MESA mourns the passing of Feroz Ahmad, distinguished historian of the late Ottoman Empire and modern Turkey, who died on February 20 in Istanbul. Ahmad taught at the University of Massachusetts Boston from 1968 to 2003 and at Yeditepe University in Istanbul from 2005 until his death. He also held academic positions at Columbia University, Harvard University, and Tufts University. Born in Delhi, India, Ahmad received his earlier education in Delhi before moving to London to study law and later history. He earned his Ph.D. in 1966 from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, under the guidance of Bernard Lewis. His first book, The Young Turks: The Committee of Union and Progress in Turkish Politics (1969), was a pioneering study of the Second Constitutional Period of the Ottoman Empire. Ahmad’s five influential monographs and numerous other publications spanning the twentieth century covered topics such as the transitions to multi-party regimes, World War I, late Ottoman political economy, non-Muslim communities in the Ottoman Empire, Turkish identity, and the political development of modern Turkey. Ahmad was preceded in death by his wife Bedia Turgay Ahmad in 2018. He is survived by their two daughters and three grandchildren. He will be remembered for his humility and unwavering commitment to his principles in academic life.
In Memoriam, Feroz Ahmad (1938-2025)