According to the Oral History Association, oral history is a field of study and a method of gathering, preserving, and interpreting the voices and memories of people, communities, and participants in past events. 

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Oral histories are a technique used for generating and preserving original, historically interesting information and primary source information from personal recollections through recorded interviews. This planned method of interviewing is used to preserve the voices, memories, and perspectives of people in history, as they were in their own time. 

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The field of oral history stems from the tradition of passing information and stories of importance to the family unit or tribe from one generation to the next. 

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In the United States, the Oral History Association connects oral historians across the country and provides a broad range of information on oral history work, including techniques, sharing, preserving, gathering original historically important information, and how to ask questions that promote personal recollections. 

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For more information on oral history work and for an Introduction to Oral History, please visit the Smithsonian Institution Archives' brief introduction to oral history based on best practices used in their program here. 

For more information on the Oral History Association, please visit their site here.