Altertumswissenschaft

There is no real English equivalent for the German word Altertumswissenschaft, which refers to the study of ancient culture and society. It covers both the Classical West (Greece and Rome) and the ancient Near East (Babylonia, Egypt, and so on), both religious and secular subjects, and both archaeology and philology.

Because the twentieth century witnessed a data explosion, it is very difficult for scholars to keep track of all fields. As a consequence, it has become impossible to avoid the main problem bedeveling the study of the distant past: that a specialist in one field repeats outdated information from other fields.