Welcome to the new EMSI website!

The USC-Huntington Early Modern Studies Institute (EMSI) supports advanced research and scholarship on human societies between 1450 and 1850. The Institute’s range is global. Unlike existing centers that focus on particular regions, the Institute aims to advance knowledge of the diverse societies in and around the Atlantic and Pacific basins.

We invite you to explore our website for more information about our fellows, our programming, partnerships, and accomplishments.

Congratulations to our 2023 – 2024 EMSI fellows!

EMSI Ph.D. Dissertation Fellow

Lina Nie

Ph.D. Candidate, Van Hunnick History Department
EMSI Ph.D. Dissertation Fellow, 2023-2024

Project Title: “Being Transnational: Maritime Exchanges in East Asian Sphere from the Tenth to the Seventeenth Century”

EMSI Faculty Fellow

Daniela Bleichmar

Professor of Art History and History
EMSI Faculty Fellow, Spring 2024

Project Title: Women of Art and Science in the Early Modern World

EMSI Faculty Fellow

Mengxiao Wang

Assistant Professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures EMSI Faculty Fellow, Fall 2023

Project Title: Buddhism and Theatricality in Early Modern China

Early Modern map depicting a ship surrounded by compasses.

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Land Acknowledgement
The USC-Huntington Early Modern Studies Institute (EMSI) exists on the ancestral lands of the Gabrielino-Tongva and Kizh Nation peoples who continue to call this region home. EMSI respectfully acknowledges these Indigenous peoples as the traditional caretakers of this landscape, as the direct descendants of the first people. EMSI recognizes their continued presence and is grateful to have the opportunity to work and learn on this land.