Historical source

Evidence of past human activities used in historical study.

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A historical source is any evidence left by human beings of their past activities, including written and spoken words, landscape shapes, material artifacts, fine arts, photography, and film. While the range of potential historical sources has expanded to include many non-documentary sources, the study of history has nearly always been based squarely on what the historian can read in documents or hear from informants.

Quick Facts

Field: History

Facts from the source article.

Lore & Background

Historical sources encompass every kind of evidence that human beings have left of their past activities — the written word and spoken word, the shape of the landscape and the material artefact, the fine arts as well as photography and film. Despite this broad range, the study of history has nearly always been based squarely on what the historian can read in documents or hear from informants.

Did You Know?

Historical sources are usually divided into primary and secondary, though some historians also refer to tertiary sources.
A primary source is a first-hand account of events by someone who lived through them, made during the historical period being investigated.