Studies and Data of Historical Social Research

Data of historical studies are characterized by a high heterogeneity of the collected data. The historical sources of these studies can be both text documents (e.g. church registers, written documents of finance departments, court documents) and official statistics or data of institutions like e.g. the German 'Reichsbank'. This heterogeneity is reflected by the stored data of the historical studies.

The data stock covers both detail investigations with strongly focused space and time reference and studies which are very wide in their spatially and temporally design.

There are historical studies containing micro data. (Persons’ characteristics, raised from different archival sources, like the birth and dying data from church registers). On the other hand there are studies containing macro data. (Aggregate data, e.g. election results or socio-economical and political characteristics, related to the relevant space unit, e.g. to the constituencies.)

Finally the data of historical studies cover also collective biographies. (Collected characteristics of career processes, as this is for example the case of the studies to the parliamentarians’ biographies.) The Parlamentarian portal integrate the data holings on parlamentarians at German Reichs- and Landtage and the Bundestag.

Studies with time series data represent an important part of the Archive’s quantitative historical studies (e.g. the historical statistics of the official statistical sources for the German Empire and its member states).

The data holdings of the historical studies archived at GESIS are accessable under:

• Studies with time series data (browse studies and download time series data - HISTAT - Historical Statistics)
• Studies with parlamentarians' biograhies
• Cross-sectional studies of historical social research (browse studies and order data) - PDF-Order form

Furthermore, a reference-guide containing web addresses of selected institutions and organisations, is offered:

• Link-Collection: selected links of Historical Social Research (HCQ) (as of 2005)

For further questions please, don't hesitate to contact us:

• R. Hinterberg (Phone: +49 (0)221 - 47694 54), e-mail
• G. Franzmann (Phone: +49 (0)221 - 47694 34), e-mail
• List of staff