Research Guides: French Studies: Primary Sources

What are Primary and Secondary Sources?

The library has access to many repositories that focus on primary source materials from French cultures dating back to the very early history and running up until the present. On this page you will find a list of some of our recommended resources as well as a helpful video describing what primary sources can include. You might also want to check out archives and museums for related materials as well!

Gallica
Gallica is the Bibliothèque nationale de France’s digital library offering online access to books, manuscripts, maps, and images.

Feminae: Medieval Women & Gender Index This link opens in a new window
- Find journal articles, book reviews, and essays in books about women, sexuality, and gender during the Middle Ages (450 C.E. to 1500 C.E)
- Geographic area is primarily the British Isles and Europe
- Publications are in English, French, German, Spanish and Italian
- Coverage of indexing is primarily from 1995 to 2007, with some earlier material.
Huguet Dictionary This link opens in a new window
- Edmond Huguet's Dictionary of the French language of the sixteenth century is the reference tool for the language of the Renaissance.
- Permitted Uses
French Renaissance Paleography This link opens in a new window
- This paleography website presents French manuscripts written between 1300 and 1700, with tools for deciphering them and learning about their social, cultural, and institutional settings.
- Intended for many types of users, including scholars preparing to undertake research in French-language archives, students studying French history and culture, curators, archivists, calligraphers and graphic designers.
Oxford Art Online This link opens in a new window
- All aspects of the visual arts worldwide from prehistory to present day.
- Find biographies, subject entries, bibliographic citations and image links and images.
- Includes The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms, Grove Art Online, Oxford Companion to Western Art and Encyclopedia of Aesthetics.
- Limited to 3 simultaneous users.
- Permitted Uses