Differences Between Primary and

Secondary Sources
When it comes to research and inquiry, there are two types of sources: primary sources and
secondary sources. Primary sources are first-hand accounts of a topic while secondary sources are
any account of something that is not a primary source. Published research, newspaper articles,
and other media are typical secondary sources. Secondary sources can, however, cite both
primary sources and secondary sources.

Not all evidence is of equal value and weight. Data from a primary source is the ideal type of data
to collect; the closer we can get to an original account of the target information or even the more
accurate the information will be. Primary source data is particularly important when doing
research or trying to gain a deep understanding of a situation as it contains the original or raw
evidence. In comparison, secondary sources typically include information where people begin
developing initial understandings of a topic and literature reviews. While both primary and
secondary source data are used in research, new knowledge emerges from analysis of primary
source data.

Through my undergraduate preparation in history, I learned about primary and secondary sources.
Primary sources are direct from an event or original source, such as the Declaration of
Independence, and secondary sources are anything written about something that isn't the primary
account of whatever the source is referencing, such as textbooks discussing the Declaration.
Secondary sources often offer interpretations or analysis. 

Primary and Secondary Sources

Primary sources are the raw materials Secondary sources offer an analysis or a
of historical research - they are the documents restatement of primary sources. They often
or artifacts closest to the topic of investigation. attempt to describe or explain primary sources.
Often they are created during the time period Some secondary sources not only analyze
which is being studied (correspondence, diaries, primary sources, but also use them to argue a
newspapers, government documents, art) but contention or persuade the reader to hold a
they can also be produced later by certain opinion.  Secondary sources are not
eyewitnesses or participants (memoirs, oral evidence, but rather commentary on and
histories). You may find primary sources in their discussion of evidence.
original format (usually in an archive) or Note: The definition of a secondary source may
reproduced in a variety of ways: books, vary depending upon the discipline or context.
microfilm, digital, etc.
Note: The definition of a primary source may Examples include:
vary depending upon the discipline or context. Bibliographies (also considered tertiary)
Biographical works
Examples include: Commentaries, criticisms
Artifacts (e.g. coins, plant specimens, fossils, Dictionaries, Encyclopedias (also considered
furniture, tools, clothing, all from the time under tertiary)
study) Histories
Audio recordings (e.g. radio programs, oral Journal articles (depending on the disciple can
histories) be primary)
Diaries Magazine and newspaper articles (this
Internet communications on email, listservs distinction varies by discipline)
Interviews (e.g., oral histories, telephone, e- Monographs, other than fiction and
mail) autobiography
Journal articles published in peer-reviewed Textbooks (also considered tertiary)
publications Web site (also considered primary)
Letters
Newspaper articles written at the time
Original Documents (i.e. birth certificate, will,
marriage license, trial transcript)
Patents
Photographs
Proceedings of Meetings, conferences and
symposia
Records of organizations, government agencies
(e.g. annual report, treaty, constitution,
government document)
Speeches
Survey Research (e.g., market surveys, public
opinion polls)
Video recordings (e.g. television programs)
Works of art, architecture, literature, and music
(e.g., paintings, sculptures, musical scores,
buildings, novels, poems)
Websites

It is not in every case. One can use primary sources for research, but they should be
balanced with a number of secondary sources, so you get a balanced view of how the
consensus on the meaning of the primary source information is being received. That way
you also get the context, instead of being a thin secondary source yourself.

Definition of a primary source:

Primary sources are original evidence of certain events, objects, persons or work. Examples:
experimental results, contemporary statistical data, eyewitness accounts (contemporary is
best, years later these tend to be less accurate), surveys, original news reports, interviews,
and legal documents.

Drawbacks: Context may be missing, like for writings from centuries ago that were written
for the people of the time who had vastly different backgrounds and experiences than the
people of today. Additionally, there may be information missing that provides details that
were assumed to be widely known at the time, language changes that make the word
meaning different, and issues with the tone of the information that would be dependent on
what was said before or after the information provided. The temptation exists to cherry pick
from primary sources to fit the thesis of the argument.

Definition of a secondary source:

Secondary sources interprets, analyzes and/or explain primary sources. These are one or
more steps removed from the original event and may lack the immediacy and detail of the
original content.
Examples: reviews, later articles, opinion pieces, documentaries, television broadcasts and
books.

Drawbacks: The secondary source alone may be biased or incorrect. The scholarship behind
it is dependent on the producer of the secondary source and their own research and
development of their idea. There is the strong possibility that the producer of the
information distilled and edited it to make their own point. It is best to consult a number of
secondary sources to get a full picture.

So it is not a simple question as to reliability or credibility. For example, let’s pick something
simple and non-controversial, like the Second Amendment to the Constitution. There is a
wealth of secondary material to explicate the few sentences of the primary source, both
contemporary and afterwards. And we still have no agreement on what the primary source
means, because each side digs in their heels and cherry picks the words and the later
explanations that fits their preferred narrative. Hell, I could probably make a case for it to
mean that you only get a gun when they put a regulator into your chest and you sign up to
protect society with it. It would be ridiculous, but I am sure careful editing of sources would
help make my case.

It is like when you see a quote that says “…one of the best movies of the year,” but the
original quote says “this was definitely not one of the best movies of the year,” and then the
secondary information says “Roger Ebert was quoted as saying “this was definitely not one
of the best movies of the year” (Ebert, 1991), but in later interviews said that his original
assessment was “too harsh,” (Ebert, 1995 p. 23), and that “Roger told me that back in those
days, he had a running feud with Ang Lee, and he usually panned his movies because [Lee]
used to steal my morning newspaper from my house.” (Siskel, 1996 pp. 120–121).

The longer example shows how you should use multiple sources, both primary and
secondary to give a fuller picture of what you mean.

Why Use Primary Sources?

Primary sources provide a window into the past—unfiltered access to the record of artistic, social, scientific and
political thought and achievement during the specific period under study, produced by people who lived during that
period.

Bringing young people into close contact with these unique, often profoundly personal, documents and objects can
give them a very real sense of what it was like to be alive during a long-past era.

Philippine History (UM)

Authors: Deanna Febra Gillera Cantal,  Roen Caesar S. Cardinal,  Lindsey C. Espino,  Maribeth
Quezon Galindo

Likewise, this textbook, may challenge new breed of historians and history teachers to go beyond dates,
places, persons, events etc. Teaching the how's and why's of historical events will train students to be
analytical and critical minded individual. Further, teachers may have seen the importance of
contextualization so that students may have developed a deeper understanding of their origins, interpret
historical events in a broader perspective and develop in them to be actively involved in non-violent;
manner to any issues which have affected Filipino lives.

FIRST MASS
Where is the first Mass in the Philippines really held? Some historian
says that it is in Limasawa on the southern tip of Leyte and some says it
is held in Masao, Butuan. At this very moment this issue is being
contested by this people from this two different places claiming that the
first Mass is held in their place.

The researchers search for the facts and evidences that may lead on
where it is the first Mass truly held. The data show in the table is the
evidences that the researchers gathered in this case study about where is
the first Mass really held? The researcher analyse the only two primary
sources that historians refer in identifying the site of the first Mass. One
is the log kept by Francisco Albo, a pilot of one of Magellan’s ship,
Trinidad. He was one of the 18 survivors who returned with Sebastian
Elcano on the ship Victoria after they circumnavigated the world. The
other, and the more complete, was the account of Antonio Pigafetta,
Primo viaggio intorno al mondo (First Voyage around the World).
Pigafetta, like Albo, was a member of the Magellan expedition and an
eyewitness of the events, particularly, of the first Mass.
After analysing the primary sources from Pigafetta and Albo’s account,
and some of the secondary sources that the researchers used as related
studies from the historians conducted research to support our claims
regarding to the first Mass. The researcher lead to a conclusion that
Antonio Pigafetta’s account is more firm than Albo because Pigafetta’s
account is more complete and supported by evidences including the date
of event and also the location. In Albo’s account he didn’t mention the
first Mass but only the planting of the cross upon a mountain top from
which could be seen three islands to the west and southwest unlike
Pigafetta he mention in his account that the first Mass is held in Butuan
on Easter Sunday, March 31. Pigafetta also seen as a is a credible source
because his work was instantly became classic that prominent in the west
like William Shakespeare, Michel de Montaigne, and Giambattista Vico
referred to the book in their interpretation of the new world. The
chronicle of Pigafetta was one of the most cited documents by historians
who wished to study the pre-colonial Philippines.

Therefore, the researchers conclude that the first mass was held in
Masao, Butuan and not in Limasawa Leyte; because according to
(Republic Act No. 2733) the law as well as the government declare that
the first mass is really held in Masao, Butuan. Even though there is also a
law declare Limasawa as the place were the first Mass held there’s a
possibility that they only want to detour us to the truth that Butuan is the
real place where it is held because there’s a lot of evidences that leads to
the conclusion that the first Mass was held in Masao, Butuan. That’s why
the researchers recommended that the future researchers should
conduct a further research and find additional information to strengthen
this claim.

Butuan to pursue claim it was site of First Mass in RP 485 years ago
- Ben Serrano () - April 2, 2006 - 12:00am

BUTUAN CITY — The event that marked the birth of Christianity in the
Philippines 485 years ago is still under dispute, with this city renewing its
claim that the historic first Mass celebrated by Spanish colonizers was held
here and not in Limasawa, Leyte. 

Local executives and Church officials as well as historians here said they
have new scientific evidence to substantiate the re-filing of a petition before
the National Historical Institute (NHI) asserting that Butuan City — particularly
Mazzaua Island, now Barangay Pinamangculan — was the official site of the
first Mass on Easter Sunday in 1521. 

Among the pieces of evidence are 10 1,600-year-old Balahanghai boats

believed to have been used for trade and to transport people for worship
services. 

"We waited for more scientific evidences to strongly substantiate the Mazzaua
claim until geomorphologists and archeologists came up with official reports
that indeed Mazzaua Island was the site of the first Mass," Fr. Joesilo Amalia,
trustee of the Butuan City Cultural and Historical Foundation Inc. and curator
of the Butuan Diocese Museum told The STAR yesterday. 

A law was passed by Congress on June 19, l960, or Republic Act No. 2733,
declared the site of Magallanes on Limasawa Island as the national shrine to
commemorate the first Mass ever held in the country that gave birth to
Christianity in this now predominantly Catholic nation. 

But the Butuan City Cultural and Historical Foundation Inc., (BCHFI) with the
backing of the Butuan City government in the early 1980s up to the ’90s,
contested the declaration. This prompted the government in 1994 to form the
Gancayco Commission headed by then Supreme Court Associate Justice
Emilio Gancayco. 

In 1996, the commission penned a resolution in favor of the Limasawa Island

claim. However, the BCHFI said the NHI board failed to concur with the
Gancayco findings. 

"This prompted BCHFI to continuously raise our protest," Amalia said. 

Two weeks ago, NHI chairman Ambeth Ocampo, who visited the Butuan City
Regional Museum here, told BCHFI officials that the NHI is keen on
resurrecting the Mazzaua "First Mass" claim. 

BCHFI officials are set to meet today with local officials, historians and Church
leaders at the Butuan City Regional Museum to discuss the contents of the
BCHFI position paper to be submitted to NHI, Amalia said.

New proof

According to BCHFI, it has gathered 28 new pieces of scientific evidence and

comparisons between the two islands — Mazzaua and Limasawa — to
substantiate Butuan’s claim, including the recovery of 10 Balahanghai boats
which were accidentally dug up near Masao River in 1976. A shrine was built
for the ancient boats which were used by natives in Butuan for sea travel even
before the Spaniards came. 
The Philippine government has endorsed the Balanghai Shrine to the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a
"World Historical and Cultural Heritage Site" because of its contribution to
ancient culture and history. 

According to Amalia, once UNESCO recognizes the Balanghai Shrine, it will

put Butuan City on the world map as a "historical and cultural heritage site." 

Amalia said they are hoping the NHI will listen this time, pointing out that the
claim for the site of the First Mass must be substantiated by scientific proof,
not just by passing a law which, he insisted, had no scientific basis. 

Amalia officiated a Mass yesterday commemorating the 485th Anniversary of

the First Mass at the site with local government officials headed by City Mayor
Democrito Plaza, Church leaders and other officials. 

In his homily, Amalia urged Butuanons to unite in support of their claim,

saying the distinction of having hosted the first Mass not only is a symbol of
the beginning of Christianity in the Philippines, but also a symbol of its spiritual
value to the people.

ANSWERS:
1.) The study of Philippine History as a subject before CHED mandated Readings in
Philippine History focuses on the study of the economic, social, political, and
cultural development of the Philippines. Furthermore, it emphasizes the relevant
and recurring issues in the Philippine history and it studies the serious problems
that challenges the country. When CHED mandated Readings in Philippine History,
the subject studies Philippine History from multiple perspectives through the lens of
selected primary sources coming from various disciplines. The study becomes more
interactive and exciting because students are given the opportunity to analyze the
author’s background and main arguments, compare different points of view, identify
biases and examine the evidences presented in the document.

2.) Primary sources are documents, images or artifacts that provide first-hand
testimonies or direct evidences about a historical topic. On the other hand,
secondary sources are information supplied by a person who was not a direct
observer of the historical events or objects and often, it offers a review or critique. I
believe that primary sources are more reliable because the information comes from
the testimony of eye witnesses who directly observed the historical events.
Furthermore, primary sources are the only solid bases of historical work and
regarded as the best evidence.
3.) After the comprehensive examination that I have conducted about the evidences
that I have found in the Internet, in my own point of view, the First Mass was held
in Butuan City and not in Limasawa, Leyte. The first evidence is the geographical
features of Butuan City. Butuan has a developed settlement in which it is
believed that it has a developed port long time ago before the Westerns came.
Among the pieces of evidence are the ten 1,600-year-old Balahanghai Boats that
are believed to have been used for trade and to transport people for worship
services. This evidence clearly implies that Butuan can accommodate ships that
explorers used. Furthermore, as we all know, the group of Magellan is after
Christianization, Spices, and Gold. Evidences indicated that Masao in Butuan is
said to be abundant in gold due to gold mining a long time ago and spices
because of wide rice fields and farmlands as compared to Limasawa, Leyte. In
addition, the water of Butuan is fresh and used for drinking at that time. In which
it is believed that when the group of Magellan felt thirsty, they stop in Butuan and
they drank water there.

4.) After the comprehensive examination that I have conducted about the evidences
that I have found in the Internet, in my own point of view, Jose Rizal did not
retracted from all of his writings. Some researchers said that the reason why
Rizal retracted was because he wanted to marry Josephine Bracken. However,
there is no marriage certificate or public record of the marriage of Rizal with
Josephine Bracken. Furthermore, Rizal’s behavior during his last days at Fort
Santiago and during his last 24 hours does not point to a conversion. Rizal’s Mi
Ultimo Adios does not suggest any change in Rizal’s thought and the letters
which Rizal wrote during his last hours do not indicate conversion or even
religious confusion. Furthermore, according to Manoling Morato in his
“EXPOSE”, the friars forged the retraction letter and that the friars are misleading
Filipino people even though the friars were able to publish the fake retraction
letter of Rizal. Finally, there is the “confession” of “the forger.” A certain Roman
Roque told how he was employed by the Friars earlier that same year to make
several copies of a retraction document.