Leaving Cert History

What is history?
History is the story of
the past.
The historian searches
for evidence to find out
about our past.

Sources
Anything that provides historical evidence
is known as a source.
There are two types of sources:
1. Primary sources
2. Secondary sources

Primary sources
Primary sources are evidence that survive
from the time being studied.
They provide us with
information about the past.

first

hand

Diaries, photographs and newspapers are

all examples of primary sources.

Secondary sources
Secondary sources do not come from the
time being studied, so they provide us with
second hand information about the past.
Your history textbooks are examples of
secondary sources.

How do historians read

sources?
They may visit a place where written
sources are stored:
Archives
Libraries
Museums

Steps historians take

1. Read or look at the source carefully
2. Then ask themselves:

Where was it created?

When was it made?
Why was it made?
By whom?

3.

4.
5.

Examine how close the author was

to the event being described this
is the time and place rule (i.e. an
eyewitness
account
is
more
important).
Judge if the source is reliable.
Use as many sources as possible to
make sure their story is accurate
this is called cross-checking.

How to judge the reliability of

sources

Bias
Accuracy
Exaggeration
Propaganda
Time and place
Opinions

Bias
A source may not be fully reliable because
the author of it was a supporter of a
particular side. The author of the source
may also have been too emotionally
involved in events to give a fair and
accurate description.

Inaccuracy
Even if the author of a source tries to be
fair (unbiased), he or she may have made
errors. There is also the danger,
particularly with oral sources, that
details in their account may have been
exaggerated over the years.

Propaganda
Propaganda is the use of information to
influence opinions of people to ensure
power.