Memoirs of the Poets), which was the second tezkire in chronological order after that of Sehi Bey.
[4][5] The Sultan was so pleased that he appointed Latifi as secretary at the "Ayyub al-Ansari" complex endowment.
[1] He died by drowning when the ship he was traveling to Yemen sank in the Red Sea.