Decolonizing medieval historiography

Introduction to ‘History of Medieval Historiography: New Approaches’

Abstract

In this brief introduction, which presents História da Historiografia’s special issue on Medieval Historiography, we want to question how medieval historical writing have been conceptualized by Western historical sensitivity. From the eighteenth century onward, with the rise of the “modern regime of historicity” (Hartog), medieval historiography tended to be treated as anachronistic, fanciful, bafflingly unreliable, if not essentially nonexistent. Conversely, we argue that medieval representations of the past became, in the eyes of Western reason, “subaltern pasts” (Chakrabarty). Nonetheless, in what sense can we talk about a Medieval Historiography? Is “decolonization” a way of pluralizing historical consciousness beyond a modern/Western privilege? Or, by contrast, subscribing medieval narrative genres to the umbrella term of “historiography” comes at the cost of reinforcing universalism? The eight contributions included in this special issue point to possible solutions to these questions. Going beyond this background, they offer a sprawling inventory of genres and analytical tools deemed useful for tackling the challenges raised by engaging with medieval pasts. The diversity of perspectives also demonstrates how the study of medieval representations of the past (as well as contemporary medievalisms) may mobilize theoretically informed approaches alongside erudition and source-analysis.