Most information that has come down so far has been by word of mouth, such as that contained in the collection of materials compiled by the Historical Research Commission of Taiwan Province, which includes some accounts from survivors of the incident.
現在所留傳的資料多為口傳，譬如台灣省文獻會所編輯的「二二八事件資料輯錄」中，就有一些當時經歷事件遺老的敘述。