Historical evidence or 'sources' are the primary ways in which we gain knowledge of the past. Many different types of evidence are available to the historian when studying the past therefore history could be considered to be what historians choose to interpret from the surviving evidence. i.e. Sources + Historians = history.

Using sources is therefore a key skill in the study of history. The IBDP requires students to use both primary and secondary sources for their Internal Assessments (IA's) and the Extended Essay (EE). Furthermore, Paper 1 questions are entirely source-based. Students are given 1 hour to analyse and evaluate 5 sources in order to answer 4 questions. Questions are based on: 1.) Analysing the content of a source; 2.) Comparing and contrasting two sources; 3.) Evaluating two sources with regards to their origins, purpose, value and limitations; 4.) Using sources to construct historical arguments.

Please refer to the sections below for more detailed help about researching, using and referencing historical sources.

Primary Sources

Use the following websites to help you research and track down primary sources for your investigations:

Ancient History

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/ - includes a massive digital library of Greek artifacts, archaeological sites, buildings, coins, sculptures, vases, and other primary sources.

http://blogs.dalton.org/rome/ - primary sources pertaining to Roman civilization. Also contains links to many other great sites.

Asian History

http://guides.lib.washington.edu/history-asia - From the University of Washington, a mixed collection of primary and secondary sources.

http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/main_pop/ps/ps_china.htm - An excellent database of primary sources for studying Ancient, Imperial and Modern China.

British History

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/ - British History Online is the digital library containing some of the core printed primary and secondary sources for the medieval and modern history of the British Isles.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ - offers a wide range of digitized documents from the Domesday Book (ca 1085 AD) to current day. A variety of materials is available through the Exhibitions link.

http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/ - full text accounts of London's central criminal court trials, providing a rich view of the "lives of the non-elite people" from the years 1674-1913.

General History

http://webpages.uidaho.edu/special-collections/other.repositories.html - Links to over 5000 websites holding primary sources divided up into regions of the world. (Great!)

http://www.fordham.edu/Halsall/index.asp - Similar to how DocsTeach organizes primary sources into periods of American history, this site categorizes documents as well. From the "Reformation" to "Post-World War II Religious Thought," teachers can find full texts available from Fordham or similar institutions. (Excellent!)

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/ - Broken down by time period then listed in alphabetical order, the Avalon Project (7) at Yale University also has primary sources for global history teachers. This database starts with ancient and medieval documents and moves into present times. In addition to categories that address specific historical periods, the Avalon Project includes links to human rights documents as part of Project Diana (8).

http://history.hanover.edu/project.php - provides a vast array of primary sources divided by categories such as Europe, specific centuries, and continents. 

German History
http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/~german/gtext/index.html - contains several German primary history sources from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries that have been translated into English. Also has an excellent section on Nazi and East German (Cold War) propaganda.

Holocaust History

http://fcit.usf.edu/holocaust/resource/document/document.htm - includes documents related to the Holocaust such as the Wannsee protocol, eyewitness accounts, speeches, and much more.

US History

http://www.archives.gov/education/research/primary-sources.html - The online catalog can be searched using keywords, and 100 "milestone" documents are identified as significant to American history.

http://images.google.com/hosted/life - Google and Life Magazine have a wonderful search engine that lets users search millions of images from the Life Magazine Photo Archive (9). Not only can you type in key terms to guide your searches, you can also look through images organized by decade (1860s through 1970s) or significant people, places, events or sports topics.

World War Two

http://www.britannica.com/dday - contains primary sources in the form of maps, images, first person accounts, battle plans, and documents about the D-Day invasion of Normandy, France.

http://uboat.net/index.html - filled with photographs, personal accounts, and biographical information about the submariners who commanded U-boats during World War II, this site also documents war crimes committed by both the Allied and Axis powers.

Secondary Sources

Use the following websites to help track down good secondary sources and for general reading about your research topics:

Online Encyclopaedia's

http://spartacus-educational.com/ -  It contains free encyclopedia entries that directly connect to primary source documents, making it a perfect tool for educators looking to give students a starting point in their research. It can even be used for a historical figure scavenger hunt!