Romantische Indomanie’ oder ‚orientalische Renaissance’? Zu einigen Erklärungsmustern für das Entstehen der Indologie in Deutschland

In recent decades, the notion of the ‘romantic roots of German Indology’ has become a ‘communis opinio’ of sorts. However, it draws its strength largely from repetition, rather than from argumentation. When checked against the evidence of the seminal Jena ‘Frühromantik’ around 1800 on the one hand, and Indological writings of the early 19th century on the other, it turns out to be an intricate fabric of misinterpretation and distortion. The same applies, mutatis mutandis, to the notion of an ‘Oriental Renaissance’, arguably the most problematic misconception in the field, considering its ‘post-orientalist’ legacy.