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

Innovative methodologies, including demography and quantitative analysis, folklore, material culture, oral history, and family reconstitution opened new windows into the past. — Drew Gilpin Faust, The New York Review of Books, 19 Sep. 2026

The new center has space for exhibits, oral history initiatives, artist residencies, community quilting projects, public speaker series and other programming. — ABC News, 15 Sep. 2026

It is filled with thousands of artifacts, photographs, oral histories, and personal items recovered from the site. — Thomas E. Franklin, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2026

In the lead-up to the anniversary, IndieWire spoke to a group of the executives and show creators (who, in many cases, did both jobs at the same time) that played roles in the formation of Adult Swim to compile this oral history of its launch. — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for oral history

• ethnohistory
• consistory
• mystery