This is a debate long in coming in HA. I don't have the time now to more
fully respond to Ian's initial query, however I will relate an episode from
1988 that underscores the disciplinary entrenchment (i.e., anthropological
focus) that pervades HA. I began my graduate work in folklore and folklife
in 1987 specifically to do HA. I set out to take coursework in anthropology,
history, and folklore to get the best understanding I could of the people
(and their material culture) who arrived in North America after the 16th
century. One of the first meetings I had with Bob Schuyler, he tried to get
me to transfer out of folklore and to stop wasting my time on the study of
"fairy tales and trolls." I'll admit that there's frequently little room in
the HA I do for tale types and fairy tale motifs, but I would never trade my
course work in vernacular architecture, ethnography (specifically of Euro-
and African-Americans), and ethnomusicology.  My only regret is that I
didn't include environmental history and economic and business history to
the mix.

David S. Rotenstein, Ph.D. (folklore and folklife), RPA