Disciplinary Affiliations and Subject Dispersion in Medieval Studies
Titel:
Disciplinary Affiliations and Subject Dispersion in Medieval Studies
Auteur:
Herubel, Jean-Pierre V. M.
Verschenen in:
Behavioral & social sciences librarian
Paginering:
Jaargang 23 (2005) nr. 2 pagina's 67-83
Jaar:
2005-05-10
Inhoud:
Medieval studies is a very fertile area of scholarly activity replete with divergent approaches and perspectives. Unlike traditional disciplines in the main, medieval studies is open to compelling influences from the disciplines that make up its purview. Historiographic concerns with nuances of periodization aside, medieval culture and civilization is so complex that it engenders a multidisciplinary approach to this period of European historical experience. Since 1994, the International Medieval Institute at the University of Leeds has coordinated an international approach to medieval studies research, and has sponsored the International Medieval Congress; http://www.leeds.ac.uk/imi/. As IMC “is the largest annual gathering of medievalists in Europe, and takes place at Leeds each July, attracting more than 1,300 participants from all over the world,” it stands as a potential indicator of emerging scholarship. For purposes of this study, six annual programs were tabulated for the years 1997-2002. Utilizing established nomenclature for papers classification, subjects and their treatments were identified for disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary characteristics. Further articulation of subject treatment indicated disciplinary affiliation. Emerging research trends and dominant research foci offer a clearer picture of the status of medieval studies within academia. Social and economic history, art history and historical musicology, as well as archaeology and historical literary studies emerge as strong emphases, among others. A most salient finding is the apparent interest in newly revitalized conceptualizations of cultural and social history. Such pulse readings of conference scholarship reveal intellectual topographies useful for those pursing research in medieval culture and history.
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