Series
Volume 6
New Directions in Turkish Studies
See Related
History JournalsEmail Newsletters
Sign up for our email newsletters to get customized updates on new Berghahn publications.
The Making of Turkish Contemporary History
Voices Intertwined
Edited by Berna Pekesen
264 pages, bibliog., index
ISBN 978-1-80758-019-3 $135.00/£104.00 / Hb / Not Yet Published (October 2026)
eISBN 978-1-80758-020-9 eBook Not Yet Published
Description
Bringing together diverse disciplinary perspectives, The Making of Turkish Contemporary History explores the complexities of historiography by focusing on often-overlooked decades of the post-1950s. It examines tensions between global research trends and national narratives, highlighting the role of disciplinary norms as well as the emergence of inter- and post-disciplinary approaches. It also addresses the growing influence of grassroots historians who challenge state-controlled interpretations of the past. As struggles over historical interpretation intensify, the authors offer a timely analysis of how contemporary history becomes a battleground for ideological dominance in an authoritarian context. Engaging and thought-provoking, this is essential reading for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of knowledge production, contested historical truths, and the political stakes of writing contemporary history.
Berna Pekesen is a historian and the founder and director of the DFG-Scientific Network for the Contemporary History of Turkey at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany, as well as a Review Editor for the Turkish Historical Review. A former professor of Modern Turkish History at Duisburg-Essen, she has held research posts in Bochum, Hamburg, and Basel. She has published extensively on modern and contemporary Turkey, with a particular emphasis on nationalism, nation-building, political violence, social history, and historiography. She is the editor of Turkey in Turmoil: Social Change and Political Radicalization During the 1960s (2020) and is currently preparing a new volume on the social and economic history of Turkey.



