historical

[ hi-stawr-i-kuhl, -stor- ]

adjective

1. of, relating to, treating, or characteristic of history or past events:

   historical records;

   historical research.

2. based on or reconstructed from an event, custom, style, etc., in the past:

   a historical reenactment of the battle of Gettysburg.

3. having once existed or lived in the real world, as opposed to being part of legend or fiction or as distinguished from religious belief:

   Scholars doubt that a historical Camelot ever existed.

   Her thesis was an overview of how theologians have studied the historical Jesus.

   Synonyms: factual, authentic

4. narrated or mentioned in history; belonging to the past:

   He cited several historical examples of international conflict resolution.

5. relating to or involving analysis based on a comparison among several periods of development of a phenomenon, as in language or economics:

   She taught a course in historical linguistics.

6. historic ( def 1 ).

historical

/ hɪˈstɒrɪkəl /

adjective

1. belonging to or typical of the study of history

   historical methods

2. concerned with or treating of events of the past

   historical accounts

3. based on or constituting factual material as distinct from legend or supposition
4. based on or inspired by history

   a historical novel

5. occurring or prominent in history
6. a less common word for historic

Derived Forms

• hisˈtoricalness, noun
• hisˈtorically, adverb

Other Words From

• his·tor·i·cal·ly adverb
• his·tor·i·cal·ness noun
• an·ti·his·tor·i·cal adjective
• an·ti·his·tor·i·cal·ness noun
• non·his·tor·i·cal adjective
• non·his·tor·i·cal·ness noun
• pseu·do·his·tor·i·cal adjective
• qua·si-his·tor·i·cal adjective
• sem·i·his·tor·i·cal adjective
• su·per·his·tor·i·cal adjective
• un·his·tor·i·cal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of historical¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin historic(us) historic ( def ) + -al ¹( def )

Example Sentences

"The whistles have a very unique construction, and we don't know of any comparable musical instrument from other pre-Columbian cultures or from other historical and contemporary contexts," says Frühholz.

From Science Daily

Some might welcome the film’s nuanced look at the responsibilities of the media, while others may find it difficult to separate its historical focus from the emotionally charged realities of the current moment.

From Los Angeles Times

One is an intimate empowerment ballad from a Tyler Perry historical drama on Netflix.

From Los Angeles Times

The Aleppo pine, for instance, is a fast-growing species found throughout the western Mediterranean, Greece and parts of the Levant, including northeastern portions of historical Palestine.

From Salon

The historical dataset couldn't explain why weeds were less responsive to the herbicides under these conditions, but other studies provide clues.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• actual
• ancient
• archival
• classical
• factual
• real