In short
- Primary: the original evidence. Secondary: someone’s analysis of it.
- Which is which depends on your subject and your question.
- Use primary sources to make your own points, and secondary ones to place them in the debate.
The same document can be primary in one essay and secondary in another. A 1960s history of the First World War is secondary for a question about the war, and primary for a question about how the war was remembered in the 1960s. What matters is how you use it.
This lesson is part of step 3, find and save sources.
Examples by subject
| Subject | Primary | Secondary |
|---|---|---|
| History | Letters, diaries, newspapers of the time, government records | Books and articles by historians |
| English literature | The novel, poem or play itself | Literary criticism and biographies |
| Sciences and psychology | Research articles reporting a new study, data sets | Review articles, textbooks |
| Law | Legislation and case judgments | Textbooks, journal articles, commentary |
| Social sciences | Interviews, surveys, official statistics | Studies that analyse or compare them |
Why it matters
- Primary sources show your own thinking. When you analyse a speech, a poem or a data set yourself, the point is yours.
- Secondary sources show you know the debate. They tell you what others have argued, where they disagree, and what is already settled.
- Mixing them up costs marks. Quoting a textbook’s summary of a study as if it were the study hides where the evidence came from. Cite the original where you can.
Using both together
Start with secondary sources
A textbook or review article gives you the background and points you to the key primary sources.
Go to the primary sources
Read the original evidence the debate is about: the text, the study, the case.
Make your own point
Analyse the primary source yourself, then say how your reading fits with, or challenges, what others have argued.
Common mistakes
- Only using secondary sources. The essay ends up as a summary of other people’s views.
- Citing a study you only read about. If you haven’t read the original, cite the source you did read, in the way your referencing style allows for secondary citations.
Keep both kinds together
- Sources scattered across apps. Add a Sources stack beside your board: every source for that assignment lives there, primary and secondary, next to the cards that use it. Free
- A quote with no page, mixed in with your notes. Each source keeps Notes and quotes, with a page number for each, so you always know what came from where. Free
For your level
GCSE and A level
History and English coursework often expect both: the source or text itself, and what historians or critics have said about it.
University
Ask which kind your tutor expects. Some essays are mostly secondary; others, like a source analysis, are built on primary material.
Dissertations
Your own data or archive work is your primary material. The literature review is mostly secondary.
Questions
What is a primary source?
Original material from the time or the person you are studying, or first-hand evidence: a letter, a speech, a novel, a law, a set of data, an interview, or a research article reporting a new study.
What is a secondary source?
A source that describes, analyses or interprets primary material: a textbook, a review article, a biography, a critical essay or a history written later.
Is a journal article primary or secondary?
It depends. An article reporting a new experiment or survey is usually primary in the sciences. A review article that summarises many studies is secondary.
Do I need both?
Usually. Primary sources give you evidence to analyse yourself; secondary sources show what others have argued about it. The best essays use both: your own reading of the evidence, set against the views of others.
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