Primary sources can help you formulate ideas and questions for further research on a topic; secondary sources can help you answer those questions and develop new ones. Finding appropriate and useful secondary sources, however, can be tricky.

Most university libraries have access to broad databases such as JSTOR and Historical Abstracts which index many different history journals. These libraries also have their own catalogues to search for books and other articles. But using these very broad search engines can be overwhelming, time-consuming, and frustrating. Thankfully, the UNBC library has access to a database specifically for medieval European history. It is called the International Medieval Bibliography and you can access it here: International Medieval Bibliography

This database contains only sources that are relevant to medieval studies, so it can help you focus your research. BUT our library does not have access to all of the sources listed on the International Medieval Bibliography, so an aspect of this part of your research trail is going to involve using the Interlibrary Loan Service through the UNBC library.

Using the International Medieval Bibliography and Interlibrary Loan

NOTE: Only 3 people can access IMB (International Medieval Bibliography) at the same time so make sure you do this assignment as early as possible, otherwise, you may not get access when you want to.

Watch this video on using IMB:

Use the following guidelines when choosing your secondary sources:

  • Pick three articles (in journals or book collections) from the IMB. At least ONE of these articles must NOT be available at UNBC.
  • Your articles must be published after 1990. Preferably at least one of your articles should be published in the last 10 years.
  • These articles must be SECONDARY SOURCES. Make sure to check as IMB does index some primary sources.
  • Use advance search to find relevant articles. How to do so is detailed in the above video.

Watch this video on using Interlibrary Loan:

Interlibrary loan provides access to published materials which the UNBC library does not hold in its collection. Some guidelines on using Interlibrary Loan:

  • You will need to log into the library website using your UNBC credentials.
  • Order pdf copies of articles rather than the book in which they appear. That means they will be emailed to you by the Interlibrary Loan librarian and they will arrive more quickly (usually within a few days).
  • Use the “Get it @UNBC” button on IMB (see the video above).

What to Submit for your assignment

Due Date: February 12th at midnight to Moodle

For a google doc of the below questions:

Research Trail 2A questions

  1. What is your broader topic?
  2. What are your primary sources (provide author’s name and title of source for each)?
  3. Write a bibliographic entry for all three articles using the Chicago manual of style. See here for proper formatting: Chicago Manual of Style
  4. Include classification details for each of the articles you found. See the IMB entry for your source for these classification details. They include: subject, discipline, persons/families/texts, area, place, century.
  5. Why did you choose these articles? What about them made you think they would be useful for your project? (2 paragraphs)
  6. Which article(s) did you order through Interlibrary Loan?