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Barbara Jelavich (April 12, 1923 – January 14, 1995) was an American historian and writer. A prominent scholar in the field of Eastern European history, she specifically focused on the diplomatic histories of the Russian and
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
monarchies, the diplomacy of the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
, and the history of the
Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
. She began her academic career as a junior research historian at UC Berkeley Institute of Slavic Studies after obtaining three history degrees from the
University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...
. In 1961, she joined the faculty at
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...
as a lecturer before becoming a full professor in the history department in 1967. Her tenure at Indiana University continued until her retirement in 1993, she received the title of Distinguished Professor
Emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...
of History in recognition of her exceptional scholarly achievement. She made substantial contributions to scholarly literature, co-authoring or authoring 17 books that delved into the histories of Russia, the Balkans, and the Ottoman and Habsburg empires. Collaborating with her husband, Charles, who was also a history professor emeritus at Indiana, several of her works were co-authored. Her areas of expertise encompassed Albania, Bulgaria, Turkey, and Yugoslavia.


Biography

Barbara Brightfield was born in
Belleville, Illinois Belleville is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. It is a southeastern suburb of St. Louis. The population was 42,404 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the most populated city in the Me ...
, April 12, 1923. She earned three degrees in history from the
University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...
at Berkeley:. an A.B. honors degree in 1943, an M.A. in 1944, and a Ph.D. in 1948. In 1944, she married Croatian-American Charles Jelavich (1922–2013), one of America's foremost Balkan, Habsburg, and South Slavic specialists; both engaged in multiple academic collaborations.. They were jointly honored in 1992 with the AAASS Award for Distinguished Contributions to Slavic Studies. After briefly teaching at
Berkeley College Berkeley College is a private for-profit college with campuses in New York City, New Jersey, and online. It was founded in 1931 and offers undergraduate and graduate degrees and certificate programs. Berkeley College is accredited by the Mi ...
and
Mills College Mills College at Northeastern University in Oakland, California is part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it was relocated to Oakland in ...
, Jelavich dedicated her time towards raising her two sons (Mark and
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...
) while conducting further research in Balkan history and diplomatic history. In 1961, she and her husband went to the Department of History at
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...
. In 1967, she was promoted to professor in the Department of History and in 1984 was named Distinguished Professor of History. She served as chairman of the Conference on Slavic and East European History in 1979 and also served as president of the Society for Romanian Studies from 1988 to 1990. When she and her husband retired in 1992, she was elected as an honorary member of the
Romanian Academy The Romanian Academy ( ) is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 active members who are elected for life. According to its bylaws, the academy's ma ...
. During that same year, she was given the first Lifetime Achievement Award by the Association for Women in Slavic Studies. Jelavich's works were concentrated on the diplomatic histories of the Russian and Habsburg monarchies, the diplomacy of the Ottoman Empire, and the history of the
Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
(including nations such as
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
and
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
). Her most impressive accomplishment was the publication of the ''History of the Balkans'' in 1983. She intended to update this particular work in order to accommodate the major events that occurred in the Balkans in 1989. Her book ''Modern Austria'' appeared in 1994 in a Japanese edition, and she collaborated on the third edition of the American Historical Association's ''Guide to Historical Literature'' (published in 1995). She also wrote a piece on the international position of Romania in 1848 that reflected the standpoints of the Habsburgs, Ottomans, Russians, and southeastern Europeans.. Romanian historian Cornelia Bodea acknowledged Jelavich as an internationally "respected ruler in her territorial waters". In 1994, Jelavich was received into the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
. On January 14, 1995, she died in Bloomington Hospital (
Bloomington, Indiana Bloomington is a city in Monroe County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. The population was 79,168 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the List of municipalities in Indiana, seventh-most populous city in Indiana and ...
) after a long struggle with
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
. She was buried in the Mission Cemetery in Santa Clara,
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
. In 1995 the Barbara Jelavich Prize was established under the auspices of the AAASS, in recognition of scholarship in 19th and 20th century southeastern European and Habsburg studies, as well as in Russian and Ottoman diplomatic history.


Published works

Selection as author: * * * * * * * * * * * * * * As co-author: * * *


References


Sources

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jelavich, Barbara 1923 births 1995 deaths Deaths from cancer in Indiana Historians of the Balkans Historians of Europe Indiana University faculty American Roman Catholics Converts to Roman Catholicism American women historians 20th-century American historians 20th-century American women writers Historians from Indiana University of California, Berkeley alumni