Dr. Philip Stern

Biography

Philip J. Stern is a Professor of History at Duke University since 2024. His research focuses on the legal, political, intellectual, and business histories that shaped the British Empire. His interests explore the role of companies and corporations in colonial enterprise, overseas exploration, cartography, historiography of British India, early modern economic thought, and digital data visualization as approaches to the problem of colonial sovereignty. He has published significant works, including 'Empire, Incorporated: Corporations Built British Colonialism' which argues that corporations drove colonial expansion and governance, contributing to the overlap of sovereign and commercial power that continues to shape the relationship between nations. In addition to his extensive publications, Stern has received multiple grants, such as the National Endowment for the Humanities for his project 'Sandcastle Workflow: Malleable System Visualizing Pre-modern Maps'. He also co-directed the Virtual Augmented Reality Digital Humanities Institute (VARDHI) Conference, furthering the use of technology in humanities research.

Research Interests