Abbreviation | ICHTH |
---|---|
Founded | 1980; 45 years ago (1980) (as International Commission for the History of Historiography) |
Focus | Historiography, philosophy of history |
Area served | Worldwide |
President | Antoon de Baets (2022-2026) |
Vice-President | Olufunke Adeboye |
Website | https://www.ichth.net/ |
The International Commission for the History and Theory of Historiography (ICHTH) is an international non-profit organization affiliated with the International Committee of Historical Sciences (ICHS). Established in 1980, the Commission is composed of historians, theorists of history and other specialists in related fields, who work together on a global scale to promote research and the exchange of ideas in two core areas: the history of historiography and the philosophy of historiography. Among other activities, it regularly organizes conferences and workshops, promotes publications and awards prizes for books and doctoral theses.
Background
History
Originally called the International Commission for the History of Historiography, it was founded in 1980 during the 15th International Congress of Historical Sciences in Bucharest. It changed to its present name in 1995, during the 18th International Congress of Historical Sciences in Montreal, to better reflect its two main fields of interest: the history of historiography and the theory of historiography. It is currently headed by Antoon De Baets (2022-2027), prof. em. of History, Ethics and Human Rights at the University of Groningen.
Mission
The Commission seeks to promote the study of the history and theory of historiography, as well as the philosophy of history, historical methodology and historical culture. It encourages debates and exchanges between different approaches to these subjects, and emphasizes non-discrimination on the basis of nationality, ethnicity, gender, race, religion, political or other opinion, or sexual orientation in its activities or operations. In particular, the Commission seeks to avoid regional and ethnocentric assumptions, in order to reflect the diversity of perspectives in the field. Its work has been described as providing a key institutional platform for various kinds of ‘cross-fertilisation between historical and philosophical perspectives.’
Activities
The Commission coordinates an international network of researchers with the aim of establishing and strengthen partnerships with international and national organizations and bodies that promote discussion of the themes contained in the Commission’s mission. It does so through various activities: organizing regular international conferences and symposia; maintaining partnerships with all journals, blogs, and networks in its core areas; sponsoring the publication of reference works; awarding prizes to significant recent contributions to the field; and maintaining a website providing information on its activities and publications.
Conferences
Since its foundation, the ICHTH has organized or co-sponsored conferences and workshops around the world. Of particular relevance have been the panels on history and theory of historiography it has organized as part of the International Congress of Historical Sciences, organized by the ICHS. The Commission was present at the ICHS Congresses of Bucharest (1980), Stuttgart (1985), Madrid (1990), Montreal (1995), Oslo (2000), Sydney (2005), Amsterdam (2010), Jinan (2015), and Poznan (2022). It currently prepares its presence at the ICHS Centennial Conference in Leipzig (2026).
Journal
The journal Storia della Storiografia was established in 1982 as a journal of the ICHTH and published in four languages. Storia was initially edited by Bianca Valota Cavallotti, and subsequently by Edoardo Tortarolo and Guido Abbattista in collaboration with Georg Iggers. The first text published by the journal was “Pour une histoire de l’historiographie” (“For a History of Historiography”), a methodological manifesto written by the Commission’s first President Charles-Olivier Carbonell, which outlined the relevance and potential of the history of historiography as a field of study. Over the decades, the journal has increasingly followed an independent course, sometimes in close collaboration with ICHTH (as is the case since 2022), sometimes at some distance.
The Commission further provides special subscription rates for its members to History and Theory, the Journal of the History of Ideas, the Journal of the Philosophy of History, Rethinking History, and Storia della Storiografia.
Reference Works
The Commission has sponsored the publication of Great Historians from Antiquity to 1800: An International Dictionary (Greenwood Press, 1989) and Great Historians of the Modern Age: An International Dictionary (Greenwood Press, 1991) edited by Lucian Boia, the Commission’s first secretary-general. Further, many Commission members have contributed to some of the most important collective reference works or book series in the field such as Elements in Historical Theory and Practice (Cambridge University Press, 2022–), Bloomsbury History: Theory and Method (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2021–), The Politics of Historical Thinking (De Gruyter, 2019–), Oxford History of Historical Writing, 5 vol. (Oxford University Press, 2011–2015), and Making Sense of History (Berghahn Books, 2002–).
Awards
Since 2013, the Commission has instituted several awards to recognize recent works that made a significant contribution to the fields promoted in its mission. These include the prize for best doctoral thesis, best book, and best first book. In 2022, it partnered with the International Network for the Theory of History (INTH) to organize a joint award.
Year | Winning Author | Winning Title | Honorable Mention Author | Honorable Mention Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Berber Bevernage Great Britain | History, Memory, and State-Sponsored Violence: Time and Justice. | N/A | N/A |
2018 | Ritwik Bhattacharyya India | Homo Ahistoricus: Disavowal of History in Colonial South Asian Writing | Alexander Maar | Cause, Chance, Determinism and Counterfactuals in History |
Year | Author | Title |
---|---|---|
2016 | Jouni-Matti Kuukkanen Finland | Postnarrativist Philosophy of Historiography |
2022 | Hans Ruin Sweden | Being with the Dead: Burial, Ancestral Policies and the Roots of Historical Consciousness |
2022 | Zoltán Boldizsár Simon Hungary | History in Times of Unprecedented Change: A Theory for the 21st Century. |
2024 | Jörg van Norden Germany | Verlust der Vergangenheit: Historische Erkenntnis und Materialität zwischen Wiedererkennen und Befremden |
Year | Author | Title |
---|---|---|
2024 | Mariana Imaz-Sheinbaum Mexico | Historical Narratives: Constructable, Evaluable, Inevitable |
References
Footnotes
- "History". International Commission for the History and Theory of Historiography. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - Erdmann 2005.
- "Constitution". International Commission for the History and Theory of Historiography. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - Paul 2021. sfn error: no target: CITEREFPaul2021 (help)
- "Congresses & Meetings". International Committee of Historical Sciences. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - Carbonell 1982.
- Tortoralo 2023. sfn error: no target: CITEREFTortoralo2023 (help)
- "ICHTH Newsletter No. 3, February 2024" (PDF). International Commission for the History and Theory of Historiography. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
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: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - Boia 1989. sfn error: no target: CITEREFBoia1989 (help)
- Boia 1991. sfn error: no target: CITEREFBoia1991 (help)
- Bevernage, Berber (2012). History, memory, and state-sponsored violence: time and justice. Col: Routledge Approaches to History. New York, NY: Routledge
- Maar, Alexander Weller (2015). Cause, Chance, Determinism and Counterfactuals in History. : University of Auckland
- Kuukkanen, Jouni-Matti (2015). Postnarrativist Philosophy of Historiography. SpringerLink. doi:10.1057/9781137409874. Consultado el 16 de mayo de 2023
- Página web de la University of Oulu: https://www.oulu.fi/en/researchers/jouni-matti-kuukkanen Consultado el 11 de noviembre de 2024.
- Springer Nature: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1057/9781137409874 Consultado el 11 de noviembre de 2024.
- Ruin, Hans (29 de enero de 2019). Being with the Dead: Burial, Ancestral Politics, and the Roots of Historical Consciousness. 1.ª ed. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press
- Stanford University Press: https://www.sup.org/books/theory-and-philosophy/being-dead
- Simon, Zoltán Boldizsár (2021). History in times of unprecedented change: a theory for the 21st century. London Nueva York Oxford/ Nueva Delhi/ Sydney: Bloomsbury Academic
- van Norden, Jörg (2022). Verlust der Vergangenheit: Historische Erkenntnis und Materialität zwischen Wiedererkennen und Befremden. Frankfurt am Main: Wochenschau. ISBN 978-3-7344-1473-2
- Editorial Verlag: https://www.wochenschau-verlag.de/Verlust-der-Vergangenheit/41473 Consultado el 11 de noviembre de 2024
- Imaz-Sheinbaum, Mariana (2023). Historical Narratives: Constructable, Evaluable, Inevitable. Londres: Routledge. ISBN 9781000987966
Sources
- Carbonell, Charles-Olivier (1982). "Pour une histoire de l'historiographie" (PDF). Storia della Storiografia (1): 7–25.
- Erdmann, Karl Dietrich (June 2005). Toward a Global Community of Historians: The International Historical Congresses and the International Committee of Historical Sciences, 1898–2000. Berghahn Books. ISBN 978-1-57181-434-0.
- Paul, Herman (25 October 2020). "History and Philosophy of History (HPH): A Call for Cooperation". In Kuukkanen, Jouni-Matti (ed.). Philosophy of History: Twenty-First-Century Perspectives. Bloomsbury Collections. pp. 165–179. ISBN 978-1-35-011184-4.
- Tortarolo, Eduardo (2023). "The (Un)faithful Mirror of ICHTH: The Scholarly Journal Storia della Storiografia and the Developments in the History and Theory of Historical Writing". Storia della Storiografia. 82/83 (1/2): 41–49.
External links
- International Commission for the History and Theory of Historiography (ICHTH) (https://www.ichth.net)
- Storia della Storiografia. International Review (http://www.libraweb.net/riviste.php?chiave=115)
- International Network for the Theory of History (INTH) (https://www.inth.ugent.be/)
- International Committee of Historical Sciences (https://www.cish.org/index.php/en/)