Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Sources (2024)

What are the differences?

Sources of information or evidence are often categorized as primary, secondary, or tertiary material. These classifications are based on the originality of the material and the proximity of the source or origin. This informs the reader as to whether the author is reporting information that is first hand or is conveying the experiences and opinions of others which is considered second hand. Determining if a source is primary, secondary or tertiary can be tricky. Below you will find a description of the three categories of information and examples to help you make a determination.

Primary Sources

These sources are records of events or evidence as they are first described or actually happened without any interpretation or commentary. It is information that is shown for the first time or original materials on which other research is based. Primary sources display original thinking, report on new discoveries, or share fresh information.

Secondary Sources

These sources offer an analysis or restatement of primary sources. They often try to describe or explain primary sources. They tend to be works which summarize, interpret, reorganize, or otherwise provide an added value to a primary source.

Tertiary Sources

These are sources that index, abstract, organize, compile, or digest other sources. Some reference materials and textbooks are considered tertiary sources when their chief purpose is to list, summarize or simply repackage ideas or other information. Tertiary sources are usually not credited to a particular author.

Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Sources (2024)

FAQs

Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Sources? ›

A primary source is an original document/image, the results of an experiment, statistical data, first-hand account, or creative work. A secondary source is something written about or using primary sources. A teritary source is a collection of primary and secondary sources.

What are primary, secondary, and tertiary sources? ›

A primary source is an original document/image, the results of an experiment, statistical data, first-hand account, or creative work. A secondary source is something written about or using primary sources. A teritary source is a collection of primary and secondary sources.

What are primary and secondary sources answers? ›

A Primary Source is information that was created at the same time as an event or by a person directly involved in the event. Diaries, speeches, letters, official records, autobiographies. A Secondary Source gets its information from somewhere else or by a person not directly involved in the event.

Is the book a primary secondary or tertiary source justify your answer? ›

Examples of secondary sources include many books, textbooks, and scholarly review articles. Tertiary sources compile and summarize mostly secondary sources. Examples might include reference publications such as encyclopedias, bibliographies or handbooks.

What are the three types of sources for research? ›

Sources of information or evidence are often categorized as primary, secondary, or tertiary material. These classifications are based on the originality of the material and the proximity of the source or origin.

What is 3 examples of a secondary source? ›

Examples of secondary sources include:
  • journal articles that comment on or analyse research.
  • textbooks.
  • dictionaries and encyclopedias.
  • books that interpret, analyse.
  • political commentary.
  • biographies.
  • dissertations.
  • newspaper editorial/opinion pieces.

What are 5 primary and secondary sources? ›

Examples (from Penington School)
Primary SourcesSecondary Sources
· autobiography·biography
· painting or object of art·article reviewing or criticizing the art
· personal diary or letter(s)·book about the person or event
· treaty (government document)·essay interpreting the document
6 more rows
May 17, 2024

What are examples of primary sources? ›

Examples of primary sources:
  • Diaries, letters, memoirs, autobiographies.
  • Interviews, speeches, oral histories, personal narratives.
  • Scientific data and reports.
  • Scholarly journal articles (depends on discipline)
  • Statistical and survey data.
  • Works of art, photographs, music, or literature.
  • Archeological artifacts.

How do you explain primary and secondary sources to students? ›

  1. Primary—not made or coming from. something else; original.
  2. Source—a person, publication, or object that gives information.
  3. Firsthand—coming directly from the. original source.
  4. Secondary—coming from or created. using an original source.
  5. Secondhand—not original; taken from. someone or something else.

What are primary and secondary sources for dummies? ›

Primary sources offer raw information, or the first-hand evidence compiled by research, whereas secondary sources interpret or analyze the information from primary sources.

Is the Bible a primary or secondary source? ›

Secondary sources would then be interpretations of those artifacts. This gets tricky within some disciplines. For example, in Biblical studies some might call the Bible a primary source. It is, in that it is the witness to the events and leaves out interpretation/commentary.

Why are tertiary sources important? ›

Tertiary sources are good starting points for research projects because they often extract the essential meaning or most important aspects of large amounts of information into a convenient format.

What is an example of a tertiary source of history? ›

Tertiary Sources
  • Bibliographies.
  • Book Reviews.
  • Dictionaries.
  • Encyclopedias.
  • Indexes.
  • Textbooks.
May 3, 2024

How do you identify primary and secondary sources? ›

Primary Sources: A Research Guide
Primary SourcesSecondary Sources
ArtworkArticle critiquing the piece of art
DiaryBook about a specific subject
InterviewBiography
LettersDissertation
4 more rows
May 1, 2024

What is the meaning of primary, secondary, and tertiary? ›

The primary sector is where the materials for the secondary sector are gathered. In the secondary sector, the product is then made into consumable item(s) which is then distributed by the tertiary sector.

What is the difference between primary, secondary, and tertiary research? ›

Secondary sources are works that analyze, assess or interpret a historical event, era or phenomenon. They may use primary sources to to write a review, critique or interpretation often well after the event. Tertiary Sources are those used to identify and locate primary and secondary sources.

What is primary secondary and tertiary with examples? ›

  • Primary sector includes mining and quarrying, poultry farming, fishing, animal husbandry, agriculture, forestry.
  • Secondary sector includes manufacturing activities.
  • Tertiary sector activities include insurance, services, tourism, health, education, banking, communication, transport, trade.

What are primary and secondary sources of data examples? ›

Examples include interview transcripts, statistical data, and works of art. Primary research gives you direct access to the subject of your research. Secondary sources provide second-hand information and commentary from other researchers. Examples include journal articles, reviews, and academic books.

What is the definition of a secondary source? ›

In contrast, a secondary source of information is one that was created later by someone who did not experience first-hand or participate in the events or conditions you're researching. For the purposes of a historical research project, secondary sources are generally scholarly books and articles.

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