Sources
Texts and sources
Sources are usually grouped by the way information is recorded in them. The division is a convention, but a handy one: it tells you straight away what to expect from a document and where its weak spots lie. Below is a summary table and a few short rules on how to cite what you find.
Every source has its own voice. An object is silent about feelings, a diary is silent about exact figures, and that is fine.
How we chose the material: the main types of sources are described here in the most general way. The specialist classifications used in scholarly literature are more detailed and complex, but rest on the same distinctions.
Types of sources
| Type | Examples | What it offers | Limitations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Written | Manuscripts, charters, business papers, books | Names, events, how things were done, the language of the time | Reflect the author's view and the purpose they were written for |
| Personal | Letters, diaries, memoirs | Feelings, opinions, details of everyday life | Subjective; memoirs are often written years later |
| Material | Tools, clothing, tableware, buildings | Evidence of daily life, crafts and technology | Hard to date and interpret without inscriptions or context |
| Visual | Drawings, engravings, photographs | How people, places and things looked | Shaped by the maker's intent; a photo can be staged or retouched |
| Oral | Recorded accounts, legends, songs | The memory of people and families that was never written down | Change as they are passed on; dates and details drift |
| Periodicals | Newspapers, magazines, advertisements | The rhythm of daily life, prices, adverts, the news of the day | Written in haste; often contain errors and rumours |
How to quote and cite a source
State where the document is held
For an archival document, give the name of the archive and its reference: collection, series, file and page or folio. For a published work, give the author, title, edition and page.
Quote accurately
Keep the spelling of the original or say plainly that it has been modernised. Mark omissions with an ellipsis in square brackets.
Distinguish quotation from paraphrase
The source's own words go in quotation marks; your summary goes without them. Readers should be able to tell where the document is speaking and where you are.
Name the intermediary
If you did not see the document yourself but found it in someone else's book, say so: "quoted in…". It is honest and helps others check the chain.
Related sections
- Ideas
Key ideas for working with the past: source, testimony, attribution, dating, provenance, context.
- Analysis
Worked examples with a letter, a diary, a photograph and an old newspaper, plus our article catalogue.
- Figures
Herodotus, Thucydides, Ranke and the professions that archival work depends on.
- Old photos (in Russian)
An archived address: a step-by-step guide to reading an old photograph from a family album.
Sources
- Encyclopaedic sources on historiography and the history of photography
- Russian Federal Law No. 125-FZ "On Archival Affairs in the Russian Federation"
Specific dates and facts in this guide come from encyclopaedic works and official programme descriptions; everything else is described in general terms. Dates for old documents are almost always approximate, and we try to state plainly how certain we are.