The power of networks : prospects of historical network research

__The Power of Networks__ describes a typology of network-based research practices in the historical disciplines, ranging from the use of quantitative network analysis in cultural, economic, social or political history or religious studies, to novel approaches in the Digital Humanities. Network data visualisations and calculations have proven to be useful tools for the analysis of mostly textual sources containing relational information, offering new perspectives on complex historical phenomena. Including case studies from antiquity to contemporary history, the book provides a clear demonstration of the opportunities historical network research (HNR) provides for historical studies. The examples presented within the pages of this volume are arranged in a way to highlight three central typological pillars of HNR: (re-)construction and analysis of historical networks; computational extraction of network data and infrastructures for data collection and exploration. __The Power of Networks__ outlines the history and current state of research in HNR and points towards future research frontiers in the wake of new digital technologies. As such, the book should be essential reading for academics, students and practitioners with an interest in digital humanities, history, archaeology and religion. The Power of Networks describes a typology of network-based research practices in the historical disciplines, ranging from the use of quantitative network analysis in cultural, economic, social or political history or religious studies, to novel approaches in the Digital Humanities. Network data visualisations and calculations have proven to be useful tools for the analysis of mostly textual sources containing relational information, offering new perspectives on complex historical phenomena. Including case studies from antiquity to contemporary history, the book provides a clear demonstration of the opportunities historical network research (HNR) provides for historical studies. The examples presented within the pages of this volume are arranged in a way to highlight three central typological pillars of HNR: (re-)construction and analysis of historical networks, computational extraction of network data and infrastructures for data collection and exploration. The Power of Networks outlines the history and current state of research in HNR and points towards future research frontiers in the wake of new digital technologies. As such, the book should be essential reading for academics, students and practitioners with an interest in digital humanities, history, archaeology and religion. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Series Page 3 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Contents 6 List of figures 8 List of tables 11 List of contributors 12 Acknowledgments 15 1 Introduction 16 2 (Re-)construction of historical networks and their analysis 26 2.1 Networking the res publica: social network analysis and Republican Rome 28 2.2 Community detection and structural balance: network analytical modelling of political structures and actions in the Middle Ages 52 2.3 The value of network analysis in historical sociology: economic and social relations in medieval Lübeck 71 2.4 Flemish merchant networks in early modern Seville. Approaches, comparisons, and methodical considerations 100 2.5 Kinship networks in North Western German rural society (18th/19th centuries) 125 2.6 Mobility and movements in intellectual history: a social network approach 140 3 Computational extraction of network data from large corpora 166 3.1 Utilizing historical network analysis on meta-data to model East German foreign intelligence cycle in the Baltic Sea Region 1975–89 168 3.2 Social and semantic network analysis in the study of religions 187 4 Infrastructures for data collection and exploration 202 4.1 Deep networks as associative interfaces to historical research 204 4.2 Networks as gateways. Gleanings from applications for the exploration of historical data 239 5 Outlook 266 5.1 Historical Network Research, Digital History, and Digital Humanities 268 6 Glossary 295 Index 299 (Re-)construction;,Community;,Lübeck;,considerations;,Infrastructures (Re-)construction,Community,Lübeck,considerations,Infrastructures