KOH Choon Hwee

KOH Choon Hwee is Assistant Professor of Ottoman History at UCLA's Department of History. Her research examines Ottoman state formation through infrastructure systems, particularly the imperial postal service, exploring how communication networks shaped social order and economic practices across three centuries. She utilizes diverse archival sources including court records, fiscal registers, and petitions to reconstruct institutional evolution.

Education:

• Ph.D. in History, Yale University (2020)
• M.A., American University of Beirut (2014)
• B.A., National University of Singapore (2012)
• Visiting studies at Harvard, University of Arizona, and Delhi University

Her research intersects economic history, state formation, and infrastructure studies, with specific focus on Ottoman administrative systems, shadow economies, and fiscal innovations. She employs interdisciplinary methods to analyze how imperial systems adapted to changing social and economic conditions.

Her publications consistently explore Ottoman institutional history through microhistorical approaches, revealing complex interactions between state actors and local communities. Recent work investigates monetary systems, labor contracts, and informal economies within imperial frameworks.

Awards and Fellowships:

• Jack Goody Article Prize (2023)
• Malcolm Kerr Dissertation Prize (2020)
• ANAMED Residential Fellowship
• SSRC Mellon International Dissertation Fellowship

She actively advises graduate students in Ottoman and Korean history, serving on comprehensive exam and dissertation committees. She co-organizes the Western Ottomanists' Workshop and History Brown Bag Seminar Series, facilitating academic exchange across institutions.

Beyond research, she participates in UCLA's Ottoman Music Ensemble, performing on the darbouka, and maintains scholarly engagement through digital platforms.