primary source
A 'primary source' provides firsthand information or evidence directly from the time period or event being studied, essential for historical and scholarly research.
🇺🇸 US Voice:
🇬🇧 UK Voice:
Definition
C1Academic Research
(technical, academic)An original document or artifact that provides firsthand evidence or direct testimony of a subject.
Example
- The diary of Anne Frank is a primary source for understanding life during the Holocaust.
- Researchers often rely on primary sources like letters and official documents to construct accurate historical narratives.
B2Historiography
(academic)A historical object or document created at or near the time of the events being studied.
Example
- The Declaration of Independence is a primary source for studying the American Revolution.
- Historians use primary sources such as photographs and eyewitness accounts to piece together past events.
Similar
Terms that have similar or relatively close meanings to "primary source":