What are primary and secondary sources?

Answer

A primary source is firsthand evidence about an event, person, place, etc. It is usually documented/ recorded by witnesses or recorders who experienced the events or conditions at the time when the events or conditions were occurring. Primary sources are free of outside analysis and hindsight. These sources are original materials, regardless of format. Using primary sources allows you to draw your own conclusions about events, and to see events as they were perceived when they were occurring.

Primary sources are not restricted to certain formats-- any piece of information could be a primary source if it satisfies the qualities of the definition. Some possible formats of primary sources are:

  • archives and manuscript material
  • photographs, audio recordings, video recordings, films
  • journals, letters and diaries
  • speeches, interviews
  • scrapbooks
  • published books, newspapers and magazine clippings published at the time
  • government publications
  • oral histories
  • records of organizations
  • autobiographies and memoirs
  • printed ephemera
  • artifacts, e.g. clothing, costumes, furniture
  • research data, e.g. public opinion polls, census, or economic statistics
  • original research
  • texts of laws and other original documents

A secondary source, on the other hand, is an account or interpretation created later by someone without the firsthand experience. Secondary sources describe, discuss, interpret, comment on, analyze, evaluate, and summarize primary sources. They are created after an event has occurred. Secondary sources may include pictures, quotes, graphics, etc. of primary sources.

Some examples of secondary sources:

  • books
  • journal articles
  • histories
  • criticisms
  • commentaries
  • encyclopedias
  • reviews

For more information, please contact the Access Services Desk at ask@utep.libanswers.com or call us at (915) 747-5672

  • Last Updated Sep 13, 2023
  • Views 306
  • Answered By Research & Instruction Librarians

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