Selda Altan is a historian of modern China, specializing in labor history, colonialism, and Global Asia.

Her first book, Chinese Workers of the World: Colonialism, Chinese Labor, and the Yunnan–Indochina Railway (Stanford University Press, 2024), analyzes labor conflicts during the construction of the Yunnan–Indochina railway (1898–1910) within the broader contexts of French colonialism and China’s economic transformations. She has published extensively in her field and presented her research at academic conferences and invited talks.

Altan is currently working on her second book, which investigates the role of women in China’s resistance to Japanese occupation during World War II. This project focuses on alternative models of economic organization and women’s leadership in global conflicts.

Her research has been supported by numerous grants, among them the Henry Luce Foundation/ACLS Fellowship Program in China Studies, the Mednick Faculty Fellowship Award, and the Stanford University East Asia Library Travel Grant.

At Randolph, Altan teaches courses on East Asian and Middle Eastern history as well as interdisciplinary courses on Japanese Anime, Chinatowns in the U.S., and Asian Feminisms. Her classes help students develop a global perspective on past phenomena and think critically about historical narratives. Her classes are enriched by group discussions, interactive games, food tasting, and Middle Eastern dance practices.

Outside academia, Altan enjoys exploring Lynchburg’s parks and community life with her family. Baking, jigsaw puzzles, and international travel are her favorite pastimes. A lifelong lover of books and good writing, she writes about Asian literature, culture, and history (mostly in Turkish) on her blog, Asyatik.