What are some examples of primary sources?

Some examples of primary sources include diaries, personal letters, speeches and first-hand newspaper reports. Creative works such as novels and poems are primary sources, as are multimedia sources such as photographs or videos of a given event. Numerical data and research studies also typically qualify as primary sources.

Primary sources are those that contain a first-hand account of the subject or time period being studied or written about. In general, primary sources have not been altered from their original states, except through translation or excerpting from a larger text. Secondary sources, by contrast, are interpretive accounts that synthesize or critique primary sources.