Huvudkällan

Huvudkällan is a Swedish term meaning “the main source” and is used in various fields to refer to the most authoritative or primary piece of evidence available about a topic. In scholarly work, the term can designate primary sources such as original documents, official records, artifacts, or eyewitness accounts that provide direct information. Huvudkällan is typically distinguished from secondary sources, which interpret or synthesize information derived from primary sources.

In archives, libraries, and museums, materials may be described or organized with reference to their status as huvudkällor, signaling their importance for building an accurate account. The concept is common in education, journalism, and historiography as part of source criticism and evidentiary assessment. It helps researchers assess reliability, provenance, and context when evaluating evidence.

Etymology and usage: the word is formed from huvuds- “head” and källa “source,” and it functions as a generic descriptor rather than a fixed title of a specific institution. While praktically interchangeable with terms like primärkälla in many contexts, huvudkällan emphasizes the central or most crucial nature of the source within a given analysis.

Note: The phrase is primarily a linguistic and methodological concept. If a particular organization, project, or location is named Huvudkällan, disambiguation would be required to identify it. See also primary source, sekundärkälla, and source criticism.