Nodes, ties, and theories

In the last twenty years, the number of studies applying historical network analysis has grown significantly, in part due to the general “boom” in the digital humanities (although network analysis pre-dates the “digital turn”). Yet how can manifold social interactions be modelled as ties and individuals as nodes in a network for the purpose of quantitative analysis? Many historians approach network analysis in the face of significant amounts of digital data primarily from a quantitative perspective, trying to master the concepts, the mathematics, and the software. But one may ask, how can we perceive the actual correlations between network models and graphs and the social realities of the past? The paper presents some theoretical frameworks for this purpose. First, it examines three of the most elaborate concepts in “relational sociology” by Harrison C. White, Bruno Latour, and Niklas Luhmann. Second, it concentrates on attempts to combine Luhmann’s systems theory with network theory, and some implications for historical medieval network analysis are suggested. Finally, the main points are summed up.