Mapping the Global Landscape of Digital Humanities Research

Digital Humanities (DH), a burgeoning interdisciplinary field merging humanities with digital technologies, has profoundly transformed research methodologies and dissemination practices. The digitization of texts and the integration of multimedia tools have not only revolutionized traditional approaches but also broadened the audience reach beyond conventional academic institutions. This study presents a detailed quantitative analysis of the global DH research landscape in the 21st century, aiming to illuminate the field’s evolution, key trends, and interdisciplinary collaborations. The study provides a comprehensive quantitative analysis of publications from 2000 to 2023, highlighting a significant increase in scholarly output with over 2,300 research articles and a notable rise in annual publications, peaking in 2023. This growth reflects an expanding global interest and investment in Digital Humanities (DH) research. The analysis reveals that while leading countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany remain at the forefront, emerging economies including Brazil, India, and China are also making substantial contributions.
This study identified 160 DH labs worldwide, revealing significant contributions to DH research. King's College London leads with 50 publications, followed by University College London (32), Universiteit Utrecht (23), and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and University of Helsinki (22 each). The data indicate limited representation from Indian labs, suggesting potential for increased collaboration and participation. Additionally, network analysis of collaboration patterns (between countries and labs) and citation metrics highlights the global nature of DH research and the diverse contributions from various nations and institutions.
Additionally, a corpus of 7,753 keywords from DH research articles was examined, revealing core concepts such as “digital humanities,” “humanities computing,” “visualization,” “digital libraries,” “cultural heritage,” “metadata,” “semantic web,” “ontology,” and “artificial intelligence” as central to the field. This keyword analysis offers insights into the primary focus areas and methodological advancements driving contemporary DH scholarship. The study also underscores the significant role of major funding agencies, including Horizon 2020 (European Commission), the Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK), the National Endowment for the Humanities (US), the National Science Foundation (US), the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (Canada), and the European Research Council (European Union), in supporting DH initiatives. The research highlights that most of these funding agencies are based in developed countries and primarily support DH research and initiatives in affluent nations. However, there is a need for increased financial support for low-income nations such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, The Gambia, and Guinea.
This study aims to offer valuable insights to researchers, policymakers, and institutions, enhancing their understanding of the evolving DH landscape. By mapping global trends and collaborations, we hope to encourage further innovation and cooperation in this interdisciplinary field, ultimately advancing the exploration of humanistic inquiries in the digital era.