The Armenian Women's Movement in the Late Ottoman Empire: Modernity, Nationalism and Gender

by Hasmik Khalapyan, Bedross Der Matossian (Editor)

Overview

The last decades of the Ottoman Empire saw heated debates about and changes to the role of women in society. This book analyses the history of the women's movement among Ottoman Armenians. Examining debates on the role of women in the Armenian context, Armenian women's access to education, work and marriage rights, it reveals how women were empowered by nationalist discourses and the wider movement for reform in the empire, and the ways these limited or broadened women's activism. Drawing from a wide array of archival primary source material, it provides a comprehensive and comparative analysis of changes to the socio-economic, political, cultural status of Ottoman Armenian women from end of the Tanzimat period to the outbreak of World War I.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780755652853
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	08/20/2026
Series:	Armenians in the Modern and Early Modern World
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Bedross Der Matossian is Professor of Modern Middle East history and the Hymen Rosenberg Professor in Judaic Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, USA. He is the author, editor, and co-editor of seven books, including Shattered Dreams of Revolution: From Liberty to Violence in the Late Ottoman Empire (2014) and The Horrors of Adana: Revolution and Violence in the Early Twentieth Century (2022). He serves on the editorial board of journals, including the International Journal of Middle East Studies (IJMES).

Table of Contents

List of Figures
Acknowledgements
A Note on Transliteration, Proper Names, Endnotes and Translation
List of Abbreviations

INTRODUCTION

Chapter 1
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND, ARMENIAN MODERNITY, AND THE EMERGENCE OF WOMAN QUESTION

Chapter 2
“NEW” WOMAN FOR THE “NEW” NATION: DEFINITIONS OF NEW WOMANHOOD

Chapter 3
TAKING CARE OF THE NATION: ORGANIZED CHARITY AND EDUCATION

Chapter 4
CAMPAINING FOR PAID LABOR AND THE FORMATION OF JOB MARKET FOR WOMEN

Chapter 5
IMPROVING MARRIAGE AND FAMILY


Conclusion

Notes
Bibliography
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Index

Editorial Reviews

Khalapyan's examination of Armenian feminist writers narrates the intertwined histories of Ottoman Turks and Armenians. The writers she taps across five languages were central to the rise of Armenian national consciousness in the late Ottoman Empire. A much-needed manuscript in the field, it situates Ottoman Armenian feminism within the broader global movement for women's liberation.” —Professor Elyse Semerdjian, Clark University, US

“Meticulously researched through Armenian, Turkish, French and Russian sources, this most impressive book traces the historical emergence of the Armenian women's movement by triangulating Europe (modernity),
the Ottoman Empire (imperial state), and its colonial subjects (Armenian community). The empirical focus on local dynamics reveals three endeavors that actualize the new emerging Armenian womanhood: i) taking care of the nation through organized charity and education; ii) campaigning for paid labor and a job market for women; iii) improving marriage and the family. Theoretically, the author cogently demonstrates how social movements negotiate local,
national and global conditions and how women's movements in particular undergird these negotiations. A must read for those interested in how women imperial subjects employ their agency to study the intersection of history, modernity, and empire as Ottoman Armenian women do."” —Fatma Müge Göçek, Professor, University of Michigan, USA

“An important contribution to our understanding of the gender politics permitting Armenian feminists to navigate extremely troubled waters!” —Suraiya Faroqhi ,Professor, Ibn Haldun University, Turkey

From the Publisher