Wilhelm Mannhardt und die Anfänge der Volkskunde

At the centre of this study in the history of science is Wilhelm Mannhardt, a 19th century researcher whose early empirical work is relevant to the disciplinary self-understanding of folklore and its successor sciences, but is hardly known any more. The renewed examination is oriented towards the approaches of modern science research, namely Bruno Latour and his research-practical imperative "science in action", in order to make everyday scientific life visible from an emic perspective as a past reality of execution and to present it in a dense description. The basis of the study is formed by newly discovered or hitherto hardly considered archival material from all over Europe as well as Mannhardt's scientific estate, which is kept in the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin. The diverse material is historically contextualised, analysed, interpreted and reflected on its current significance for modern research. In addition, two hitherto unknown writings from Mannhardt's estate - "Über das Studium der Volksüberlieferung" and "Moderne Sagenbildungen" - are edited for the first time in the appendix of this book.