HISTORY — The Historical Method

What is context?

The circumstances surrounding an event.

What is a primary source?

Evidence that is from the same time as the historical subject being studied.

What is a secondary source?

Evidence written some time after the historical subject being studied took place.

What is a source?

Evidence or data.

A document or piece of evidence from the same time as the historical subject is called a ________.

primary source

Evidence written sometime after a historical event occurred is called a ________.

secondary source

Bones, weapons, pottery, clothing, art, and buildings are examples of ________ sources.

primary

A history textbook is an example of a ________ source.

secondary

True or False: Drawings and maps can be primary sources.

True

Name the five main steps of the historical method.

Identify a topic, research using sources, evaluate the sources, analyze the information, and interpret the information.

What is usually the first step of the historical method?

Identify a topic or historical question to study.

After choosing a topic, historians gather information from a variety of ________.

sources

Why are primary sources important to historians?

They provide original materials that can be used to analyze and interpret the past.

Why are secondary sources important to historians?

They provide analysis and interpretations of past events by other authors.

When evaluating a source, historians determine whether it is accurate, ________, and closely related to their topic.

reliable

Historians verify who created a source, when it was created, and ________ it was created.

where

During analysis, historians consider why a source was created, who it was intended for, its possible ________, and its historical context.

biases

The circumstances surrounding a historical event are called its ________.

context

During which step does a historian look for connections between evidence and create an argument?

Interpretation

Why is review by other historical experts important?

It can spread new ideas, correct inaccurate details, offer different interpretations, and uphold high standards in historical research.