Global Phenomenologies of Religion: An Oral History in Interviews

The phenomenology of religion is a branch of religious study that claims to represent
the core of the study of religion as an autonomous discipline. First used as a term by
the Dutch scholar Chantepie de la Saussaye in 1887, it was developed by Gerdardus
van der Leeuw in the 1930s and 40s, became popular in the 1960s and 70s and
then subsequently met severe criticism, virtually disappearing by the beginning of the
twenty-first century.
This volume investigates how the phenomenology of religion was accepted and
developed in different national contexts. It consists of interviews with senior
scholars, who are experts on the development of the phenomenology of religion in
their countries, along with commentary and analysis. It examines the reasons why it
disappeared so abruptly in each country and reveals how scholars of religion currently
evaluate the phenomenology of religion in their countries.