How Do Historians Learn About the 
                       Past

Historians learn about the past in multiple ways.  Historians learn about the past in these five ways.  First, they collect information from a variety of sources.  The two kinds sources used by historians are primary and secondary.  An example of a primary source is an official document.  A book is a kind of secondary source.   After collecting information, historian then put their information into categories.  Two examples of categories are written and non-written information.  The third step is to evaluate the sources used by looking at whether the information collected is correct.  Another way to evaluate information from different sources is to answer the 5 W’s – who, what, where, when, and why.   The fourth step is to interpret the information and decide what it all means.  Last but not least, the historian shares with the world what they have found by writing a book or article.  Another way for an historian to share their information is to give a lecture or speech.  These are the five main steps used by historians to learn about the past.