History

CORE101:
FARM
Learning
By Emily Comedis
DLSAU
Adopting lecture of : Dr. Ma. Florina Orillos-
Juan
Topics:

History as reconstruction

Historical method

Historical /sources

Historical criticism
Introduction: History as
Reconstruction

• The historian is many times

removed from the events under
investigation.
• Historians rely on surviving records
History as
reconstruction
“Only a part of what was observed in the past
was remembered by those who observed it;
only a part of what was remembered was
recorded; only a part of what was recorded
has survived; only a part of what has survived
has come to the historian’s attention.”
• Louis Gottschalk, Understanding History
History as
reconstruction

• “Only a part of what is

credible has been
grasped, and only a part
of what has been grasped
can be expounded or
narrated by the historian.”
What is historical method
• Historians have to verify sources, to date them, locate
their place of origin and identify their intended
functions
What is
historical
method

The process of critically

examining and analyzing the
records and survivals of the
past
Historical sources

• Sources – an object from the past or

testimony concerning the past on which
historians depend in order to create their
own depiction of that past.
Howell and Prevenier,
From Reliable Sources an Introduction to Historical Method

• Tangible remains of the past

Anthony Brundage, Going to Sources

Written sources
1. Published materials
2. Books, magazines, journals,
3. Travelogue
4. transcription of speech
5. Manuscript [any handwritten
or typed record that has not
been printed]
6.Archival materials
7.Memoirs, diary
Non written
sources

• Oral history
• Artifact
• Ruins
• Fossils
• Art works
• Videorecordings
• Audiorecordings
What are Primary
Sources

• Testimony of an eyewitness
• A primary source must have
been produced by a
contemporary of the event it
narrates
What are Primary
Sources
• A primary source is a document or physical object
which was written or created during the time
under study.
• These sources were present during an experience
or time period and offer an inside view of a
particular event.

http://www.princeton.edu/~refdesk/primary2.h
What are Primary Sources?
• Primary sources are characterized by their content,
regardless of whether they are available in original
format, in microfilm/microfiche, in digital format, or in
published format.
http://www.yale.edu/collections_collaborative/primarysources/primarysources.html
Four Main Categories of
Primary Sources

1. Written sources
2. Images
3. Artifacts
4. Oral testimony
What are Secondary
Sources?
• A secondary source interprets and analyzes
primary sources. These sources are one or
more steps removed from the event.
• Secondary sources may have pictures, quotes
or graphics of primary sources in them.

http://www.princeton.edu/~refdesk/primary2.html 16 What are Secondary

Examples

Printed materials
(serials, periodicals
History textbook
which interprets
previous research)
 Topic: Tejeros
Convention
• Primary Source:
Santiago Alvarez’
account
Practical Example
• Secondary Source:
Teodoro
Agoncillo’s Revolt
of the Masses
What is Historical
Criticism?

• In order for a source to

be used as evidence in
history, basic matters
about its form and
content must be settled
• 1. External Criticism
• 2. Internal Criticism
 To spot fabricated,
forged, faked
External documents
criticism: the
problem of
authenticity
To distinguish a hoax
or misrepresentation
 1. Determine the date of the
document to see whether they
are anachronistic e.g. pencils did
not exist before the 16th Century

Tests of 2. Determine the author e.g.

Authenticity handwriting, signature, seal

Louis Gottschalk, Understanding

History 21
 3. Anachronistic style e.g.
idiom, ortography,
punctuation

Tests of 4. Anachronistic reference

to events e.g. too early,
Authenticity too late, too remote

5. Provenance or custody
e.g. determines its
genuineness
 Semantics –
determining the
meaning of a text
or word
Semantics

Hermeneutics –
determining
ambiguities
 Relevant particulars in the
document – is it credible?
What is
internal
criticism:
the problem Verisimilar – as close as what
of credibility really happened from a
critical examination of best
available sources
 1. Identification of the
author
• e.g. to determine his reliability;
Tests of mental processes, personal
Credibility attitudes

2. Determination of the
approximate date
• e.g. handwriting, signature, seal
 3. Ability to tell the truth
• e.g. nearness to the event,
competence of witness, degree of
Tests of attention
Credibility
4. Willingness to tell the truth
• e.g. to determine if the author
consciously or unconsciously tells
falsehoods
 5. Corroboration
Tests of
Credibility
i.e. historical facts – particulars
which rest upon the
independent testimony of two
or more reliable witnesses
 Sensitivity to
Multiple
Three Major Causation

Components
to Effective
Historical
Thinking
Reference

Torres (2020) Batis: Sources in Philippine History. Quezon

City. C & E Publishing.