Public history is a school of history that emerged in the US in the late 1970s. It refers to a broad range of activities undertaken by people with training in a discipline of history who are generally working outside specialized academic settings. Public history is deeply rooted in the areas of historic operation, archival science, oral history, museum curatorship and other related fields. Public history has gradually attracted the attention of scholars from different countries, including China, over the last 30 years.

Public history was introduced to China around the 1980s through a handful of essays. On the back of the popularity of China Central Television program Lecture Room in recent years, public history has become a specialized field of study.

Public demands for history
“The change of the concept of post-modern history is one of factors that led to the emergence of public history, which holds that anyone can become his or her own historian,” said Meng Zhongjie, a professor from the Department of History at East China Normal University.

Li Na, a distinguished researcher at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences at Chongqing University, claimed that history is no longer solely the domain of historians. Its chronicling is conducted by the media, including radio, television, the Internet and newspapers, as well as public places, including museums, archives, historical sites, urban buildings and landscapes.

“The motive for pushing ahead the development of public history in China comes from civil society,” said professor Qian Maowei from the Department of History at the College of Humanities and Media at Ningbo University.

He added that the popularity of historical writings, TV programs and online forums have triggered various demands from the public toward history. Accordingly, some scholars have begun to focus on studying new patterns of spreading and recording history that challenges the prevailing traditional model.

Certain scholars contend that public history, which transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries and academic rules of history, seems to challenge the mainstream national narrative and collective memory. This has consequently led some historians to have reservations about the concept.
Indeed, professor Meng claimed that for the past 1,800 years there hasn’t been any gap between professional and amateur historical research.

Li insisted that this does not mean anyone can become a historian. Professional research methods and techniques of history fulfill an irreplaceable role. For example, people should receive long-term professional training for criticizing and analyzing historical knowledge, proving the authenticity of history, respecting and protecting historical environment and forming sense of social responsibility.

“In other words, history should not become less rigorous and objective due to the public’s participation,” said Li.

Interpreting history
“The service object, research scope, core proposition and research method of public history differs from that of traditional historical research. It is therefore necessary to create an independent disciplinary system for it,” said Li. Currently, academic circles are still in their primary stage of exploring public history and are yet to reach a consensus.

Meng indicated that it is necessary to balance theoretical and practical areas in the process of establishing a disciplinary system for public history. The theoretical area should include modern history and communication theory, while the practical area should include museum education, documentary production, historical drama writing, and field and urban archaeology. Meanwhile, there is also a gulf between the two disciplines in new social cultural history, historical anthropology, musicology, oral history and historiophoty, the latter a term coined by American historian Hayden White that refers to the "representation of history in visual images and filmic discourse.”

Qian considers public history a complicated concept that involves collecting writing and research from individuals and groups of professional and amateur backgrounds. It is necessary to reflect on history from different perspectives from the public.
He proposed that the disciplinary system of public history should contain six sections: popular history, public recording of history, public oral history, public historical writing, public historiophoty and public cultural heritage.

Popular history is a concept of communication in the cultural field, providing spiritual support for history. Public recording of history refers to the open of the right to interpret history, providing everyone with the opportunity to interpret history. Public oral history is a channel for the public to record history. Public historiophoty is a way of recording and representing history through image. Public cultural heritage gives the public a chance to touch history.

Regarding the establishment of a public history disciplinary system in China, Qian emphasized that China can draw lessons from the US yet also develop a model based on its own historical resources and national characteristics.

The Chinese version appeared in Chinese Social Sciences Today, No. 610, June 20, 2014.
The Chinese link: http://www.csstoday.net/xueshuzixun/guoneixinwen/90141.html

Translated by Chen Meina
Revised by Tom Fearon