Meaning and Relevance of History
What is History?
| Non-Historians | Historians |
|---|---|
| - Non-historians often say that “history repeats itself” or that “things were always this way.” | - History is the study of change over time, and it covers all aspects of human society. |
| - Non-historians often romanticize the past and speak of the “good old days” when they believe that things were generally better than at present. | - History is exclusively as a story of progress with everything constantly improving. |
| - Non-historians derive information mainly from television, movies, and the internet as well as some books or magazines. They generally accept any sources uncritically as long as the source is interesting. | - Historians know that all sources, even those original to a particular historical time period, have some biases, omissions, contradictions, or various other limitations. |
| - Non-historians read books or watch documentaries of their choice. | - Historians read books or watch documentaries go to archives in search of original records. |
| - Non-historians assume that historians have always approached history the same way. | - Historians know that the philosophy and methodology of history have changed over time and will keep changing. |
| - Non-historians often make broad generalizations about people, ideas, events, or time periods in history. | - Historians tend to focus more on the specific, detailed developments that underpin the generalizations, and sometimes question or reject the generalizations themselves. |
| - Non-historians may assume that time periods are fixed and absolute. | - Historians have various ways of organizing history thematically and chronologically. |
Meaning and Relevance of History
History is derived from the Greek word historia which means “knowledge acquired through inquiry or investigation”. Historia became known as the account of the past of a person or of group of people through written documents and historical evidences.
History is the study of the past. Events before the invention of writing systems are considered prehistory. History is an umbrella term that relates to past events as well as the memory, discovery, collection, organization, presentation, and interpretation of information about these events.
Scholars who focus on history are called historians. Historian’s role is to place the past in context using sources from moments and events, and fill in the gaps. Their duty is to write about the lives of important individuals