Histoire Croisée

Abstract

Globalization makes understanding worldmaking processes a crucial issue. During the Cold War the social sciences mainly addressed this issue through comparative studies which mirrored the logic of the world-historical confrontation. In this respect 1989 fostered not only a political turn but an epistemological one. The new political situation fueled the development of approaches dedicated to the study of relations and interdependencies between different parts of the world. Like entangled, shared or connected histories, Histoire croisée takes a cross-border approach.Their common feature is shifting the analysis from comparative approaches centered on territorial entities to the relationships that flow through and the interactions which constitute them, as well as moving away from approaches solely focused on state relationships. Dedicated to the study of intersecting processes in various settings, Histoire croisée is driven by an empirical, methodological and epistemological shift that involves redefining the object of research.