Primary and Secondary Sources

Primary Sources

Primary sources are the original documents of an event or discovery such as results of research, experiments or surveys, interviews, letters, diaries, legal documents, and scientific journal articles.  They provide unedited words, images, or objects created by persons directly involved in an activity or event. Primary sources are also records of events as they are first described. These might be videotapes, audio recordings or eyewitness news reports. This is information before it has been analyzed, interpreted, commented upon, or repackaged.

Secondary Sources

Secondary sources, on the other hand, offer an analysis or a restatement of an event or discovery described in primary sources. They interpret, explain or summarize primary sources. Some secondary sources are used to persuade the reader. Secondary sources may be considered less objective.  Examples of secondary sources include: dictionaries, encyclopedias, textbooks, articles and editorials that interpret or review research works.

PRACTICE! Use this interactive tutorial to learn more about and see examples of primary and secondary sources.

Examples of primary and secondary sources:
 

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