Dr. Ildiko Beller Hann

Biography

Ildiko Beller-Hann is an Associate Professor Emerita at the University of Copenhagen, where she focuses on the histories and cultures of the Turkic-speaking world, with a special emphasis on regions such as Xinjiang, Central Asia, and Turkey. She combines text-based research with empirical methods and has conducted extensive fieldwork in northeastern Turkey, northwestern China (Xinjiang), and Kazakhstan. Her primary research interests include historical anthropology, social support, kinship, oral and literate traditions, and the construction of historical identity. Ildiko received her Ph.D. in Turkish Studies from the University of Cambridge and a habilitation degree in Central Asian Studies from Humboldt University in Berlin. She has been involved in various research projects, including studies on the mixed economy and social dynamics in rural Eastern Xinjiang. Ildiko's work has contributed significantly to the understanding of cultural history, state-society relations, and modern ethnographies of Central Asia. Through her teaching, she imparts knowledge on themes such as the history of modern Turkish literature and the impacts of globalization and nationalism in Central Asian contexts.

Research Interests

Experience