historiographical

Historiographical is an adjective relating to historiography, the study of how history is written and interpreted. It may describe the methods, sources, and argumentative strategies used by historians, or the separate body of writing that develops around a particular topic.

Historiographical analysis examines how historical knowledge is produced: the selection and evaluation of sources, the dating and contextualization of evidence, and the influence of contemporary assumptions on interpretation. It addresses methodological questions such as the reliability of sources, the role of memory, and the construction of causality. Historians distinguish between primary sources, secondary accounts, and synthetic narratives, and they pay attention to how narrative form and periodization shape meaning.

Historiography also engages with broader debates about bias, perspective, and power. The term is often used to discuss revisionist or postcolonial, feminist, or subaltern approaches that challenge established narratives and reveal previously marginalized viewpoints. Studying historiography helps researchers understand how historical explanations have changed over time and why certain explanations gain prominence in different eras.