Trace a quote to its origin

Famous quotes drift. Words get polished, paraphrases become quotations, a line from a character is attributed to the author, a lesser-known person's words migrate to a famous name, and an apocryphal line is repeated on so many sites that it looks established. Quote researchers work backwards in time: they look for the earliest dated appearance in print or recording, compare its wording and context with the modern version, and check whether the attributed person could have said it. Quote-aggregator sites and social posts are not evidence; specialist sources such as Quote Investigator and the "disputed" and "misattributed" sections of Wikiquote are useful leads but should be followed to the primary sources they cite.

Trace this quoteOnly if [ATTRIBUTED_TO] is given: , attributed to [ATTRIBUTED_TO]:

1. Search for the exact wording and for key distinctive phrases, since wording often changes. Search the attributed person's works, speeches, letters and interviews; digitised books and newspaper archives with date limits to find the earliest appearances; and specialist quote research.
2. Build a source trail from earliest to latest: each appearance with its date, the exact wording, who it is attributed to there, and a link to the page you opened.
3. Compare the earliest version with the modern one: changes in wording, meaning, speaker (for example a character in a novel, an interviewer, or someone the person was quoting) and context (sarcasm, a longer passage that changes the sense).
4. Give a verdict:

• Verified: found in a primary source by the person, with matching wording.
• Paraphrase: the idea is theirs but the popular wording is not.
• Misattributed: an earlier or primary source shows someone else said it.
• Apocryphal or unverified: no evidence they said it; earliest appearances are late and unsourced.
• Out of context: genuine, but the context changes what it means. State the confidence and the main evidence.

1. Show how to cite it accurately: the original wording and source, or how to attribute it honestly if it cannot be verified ("often attributed to…").

• Cite only pages you opened in this session, with URL and date where available. Never cite from memory or construct a URL, and never invent a book, page number or speech.
• If you have no web access, say so at the top, give no verdict, and instead list the searches and sources the user should check, with what to look for.
• Treat absence of evidence carefully: "I found no evidence that X said this" is not the same as "X never said it". Say how thorough your search was.
• Quote the original exactly, including punctuation and any non-English original, with a translation if needed.
• Do not treat repetition across quote sites as corroboration.

Verdict

The rating in bold, then two or three sentences with the key evidence and confidence.

Source trail

Table: date | source (linked) | exact wording | attributed to.

Original wording and context

The original passage and what it meant in context.

How to cite it

A suggested citation or attribution line.