MODULE 2

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SOURCES

Primary sources were either created during the time period being
studied or were created at a later date by a participant in the events being
studied (as in the case of memoirs). They reflect the individual viewpoint of a
participant or observer. Primary sources enable the researcher to get as
close as possible to what actually happened during an historical event or time
period. Primary sources are the historical documents used by historians as
evidence. Examples of primary sources include diaries, personal journals,
government records, court records, property records, newspaper articles,
military reports, military rosters, and many other things.

A secondary source is a work that interprets or analyzes an historical

event or phenomenon. It is generally at least one step removed from the
event is often based on primary sources. Examples include: scholarly or
popular books and articles, reference books, and textbooks. In contrast, a
secondary source is the typical history book which may discuss a person,
event or other historical topic. A good secondary source uses primary
sources as evidence.
The key to determining whether an item may be considered to be a
primary source is to ask how soon after the event was the information
recorded. This can be a problem with an autobiography, memoir,
reminiscence, etc. if the author is working several years with only the memory
of what happened. Your history professor will disallow most or all of these as
primary sources.
 Let’s DO THIS!

EXERCISE 1

Provide examples of PRIMARY and SECONDARY sources, write as many

as you can, write them in the box given below.

PRIMARY SECONDARY
SOURCES SOURCES

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PRETEST:
In 2-3 sentences, answer each of the following questions. Write your
answer on the space below.

1. CREDIBILITY OF A SOURCE
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________.

2. RELIABILITY OF A SOURCE
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________.

3. AUTHENTIC SOURCE
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________.

4. ACCURACY OF A SOURCE
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________.

5. WHAT DO YOU THINK ARE THE PURPOSES OF SOURCES

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________

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SOURCES
As a student, you will be gathering information from a variety of types of sources for your
research projects including books, newspaper articles, magazine articles, specialized databases, and
websites. As you examine each source, it is important to evaluate each source to determine the
quality of the information provided within it. Common evaluation criteria include: purpose and
intended audience, authority and credibility, accuracy and reliability, currency and timeliness, and
objectivity or bias.

What is Source Evaluation?

Source evaluation is the process of critically evaluating information in relation to a given

purpose in order to determine if it is appropriate for the intended use.

Why Evaluate Sources?

 Instructors expect students to use scholarly sources: using better sources often results in
better grades!
 Information can be out-of-date, inaccurate, and even purposely misleading (such as
propaganda)
 Some forms of information, such as websites, allow anyone to contribute content or exist
only to sell products or ads by generating traffic

All information, especially online content, needs critical scrutiny. Use the CRAAP test to
evaluate and determine the credibility and reliability of a source:
 The timeliness (i.e. publication date, revision history) of the information.
CURRENCY
 Broken links or old dates indicate a source has not been updated recently.

 The importance of the information for your needs.

RELEVANCY
 Consider your audience and compare with a variety of sources.

 The originating source (author, publisher, sponsor) of the information.

AUTHORITY
 Check for contact information and the credentials of the author.

 The reliability (source, evidence, truthfulness) of the information.

ACCURACY
 Think about the source and look for evidence of bias or error.

PURPOSE
 The reason (teach, sell, entertain) the information exists.

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  Identify the type of information (fact or opinion) and the intent of the

author.

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 Identify the following if it is fact or fake.
Provide answers for the asked question.

AUTHOR:
_______________________
PUBLICATION DATE:
_______________________
ARTICLE TITLE:
_______________________
REFERENCE:
________________________

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 AUTHOR:
_______________________
PUBLICATION DATE:
_______________________
ARTICLE TITLE:
_______________________
REFERENCE:
________________________

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A TEMPORAL MODEL OF MULTIPERSPECTIVITY

The word perspective has a Latin root, “perspectus,” meaning “look through” or
“perceive.” This original meaning suggests a perspective as inherently relative to the
vantage point of a particular viewer (i.e., a subject). Multiperspectivity then, refers to
multiple subjects’ views on one particular object; in the case of history education,
multiperspectivity typically concerns a historical event or figure. Chapman (2011) has
pointed out how multiperspectivity in history is an ambiguous notion. He argued that, on
the one hand, when speaking literally on a perceptual level, a subject’s visual perspective
plays no role in historical knowing, since the past does not exist anymore and, therefore,
cannot be experienced or seen directly by a subject. Chapman (2011) defined a perspective
on the past as “a form of short-hand for the ways in which the concepts, questions and
practical interests that we bring to study the past shape the conclusions we draw” (p. 96).

Stradling (2003) has defined the characteristics of multiperspectivity as “A way of

viewing, and a predisposition to view, historical events, personalities, developments,
cultures, and societies from different perspectives through drawing on procedures and
processes which are fundamental to history as a discipline” (p. 14). Several authors see the
willingness to put oneself in someone else’s shoes as a precondition for teaching
multiperspectivity (Barton & Levstik, 2003; Wansink, Zuiker, et al., 2017). In addition,
researchers have noticed that the willingness to take another perspective can reduce when
an individual feels emotionally connected with the topic (Barton & McCully, 2007;
Goldberg, Schwarz, & Porat, 2011).
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 We define multiperspectivity in the context of history and history education as the
consideration of multiple subject perspectives on a particular “historical” object (Wansink,
Zuiker, Wubbels, Kamman, & Akkerman, 2017). This historical object can be a historical
event, phenomenon, or figure. To operationalize potential perspectives on the historical
object, we propose a temporal framework. With the historical object by definition belonging
to the past, potential subjects and their perspectives on the object can exist in three different
temporal layers: subjects positioned “in the past” (the time of the event, phenomenon, or
figure); subjects positioned “between past and present”; and subjects positioned “in the
present.”

Primary Sources:
The primary sources can be classified into the following categories:

(1) Contemporary Records:

These types of primary sources are in the form of the instruction documents, stenographic
and phonographic records. The business and legal paper and autobiographies, etc. The instruction
documents may be in the form of an appointment notification, and direction from a foreign office to
the ambassador, etc. Generally, such documents have very little chance of error but it is essential to
ascertain their authenticity.
The Business and legal letters consist of the bills, journals, leases, wills, tax records which
gives an insight into the working of the firms as well as the persons. The autobiographies are a
credible source of history because they are very close to the events with which they deal and
written by a person himself. These are non-prejudicial.
(2) Confidential Reports:
The confidential reports are not intended for a general audience and are less reliable than
the contemporary sources. These types of reports are generally in the forms of military and
diplomatic dispatches, Journals, diaries or memoirs, and personal letters.
(3) Public Reports:
The public reports are meant for the general public and less reliable. There are three types
of public reports and each possesses a different degree of reliability, such as— Newspaper reports
and dispatches are more reliable which depends upon the agency from which it originated and the
newspaper in which it is published; Memoirs and autobiographies are another public reports which
are written for the public at the close of the life when the memoirs of author is fading and are,
therefore, not very reliable and the official histories of the activities of government or business
house are also an important kind of public reports. They possess incriminating material and less
reliable.

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(4) Government Documents:
Numerous government documents are compiled which are also a source of vita! importance
to historians such as statistics about the fiscal, census and vital matters which can be made use of
by the historians. All these reports have first-hand importance but require proper evaluation before
the use.
(5) Public Opinion:
The public opinion as expressed in editorials, speeches, pamphlets, letter to the editor is
another important source available to the historian, But the authenticity of this must be
corroborated by other evidence because public opinion may not be always reliable,
(6) Folklores and Proverbs:
The folklores which reveal the stories of legendary heroes are also an important source of
history. They tell us about the aspirations, superstitions, and customs of the people among whom-
the stories developed, e.g. “Alla-Uddal” the hero Rajputana.
To make the use of these folklores the historian should not only possess a thorough
knowledge of the history of the period but also able to distinguish between the legendary and
authentic elements. Similarly, proverbs can give us an idea but scholars must have a thorough
knowledge of the customs and traditions.

Secondary Sources:
The primary sources can be of great help to the historian if he has acquired a thorough
knowledge of the background through the study of secondary sources, i.e. the works of the great
and important historians of the proposed area and period of research. On the basis of this
knowledge, he can utilize the contemporary document at a relevant places and can correct the
secondary sources.
Criticism:

As the historian draws his conclusions and generalizations on the basis of these documents and
facts it is essential to check up the authenticity of the documents and facts. It is the duty of the
historian to doubt every statement until it has been critically tested. This criticism can be of two
types, i.e. External and Internal.

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(1) External Criticism:
The ‘External Criticism’ is of a less intellectual type of criticism of the documents. It
includes examinations of documents like manuscripts, books, pamphlets, maps, inscriptions, and
monuments. The problem of authenticity of document arises more in the case of manuscripts than
the printed documents because the printed document has already been authenticated by the editor.

Historian has to resort to a number of tests to determine the authenticity of a particular document in
his proposed area of research such as— ‘Authorship’ the first question while examining the
authenticity of a document is its author. Even the anonymous writings can provide us useful and
important knowledge. But the discovery of an author’s or writer’s name adds the authenticity of the
information because of the character, connections and trustworthiness of the author determine the
authenticity.

Secondly, “Date of Document”, i.e. the time, place of publication of the document must be inquired
to determine the authenticity of the document. In the modern publications year and place of
publication is indicated on the book or document on the title page or backside (overleaf). However,
in the old manuscript where the data and place are absent, it can be found out from the language or
from the date of birth and death of the author.

Thirdly, the historian confronts the textual errors which may be either unintentional or deliberately
committed. Unintentional error can take place in the copies of the documents (originals are not
available). These mistakes may be caused by the scribe, typist or printer.
An intention error may creep in when the effort is made to modify, supplement or continue the
original. This problem can be overcome through textual criticism. Under this technique, the effort
is made to collect as many copies of dubious text as possible and they are compared.

If the ideas and style do not match or resemble the idea and style of the author it can be
safely assumed that they were not parts of the original manuscript and were forged by the later
ones. Further’ more, the textual accuracy can be solved with the help of “sciences auxiliary” to
history such as “Paleographists” have authenticated numerous documents of the medieval period by
their handwriting and have published easily legible printed versions.

The “archaeologists” provides rich information to the historians, the “numismatists” by dating the
coins, medals and deciphering their inscriptions render valuable assistance. Fourthly, after the
confirmation of the authenticity of the sources historians confronted with the different terms used in
the document.

The meaning of words often changes from generation to generation. Therefore historians must find
out the meaning and sense in which it has been used in the document. The misinterpretation of
terms may lead to a misunderstanding of historical development.

In this way, even after the historian established the authenticity of the documents and discovered
the meaning of the text his duty is not over. He is confronted with another important problem with
the credibility of the document.
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(2) Internal Criticism:

While collecting the material, it must be remembered that a document contains the idea of
the man who wrote. A historian must analyze the contents of the documents with a view to
determining the real meaning. He must try to avoid the laps such as avoid the reading into meaning
which author did not mean to convey, etc., and make a sincere effort to find out the facts even if
they are contrary to his set notions and theories.

He must be able to understand the literal and real meaning of the document which is termed as
‘Positive Criticism’. It reveals us with the author’s conceptions and general notion which he
represents. On another hand, historian sometimes comes across documents which contradict each
other. Hence the need for eliminating statements and facts which are obviously wrong and false
arises.

Therefore, historians have come to hold the view that all that cannot be proved must be temporarily
regarded as doubtful because of the incompetence and unreliability of the author which prevents
him from telling the truth even when he knows. To assess the correctness of the fact, the historian
must ascertain whether the author had the opportunity to know the facts as an eyewitness or not.

What was his source of information and how much time elapsed between the event and the record?
But the dependable testimony depends on a number of factors such as ability and willingness to tell
the truth, the accuracy of the report and independent corroboration. However, it may be noted that
there is a possibility that a skillful liar may deliberately create the condition, i.e. ability and
willingness to tell the truth with accuracy to establish the credibility of his statements.

Therefore, in those cases, the credibility must not be accepted without proper investigation.
Moreover, if there is an agreement between documents, we cannot draw the conclusion that the
facts are definitive but we must ensure that the facts are harmonious and prove each other are
interconnected.

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Learning Activity: Essay

Direction: Answer the following questions and write your answers on a bond paper, if you
are using A4 use that bond paper and if Long size, do the same as well.

1. What is history? How is it different from historiography?

2. What are the sources of history? Enumerate them.
3. How do historians write history?
4. Who are some of the notable Filipino historians? (Give only three)
5. What are their contributions to Philippine historiography?

REFERENCES:
Module ko, Module mo, Module niya, Module nating Lahat, 2019
https://sirdenzmodules.blogspot.com/2019/06/my-first-blog.html
Philippine Literature Module
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343398828_Torrentira_Readings_in_Philippine_Histor
y_Course_Module

How to evaluate sources? https://bowvalleycollege.libguides.com/research-help/evaluation

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Evaluating Sources https://researchguides.library.brocku.ca/external-analysis/evaluating-sources
GE 1- READINGS IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY
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