Historians do not derive knowledge of the past from nowhere. There are a large number of branches of historical science that help advance in the study of specific periods in the history of mankind. What are these industries, and how do they help historians understand the past?
Classification of historical disciplines
For most of them, the term “auxiliary historical disciplines” is used. They are conditionally divided into two groups. The first includes those involved in the study of different types of sources from any one side. These are auxiliary historical disciplines such as archeography, genealogy, archival studies, paleography, historical metrology, epigraphy, papyrology, chronology, textology. So, for example, chronology is studying the systems of chronology, for which various types of written sources are used. Historical metrology studies the units of weight, length, and other quantities that existed in different countries. Without it, we would hardly have been able to imagine what pood, pound, or talent are, as reported in many written sources known to us. Epigraphy specialists are interested in inscriptions that are short in content - on stones, products of artisans, walls of buildings, etc.
The second group includes disciplines that study specific types of sources, but at the same time examine them from different angles. For example, numismatics, sphragistics, heraldry, faleristics can be cited. Each of them has a narrow subject of research. Numismatics studies banknotes (paper and metal), sphragistics - seals, heraldry - coats of arms, faleristics - types of awards.
There is another term - special historical disciplines. These are industries that are considered completely independent parts of historical science. The most famous of them is archeology. This is science with its own terms and periodization and a wide range of material sources. This also includes historiography, which studies the process of development of history as a science. Special disciplines include such historical disciplines as ethnography, source studies, historical geography. In general, this term has not yet been established in science - it is used both to replace the word "auxiliary" and for independent disciplines. In different ways, historians determine the independence of a particular discipline.
The role of auxiliary and special disciplines in research
What role do special and auxiliary historical disciplines play in the process of cognition of history? In fact, these are the bricks that make up historical knowledge. Any professional historian has to master special knowledge in order to successfully research a specific period. Thus, a specialist in the history of the Middle Ages will have to master the narrow paleography that studies written manuscripts and a wider source study . Auxiliary historical disciplines give us knowledge, thanks to which we gradually present the general picture of a particular period. For example, the presence of inscriptions on handicrafts of the era of Kievan Rus suggests that literacy was spread not only among the nobility, but also among ordinary people. Findings of ancient vessels with stigmas in the burials of nomads in the Black Sea steppes make it possible to determine the direction of trade that these nomadic peoples waged. Genealogy gives us knowledge about kinship among the aristocracy, dynastic contacts of rulers. A huge role in historical research is played by chronology, which studies the systems of chronology in different countries. Without it, we simply could not determine the sequence and time of events in historical documents.
In general, the division of historical disciplines into auxiliary and special is very conditional. After all, each of them is an integral part of historical science, helping scientists learn more about the past.