oral history

noun

1

: a recording containing information about the past obtained from in-depth interviews concerning personal experiences, recollections, and reflections

also : the study of such information

2

: a written work based on oral history

oral historian noun

Examples of oral history in a Sentence

I'm reading an oral history of the Great Depression.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Kansas City Public Library’s oral history project, Speaking of Kansas City, preserves the firsthand accounts of Hispanic flood survivors from Argentine. — Michelle Oliva-Espinosa, Kansas City Star, 18 July 2026

To preserve the history of these neighborhoods, Clockshop, an arts organization, has been collecting interviews with locals as part of a multimedia oral history project since 2023. — Jireh Deng, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2026

Links to the new oral history project have been incorporated into the exhibition and are available at the exhibition homepage. — Eric E. Harrison, Arkansas Online, 11 July 2026

In 2017, The Hollywood Reporter published an oral history of the making of the 1987 action classic, in which no less than six conflicting versions of Van Damme’s exit emerged. — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 7 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for oral history

• ethnohistory
• consistory
• mystery