Conceptual history (also the history of concepts or, from German, ''Begriffsgeschichte'') is a branch of historical and cultural studies that deals with the historical
semantics of terms. It sees the
etymology and the change in meaning of terms as forming a crucial basis for contemporary cultural, conceptual and linguistic understanding. Conceptual history deals with the evolution of paradigmatic ideas and value systems over time, such as "liberty" or "reform". It argues that
social history
Social history, often called the new social history, is a field of history that looks at the lived experience of the past. In its "golden age" it was a major growth field in the 1960s and 1970s among scholars, and still is well represented in his ...
– indeed all historical reflection – must begin with an understanding of historically contingent cultural values and practices in their particular contexts over time, not merely as unchanging ideologies or processes.
Description and history
Interest in conceptual history was given a particular boost in the 20th century through the publication of the ''Historisches Wörterbuch der Philosophie'', the ''Geschichtliche Grundbegriffe'', and the journal ''
Archiv für Begriffsgeschichte
The ''Archiv für Begriffsgeschichte'' ("Archives of conceptual history") is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal covering studies on concepts of the history of philosophy and science. It was established in 1955 by Erich Rothacker and the cu ...
''.
Conceptual history is an
interdisciplinary
Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...
methodology. Alongside the
philosopher
A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...
Joachim Ritter
Joachim Ritter (; 3 April 1903 – 3 August 1974) was a German philosopher and founder of the so-called Ritter School (german: Ritter-Schule) of liberal conservatism.
Biography
Born in Geesthacht, Ritter studied philosophy, theology, German liter ...
, the
historians
Otto Brunner,
Werner Conze Werner may refer to:
People
* Werner (name), origin of the name and people with this name as surname and given name
Fictional characters
* Werner (comics), a German comic book character
* Werner Von Croy, a fictional character in the ''Tomb Ra ...
, and
Reinhart Koselleck, and the
sociologist Erich Rothacker
Erich Rothacker (12 March 1888 – 11 August 1965) was a German philosopher, a leading exponent of philosophical anthropology
Philosophical anthropology, sometimes called anthropological philosophy, is a discipline dealing with questions of m ...
are viewed as its pioneers in the German-speaking world and internationally.
Raymond Williams was the leading scholar in the English-speaking world. Since the
Eighties
File:1980s replacement montage02.PNG, 420px, From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, '' Columbia'', lifts off in 1981; US president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev ease tensions between the two superpowers, leading to t ...
, a relevant development of the history of concepts (''storia dei concetti''), has been promoted by a numerous group of Italian scholars, counting among them
Alessandro Biral
Alessandro is both a given name and a surname, the Italian form of the name Alexander. Notable people with the name include:
People with the given name Alessandro
* Alessandro Allori (1535–1607), Italian portrait painter
* Alessandro Baricco ...
,
Giuseppe Duso
Giuseppe is the Italian form of the given name Joseph,
from Latin Iōsēphus from Ancient Greek Ἰωσήφ (Iōsḗph), from Hebrew יוסף.
It is the most common name in Italy and is unique (97%) to it.
The feminine form of the name is Giusep ...
, , and
Roberto Esposito, founders of the
Centro di ricerca sul lessico politico europeo
Centro may refer to:
Places Brazil
*Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
* Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
*Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Duq ...
. Outlets of the Italian debate on conceptual history have been the short-lived ''Centauro'' (1981-1986) and ''Filosofia Politica'', founded in 1987. Today, conceptual history is promoted also by the History of Concepts Group and its peer-reviewed journal ''
Contributions to the History of Concepts
''Contributions to the History of Concepts'' is a biannual peer-reviewed academic journal covering studies in conceptual history. It is an official journal of thHistory of Concepts Group It is published by Berghahn Journals and affiliated to the ...
'' under the lead of
Margrit Pernau, Jan Ifversen, and Jani Marjanen. Examples of conceptual histories include a genealogy of the concept of globalization drawing on the approach of Williams written by
Paul James and
Manfred B. Steger
Manfred B. Steger is an American academic and author. He is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
Steger is most known for his work in social and political theory, primarily focusing on the crucial role of ideas, image ...
:
This historiographical approach has also been used by the Cambridge Group for the History and Epistemology of Psychiatry who, since the 1980s, has published a long series of papers on the ‘conceptual history’ of the most relevant mental symptoms and diseases.
[Berrios G.E. & Marková I.S. (2002) Conceptual issues. In H. D’Haenen, J.A. den Boer and P. Willner (eds) ''Biological Psychiatry''. New York, John Willey, pp3-24.]
See also
*
History of ideas
References
Footnotes
Bibliography
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External links
"Begriffsgeschichte" (History of concepts)by Birger Hjørland
CONCEPTA – International Research School in Conceptual History and Political ThoughtCentre of Excellence in Political Thought and Conceptual Change, University of JyväskyläContributions to the History of Concepts WebsiteWhat is Conceptual History? CLEAR Projectby Anders Hassing
Centro Interuniversitario di Ricerca sul Lessico Politico e Giuridico Europeo (CIRLPGE)
{{Use British English Oxford spelling, date=August 2019
Cultural studies
Interdisciplinary historical research