Digital humanities or humanities in digital: revisiting scholarly primitives

Abstract

Abstract The use of computing tools and methods has irreversibly impacted the creation, use and communication of research. As a result, a still divisive movement of digital humanities (DH) has emerged over the last few decades. This article attempts to provide a theoretical contribution to the discussion of the core fundamentals of the field. In order to do so, it takes a sample of papers indexed under Library and Information Science, in the Web of Knowledge database, and studies them using a quantitative data analysis and a qualitative literature review combined with the author’s personal reflection to illustrate the main research topics. The notion of scholarly primitives, initially formulated by John Unsworth, provides the background for the theoretical analysis. It is concluded that DH embody a community patterned by collaborative and shared networks of communication, where digital tools amplify research possibilities without changing the humanistic values of its practitioners.