Duygu Yıldırım
@duyguyildirim.bsky.social
Assistant Professor of History at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. PhD from Stanford. Exploring the intersections of knowledge, medicine, and natural history in the early modern Mediterranean. Istanbulite. Villa I Tatti Berenson Fellow ‘26
Pinned
Duygu Yıldırım
@duyguyildirim.bsky.social
· Nov 14
Duygu Yildirim | University of Tennessee Knoxville - Academia.edu
I am a historian of science and medicine specialized in the early modern Mediterranean and in the Ottoman Empire. Broadly, my work focuses on cross-cultural…
utk.academia.edu
Hello everyone! I’m a historian of science and medicine focusing on the botanical encounters between the Ottoman Empire and early modern Europe. I am currently completing my first monograph, and you can find some of my publications here:
utk.academia.edu/DuyguYildirim
utk.academia.edu/DuyguYildirim
So excited to talk about my forthcoming book today!
February 12, 2026 at 7:17 AM
So excited to talk about my forthcoming book today!
One word in Turkish, one sentence in English.
Konuşamadığımızdandır =
It may be because we have been unable to speak to each other.
Konuşamadığımızdandır =
It may be because we have been unable to speak to each other.
January 30, 2026 at 1:50 PM
One word in Turkish, one sentence in English.
Konuşamadığımızdandır =
It may be because we have been unable to speak to each other.
Konuşamadığımızdandır =
It may be because we have been unable to speak to each other.
Western-style illustration of female reproductive organs in a 17th-century Ottoman manuscript on anatomy.
January 25, 2026 at 12:24 PM
Western-style illustration of female reproductive organs in a 17th-century Ottoman manuscript on anatomy.
It is ironic how AI has turned into a fortune-telling tool in an almost occultist way.
January 19, 2026 at 6:41 PM
It is ironic how AI has turned into a fortune-telling tool in an almost occultist way.
Reposted by Duygu Yıldırım
Oh, so you mean present-day exhibitions of early modern objects? I'll have a think. This volume co-edited by @mackenziecooley.bsky.social, @annatoledano.com, and @duyguyildirim.bsky.social (someone needs to encourage them to hang out here!) may have leads:
www.routledge.com/Natural-Thin...
www.routledge.com/Natural-Thin...
Natural Things in Early Modern Worlds
The essays and original visualizations collected in Natural Things in Early Modern Worlds explore the relationships among natural things - ranging from pollen in a gust of wind to a carnivorous pitche...
www.routledge.com
January 18, 2026 at 8:18 AM
Oh, so you mean present-day exhibitions of early modern objects? I'll have a think. This volume co-edited by @mackenziecooley.bsky.social, @annatoledano.com, and @duyguyildirim.bsky.social (someone needs to encourage them to hang out here!) may have leads:
www.routledge.com/Natural-Thin...
www.routledge.com/Natural-Thin...
An interesting imagery of “a Turk” in Emily Dickinson’s poem, “she died at play”
January 7, 2026 at 5:26 PM
An interesting imagery of “a Turk” in Emily Dickinson’s poem, “she died at play”
First day at I Tatti, the Harvard Center for Italian Renaissance Studies. An extraordinary place to work as an academic, or simply to be mesmerized by the atmosphere to get inspired (peak Renaissance energy)
January 7, 2026 at 5:10 PM
First day at I Tatti, the Harvard Center for Italian Renaissance Studies. An extraordinary place to work as an academic, or simply to be mesmerized by the atmosphere to get inspired (peak Renaissance energy)
As the new year begins, a new adventure starts for me. Beginning next week, I will be a Berenson Fellow at Harvard’s I Tatti through June. I’m honored and excited for this opportunity, and I’m looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones.
A presto, Firenze!
A presto, Firenze!
January 3, 2026 at 5:36 AM
As the new year begins, a new adventure starts for me. Beginning next week, I will be a Berenson Fellow at Harvard’s I Tatti through June. I’m honored and excited for this opportunity, and I’m looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones.
A presto, Firenze!
A presto, Firenze!
Historians here: Anyone up for joining a panel on early modern translation practices in science and medicine with me and the wonderful Sare Arıcanlı? It’ll be for the 2026 ESHS–HSS Joint Meeting in Edinburgh. Let me know!
November 6, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Historians here: Anyone up for joining a panel on early modern translation practices in science and medicine with me and the wonderful Sare Arıcanlı? It’ll be for the 2026 ESHS–HSS Joint Meeting in Edinburgh. Let me know!
It seems that throughout history, highly educated people from modest origins have almost always faced the same challenge: finding financial stability—be it in ancient China, the Ottoman Empire of the sixteenth century, or our own time.
October 21, 2025 at 11:06 PM
It seems that throughout history, highly educated people from modest origins have almost always faced the same challenge: finding financial stability—be it in ancient China, the Ottoman Empire of the sixteenth century, or our own time.
I’d heard so much praise for this book and finally found time to read it. It’s a fascinating read that pushes us to reconsider the Eurocentric nature of Marxist accounts of production that often erase the history of medieval slavery.
October 8, 2025 at 7:06 PM
I’d heard so much praise for this book and finally found time to read it. It’s a fascinating read that pushes us to reconsider the Eurocentric nature of Marxist accounts of production that often erase the history of medieval slavery.
We don’t often think about how, after the Morisco expulsion, no free Muslim communities remained in Western Europe. For many premodern Europeans, the only Muslims they saw in their lives were enslaved ones in brutal conditions; an imprint on Europe’s memory that can’t be denied…
October 1, 2025 at 5:06 PM
We don’t often think about how, after the Morisco expulsion, no free Muslim communities remained in Western Europe. For many premodern Europeans, the only Muslims they saw in their lives were enslaved ones in brutal conditions; an imprint on Europe’s memory that can’t be denied…
On day one of teaching Ottoman history, a student asked me who my favorite sultan is. I just realized I’d never actually thought about it before. 😃
August 18, 2025 at 6:23 PM
On day one of teaching Ottoman history, a student asked me who my favorite sultan is. I just realized I’d never actually thought about it before. 😃
I just heard from our editor that the Bloomsbury - A Cultural History of Technology is set for publication next year! I contributed with a chapter on seventeenth-century food technologies and can’t wait to see this comprehensive volume in print soon!
August 11, 2025 at 3:32 PM
I just heard from our editor that the Bloomsbury - A Cultural History of Technology is set for publication next year! I contributed with a chapter on seventeenth-century food technologies and can’t wait to see this comprehensive volume in print soon!
Are there any historians here working on the history of wine? I'm currently writing an article on the topic and would be glad to exchange ideas or drafts if anyone is interested. 🍇
August 5, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Are there any historians here working on the history of wine? I'm currently writing an article on the topic and would be glad to exchange ideas or drafts if anyone is interested. 🍇
Just submitted my book for peer review. It has grown into something quite different from my dissertation with new research, thinking, and lots of writing, supported by a postdoctoral fellowship and an ACLS fellowship. Grateful to those who believed in this project from the start.
August 3, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Just submitted my book for peer review. It has grown into something quite different from my dissertation with new research, thinking, and lots of writing, supported by a postdoctoral fellowship and an ACLS fellowship. Grateful to those who believed in this project from the start.
Proofreading is basically gaslighting yourself over typos.
July 31, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Proofreading is basically gaslighting yourself over typos.
Historians of science and art historians: has anyone written about why some flower illustrations were left uncolored in Fuchs’ De historia stirpium? I have some hypotheses, but I'd love to know if there's already an argument or discussion on this.
July 30, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Historians of science and art historians: has anyone written about why some flower illustrations were left uncolored in Fuchs’ De historia stirpium? I have some hypotheses, but I'd love to know if there's already an argument or discussion on this.
In my book chapter, I wrote about the randomness of early modern knowledge exchanges. One comment captured it perfectly: “like the kind of exchange you have while picking up a bagel at your local shop, knowledge is made not just in conferences, but in everyday encounters” 🥯
July 24, 2025 at 12:25 PM
In my book chapter, I wrote about the randomness of early modern knowledge exchanges. One comment captured it perfectly: “like the kind of exchange you have while picking up a bagel at your local shop, knowledge is made not just in conferences, but in everyday encounters” 🥯
Maybe some historians (and philosophers) contribute: I’m discussing with a colleague (based on my book chapter) when knowledge began to be presumed as progressing linearly. One answer is the late 19th century, another says post-1750s. But what about the 17th century?
July 22, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Maybe some historians (and philosophers) contribute: I’m discussing with a colleague (based on my book chapter) when knowledge began to be presumed as progressing linearly. One answer is the late 19th century, another says post-1750s. But what about the 17th century?
“Life is short
And the art long;
The occasion is instant,
Experiment perilous,
Decision difficult.”
And the art long;
The occasion is instant,
Experiment perilous,
Decision difficult.”
July 21, 2025 at 9:17 PM
“Life is short
And the art long;
The occasion is instant,
Experiment perilous,
Decision difficult.”
And the art long;
The occasion is instant,
Experiment perilous,
Decision difficult.”
The new academic year starts in less than a month and I’ve yet to experience this so-called “summer break.”
July 21, 2025 at 4:04 PM
The new academic year starts in less than a month and I’ve yet to experience this so-called “summer break.”
In the early modern Ottoman Empire, the most valued tulips featured long, pointed petals and slender forms in contrast to the rounded varieties preferred in Europe. 🌷
July 15, 2025 at 8:58 PM
In the early modern Ottoman Empire, the most valued tulips featured long, pointed petals and slender forms in contrast to the rounded varieties preferred in Europe. 🌷
The book’s intro is ready to go…
The final title might still change slightly, but for now it’s:
“Uncertain Knowledge: The Science of Making Relevance between the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe”
The final title might still change slightly, but for now it’s:
“Uncertain Knowledge: The Science of Making Relevance between the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe”
July 12, 2025 at 5:01 PM
The book’s intro is ready to go…
The final title might still change slightly, but for now it’s:
“Uncertain Knowledge: The Science of Making Relevance between the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe”
The final title might still change slightly, but for now it’s:
“Uncertain Knowledge: The Science of Making Relevance between the Ottoman Empire and Early Modern Europe”
Reposted by Duygu Yıldırım
My review of Zozan Pehlivan’s book, "The Political Ecology of Violence: Peasants and Pastoralists in the Last Ottoman Century," has just been published in the Journal of Social History: academic.oup.com/jsh/advance-...
The Political Ecology of Violence: Peasants and Pastoralists in the Last Ottoman Century. By Zozan Pehlivan
What if the unraveling of a multiethnic rural society in Ottoman Kurdistan had as much to do with distant ocean currents in the Pacific as with imperial re
academic.oup.com
July 4, 2025 at 12:38 PM
My review of Zozan Pehlivan’s book, "The Political Ecology of Violence: Peasants and Pastoralists in the Last Ottoman Century," has just been published in the Journal of Social History: academic.oup.com/jsh/advance-...