What do we mean by history?
History is the study of things that happened in the past. History can be very recent, or it can extend back to the earliest times from which any sort of records can be obtained. History cannot be understood properly by the study of a single event. It is necessary to understand the culture of the people among whom the event took place, and that of any other countries which could have affected the event. An understanding of history can only be obtained by piecing together knowledge from a whole range of sources, to provide a broad picture.
How do we know about the past?
Our knowledge of the past comes from a wide range of sources of information. Sometimes historians record their own version of recent history. Other information is obtained from material that was written down and contained passing references to people and events. A tablet recording the taxes levied on an ancient civilization in the Middle East, for example, can tell us what crops were grown, and the type of economy that existed.
History can sometimes be reconstructed even though information was never written down. For example, myths and legends containing historical truths can survive for hundreds of years, and the remains of some buildings can tell us how people lived in earlier times.
How are dates measured?
Accurate dating of archaeological remains is a relatively recent science. Wooden objects up to 8,000 years old can be dated by examining the growth rings in the wood. By studying the rings of very old, but still living trees, they can be dated very accurately, so surviving wooden implements and utensils can be dated exactly.
Radiocarbon dating takes us back much further. A radioactive form of carbon decays at a very slow rate, which can be measured exactly. By measuring the amount of carbon-12 and carbon-14 in a small piece of organic material, objects as old as 50,000 years ago can be dated.
Buried objects are often dated by looking at, and dating, nearby objects buried at the same time.
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