Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
Elvan is a historian of the built environment, especially focusing on the histories of place in the Ottoman Empire and the modern Middle East. In her work, Elvan juxtaposes histories of space with histories of technology, archaeology, tourism, environment and the senses. She is currently working on a book manuscript where she investigates how spatial practices were altered with the advent of the railways in western Anatolia during the second half of the 19th century.
Elvan is an assistant editor of the International Journal of Islamic Architecture and serves as the journal's administrative coordinator. She is also the assistant director of a field project in Armenia, Ararat Plain Southeast Archaeological Project. Building on over a dozen years of experience, her current field research engages with 19th and 20th century histories of place, utilizing oral histories as well as architectural surveys.
Previously, Elvan was a junior research fellow at the Research Center for Anatolian Civilizations in Istanbul during the 2014-2015 academic year and was the recipient of a SALT Research Award in 2015. She was a post-doctoral fellow at the Hong Kong Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Hong Kong in 2019. During 2019-2020, she was a post-doctoral fellow in Levantine Studies at the Humanities Research Center of Rice University.
Research Interests
History of Architecture and Urbanism
History of the Modern Middle East and the Ottoman Empire
History of Infrastructure
History of Archaeology
History of Travel and Tourism
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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Projects
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Infrastructure in the Making: The Ottoman Railway Company as Portrayed by the Smyrna Mail
Cobb, E., 29 Dec 2022, The Built Environment through the Prism of the Colonial Periodical Press. Faria, A. S., Shelley, A. & Lobo, S. A. (eds.). 1st ed. New York; Oxon: Routledge, p. 56-76 21 p. (Routledge Studies in Cultural History).Research output: Chapter in book/report/conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review
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Interdisciplinary Learning in an Intercultural Setting During Archaeological Fieldwork
Cobb, P. J., Cobb, E. & Azizbekyan, H., Jan 2022, In: Academic Praxis. 2, p. 1-18 18 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Failing to Succeed: Agency in the Construction of Izmir's Railways
Cobb, E., Nov 2021.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper › peer-review
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Modernizing the Land, Exploring the Past: A Comparative Examination of 19th-Century Archaeological Practice in Western Anatolia and Southern Mesopotamia
Cobb, E., Dec 2021.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper › peer-review
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The Railway and Ottoman Engagements with Anatolian Pasts
Cobb, E., 4 Dec 2021.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper › peer-review
Activities
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A Railway to Ephesus and the Ottoman Quest for Multivalent Pasts
Elvan COBB (Speaker)
31 Aug 2022 → 4 Sept 2022Activity: Conference/talk/lecture/symposium/speech/workshop, etc › Event organized by non-HKBU units
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Winter Torrents to Malignant Fevers: Environmental Anxieties along the Early Ottoman Railways
Elvan COBB (Speaker)
8 Sept 2022 → 10 Sept 2022Activity: Conference/talk/lecture/symposium/speech/workshop, etc › Event organized by non-HKBU units
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International Journal of Islamic Architecture (Journal)
Elvan COBB (Editor)
1 Jul 2022Activity: Publication peer-review/editorial work › Editor/reviewer for publications (incl. CDCF T61 Journal Editor)
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Merging Historic and Contemporary Immersive Experiences in the Classroom
Elvan COBB (Speaker)
7 Jun 2022Activity: Conference/talk/lecture/symposium/speech/workshop, etc › Event organized by HKBU
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Railway Space, Railway Spectacle: A Sultanic Visit to Izmir and Its Railway
Elvan COBB (Speaker)
27 Apr 2021Activity: Conference/talk/lecture/symposium/speech/workshop, etc › Event organized by HKBU