Organizing, Archiving, and Sharing. Research Data Management in the Ethnologies

In recent years, research data management has assumed an increasingly prominent place in the research funding institutions debates about quality control and efficient use of data. At the same time open research data was promoted by the open movements too, with intent to support unrestricted access to knowledge. However, ethnologists are often reserved, because data archiving and the intended re-use of data raise a number of practical, legal and ethical questions. Although questions of how to organise digital data are as essential as how to preserve it permanently. In any case, to take part in the debate is inevitable with regard to the ongoing comprehensive regulatory processes. Dealing with different aspects on research data management, problems and open questions on the one hand, and, on the other hand, pointing out opportunities that may arise for ethnographic research, this article seeks to make a contribution to the debate. Beyond that, taking a historical view provides a further framework to think about the changing conditions of knowledge production and circulation that are the wake of digitisation.