Isa Blumi, PhD (2005 NYU), is currently a Fellow at the Centre for Area Studies at Leipzig University. He teaches Balkan, Middle Eastern and world history at Georgia State University. His previous books include Rethinking the Late Ottoman Empire (2003); Chaos in Yemen (2010 with Routledge) and Reinstating the Ottomans (2011).

Innovatively looking at the complex interactions between indigenous peoples and modern imperialism in Arabia and Balkans, Foundations of Modernity challenges previous analytical models that attempt to capture the complexity of human interactions during the1800-1912 period in ways that instigates the paradigmatic shift of the "Euro-centric" perspective of modern world history.

@contents:Introduction. Relocating the Great Transformation in the Balkans and Arabia 1. The Local Scramble for Ascendancy and the Demise of the "Era" 2. Demarcating Imperial Boundaries and the Rise of Difference 3. Beyond the Frontier: Subduing the Agents of Change 4. Diasporic Agency and the Shifts in the Possibilities of Empire 5. Capitalizing Empires and the Political Economy of Reform Conclusion