Description:
With an emphasis on exploring measurable aspects of ancient narratives, Maths Meets Myths sets out to investigate age-old material with new techniques. This book collects, for the first time, novel quantitative approaches to studying sources from the past, such as chronicles, epics, folktales, and myths. It contributes significantly to recent efforts in bringing together natural scientists and humanities scholars in investigations aimed at achieving greater understanding of our cultural inheritance.
Accordingly, each contribution reports on a modern quantitative approach applicable to narrative sources from the past, or describes those which would be amenable to such treatment and why they are important.
This volume is a unique state-of-the-art compendium on an emerging research field which also addresses anyone with interests in quantitative approaches to humanities.
Review Quotes: "For the folklore scholar interested in the digital humanities, this collection offers a window into the realm of statistical physics, and demonstrates new techniques that can enhance folkloristic understanding of culture at scale. While written towards the mathematically inclined, Maths Meets Myths remains accessible because the chapters are not overwhelmingly bogged down by mathematics or statistics." (David Chartash, Folklore, Vol. 130 (3), 2019)