There are numerous history research paper topics you can choose from. Developing solid skills in research, analysis, and writing are fundamental for a successful university education, as well as for many future job prospects. These skills are particularly relevant to the discipline of history, and writing assignments is often one of the most important components of any history course. It is vital that you set aside enough time to do it properly. A history research paper is not just a compilation of facts that you cut and paste into a report. A good history essay or research paper needs to explain something important about the past; it requires you to think critically about the topic, to draw on different sources, to sift through and analyze competing claims.
Choosing your topic is arguably the most important, and often the most difficult, task in writing an essay or a research paper. An ill-defined topic will never produce a good work. A history research paper is much more than a list of facts about events that happened in the past: it must explain. It is also more than a repetition of what other historians have already concluded: it must include your interpretation. A good historical research is focused on a limited topic. To narrow your topic, ask the questions who, what, where, when, and/or why something happened as it did.
Steps for defining a good history research paper topic:
- Identify a topic of interest. If your instructor has provided a list of topics, identify one that is interesting to you. If you do not have a list from which to select a topic, think of something related to the course content about which you would like to know more.
- Review the work already done on the topic (historiography) and familiarize yourself with the basic facts and events: find out what is known about the topic in textbooks, historical encyclopedias, or other general and specialized works.
- Narrow down your topic. Select one that is narrow enough to be feasible and manageable. An ill-defined or too-broad topic will never produce a good paper. Even if your professor provided the topic, you will probably still need to refine it.
More Than 200 Ideas for History Research Paper Topics
10 African History Topics
- African Religions
- African Union
- Apartheid
- Colonial Africa
- Nubians
- Pan-Africanism
- Postcolonial Africa
- Shaka Zulu
- Slave Trades
- Warfare in Africa
20 American History Topics
- Abraham Lincoln
- American Empire
- American Revolution
- Andean States
- Aztec Empire
- Biological Exchanges
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt
- Haitian Revolution
- Hudson’s Bay Company
- Inca Empire
- Latter-Day Saints Movement
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Mesoamerica
- Mexican Revolution
- Mississippian Culture
- Native American Religions
- The Americas
- Thomas Jefferson
- W. E. B. Du Bois
- Warfare in North America
15 Art History Topics
- History of Architecture
- African Art
- Ancient Greek and Roman Art
- Chinese Art
- Dance and Military Drill
- East Asian and European Art Connections
- Japanese Art
- Leonardo da Vinci
- Music and Political Protest
- Native American Art
- Paleolithic Art
- Pre-Columbian American Art
- Renaissance Art
- The Enlightenment
- World History and Art
20 Asian History Topics
- Babylon
- British East India Company
- Delhi Sultanate
- Dutch East India Company
- Hammurabi
- Harappan State and Indus Civilization
- History of China
- History of Korea
- Japanese Empire
- Khmer Kingdom
- Mongol Empire
- Orientalism
- Pastoral Nomadic Societies
- Persian Empire
- Porcelain
- Sasanian Empire
- Silk Roads
- Spice Trade
- Tea
- Warfare in Islamic World
20 Cultural History Topics
- Apartheid
- Barter
- Colonialism
- Columbian Exchange
- Cultural Areas
- Decolonization
- Diasporas
- Ethnocentrism
- European Expansion
- Frontiers vs. Borders
- Maritime History
- Social History
- Indigenous Peoples
- Mercantilism
- Missionaries
- Nationalism
- Orientalism
- Pilgrimage
- Race and Racism
- Social Darwinism
20 Environmental History Topics
- Anthroposphere
- Biological Exchanges
- Carrying Capacity
- Climate Change
- Columbian Exchange
- Deforestation
- Desertification
- Earthquakes
- Environmental Movements
- Erosion
- Extinctions
- Famine
- Gaia Theory
- Green Revolution
- Ice Ages
- Natural Gas
- Oil Spills
- Population and the Environment
- Water Management
- Wind Energy
50 European History Topics
- Adolf Hitler
- Alexander the Great
- Ancient Greece
- Austro-Hungarian Empire
- British Empire
- Catherine the Great
- Charlemagne
- Charles V
- Constantine the Great
- Dutch Empire
- Early Modern World
- Emperor Augustus
- European Expansion
- European Union
- Fascism
- Feudalism
- French Empire
- French Revolution
- German Empire
- Hanseatic League
- Imperialism
- Indo-European Migration
- Industrial Revolution
- Interwar Years (1918–1939)
- Joseph Stalin
- Julius Caesar
- Justinian I
- Karl Marx
- League of Nations
- Macedonian Empire
- Napoleonic Empire
- North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
- Ottoman Empire
- Parliamentarianism
- Peter the Great
- Portuguese Empire
- Postcolonial Analysis
- Protestantism
- Renaissance
- Roman Empire
- Russian Revolution
- Soviet Empire
- Spanish Empire
- The Celts
- The Crusades
- The Emergence of State Societies
- Urbanization
- Viking Society
- Vladimir Lenin
- Warsaw Pact
15 Military History Topics
- Bows and Arrows
- Civil Disobedience
- Cold War
- Crusades, The
- Firearms
- Genocide
- Holocaust
- Military Engineering
- Military Strategy and Tactics
- Military Training and Discipline
- Music and Political Protest
- Religion and War
- Terrorism
- World War I
- World War II
20 Political History Topics
- Absolutism
- Bands, Tribes, Chiefdoms, and States
- Citizenship
- Civil Disobedience
- Civil Law
- Communism and Socialism
- Confucianism
- Democracy
- Fascism
- Feudalism
- Human Rights
- Imperialism
- International Law
- Islamic Law
- Liberalism
- Nationalism
- Nation-State
- Parliamentarianism
- Religion and Government
- Zionism
25 Science and Technology History Topics
- Agricultural Societies
- Biological Exchange
- Cartography
- Coal
- Computer Technology
- Electricity
- Industrial Revolution
- Information Storage and Recovery
- Internet
- Mathematics
- Metallurgy
- Navigation
- Nuclear Power
- Oil
- Paper
- Roads
- Sailing Ships
- Scientific Expeditions
- Scientific Instruments
- Scientific Revolution
- Secondary-Products Revolution
- Telegraph and Telephone
- Television
- Waste Management
- Wind Energy
History courses require you to submit written papers as part of your assignment work. Essay writing helps develop abilities that will enable you to participate in the continuing discussion about the past, including developing and stating a reasoned argument, quickly and effectively analysing and summarising texts, and presenting a scholarly, well documented final product. Such skills have wide application in many areas beyond history.
History research paper topics are not ‘true’ or ‘false’ tests. There is no one right way of answering a history question. Rather, a history paper is an opportunity to enter an ongoing debate, to read and think about questions that may never—indeed often cannot—be finally resolved. There are always new ways of looking at material, new methods to apply, and new ideas to incorporate.