Aging is a long-standing area of scholarly inquiry; after World War II, however, the aging of industrial societies and its implications have rendered it an increasingly pressing issue in the social sciences. The concept itself is far from self-evident, and most disciplines, sociology included, lack consistent or comprehensive theoretical frameworks for understanding it. As all human sciences contribute to the understanding of aging, the interdisciplinary nature of inquiries further complicates the interpretation. Research questions in this field do not arise in free-floating discursive spaces, they are shaped by various actors and influences. Understanding the institutionalization of sociology in Hungary during the 1960s, as well as the political and economic context affecting it, sheds light on how aging became a subject of study during the Kádár era. The present study explores how the modes of knowledge production, research methods, and the political-economic environment shaped sociological perspectives on aging in Hungary. The analysis is based on the longitudinal survey of academic publications from 1959 to 1989.