Especialidades JA/Genealogía/Fuentes primarias y secundarias
Una fuente primaria (también llamada fuente original) es un documento, un registro u otra fuente de información (papel, imagen, etc.) que fue creada en el momento en que fue estudiada, por una fuente autorizada, usualmente por alguien con conocimiento directo de los acontecimientos que se describen. Sirve como una fuente original de información acerca del tema. Las fuentes primarias se distinguen de las fuentes secundarias, que a menudo citan, comentan o se basan en fuentes primarias.
Examples would include:
- Birth, Marriage, and Death certificates
- Family Bibles (if recorded by someone witnessing the event shortly after it occurred.
- Letters describing the events as they are taking place by a person involved.
A secondary source is a document or recording that relates or discusses information originally presented elsewhere. A secondary source contrasts with a primary source, which is an original source of the information being discussed. Secondary sources involve generalization, analysis, synthesis, interpretation, or evaluation of the original information. Primary and secondary are relative terms, and some sources may be classified as primary or secondary, depending on how it is used.
Examples include:
- History books
- Encyclopedias
- Letters written well after the event
- Oral histories as told by someone without first-hand knowledge of the event.
