# Historical Volatility

*Risk & Portfolio — Finicade finance glossary*

How much an asset actually moved in the past, measured as the standard deviation of its returns. It's the backward-looking counterpart to implied volatility's forward-looking guess.

**Also known as:** historical volatility

**Related terms:** [Volatility](https://finicade.com/glossary/volatility), [Implied Volatility](https://finicade.com/glossary/implied-volatility), [Standard Deviation](https://finicade.com/glossary/standard-deviation)

**Taught in:** Hull Street — Volatility & the Smile

Source: https://finicade.com/glossary/historical-vol