The 5 Ws: Assessing Reliability of Historical SourcesAP WORLD HISTORY

Historical Primary Sources There are many types, including but not limited to:

1. Written accounts from a historical time period (interviews, diaries, etc.)

2. Government documents

3. Paintings, drawings, photographs, or other art depicting events, places, ideas, values, religious beliefs…etc

4. Historical artifacts: coins, pottery, other objects

5. Novels, stories, poems, literature

1. When was the source created?1. Loss of information2. Memory of people3. Accuracy of research

2. Who is the author of the source?1. Perspective (view point) of the author2. Don’t assume bias

3. Why was this source created?1. Reason for creation2. How source was used in society

1. What type of source is this?1. Medium of the source2. Accuracy of the details (do they exaggerate? Are parts left out?)

2. Where does the source come from?1. Perspective of a region2. Differences between regions

3. Cross-reference: do other sources corroborate (support) this source?