Ildiko Beller-Hann

Short presentation

After studying Turkish, Archaeology, and English at the Lórand Eötvös University in Budapest, I received my Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge (in Turkish Studies) and my habilitation degree  from the Humboldt University, Berlin in Central Asian Studies. My main interests span the histories, societies and cultures of the Turkic speaking world, with special focus on Xinjiang, Central Asia and Turkey. In my work I combine text-based research with empirical methods of data collection. I have conducted extensive fieldwork in NE Turkey, NW China (Xinjiang) and Kazakhstan. 

Primary fields of research

societies and cultures  of the Turkic speaking world

historical anthropology

social support, kinship

oral and literate traditions

local history

the construction of history

history and identity

regional focus: Xinjiang (NW China), Central Asia, Turkey

CV

EDUCATION 

• MA in English, Archaeology, Turkish, Eötvös Lóránd University, Budapest
• PhD, Faculty of Oriental Studies (Newnham College) University of Cambridge
• 2005 habilitation degree, Seminar for Central Asian Studies,  Humboldt University, Berlin

Current research

Feudalism, Socialism and the Present Mixed Economy in Rural Eastern Xinjiang (joint project with Chris Hann)

Between homogenization and fragmentation: textual practices as strategies of integration and identity maintenance among the Uyghurs of Xinjiang, China

http://ccrs.ku.dk/research/centres-and-projects/between-homogenization-and-fragmentation/

Supported by the Velux Foundation

Project start: 1st September 2017

Teaching

Perspectives on Central Asia: regions, networks and identities on the periphery of the great powers

China’s Minorities

Continuity and Change among the Uyghur of Xinjiang

The interaction of nomadic groups and sedentary societies in Central Asia in the course of history

State policies and local responses in Western China

Religious currents in Central Asia

Qualitative research methods

Who controls the past? History and nationalism in Central Asia

Ethnographies of Central Asia

Topics in cultural history

Topics on state and society in modern Central Asia

Introduction to modern Turkish literature (with original and translated texts)

Xinjiang: past and present

The Silk Road

Travel in Central Asia: pilgrims, merchants, missionaries, explorers and adventurers along the Silk Road

Great Games, Old and New. Politics and Society in Modern Central Asia

The Literature of the Traveller, Travel in Literature

China’s Borderlands

Nationalism and Ethnicity in Central Asia, Afghanistan and Iran

Empires, states, tribes. An Introduction to the history and peoples of Central Eurasia

Readings of Turkish texts for advanced students

Post-Soviet Transformation in Central Asia and Afghanistan

Scientific Theory for Students of China and Tibetan Studies

Islam in Central Asia: from Everyday Islam to Radical Movements

Middle Eastern Literatures: Turkish literature