kulturhistorischen

Kulturhistorischen is an adjective form used in German to describe things related to the cultural history of a people, period, or phenomenon. The base term “kulturhistorisch” combines Kultur (culture) and historisch (historical) and is closely linked to the discipline of Kulturgeschichte, or cultural history, which studies how culture shapes and is shaped by historical processes.

In scholarly usage, “kulturhistorisch” denotes an approach, method, or analysis that emphasizes cultural meanings, practices, symbols, and institutions within their historical context. It is commonly employed in fields such as art history, archaeology, ethnology, folklore studies, and cultural studies. Examples include “kulturhistorischer Kontext” (cultural-historical context), “kulturhistorische Perspektive” (cultural-historical perspective), and “kulturhistorische Forschung” (cultural-historical research). The form “kulturhistorischen” is a declined variant used in various syntactic positions, e.g., “den kulturhistorischen Kontext” (accusative masculine singular) or “im kulturhistorischen Ansatz” (dative masculine singular).

The term is often used in contrast to approaches focusing on economic, political, or social determinants alone, and it may be combined with other methodological orientations, such as “kulturwissenschaftlich” or “archäologisch-kulturhistorisch.” In German-language scholarship, it signals a focus on how cultural meanings and practices develop over time and interact with historical change.