
Historical significance

Historical significance is a historiographical concept that defines and influences the social remembrance of past events. 
Historians consider knowledge of dates and events the primary content of history, or "first-order knowledge". They class historical significance as an aspect of the study of primary content, deeming it secondary or "second-order knowledge". However, the way dates and events are chosen and described is often used to assign significance, without acknowledging bias. As Winston Churchill has said: "History is written by the victors". 
Relevance.
A central topic to the study of history, historical significance defines what is remembered about the past, through its reflections in various objects of contemporary culture (images on stamps and banknotes, street names, etc.) Examining it can be an effective tool for guiding students to understand how cultural background affects perception of history and the preferences they have.
Examples.
Historical significance is typically assessed by judging an event against pre-defined criteria. For example, UNESCO includes any site as a world heritage site, provided it "bear[s] a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization". However, these criteria are often subjective and perception-biased "or" unavailable. Thus the alluding of any event as historically significant or non-significant remains open to challenge.
Numerous criteria for assessing historical significance have been proposed.