Historical Disaster Experiences: First Steps Toward a Comparative and Transcultural History of Disasters Across Asia and Europe in the Preindustrial Era

Abstract

This introductory contribution presents the main topics of the volume. It positions research on historical natural disasters as a recent trend bridging environmental history, cultural studies, and global history. The appropriate terms, concepts, theories, methods, and problems associated with this topic are also discussed. Particular attention is payed to the translingual conceptual history of “disaster” and “catastrophe” and on the concept of “cultures of disaster,” as developed by Greg Bankoff, with their specific vulnerability or resilience in the context of “naturally” induced disasters. The questions that form the basis of the contributions to this volume are presented in detail and include (trans)cultural learning processes based on experiences of historical disasters, the hybrid character of natural disasters and their relationship to nature, society, and power, and finally concerning the role of governance and the consequences of glocalisation processes. To conclude, this contribution summarises initial results in the form of hypotheses while mainly concentrating on the transcultural experiences of historical disasters in the preindustrial era.