Many of the cultures of Asia and Africa were manuscript cultures; some still are. Even though the techniques of printing became widely known and popular for several genres or particular purposes, a considerable part of knowledge kept being preserved and transmitted in manuscript form. In contrast to the West European Middle Ages, the manuscript cultures of Asia and Africa are only partially known, this despite the fact that contemporary national self-belief is, in many regions, leading to the rediscovery of this rich cultural heritage. Interest in these manuscripts in the West is largely due to a methodical reorientation in the study of history, such as the recent focus on both material and everyday culture, as well as the new possibilities of analysis offered by digital technology. This comes along with a general interest in media sciences. Significantly, the current discussions on change from one medium of communication to another or on differences between the various means of communication is, despite very different points of view, based on a largely unrecognised presupposition, viz., the generalisability of the West European paradigm. With this in mind, the goal of the Research Unit is to contribute to historical and comparative research on manuscript culture by means of exemplary studies. The variety of the examined cultures will ensure that going beyond the narrow European horizon will not be reduced to a simple ("East vs. West") dichotomy.
DFG Programme
Research Units
International Connection
France
Projects
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Arabische Lehrgedichte des 11. bis 17. Jahrhunderts n. Chr.: Analyse der Textvarianz und ihrer Kontrolle in den Handschriften
(Applicant
Seidensticker, Tilman
)
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Buddhawort und Stifterabsicht: Mediendifferenz und Textvarianz in Sutrenkolophonen und Votivinschriften des frühen chinesichen Buddhismus (4.-7. Jahrhundert)
(Applicant
Friedrich, Michael
)
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In the margins of the text: annotated manuscripts from Northern India and Nepal
(Applicant
Isaacson, Harunaga
)
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Mediendifferenz und Medienwechsel im ausgehenden japanischen Mittelalter: Das Beispiel der "Unmittelbaren Unterweisungen" (jikidan)
(Applicant
Quenzer, Jörg B.
)
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Rechnergestützte Analyse von Manuskripten aus Asien und Afrika
(Applicant
Neumann, Bernd
)
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Script, Print, Memory: Re-establishing the Cankam in Tamil Nadu
(Applicant
Isaacson, Harunaga
)
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The Manuscript Collections of the Ancient Tantras: An Examination of Variance
(Applicant
Isaacson, Harunaga
)
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Variance in the Ethiopian "Short Chronicles" corpus
(Applicant
Friedrich, Michael
)
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Vom Manuskript zum Druck: Sozial- und Kulturgeschichte eines Medienwechsels im Iran des 19. Jahrhunderts
(Applicant
Paul, Ludwig
)
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Zentralprojekt
(Applicant
Friedrich, Michael
)
