Skip to main content
annalist

annalist

9.8
A person who writes a short yearly record of events in order
  • noun
  • /ˈænəˌlɪst/
translation icon : anualista
  • The annalist documented the major events of the year in his yearly summary.

Examples

  • Each entry in the journal was penned by an annalist who focused on chronological accuracy.

  • As an annalist, she was responsible for recording important historical developments.

  • Thus, as White suggested, for the annalist, "Charles's campaigns with the Saracens remain simply fights, the invasion of the Saracens simply a coming, and the fact that the Battle of Poitiers was fought on a Saturday is as important.

    Academic text (1998)

Synonyms

historian
vsannalist
317 3.4

A person who studies and writes about past events

keeps chronological yearly records rather than a broad interpretive study
chronicler
vsannalist
11 7.2

A person who writes down events in the order they happen

records events in yearly records rather than as a narrative account
chronologist
vsannalist
  • Specialized
7.8

A person who studies and records when events happen

records events in yearly records rather than focusing on study or analysis
chronologer
vsannalist
9.9

A person who finds the dates of events and puts them in order

records events in yearly records rather than focusing mainly on dating
logographer
vsannalist
  • Specialized
9.9

A person who writes history about past events, often in ancient times

records events year by year rather than producing longer historical narratives

How Chronological

annalist
9.8
historian
317 3.4

Surface Forms

annalist singular
annalists plural

Morphology

annalist = annal (transparent) = annal + ist

Formed straightforwardly from 'annal' (a yearly record) + the agentive suffix '-ist', meaning 'one who records annals'.

Etymology

Annalist comes from the Latin annus 'year' and the ending -ist 'person', and it shares the same root as annual. So an annalist is someone who records events year by year.