Abstract: The article starts a special issue of Historical Information Science journal which addresses a topical and an important impact of the “digital turn” on a historian, methodology and practice of historical research and historical education. These questions were raised when questioning well-known scholars applying mathematical methods and information technologies to historical studies and education who work at various research centers in Russian and abroad. The research novelty is a new approach to evaluate the current state of one of the most popular domains of humanities – history in the context of the “digital turn”. The questionnaire has been drawn up by the editorial staff and the editorial board members of the journal. The focus is the impact of the “digital turn” on historical studies and education, new terms and definitions, ties of historical information science with such domains as digital humanities and “digital history”, the role and the importance of an analytical component in research done by historians using new methods and techniques, the status of “digital sources” as well as the necessity to form a new branch of source studies (“digital source studies”). .

Keywords: quantitative methods, digital technology, Digital History, Digital Humanities, digital turn, Historical Information Science, historical source, history, digital resources, questionary

Abstract: The article discusses an impact of digital turn on history studies. The author passes an opinion that historical information science and digital history are quite different from each other and are two separate domains of history. Herewith, digital history cannot substitute or absorb historical information science or other branches of history. Quantitative history is sure to dominate historical information science in the future. The author demonstrates that historical information science intentionally creates resources to solve specific research problems or processes existing ones to introduce them into scientific discourse. The division of resources into digital and analogue will be preserved and the latter ones will not disappear. The author pays attention to the use of computer technologies in history that has been influenced by the hash up of history functions. In the end, the article briefly characterizes regional aspects of the problems addressed taking as an example the state of history and education within digital turn environment in Kyrgyzstan.

Keywords: information resources, digital history, historical informatics, historical science, digitalization, digital society, Digital rotation, sources, historical education,, Kyrgyzstan

Abstract: The article discusses contemporary challenges and problems related to historical science in the digital turn era as well as large scale digitization of historical sources. It also analyzes relations of historical information science and digital history (digital public history included) in detail. Emphasis is laid on data problems traditional of historical information science which has received a new impetus in recent years. The author discusses an expanded definition of “big data” and its specificity as applied to historical research giving a number of large-scale international research projects as an example. The article explores opportunities provided by the use of concepts and technologies of big data in history-oriented research projects and identifies promising areas to apply mathematical methods and digital technologies in historical research and educational programs. .

Keywords: Big Data, information technology, digital public history, digital history, digital humanities, historical information science, digital turn, digital resources, source study, educational programs

Abstract: The article discusses the impact of the digital turn on historical research and education. It analyzes the development of historical information science in Russia, its relationship to such areas as digital humanities and digital history. The author studies the correlation of two components of historical information science – a resource component and an analytical one. The conclusion is made about the continuing predominance of analytical studies. The article briefly describes the impact of the digital turn on historical education and considers some aspects of the development of historical source studies in this period. Particular attention is paid to terminology which is rapidly changing and requires increased attention of specialists. The article uses both historical and logical approaches when describing its main provisions. The research novelty is the fact that all the provisions of the article are based on the analysis of modern state of in historical science and education which is constantly changing and has several multidirectional development vectors. The author concludes that historical information science is still the main field of application of mathematical methods and digital technologies in history. .

Keywords: analytics, source, digital turn, digital humanities, digital history, historical information science, history, term, digital resources, education

Abstract: The article discusses effects of the “digital turn” in history, changes in the historical information science agenda, ratio of historical information science and digital history research fields in the context of rapidly developing digital humanities as well. The author also studies the impact of the “digital turn” on the structure of historical knowledge and its relation to research practice, summarizes discussions about benchmarks of technological influence on historical research and defines digital platform as an infrastructure solution combining analytical and resource components of historical research. On the basis of historiographical observations and consideration of the latest historical digital projects the author traces important changes in the field of historical knowledge. An attempt is made to find possible epistemological consequences of the “digital turn” in historical research, its impact on historical heuristics, criticism and interpretation. The article answers the questions of the editorial board of “Istoricheskaya Informatika” journal about the key trends, changes and experiences of the research community using information technology in historical studies. The author considers methodological understanding of the “digital turn” and by means of a labyrinth metaphor predicts further steps of a researcher to new evidence-based knowledge when he is armed with historical information science achievements.

Keywords: digital source criticism, linked data, datafication, big data, digital platform, digital history, digital turn, historical information science, digital humanities, epistemological labyrinth

Abstract: The article studies the relationship of several areas associated with over 50 years that quantitative methods and information technologies in humanitarian and historical research have been in use. Firstly, it is historical information science, its structure and content, which have evolved in the domestic model of this interdisciplinary domain and “historical computing” and its specificity in the European model. Secondly, these are similar areas of general humanities. Thirdly, these are relatively new fields which are more popular in the West such as digital humanities and digital History. Having analyzed Russian and foreign historiography the author studies methodological, methodical and technological issues of the formation and development of these areas, their evolutionary stages and possible prospects for the future. The results of the analysis show the dominance of the general trends of these fields both in Russia and Europe at the initial stages and their divergence over the past 15 years which is caused by the differences in their subject areas and varying degree of influence exerted by quantitative history in the 1960s-1980s.

Keywords: digital technologies, information technologies, digital humanities, digital history, humanities computing, historical computing, quantitative history, computers in the humanities, historical information science, digital resources

Abstract: The article considers theoretical and methodological aspects of the digital turn in Russian historical science, defines the notion “digital turn” and describes its connection to the digital revolution. The digital revolution in history has primarily affected its methodological, source-related, thematic, and conceptual aspects. The author characterizes the key stages in the digital turn in history: the preliminary stage (mathematization); the initial stage (computerization); and the final stage (informatization of history).  She studies digital turn peculiarities related to specific research areas taking historiography of peasant budget surveys as an example. The history of agriculture and rural life was among the first to join the processes of mathematization and computerization and illustrates the main stages of the digital turn, in particular its final stage that is the creation of remote resources. The informatization of science should be considered not only as a technological process but, since it involves a significant expansion of the range of methodological tools, as a new qualitative level in historical cognition. 

Keywords: Digital History, historical computing, informatization of science, computerization of science, mathematization of science, digital turn, digital revolution, information revolution, budgets of peasant households, information source

Abstract: The article focuses on plausible consequences of mass digitization of historical sources and the emergence of new types of sources such as integrated information resources, archives of online publications and big data. It also gives examples of new research methods application which correspond to digital information specifics. The author evaluates the impact of these factors on three groups of persons related to historical science. These are professional historians, specialists who prepare sources for publication and history popularizers. The possible impact of the "digital turn" on the mass audience is addressed as well. To evaluate plausible consequences of ongoing transformations in history the author uses experience of similar changes which characterized transition to mass archaeographic publications of sources. The main conclusion is the inevitable change of emphasis in history that is the reduced role of professional historians and popularizers and the growing importance of specialists who criticize sources and prepare them for publication. Another conclusion is the advent of discussion communities in social networks where members consider direct historical facts and offer their own interpretations ignoring conclusions of professional historians. 

Keywords: online publication, big data, information resource, digitization, archeography, source study, historical source, paleo-DNA, digital forensics, artificial intelligence

Abstract: The article evaluates the extent modern "digital turn" influences the development of history. The author thoroughly examines such issues as the influence of mass sources digitization on history, changes of research tools in the digital turn epoch, promising research approaches within the historical information science domain, proportion of resource and analytical components in quantitative history, interactions between digital humanities and history and between “historical information science” and “digital history”. He also evaluates the relevance of a new term “digital source studies”. The article uses several research methods. The main are a comparative-historical method and a descriptive method as well as general methods of analysis and synthesis. The main results are as follows. The most promising research domains within historical information science are named. The author notes the dominance of a resource component of historical information science caused by rapid spread and cheapening of digitization and web-publishing technologies. He also substantiates the synonymy of such terms as "digital history" and "historical information science". The current development of historical information science is described in terms of surfing of information technology capabilities which are constantly improving. The author demonstrates both positive and somewhat dangerous aspects which are characteristic of quantitative history development.

Keywords: Digital Humanities, Digital History, historical information science, modeling, digital sources study, new research technologies, digital turn, analytical methods, digitizing of sources, technological progress

Abstract: This article is another contribution to a discussion organized by the editorial board of “Historical Information Science” journal about the development trends in Russia regarding the use of information technologies in various fields of the humanities, but primarily in history. These are such non-identical academic fields as historical information science, digital humanities and digital history. However, historical information science is the principal topic of this article. The author is a professional historian specializing in research projects aimed at generating new historical knowledge and evaluates the opportunities modern electronic information environment provides. Supporting the diversity of creative and career paths of a historian as well as the experimental academic environment in which various “technological” fields of history develop, the author notes the paucity of historical studies recognized by a broad community of historians. 

Keywords: historical methods, history methodology, digital humanities, digital history, digital turn, historical information science, source study, digitized historical sources, historical information resources, educational technology

Abstract: The article addresses ties between GIS technologies used to study spatial aspects of history and a phenomenon known as the “digital turn” in humanities. In fact, the development of historical geoinformatics is the essence of the “digital turn” for a research domain studying spatial aspects. Irrespective of tasks handled by a researcher, GIS provide for selection and visualization as well analysis of geodata. The “digital turn” differs from the “digital transition”. The latter is a refusal to create base maps by means of analog art devices and creation of electronic maps by means of graphic software. The specificity of relations between geoinformatics and historical research is revealed through the mismatch between the positivist epistemology of GIS and approaches of historical research. The article emphasizes that GIS is mainly geodata rather than a map. The prospects for the development of historical geoinformatics are associated with a more distinct awareness of this fact. This awareness should facilitate integration of geodata of various research groups on a common digital platform. 

Keywords: historical data analysis, databases, historical geodata integration, digital humanities, historical GIS, geodata, historical geoinformatics, digital turn, geoprocessing, invalid geometries

Abstract: The article discusses historical research in the information society which is characterized by widespread digital transformation, digitalization of historical sources and historiography, increase in the number of multidisciplinary approaches, methods and techniques involved as well as the use of various computer methods to analyze and synthesize historical sources within historical studies. The author answers debated questions which are topical in the last decades of Russian historical computer science development and its coexistence with such domains as digital humanities and digital history. The main research methods are a historical-genetic method, a historical-typological and a historical-comparative method. These methods are accompanied by a problematic-chorological, a historical-descriptive and an actualization method. The research novelty is the author’s approach which analyzes the etymology and the content of terms and concepts which actively used in modern historical studies carried out in the framework of historical information science, digital humanities and digital history and historiographically considers earlier studies, articles, monographs and Internet information resources. The author sets forth her own vision of the prospects for the development of the most significant domains of historical information science as well as the expansion and improvement of its methods and techniques. 

Keywords: analog sources, digitization, Digital turn, Digital History, Digital Humanities, historical computer science, historical sources, digital sources, informational resources, online publications