Primary Sources

What is a primary source?

The guide tells you what kind of sources can be primary sources, how and where to find them, and how to evaluate a source for your use.

Foreign Language News and Newspapers Compiled by MIT Libraries. Includes links to current Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish Language newspapers.
Pacific Newspapers
Oceania and Pacific Newspapers

Center for Research Libraries Catalog (CRL) The Center for Research Libraries (CRL) is a consortium of North American universities, colleges, and independent research libraries. The consortium acquires and preserves newspapers, journals, documents, archives, and other traditional and digital resources for research and teaching and makes them available to member institutions through interlibrary loan and electronic delivery.
China: Trade, Politics and Culture, 1793-1980 Unique manuscript material relating to the activities and observations of British and American diplomats, missionaries, business people and tourists in China from 1793 to 1980, together with rare periodicals, colour paintings, maps, photographs and drawings.
Foreign Office Files for China, 1949-1980 Available in three sections covering the periods 1949-1956; 1957-1966; and 1967-1980; this project addresses a crucial period in Chinese history, from the foundation of the People’s Republic, in 1949, to the death of Zhou Enlai and Mao, the arrest of the Gang of Four and the end of the Cultural Revolution in 1976.
Global NewsBank Contains information on current issues and events selected from more than 1500 international sources, including translated broadcasts, news agency tramsmissions, newspapers, periodicals and government documents.
Multicultural Canada The Multicultural Canada digitization project grew from our conviction that the cultural groups that make up our country have little-known stories that need to be researched and told. Through newspapers, interviews, photographs, print and material culture people tell us who they are.The collection includes newspapers, oral histories, photographs, books, newsletters, legal documents, meeting minutes and other ephemeral materials.
People's Daily (Renmin Ribao) The most influential and authoritative newspaper in China. It is the official voice of the central government of the People's Republic of China. For over 60 years, the People's Daily has published daily issues that provide the single location where the central government and the Communist Party of China announce their respective policies and disseminate governmental, political, and economic messages to the public and the world.
Shen Bao ( 申報 ) Shen Bao was a newspaper published in Shanghai, China from April 30, 1872 until May 27, 1949. In the past, the name of the newspaper was also transliterated as Shun Pao or Shen-pao. Shen Bao is short for Shenjiang xinbao, the original name of the newspaper; Shenjiang is an old name for the Huangpu River, which runs through Shanghai. Shen Bao became very popular soon after its launch and played an important role in forming public opinion in China.

China, America and the Pacific (Adam Matthew Digital)
China, America and the Pacific contains an extensive range of archival material connected to the trading and cultural relationships that emerged between China, America and the Pacific region between the 18th and early 20th centuries.
Glimpses in Chinese Immigration in Canada
his is a digital exhibition of selected articles from The New Republic and The World Journal Vancouver newspapers.
Japan Times Digital Arvhive (1896-2010)
Photogrammar
90,000 photographs describing life in America during the Great Depression and World War II. There are many photos about Asian diaspora in America that can be browsed by geographical areas.

Taiwan Nichinichi Shinpo
This was an official newspaper of the Taiwanese government under Japanese colonial rule. The paper was published in Japanese from 1898-1944, and added Chinese text from 1905-1911. It is one of the most indispensable resources for the study of Taiwanese history during the colonial period. which was an official newspaper of the Taiwanese government under Japanese colonial rule.