From the Director

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.

The Institute is composed of a community of scholars based in the Los Angeles region and supplemented by short- and long-term visitors. EMSI strives to provide a suitable setting for nourishing intellectual achievement, advancing interdisciplinary research, and sharing path-breaking discoveries. The Institute aims to promote new avenues for research in the humanities and social sciences.

Positioned in a city that is intellectually vibrant and demographically diverse, the Institute will combine the strengths of a major urban university with a world class independent research institution. The Institute’s programs contribute to the development of a range of traditional disciplines (primarily but not exclusively history, literature, and the history of art) by bringing together the insights and techniques of scholars who share an interest in early modern peoples and cultures.

Peter C. Mancall

Early Modern map with a ship surrounded by compasses.

Thank You!

The USC-Huntington Early Modern Studies Institute thanks the Mellon Foundation, the USC Dana and David Dornsife College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences, Linda and Harlan Martens, Carole Shammas, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Huntington Library for their support. Seminar meetings are free and open to the public.

 

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Land Acknowledgment

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.