A professor may request primary, secondary, or tertiary source when completing a research paper for their class. What does this mean? The information provided in this guide explains the terms and gives example for each category.
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.
A Secondary Source is any source about an event, period, or issue in history that was produced after that event, period or issue has passed. Aside from a textbook, the most commonly assigned secondary source is a scholarly monography - a colume on a specific subject in the past, written by an expert.
A Tertiary Source is an index and/or textual consolidation of primary and secondary sources.
How can you tell the difference?
An original diary of a southern lady who lived in Georgia during the Civil War
A book written about her diary by another person
A timeline of events of the Civil War
It is not always easy to distinguish between the three types of sources, and they even differ between subjects and disciplines (particularly between the sciences and humanities). By understanding the unique characteristics and features of each, yo will be able to identify them and maximize their potential use.
