A Concise History of History
Global Historiography from Antiquity to the Present

An incisive account of the entire history of historical writing worldwide by one of the leading intellects in the field.

Daniel Woolf (Author)

9781108444859, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 17 January 2019

358 pages
22.8 x 15.3 x 2 cm, 0.52 kg

'Woolf ultimately provides a tour de force of global historiography. While the West certainly looms large in his work, Woolf's simultaneous treatment of Chinese, Japanese, Islamic and Indian traditions counterbalances the West's general ubiquity in global historiography … A Concise History of History would make an excellent textbook for any undergraduate course requiring a substantive examination of Indo-Asia-Pacific historiography.' Viktor M. Stoll, Journal of Pacific History

This short history of history is an ideal introduction for those studying or teaching the subject as part of courses on the historian's craft, historical theory and method, and historiography. Spanning the earliest known forms of historical writing in the ancient Near East right through to the present and covering developments in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas, it also touches on the latest topics and debates in the field, such as 'Big History', 'Deep History' and the impact of the electronic age. It features timelines listing major dynasties or regimes throughout the world alongside historiographical developments; guides to key thinkers and seminal historical works; further reading; a glossary of terms; and sample questions to promote further debate at the end of each chapter. This is a truly global account of the process of progressive intercultural contact that led to the hegemony of Western historiographical methods.

Introduction
1. The earliest forms of historical writing
2. History in Eurasia to the mid-fifteenth century
3. The sense of the past, 1450–1700
4. Enlightenment, revolution and reaction, c.1700–1830
5. Disciplining the past: professionalization, imperialism and science, 1830–1945
6. Transitions: historical writing from the inter-war period to the present
7. Where do we go from here? Reflections, new directions and prognostications.

Subject Areas: Historiography [HBAH], History: theory & methods [HBA], History [HB]