Introduction

The humanities cover a wide range of subjects and fields of inquiry, including languages, literature, history, and philosophy, among others. And they take a wide variety of forms—extending from the often solitary research work of individual scholars to collaborative digital humanities projects and institutionalized collections of museums and historical societies.

Humanities funding streams are equally diverse.

The humanities receive relatively small amounts of funding in comparison to other areas of knowledge, but this report shows a field being squeezed on several sides, with federal funding, state support for higher education, and charitable giving to the humanities all flagging since 2007. In some cases, the most recent available data show increases in funding, but the totals remain below their pre-recession levels.

Drawing on information gathered for the Humanities Indicators (www.humanitiesindicators.org), this report attempts to highlight the array of funding sources, large and small, that underwrites the humanities, while summarizing the most current data available in spring 2014.
Visit the Humanities Indicators website for related information and additional background on all these findings.