Carlo Ginzburg, a prominent Italian historian known for pioneering the field of microhistory, died Wednesday at the age of 87 in Bologna, Italy. Ginzburg was widely recognized for his innovative approach to historical scholarship, which emphasized close examination of marginalized individuals and communities to reveal broader cultural and social dynamics.

Ginzburg was both an alumnus and professor emeritus at the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa, where he spent much of his academic career. His method, often described as the “evidential paradigm,” involved interpreting subtle clues, traces, and seemingly minor details from historical sources to reconstruct the perspectives and experiences of those often omitted from mainstream historical narratives.

His early research centered on the benandanti, a 16th- and 17th-century folk fertility cult in the Friuli region. Members of this group, regarded as shamanic healers, faced accusations of heresy by the Inquisition. This study formed the basis of his first book, published in 1966, which traced the cult’s origins to older Central European traditions.

Ginzburg’s best-known work, the 1976 book *The Cheese and the Worms*, examined the trial of a Friulian miller accused of unorthodox religious beliefs. Utilizing inquisitorial records, he demonstrated the complex interplay between power and resistance, using a microhistorical lens to explore tensions between popular and elite culture, as well as authority and dissent. The book is considered a landmark in Italian historiography.

Born in Turin in 1939 to writer Natalia Ginzburg and anti-fascist activist Leone Ginzburg, he had a distinguished teaching career that included appointments at Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and the University of California, Los Angeles. His works have been translated into over 30 languages, earning him numerous international awards such as the Prix Aby Warburg, the Balzan Prize, the Antonio Feltrinelli Prize, and the Humboldt Research Award.

In a 2023 interview with the Italian cultural magazine Lucy, Ginzburg reflected on the relevance of his methodological approach beyond academia, suggesting that it could foster greater understanding in everyday life.

The Scuola Normale Superiore praised Ginzburg for transforming historical practice, noting that he restored voices to those historically silenced, equating rigorous proof with justice and maintaining a demanding commitment to truth.

He is survived by his two daughters, Silvia, an art historian, and Lisa, a writer and essayist, from his marriage to the late historian Anna Rossi-Doria.