Maria Todorova, who was raised in the Balkans, is in a unique position to bring both scholarship and sympathy to her subject. In a new afterword, she reflects on recent developments in the study of the Balkans and political changes on the ground since the publication of "Imagining the Balkans." The afterword explores the controversy over Todorova's coining of the term Balkanism. With this work, Todorova offers a timely, updated, accessible study of how an innocent geographic appellation was transformed into one of the most powerful and widespread pejorative designations in modern history.