Research Guides: International Relations: Find Primary Sources

Primary Sources in International Relations

government records
photographs
speeches
maps
firsthand accounts (such as diaries or memoirs)
drawings
laws
letters
blog posts
works of art
raw data (such as from polls or censuses)
posters
works of fiction
interviews
newspaper articles
and more!

To find primary sources specifically, couple the topic of your subject heading with relevant subheadings that relate to the historical time period, place of origin, and item format of the materials that interest you. Use the Library Search for materials.

These "complex subjects" (containing more than one idea) have their own particular notation.

Example: if you are looking for letters written by Russian revolutionaries, you might try searching for "Revolutionaries--Russia--Correspondence" for more targeted results.

Finding Primary Sources: Library of Congress Subject Headings
This guide by the MIT library showcases useful subheadings for identifying primary source material and demonstrates how you can use them in your own searches

World Factbook
The World Factbook provides information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 world entities.

Examples of Primary Sources in International Relations

Non-Governmental Organizations
Organizations which are independent of government involvement[3] are known as non-governmental organizations or NGOs[4][5] or non-government organizations
Guide to NGO's (Non-Governmental Organizations)
This is a guide to Nongovernmental Organizations created by a librarian at The University of Michigan. Be sure to email Mary Martin with questions.
Policy Commons
Free source of policy papers from the International Community IGO's and NGO's.
A-Z Resources Links to Databases recommended by the Dag Hammerskjold Library of the United Nations
Links to relevant databases, many free, but a few not. Please ask about any database link requiring a login.

International and Foreign Government Databases)

United Nations
The UN (United Nations) is the only source of some types of data. Main link to the UN that links to main UN bodies (organs). Links to original records and documents of the United Nations
World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development)
Great source on data on a wide range of topics. The World Bank provides loans to countries of the world for capital programs. It comprises two institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), and the International Development Association (IDA).
International Monetary Fund (IMF)
IMF in the source of most international monetary statistics. The IMF's primary purpose is to ensure the stability of the international monetary system.
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
The OECD is a forum of countries describing themselves as committed to democracy and the market economy. Most OECD members are high-income economies with a very high Human Development Index (HDI) and are regarded as developed countries.
Europa (European Union)
The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 28 member states that are located primarily in Europe. Good for finding policies on free movement of people, goods, services, and capital within the internal market, enact legislation in justice and home affairs, and maintain common policies on trade, agriculture, fisheries, and regional development.

China Data Online This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Good for census data and most recent statistics at county, city, provincial and national level.
Content type: Data, statistics
Our subscription does not include access to spatial data.
Language: English, Chinese
China Statistical Yearbook Database This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Explore the most comprehensive and up-to-date data and statistics published by the Chinese government, covering all areas and industries of China.
Content type: Data, statistics, books, government reports
Coverage dates: 1949-present
Our subscription does not include statistical yearbooks in General Survey (综合) category. Includes topics such as living conditions and price indices, finance, energy and the environment; political and public administration, transportation and telecommunication, domestic and foreign trade, tourism, education, technology, culture, sports and public health.
Language: Chinese, English
Keywords: CSYD

IGO Database Links for Data and Statistics

IMF Data This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Good for bank and government financial data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Content type: Data
Includes International Financial Statistics (1948-present), Government Finance Statistics, Balance of Payments Statistics (1948-present) and Direction of Trade Statistics (1980-present).
Language: English, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Spanish
UNdata This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Good for simultaneously searching major United Nations and other international statistical databases to access some of the oldest socioeconomic data available.
Content type: Data, economic data, statistics
Coverage dates: 1950-present
Includes current information on populations, trade, standard of living, and the environment.
Language: English
Keywords: UN Data

Eurostat (European Union Statistics)
Page with statistics and opinion polls. Most of the information is free.

Statista This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Explore quantitative data and statistics from a wide range of international sources on a variety of industry and social topics.
Content type: Statistics, data, industry reports, reports, graphs
Coverage dates: 2008-present
Statista also provides a variety of reports and graphs about popular and current topics.
Language: English
Sage Data This link opens in a new window
Why search here? Gateway to billions of datapoints from a range of organizations with valuable tools to help interpret and visualize selected data sets.
Content type: Data
Coverage dates: 1948-present
Language: English
Keywords: Data Planet Insight