Some Aspects of the Methodology of Historical Science by M. A. Barg

This article is devoted to the methodological studies of Mikhail Abramovich Barg (1915—1991), Doctor of Historical Sciences, leading researcher, head of the Comparative History of Civilizations group at the Institute of General History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and professor at the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute. In 2025, he would have celebrated his 110th birthday. This anniversary has rekindled scholarly interest in the ideas in the theory and methodology of historical science that this talented historian first expressed in the 1970s and 1980s, which have now proven surprisingly contemporary, engaging, and promising for further development. As research into Mikhail Abramovich’s work demonstrates, the problems of scientific approaches and methods for understanding the past have always attracted the scholar’s attention. Even while working on the agrarian socioeconomic history of medieval England, Barg was deeply immersed in understanding the laws of historical knowledge. The author of this article has prepared for readers a small excerpt from M. A. Barg’s unpublished monograph, which he worked on for almost ten years. I believe these texts will not only allow us to appreciate Barg’ approaches to historical theory but also to reflect on the contemporary foundations of studying the past

Agrarian society · Comparative historical research · Criticism · Historiography · History of science · Public figure · Historical Influence and Diplomacy · History, Culture, and Diplomacy · Philosophy, History, and Historiography