Carlo Ginzburg, the Italian historian celebrated for pioneering the field of microhistory, has died at the age of 87. Over his prolific career, Ginzburg challenged traditional historical approaches by focusing on the experiences of individuals at the margins rather than broad theoretical frameworks or overarching narratives.

Born in Turin in 1939 to Leone and Natalia Ginzburg, Carlo’s early life was marked by the turmoil of World War II. His father, an academic and anti-fascist activist of Jewish descent, was captured and tortured to death by the Gestapo in 1944. His mother would later become a prominent intellectual and writer in postwar Italy, influencing his development. After studying at the elite Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa and spending time at the Warburg Institute in London, Ginzburg emerged as a formidable scholar with a distinctive methodological approach.

Ginzburg’s 1976 publication, *The Cheese and the Worms: The Cosmos of a Sixteenth-Century Miller*, exemplified his microhistorical method. The book explored the worldview of Domenico Scandella—known as Menocchio—a sixteenth-century miller from the Friuli region who was tried by the Catholic Inquisition for heresy. Menocchio’s unusual literacy and heterodox beliefs about creation, involving a chaotic universe formed like cheese filled with worms as angels, captured Ginzburg’s attention. By examining Menocchio’s trial transcripts and personal accounts, Ginzburg illuminated the complex ways beliefs circulated among rural, marginalized individuals, challenging historians’ traditional focus on elites and grand events.

This work broke new ground not only in subject matter but in style. Influenced by cinematic techniques, Ginzburg structured the book into brief, fast-moving sections that resembled film vignettes rather than conventional monographs. The international success of *The Cheese and the Worms*, translated into over two dozen languages, helped establish microhistory as a vital subfield. Ginzburg’s approach emphasized the “edges” of history, giving voice to previously overlooked perspectives and highlighting the interplay between power and resistance.

Earlier in his career, Ginzburg published *The Night Battles* (1966), which investigated sixteenth- and seventeenth-century witchcraft trials, further demonstrating his interest in exploring historical silences and the ambiguities embedded in legal and cultural records. His scholarship extended beyond history into art history and philosophy, often focusing on the interpretation of clues and signs and the nature of historical evidence itself.

In 1988, Ginzburg moved to the University of California, Los Angeles, where he taught for 18 years before returning to Italy to teach at the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa until his retirement. Throughout his life, he remained engaged in public discourse, sometimes intervening in Italian political debates. Notably, he defended his friend Adriano Sofri, a leftist political figure accused of involvement in a high-profile murder case, drawing parallels between legal judgments and historical interpretation in his 1991 work *The Judge and the Historian*.

Ginzburg reflected later in life on the personal resonances of his work, particularly the parallels between Menocchio's persecution and his father's fate under Nazi occupation. His writings have been praised for their clarity, sensitivity, and ability to bring historical characters vividly to life.

He is survived by his second wife, Luisa Ciammitti, and his children from his first marriage to historian Anna Rossi-Doria. Ginzburg’s legacy endures in the continued influence of microhistory and his contributions to the understanding of the marginalized voices that shape human history.