Research Guides: Primary Sources for History: Middle East History

Primary Source Research

Primary Sources for History
This research guide offers primary research support and a more extensive list of primary source resources.

Primary Sources

Harvard Iranian Oral History Project
The collection consists of the personal accounts of 134 individuals who played major roles in or were eyewitnesses to important political events in Iran from the 1920s to the 1980s.
Internet Islamic History Sourcebook
Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Middle East since 1914

Primary Source resources

Al-Ahram Digital Archive This link opens in a new window
Access to the historical archive of Al-Ahram, one of the longest-running newspapers in the Middle East. It has long been regarded as Egypt’s most authoritative and influential newspaper, and one of the most important newspapers in the Arab world.
Confidential Print: Middle East, 1839-1969 This link opens in a new window
This collection consists of the Confidential Print for the countries of the Levant and the Arabian peninsula, Iran, Turkey, Egypt and Sudan. Beginning with the Egyptian reforms of Muhammad Ali Pasha in the 1830s, the documents trace the events of the following 150 years, including the Middle East Conference of 1921, the mandates for Palestine and Mesopotamia, the partition of Palestine, the 1956 Suez Crisis and post-Suez Western foreign policy, and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Materials include important papers generated by the Foreign and Colonial Offices, ranging from single-page letters or telegrams to comprehensive dispatches, investigative reports and texts of treaties.
Confidential U.S. State Department Central Files, Africa and Middle East, 1960-1969 This link opens in a new window
The U.S. State Department Central Files are an important source of American diplomatic reporting on political, military, social, and economic developments throughout the world in the 20th century. This collection contains a wide range of materials from U.S. diplomats in foreign countries: reports on political, military, and socioeconomic matters; interviews and minutes of meetings with foreign government officials; important letters, instructions, and cables sent and received by U.S. diplomatic personnel; and reports and translations from foreign journals and newspapers.
Creation of Israel: British Foreign Office Correspondence on Palestine and Transjordan, 1940-1948 This link opens in a new window
A collection with materials documenting the modern history of the Middle East, the establishment of Israel as a sovereign state, and the wider web of postwar international world politics. Early records in the collection focus on events in Palestine, Britain's policy toward Palestine, and how the situation in Palestine affected relations with other nations. The files also survey the contours of Arab politics in the wider Middle East. In the 1947-1948 period, this module explores the tensions within Anglo-American relations over the creation and recognition of Israel as a sovereign state. A large section of the material is devoted to United Nations deliberations on the Palestine question. The records also illuminate the political, philosophical, and personal fractures within and between both the Jewish and Arab communities from 1940-1948.
Global Commodities This link opens in a new window
Historical primary source visual, manuscript, and printed materials documenting the trade of major commodities around the world from the 16th century to the present day. Commodities are: chocolate, coffee, cotton, fur, opium, oil, porcelain, silver/gold, spices, sugar, tea, timber, tobacco, wheat, and wine/spirits.
Middle Eastern and North African Newspapers This link opens in a new window
This collection of historical newspapers is predominantly in Arabic, but also includes key titles in English and French. It comprises mostly out-of-copyright, orphaned content, however the following titles are included as well: al-Akhbār (الاخبار, Lebanon, 2006-2019); al-Dustūr (الدستور, Jordan, 1967-2000); al-Jumhūrīyah (الجمهورية, Egypt, 1962-1986); al-Riyāḍ (الرياض, Saudi Arabia, 1972-1996); and Filasṭīn (فلسطين, Israel/Palestine, 1956-1967).
Medieval Travel Writing This link opens in a new window
This collection of manuscripts focuses on journeys to central Asia and the Far East, including accounts of travel to Mongolia, Persia, India, China and South-East Asia. The travel texts inlcude the books of Marco Polo and ‘Sir John Mandeville,’ as well as John of Plano Carpini and Odoric of Pordenone.
U.S. Diplomatic Post Records, 1914-1945 This link opens in a new window
Consists of correspondence and reports from American diplomats stationed around the world. Diplomatic post records are those kept at the embassies or legations rather than those kept in Washington. Diplomatic post records contain the incoming messages from Washington, retained copies of outgoing dispatches, locally gathered information, and background material on decision making. The following countries or cities are represented in this module: Japan; Cuba; El Salvador; Honduras; Nicaragua; Iran; Iraq; Beirut; Jerusalem; Aden; Lebanon; Russia and the Soviet Union.