source-analysis
Primary and secondary source analysis for historical reasoning. Covers source classification, sourcing (author/context/purpose), corroboration across multiple sources, contextualization within time and place, and bias detection. Use when evaluating historical evidence, assessing source reliability, or constructing evidence-based historical arguments.
Profile →npx skills add majiayu000/claude-skill-registry --skill source-analysis --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
# Source Analysis History is not the past itself but the disciplined reconstruction of the past from surviving evidence. Source analysis is the foundational practice through which historians transform raw documents, artifacts, images, and oral testimonies into usable evidence. Without rigorous source analysis, historical claims rest on authority rather than evidence, and narrative replaces inquiry. This skill covers four interconnected practices: classifying sources as primary or secondary, sourcing (interrogating authorship and context), corroborating claims across independent sources, and contextualizing evidence within its historical moment. Together these practices form the evidential backbone of all historical work. **Agent affinity:** herodotus (chair, source criticism and historiographical method) **Concept IDs:** hist-primary-secondary-sources, hist-sourcing, hist-corroboration, hist-contextualization ## The Source Analysis Framework at a Glance | # | Practice | Core question | Key signal | |---|---|---|---| | 1 | Classification | Is this a primary or secondary source? | Proximity to the event in time and authorship | | 2 | Sourcing | Who created this, when, why, and for wh
- The Source Analysis Framework at a Glance
- Practice 1 — Primary vs. Secondary Sources
- Categories of Primary Sources
- Categories of Secondary Sources
- The Spectrum Problem
- Practice 2 — Sourcing
- The Five Sourcing Questions
- Worked Example — Sourcing a Document
- Practice 3 — Corroboration
- Principles of Corroboration
- Corroboration Matrix
- Worked Example — Corroborating Across Sources
- Practice 4 — Contextualization
- Dimensions of Context
What does the source-analysis skill do?
Primary and secondary source analysis for historical reasoning. Covers source classification, sourcing (author/context/purpose), corroboration across multiple sources, contextualization within time and place, and bias detection. Use when evaluating historical evidence, assessing source reliability, or constructing evidence-based historical arguments.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add majiayu000/claude-skill-registry --skill source-analysis --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From majiayu000/claude-skill-registry, a repository with 534 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.