The Study of

History
Chapter I
The Nature and Meaning of History
History is derived from the Greek word historia,
which means “to know” or “to see.”
According to some German scholars:
Historie – the process of events.
Geschichte – the narratives that connect
and make the events intelligible.
According to Arthur Marwick:
History is “the interpretation of the past, one in
which a serious effort has been made to filter out
myth and fable (from facts).”
To Benedetto Croce,
History refers to significant narratives
while chronicles are simple narratives.
History = his / story (story of man)
The story of man or a logical narration of the stories in
the past which was brought into life once again by a
writer known as the historian (a student of history or
one who studies the past).
What then is the task of the historian?
Historians recreates only what is significant:
they seek out the records and survival of mankind’s past;
critically examine it;
imagine how the past looked like; and lastly,
presents the results of their imaginative
reconstructions of the past in ways
that do not violate
the cannons of scientific method
of writing history.
 
History is the study of past based on documents that
have survived. The historian, being the author of
history, logically presents the facts about the past and
interprets it through the use of a particular theory or
framework. The writings of history are called
historiography.
Aims and Purposes of History
1. History as a tool… to reason and think about crisis… to frame
the debate… to make clear exactly where they stood.
2. … as a means of comprehending the significance of
contemporary events.
3. … as a way for human beings to acquire self-knowledge.
4. … as a kind of ethical sanction.
5. … it will prepare people for what will come about.
6. … it has a long and honorable tradition in Western civilization.
7. … it provides a way to study the identity of people, both
individually and collectively.
8. … history is utilitarian and practical.
Fields of History
1. Geographical
The classification of historical data according to civilization,
country or other territorial unit in which they occur.

2. Chronological
Ordering information by time sequence and dividing it up into
periods.

3. Topical
The most meaningful division of the historical picture.
Kinds of Topical History
Political history – concentrates on governments and
rulers and what they accomplish by use of their
authority both in relation to the people under their
control and in their dealings with other governments
and rulers.
Economic history – encompasses all the activities
involved in producing goods and services – agriculture
and industry, trade and transportation, technology
and business organization.
Social history – includes the history of social
institutions and relationships (ranging from family
to classes of nations), of typical conditions and
customs, and of popular beliefs and movements.
Cultural and Intellectual history – tends to
concentrate on the individual work of leading
scholars and artists, but also extends to the realms
of religion, education, science, literature and
philosophy.
Urban and Ethnic history – new fields of
historical study which maybe shaped in response to
the issues and problems that a society is
experiencing at present.
Sources of History
1. Primary Source
This is a type of source which came into existence
during the actual period of the past which the
historians is studying such as relics and traces left by
the past.
2. Secondary Source
These are accounts written later by historians
looking back upon a period in the past.
Varieties of Primary Sources
a. Documents of record
1. Central government sources
2. Local records
3. United Nations
4. Other formal records
5. Private Business records
b. Summary and reports
1. Centrally organized
2. Private and individual surveys
c. Chronicles and histories
d. Family and personal sources
e. Polemical documents
f. Media communication and artifacts of popular culture
g. Guides and works of reference
h. Archeology, industrial archeology, history on the ground and physical artifacts.
i. Literary and artistic sources
j. Sources that are techniques as much as sources
k. Oral history and oral traditions
Types of Secondary Sources
a. Books
b. Encyclopedia
c. Magazines
d. Newspaper
e. Pamphlets
f. Typescripts
g. Articles
h. Journals etc.
Categories of Historical Writing
1. Text book
The most pervasive on college campuses, contains
general introductory accounts. It functions as a place
to begin and as a sort of reference work.
2. Doctoral Dissertation
It serves as a launch pad for aspiring scholars. They
come into being as a concluding experience at the end
of graduate school and mark the advent of a
professional career.
3. Synthetic Works
It is usually an outgrown of the author’s own specialized labors in the field. This
kind of book also draws extensively on the research of others and seeks to treat
the subject under discussion in broad and accessible terms.
 
4. Formal Writing

a. Interpretative Essay
It calls for a reasoned to a question of some sort, presented always with proper
regard for the rules of logic and evidence. The exercise may take place in class as
an essay examination or outside as a take-home project.

b. Book Review
It calls for an appraisal of a work published by a practicing writer. It should
describe the contents of the book and should develop a critical evaluation.

5. Research Paper

A stern and demanding test, often elicits a panicked response (from students). It
provides solution to a problem.
Philosophy of History
1. Critical Philosophy of History

It attempts to clarify the nature of the historian’s own inquiry.

It criticizes the fundamental beliefs of the historian and analyzes the basic concepts he
uses:
How does the historian come to understand the past?
Is the historian’s method of inquiry significantly different from the kind of inquiry found in
the natural sciences?
What is the nature of historical explanations and does it differ from explanation in the
natural sciences?
Can the historian be objective?

2. Speculative Philosophy of History

The writings of most of the classical philosophers of history such as Augustine, Vico,
Kant, Herder, Hegel etc.
It attempts to discover if there is any pattern or meaning to history as a whole.
Patterns of History
1. Linear
 
History has a goal or end toward which it is moving.

Everything that had happened in the past is in accordance with

God’s plan (Providential Theory).
Man progresses everyday in whatever way (Law of Indefinite
Progress).
Popularized by St. Augustine, Immanuel Kant, Auguste Comte etc.
2. Cyclical

History continuously repeats itself.

Followed in the Hegelian dialectics and Marx’s Economic

Determinism and Nietzche doctrine of Eternal Recurrence.

Popularized by the ancient Stoics, Nietzche, Hegel, Marx etc.

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3. Spiral
 
Combination of linear and cyclical.

While there is a certain repetition in history, there is also

progress towards some goal.

Popularized by Vico, Spengler etc.

 4. Chaotic

There is no pattern in history.

History has no pattern or meaning.

History happens because they are meant to happen.

5. Eclectic
 
Combination of the different patterns of history.
 
 

 
Philosophy of History
1. St. Augustine (354-430) – “The City of God”
 
History is one aspect of the world created by
God. It encompasses the life of all mankind;
it is universal history.

As a work of creation, history has a beginning

and its beginning is contained by Divine
Providence, the seed of its development and its
end.

God’s plan makes history significant and meaningful.

Augustine’s philosophy of history is that he derives it

not from the history itself, but rather from the Christian
Scriptures.
2. Giambattista Vico (1668-1744) – “The New
Science” (Scienza Nuova)

The general pattern in history is the same but

the particular events will differ.

The providence of God makes history move.

The truth and the created are identical

(Verum Factum). One can know something
with certitude only when he has made it.

Vico wishes to discover if there is a universal

law of history that governs the past. He
desires to see how this law is reflected in the
history of particular peoples.

 
3. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) – “Idea of a
Universal History”
 The real entity of history is not man as
individual but mankind.
 If there is no plan to history, we are no longer
justified in believing in providence; and
without trust in providence… then we no
longer have any basis for living a moral life.
 Man needs to live together yet there is a pull to
individualism that threatens to destroy society
(unsocial sociability of men).
 The linear view of history permits us to look
optimistically toward a future in which
mankind will progress toward an international
state of rational law and peace.

 
4. Johann Gottfried Herder (1744-1803) –
“Ideas toward a Philosophy of the History
of Man”
 
History is a natural phenomenon. God does
not interfere in human history.

Each culture is unique and should not be

compared to others.

Whatever happens to man is determined by

condition of his environment.

The goal of history is humanity.

 
5. G. W. F. Hegel (1770-1831) – “Lectures on the
Philosophy of History”

History is a record of how the human spirit

(expressed in freedom) has developed or evolved
out of nature.

The passions of men are the main spring of history.

History happens by the will of man.

All history is the history of thought.

Hegel’s theory of Dialectic – Thesis:Synthesis:Anti-

Thesis

 
6. Karl Marx (1818-1883) – “Communist Manifesto”
(Historical Materialism and Economic
Determinism

All aspects of man’s life are determined by the ways

in which man makes a living.

The most important factor in explaining man’s

present or past history is an economic one.

The whole history of mankind is the history of class

struggle (“Haves” versus “Have-Nots”).

The pattern of history is spiral: the continuing

struggle between the “haves” and the “have nots”
and the preparation towards a classless society
(communism).
7. Oswald Spengler (1880-1936) –
“Decline of the West”

The basic units of history are cultures.

Culture is self-contained; no
interdependence.

The purpose of the philosophy of

history is to set a morphology of
cultures.

Each culture went through a cycle i.e.

cultures born, grow, weaken and die.

 
8. Arnold Toynbee (1881- ) – “A Study of
History”

 Civilizations grow by responding to a series

of challenges.

 Every civilization rises to a universal state in

which there exists a unity of law, purpose,
belief and government. After the universal
state is attained, the civilization begins to
break up.

 If modern man returned to God, there was

still a chance that Western civilization
might be saved.

 
1. Hindsight (looking backward)
Uses of History
History teaches us certain lesson in the past which can help us in the conduct of
our present life. It draws lessons from the past.

 2. Foresight (looking forward)

History not only describes what happened in the past but also tells us why
society changes from one stage to another.
3. Character building

History gives us certain knowledge and develops with in us:

a. the courage to face the facts of life.

b. the humility to learn from the experiences in the past.
c. the intelligence to act upon our problems.
d. the faith to believe in oneself.

4. Collective memory

History is the story of group of people, a storehouse of experiences

which they develop their social identity and future prospects. It also
helps promote national identity among people or nations.
To Robert Daniels (1981), the uses of history are as follows:

1. History is particularly rich in opportunity it offers for

learning how to think.
2. History involves the development of perspective.
3. History teaches judgment.
4. Historical study is good training in dealing with
complexity.
5. History is a vehicle for teaching the private citizen the
public virtues of loyalty and responsibility.
GUIDE FOR STUDENTS OF HISTORY FOR ACTUAL ACQUISITION OF HISTORICAL
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
by Robert Daniels

1. When attending a lecture, one should remember its interpretative purpose. Don’t attempt to take
verbatim notes on illustrative detail, concentrate on the main ideas, and note the personal
interpretation of the lecturer.

2. Do not enslave yourself by noting down everything and memorizing it. You should pick and
choose, scan and synthesize in your own mind. Remember: Notes are best made after reading a
whole section or chapter.

3. Go to the section meeting armed with questions and ideas that you have prepared before hand.

4. One should never try to memorize a fact if you do not know its significance and if you understand
its significance, it is almost impossible to forget the fact.

5. Generalization and fact must go together –

generalizations giving relevance to facts, facts giving life to generalization.

6. Give your curiosity a free reign.