CHAPTER 1 LESSON 4 HOW STUDY THE PAST Lesson 4 How Historians Study the Past

BEFORE YOU READ TERMS & NAMES In this lesson, you will learn what methods historians use to • primary source something study the past. written or created by a person who witnessed a AS YOU READ historical event Use this web diagram to record the three main jobs of • something historians. written after a historical event by a person who did not witness the event • oral all the Asking Using tools unwritten verbal accounts questions of events ’s Job

Examining evidence READING STUDY GUIDE

Understanding the Past about the past. For example, historians ask (pages 39–40) questions such as how societies are similar and What questions do historians ask to help them different. They also ask how leaders governed understand the past? societies. We study world history because what 1. What do historians do when they study happened to a society affects what will happen the past? today and in the future. History is more than just studying what happened in the past. When in Company. All rights reserved. in Company. you study a historical event, you also study a society’s culture, religion, politics, and economics. Historians look for causes and effects that help to explain how and why events happened. They try to see the past through the eyes of the people who lived it. Copyright © Houghton Miffl Copyright When they study the past, historians ask themselves questions. The answers to the questions help historians draw conclusions

The Tools of History 11

wwh06rsg-0101.inddh06rsg-0101.indd 1111 11/25/05/25/05 111:37:531:37:53 AAMM wh06rwh06rsg-0101.inddsg-01.in d 1212 READING STUDY GUIDE 12 READING STUDY GUIDECONTINUED Chapter 1Lesson4 generation. a culturehave passeddown fromgenerationto the stories,customs,andsongsthatpeoplein have nowrittenrecords.Oralhistoriesinclude whenon oralhistory studyingculturesthat verbal accountsofevents. Historiansdepend history. sources. examples ofsecondary sourcesandappearafteraneventprimary are event. Booksandpaintingsthatarebasedon historical event by peoplewho didnotseethe secondary sources. sources. tools arealsoprimary sources. examples ofprimary suchas Artifacts Letters, diaries,speeches,andphotographs are created by apersonwho saw ahistoricalevent. sourceissomethingwrittenor A primary Some ofthesetoolsare Historians usetoolstohelpthemdotheirjob. past? answer questionsabout what happenedinthe What methodsdohistoriansusetohelpthem (pages 40–41) The Historian’sTools 2. Whatisthedifference between primary Yet anothertool thathistoriansuseis Other toolsthathistoriansuseare and secondary sources? and secondary This ismadeupofalltheunwritten They arewrittenaftera primary sources. oral

evidence. come todifferent conclusionsusingthesame Sometimeshistorians outtobefalse. turns Sometimes what historiansthoughttobetrue as evidence. andtrustworthy ismostimportant their questions. They have tochoosewhat sourcesandoralhistoriestoanswersecondary Historians useevidence and fromprimary historical questions? What stepsdohistorianstakeasthey answer (pages 42–43) Changes How KnowledgeofthePast 3. Whatdohistorianshave todowiththe Historical evidence isnotalways simple. evidence they fi nd? 1/2501/25/055 1:3711:37:544 AMAM Copyright © Houghton Miffl in Company. All rights reserved.