The INTH Bibliography is a digital tool for those interested in the field of Theory and Philosophy of History. Broadly understood, this field studies the ways we deal with the past. This can include reflections on the writing of history,  substantial philosophies of history, and popular engagements with the past. The bibliography is composed of works that deal with these and other topics.

The bibliography is designed to serve a broad audience. The main users will probably be theoretically interested historians and philosophers of history. Yet, we hope this will also be a useful resource for scholars coming from other disciplines: sociologists, anthropologists, psychologists, etc. More generally, this tool should be of interest to those interested in issues such as historical consciousness, theories of memory and forgetting, political uses of the past, ethics, historical time and substantial philosophy of history.

The INTH team composed the bibliography by searching online databases, looking through academic journals and following the bibliographies of scholarly works in the theory of history to track down references. In addition to this, several existing bibliographies were added to the collection. We owe a special thanks to Allan Megill and Jonathan Gorman for allowing us to add their bibliographies to our collection. The INTH also asked collaborators from around the globe to help in constructing the bibliography. We invited them to add works that we may have left out. We contacted scholars and asked them to add books and articles in their own language. We hope that the participation of this broad community of scholars from different regions will ensure that the bibliography reflects the development of the field internationally.  The philosophy behind the construction of this bibliography, and indeed the INTH as a whole, is that it should be a collective project: this is not the property of the INTH but belongs to the international community of theorists of history. We ask that you help us to keep the bibliography growing and to make it a better research tool. You can find out how you can help us in the section “How to help” below.

The bibliography is an online tool, available for free. There are two ways to access its contents:

1. The tool is accessible through the link http://www.inth.ugent.be/bibliography/ (no login necessary)
2. The bibliography has been created using the software Zotero. If you want to visualise the bibliography in the Zotero environment, click here.

The bibliography contains works in many languages. However,  English is its meta-language. This means that the navigation tools are in English, and all non-English works are displayed in their original titles, followed by a translation into English. Moreover, all publications are listed in their first edition of publication and if they have been translated into English, in their English translation. You will not find translations of texts into other languages in the INTH bibliography.

Yes, you can! We hope that the bibliography can be a collective effort. Only with the help of the international community of theorists of history it is possible to grow in size and become more comprehensive in quality. You can help out in different ways:

• Notice missing publications? Please let us know.
• Help us with the English translation of titles of works.
• Suggestions for additions (or subtractions) of keywords? These are very welcome - just as any other comments about our bibliography.
• Please spread the word to your colleagues, students and friends about the bibliography and the International Network for Theory of History.

To give a bit of insight in the way we have attributed keywords to the publicatoins, we have developed a glossary. This glossary has been designed solely with the purpose to explain the usage of terms. Also, the terms used in the bibliography are adapted, extended and changed on a regular basis. So this glossary will not explain all the keywords used in the bibliography. The INTH Bibliography consists of works that discuss, describe and analyze the following concepts in a metahistorical perspective:

1. Theory and Philosophy of Historiography

• Classics of Theory and Philosophy of Historiography – Must-reads for anyone interested in the theory and philosophy of historiography.
• Epistemology – On what historical knowledge is, and whether historiography can justify its knowledge claims. E.g.: “Can history produce reliable knowledge?” or “How do historians warrant their claims about the past?”
  • causation * – On cause and effect in history.
  • counterfactuals – “Alternative History”, “What if… History”
  • evidence/proof – On uses of proof and evidence, structures of argumentation, and comparisons to their use in other disciplines.
  • explanation – On the way historians explain historical events or matters of fact. [See also: “interpretation/understanding”]
  • interpretation/understanding – On the account of events in the past that makes the content understandable and/or plausible. [See also: “explanation”, “hermeneutics.”]
  • laws in history * – On general laws in history, Covering Law Model / deductive-nomological model.
  • objectivity/subjectivity – On impartiality and biases of the historian, subject/ object distinction [See also: “science, history as”]
  • realism/anti-realism * – On the (non)reality of the past. Includes: critical realism, constructivism.
  • relativism – On whether historical representation or values depend on the perspectives we take, or whether they are universal and fixed. [See also: “objectivity/subjectivity”]
  • representation * – On limits, problems and possibilities of historiographical and popular representations of the past. [See also: “narrativism”]
  • revisionism * – On reinterpretation and the constant revision of history.
  • science (history and/as) – On whether or not history is a science. Includes: scientific methods, positivism, history of science.
  • truth – On whether history can produce a verifiable and true knowledge. [See also: “revisionism”, “relativism”, “evidence/proof”]
• ethics * – On ethical questions concerning the past, history and historiography.
  • distance/presence * – On historiographical distance from or proximity to its subject, on temporal distance or presence, metaphysics of presence etc.
  • meaning/sense (of history) * – On the meaning to society or individuals of written accounts of the past. Or the meaning, sense, direction and goal of the historical process as a whole, [See also: “representation”, “utopia/ eschatology/ teleology”, “providence/fate”, “religion/theology”]
  • values in/of history – On the values the historian brings to his work, also the debates on “What is history for?”, epistemic virtues etc.
• fields of research – Reflexive works on the historical discipline’s fields of research: biography, business history, cultural history, demographic history, economic history, gender history, history of science, history of philosophy, intellectual history/history of ideas, military history, natural history, political history, politics (political history/political theory) *, religion/theology (and history/ history of) *, social history, subaltern history, urban history, world/global/universal history *
• interdisciplinarity – On the historical discipline in dialogue with: anthropology, archeology, art history/aesthetics, biology, geography/space *, fiction/literature (history and) *, literary theory, media and history, political science/political theory, psychoanalysis/psychology, sociology/social science. Or on the value of interdisciplinarity in general.
  • methodology – On the general study of method in historical enquiry.
    • agency/action * – On the unconscious or purposeful, goal directed activity regarding actions in the past or historians’ actions. The determinacy of structures vs. capacity to act.
    • comparative methodology – On historical explanations that compare historical events, or reference to the present day. [See also: sociology/social science]
    • digital history – Includes: computers, Internet, electronic/digital age, video games
    • oral history – On spoken sources. Includes: methodology, validity.
    • quantitative history – On the approach to historical research that makes use of quantitative, statistical and computer tools.
    • reenactment * – On historians’ re-enactment of the thoughts of a historical agent. Includes: social activity in which aspects of a historical event are recreated e.g. reenactment of the battle of Waterloo.
    • source criticism – On the study of the reliability of the sources used. Includes: authorship, credibility, representativeness and authenticity of sources.
  • schools/paradigms
    • (neo)positivism – On the view of history as facts that operate according to laws of human behavior. That true knowledge is empirical and verifiable.
    • (post)colonial – On colonialism. Includes: historical perspectives of understanding the process of decolonization.
    • (post)modernity – On the “modern.” Includes: proponents (and critics) of the postmodern thinking in history.
    • (post)structuralism – On the effects of both structuralism and post-structuralism in historical analysis.
    • Annales School – On the French historiographical school. [See also: “cultural history”]
    • existentialism * – On the individual experience of choice and the absence of rational understanding.
    • hermeneutics – On the method of interpretation first of texts, and secondly of the whole social, historical, and psychological world.
    • historicism – Includes the different meanings of the term: the general view that historical periods must be understood ‘in their own terms’; the belief in the necessity of historical processes (that are immune to human choice and agency).
    • linguistics/discursive turn – On the opacity and  figurative  character  of  language,  the  manner  in  which reality-effects are created within language.
      • narrativism/narratology * – On the structure of explanation used to account for human actions.
      • rhetoric – On the tropes, arguments, and other devices of language used to write history and persuade audiences.
      • semiotics/semantics – On semiotic and semantic issues of historical work.
    • Marxism/historical materialism * – On the Marxist historiographical school. Includes: historical materialism.
    • material turn – On the understanding of past material culture.
    • microhistory – On the tradition of researching a well defined portion of the past.
    • phenomenology – On the method of philosophical investigation whose main proponents are Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre and Merleau-Ponty.
  • time/temporality – Time in history and historiography; human relationship with time.
    • anachronism – On the act of misplacing concepts in the past.
    • chronology – On the recording of and the order in which a series of events happened.
    • cyclical/linear * – On the cyclical or linear nature of the passage of time.
    • distance/presence * – On historiographical distance from or proximity to its subject, on temporal distance or presence, metaphysics of presence etc.
    • historicity * – On the idea that things develop through history: concepts, practices, values.
    • periodization * – On the development of historical periods.
    • presentism * – On the present time overpowering other temporal categories.
    • spectrality * – On the persistence or reappearance of elements of the past in the present.

2. Substantial Philosophy of History [“Speculative”]

• Classics of Substantial Philosophy of History – Must-reads for anyone interested in the philosophy of history (also known as speculative philosophy of history).
• agency/action * – On the unconscious or purposeful, goal directed activity regarding actions in the past or historians’ actions. [See also: “freedom/liberty”]
• civilization(s) – On the view of history as an evolution or description of civilizations. [See also: “evolution”]
• Enlightenment – On the view of history as the record of progress and human perfectibility.
• ethics * – Ethical questions concerning the past, history and historiography.
• evolution – On the view of history as a process of slow change and development [See also: “civilization(s)”, “progress/decline”]
• existentialism * – On the individual experience of choice and the absence of rational understanding.
• freedom/liberty – On individual and collective control their own actions. Includes: Hegelian stages of history.  [See also: “agency/action”]
• future/prediction – On the future and the possibility of knowing it [See also: “utopia/ eschatology/ teleology”]
• geography/space * – Space in history and historiography; human relationship with space.
• historical change – Analysis of change in time. [See also: “explanation”; “continuity/discontinuity”]
• idealism – On the tradition that emphasizes the “ideal” character of all phenomena.
• laws in history * – On the existence or not of laws that rule human history. [See also: “agency/action”]
• Marxism/historical materialism * On historical materialism understood as a theory of socioeconomic development. Includes: the Marxist historiographical school.
• meaning/sense (of history) * On the sense of history (Includes the meaning of written accounts of the past)
• metaphysics/ontology – Enquiry that raises questions about reality that lie beyond or behind those capable of being tackled by the methods of science.  / The branch of metaphysics that concerns itself with what exists.
• causation * – On cause and effect in history.
• chance/contingency – On whether history occurs by chance. [See also: “providence/ fate”]
• determinism – On whether or not history is determined.
• realism/anti-realism * – On the (non)reality of the past. Includes: critical realism, constructivism.
• structures vs. events – On the format in which history takes place.
• posthistoire/end of history – On the potential end of history.
• progress/decline – On whether later times are improvements over earlier times.
• religion/theology (and history) * – On the connection between history and religion. Includes: history of religion. [See also: “utopia/escathology/teleology”; “secularisation”; “providence/fate”]
• secularization – On the separation between history and religion. [See also: “religion/theology (and history]
• time/temporality – Time in history and historiography; human relationship with time.
  • continuity/discontinuity – Question of whether history is solely and evenly continuous, or whether it is marked by age-specific periods.
  • cyclical/ linear * – On the cyclical or linear nature of the passage of time.
  • historicity * – On the idea that things develop through history: concepts, practices, values.
  • periodization * – On the development of historical periods.
  • presentism * – On the present time overpowering other temporal categories.
• utopia/eschatology/teleology – On whether final causes and/or an ideal final state exist. [See also: “future/ prediction”; “posthistoire/end of history”]
• world/global/universal history * – On the presentation of the history of humankind as a whole and coherent unit.

3. History outside academia

• critique (history as) – On the study of historiography as a form of historical culture.
• death and mourning – On historiographical approaches on death.
• distance/presence * – On historiographical distance from or proximity to its subject, on temporal distance or presence, metaphysics of presence etc.
• education – Works on the teaching of History, Historiography or Historical Theory.
• ethics* – Ethical questions concerning the past, history and historiography.
• experience – On historical experience.
• heritage – On (non)physical remains of the past. Includes: patrimony. [See also: “public history”]
• historical consciousness – On how people look at the past.
• identity – On how the past affects one’s identity. [See also: “nationalism/nation building”]
• jurisdiction (history and) – On the confluence of law and history. Includes: transitional justice.
• literature/fiction (history and) * – On the connection between history and literature. g.: “Is history a form of literature?”
• memory/forgetting – Theories of memory and forgetting.
• museum/musealization – On displaying the past in museums or the musealization of the world.
• myth – On the connection between history and myth making or myth breaking. [See also: “ideology”; “revisionism”]
• narrativism/narratology * – On the structure of explanation used to account for human actions.
• nostalgia/melancholia – On feelings towards the past.
• politics (political history/political theory) – Political questions concerning the past, history and historiography.
  • (ab)uses of history – Cases of suppression, manipulation, and deception, as well as the different political uses of history.
  • ideology – A coherent set of socially produced ideas that create a group consciousness.
  • nationalism/nation building – On the past‘s and history’s influence in shaping nations.
  • revisionism * – On reinterpretation and the constant revision of history.
• providence/fate – On the principle or determining cause by which things in general are believed to come to be.
• public history – The many ways in which historians recreate and present history to the public.
• reenactment * – On the social activity in which aspects of a historical event are recreated. Includes: historians’ re-enactment of the thoughts of a historical agent.
• religion/theology (and history) * – On the connection between history and religion. Includes: history of religion. [See also: “utopia/escathology/teleology”; “secularisation”; “providence/fate”]
• representation * – Debate on the historiographical representation of the past.
• spectrality * – On the persistence or reappearance of elements of the past in the present.
• testimony/witnesses – On testimonies and witnessing the past. [See also: “jurisdiction (history and)”; “memory/forgetting”; “oral history”; “trauma”]
• trauma – On trauma formation and relation with the past. [See also: “memory/forgetting”; “testimony/witnesses”; “violence/genocide”]
• violence/genocide – On the effects of extreme violence and genocide in the past. Includes: Holocaust. [See also: “jurisdiction (history and)”; “trauma”]

4. Histories and Geographies of Historiography & Historical Consciousness

• Ancient historiography and historical consciousness
• medieval historiography and historical consciousness
• Renaissance historiography and historical consciousness
• Early Modern historiography and historical consciousness
• Modern historiography and historical consciousness
• contemporary historiography and historical consciousness
• African
• Asian
• Eastern European
• Latin American
• Middle Eastern
• Western

• anthologies/ introductions/readers – Collected articles or works intended for use in teaching historical theory or philosophy of history.
• Bibliographies – Lists of texts relevant to the theory and philosophy of history.