In collaboration with the Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul (SRII), KUDAR will host Tonicha Upham as a Joint Fellow focusing on the maritime connections between Byzantium and the Nordic Worlds.

Currently completing her PhD research at Aarhus University on issues of gender in Islamicate geographical sources on the Rus, Tonicha will join us in Istanbul for the next few months, building on the exciting results of the recent ‘Nordic Tales / Byzantine Paths‘ online exhibition.  Tonicha will establish the next phase of this project by focusing on two objectives that draw on her expertise with the source material covering trade and military interactions across the Caspian, Black, Mediterranean, and Baltic Seas.  First, in response to the recognition that more collaborative work between these scholarly worlds is necessary, Tonicha will organize a workshop exploring new tools and forums that can further integrate scholars studying these separate regions.  Second, to establish additional foundations, she will also be central to the creation of a shared course syllabus focusing on the unqiue shared history within the Black Sea region.