German historian Elke Hartmann’s mother is Armenian. Elke has studied history and Middle Eastern/Islamic Studies in Berlin specializing in modern Ottoman history. Her MA thesis examined the German military mission to the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Abdulhamid II, while her PhD. dissertation analyzes conscription in the late Ottoman Empire in the context of modern state and nation building.  In 2010, with her husband historian Vahé Tachjian, she established the Houshamadyan website.

From April to July she will be a visiting instructor at the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Germany teaching the subject of “Christian minorities in the Ottoman Empire”.

Why did you choose Ottoman studies as your specialization?

When I started to study history I observed that Ottoman history wasn’t included in the general study European history. The history of the Ottoman Empire should be a component of European history at the academic level. Later, when I got involved in Middle Eastern studies, I noticed that Armenians were absent from Ottoman studies. I felt I needed to focus on Ottoman studies in order to better understand European history and the history of Armenians....