The word history would be used for history as a science, that is, for narratives of real events. Already story makes reference to fictional narratives and is very old in the Portuguese language, being considered an archaism.
However, officially from 1943, the word history came to be used for both types of narrative, whether true or fictional facts.
| History | Story | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Used for narratives of real events, however, currently, the term is used in any situation. | Word used as a synonym for fictional narratives. |
| Example | The history of Brazil is very rich and full of interesting episodes. |
The girl didn't want to read the story about fairies and princesses. |
| spelling agreement | Nowadays, the word "history" is used both for fictional narratives and for real facts. Measure recognized in 1943 by the Brazilian Academy of Letters. | The word "story" is considered an archaism, that is, it is very old, outdated, with few users. Currently, it is not so common, being replaced by the word "history". |
History or history?
Many defend that only the word "history" would be valid to refer to real or fictional facts. This is because the word "story" should have fallen into disuse, being an ancient variation of the original Greek (history) and also influenced by the English language, with the word story (which is different from history).
Because it was not neglected by Portuguese speakers, the word story is considered an archaism. This means that it is very old, outdated.
However, over time, it incorporated the meaning of reference to fictional narratives. The contrast would have arisen to distinguish fables and children's tales from history as a science.
Examples of history and story
- The history of the United Kingdom is full of wars.
- The grandmother told a very funny story about witches to her grandchildren.
- The teacher started the class by highlighting the main points of American history.
In this sense, the word story was used in a phrase referring to an invented narrative. The teacher's class touched on real topics, using the word history.
However, it is essential to bear in mind that, nowadays, the word history is the most correct and accepted for both narratives.
Examples without differentiation
- The history of England is marked by the fire of London.
- The boy read the story of dragons in just one day!
- The tourist rested and then told the whole story of the robbery.
In the examples above, the words history have been used interchangeably, but do not have the same meaning. In the case of the boy, it is a fictional narrative.
Uppercase or lowercase?
Many have this doubt when they need to write the word history. However, according to the Orthographic Agreement, capitalizing the first letter is optional when referring to history as a science or discipline. Everything else must be in lower case. Except, of course, for sentence beginnings.
See also the difference between:
- High Middle Ages and Low Middle Ages
- myth and legend
- ratify and rectify
- freedom and debauchery
- news and reporting
