Ila Manish
PhD studentResearch Overview
I’m a History PhD student at Lancaster University. My research focusses on social histories of knowledge production in Travancore, c. 1840-1940. (present-day Kerala, South India). My interest lies in using digital methods to deconstruct the ethnographic writing from this period and study the influence of caste and race on these emergent forms of knowledge. I work within a decolonial, anti-caste framework that centres the archive as a historical artefact in its own right. My research intersects with work in the fields of book history, document image analysis, and critical caste studies.
Selected Publications
Uncovering Diversity Within State Archives: In Conversation With Vicky Iglikowski-Broad
Manish, I., Adeyemi-Abere, E. 1/09/2026 In: EPOCH Magazine. 25
Journal article
All Publications
Emerging Digital Methodologies Conference 2026
Participation in conference - Academic
Lancaster Historical Postgraduate Conference 2026
Participation in conference - Academic
British Association for South Asian Studies Annual Conference 2025
Participation in conference - Academic
Digital Humanities Hackathon 2025
Participation in workshop, seminar, course
Queen's Scholarship
Prize (including medals and awards)
Graduate Essay Prize
Prize (including medals and awards)
The English Prize
Prize (including medals and awards)
ESRC North-West Social Science Doctoral Training Programme 1+3 Studentship
Fellowship awarded competitively