Does Historian (Human) give +1 to all Knowledge skills for bards?

[Thank Dog]

There seems to be no clarification on this from what I can find on the net and searching this site. Can anyone point me to a ruling or if it's just generally accepted not to work like that?

[Are]

Well, the trait was written for 3.5, where the bardic knowledge ability worked very differently from how it works in Pathfinder.

3.5 bardic knowledge wrote:

Bardic Knowledge

A bard may make a special bardic knowledge check with a bonus equal to his bard level + his Intelligence modifier to see whether he knows some relevant information about local notable people, legendary items, or noteworthy places. (If the bard has 5 or more ranks in Knowledge (history), he gains a +2 bonus on this check.)

A successful bardic knowledge check will not reveal the powers of a magic item but may give a hint as to its general function. A bard may not take 10 or take 20 on this check; this sort of knowledge is essentially random.

DC - Type of Knowledge

10 - Common, known by at least a substantial minority of the local population.
20 - Uncommon but available, known by only a few people legends.
25 - Obscure, known by few, hard to come by.
30 - Extremely obscure, known by very few, possibly forgotten by most who once knew it, possibly known only by those who don’t understand the significance of the knowledge.

For use with Pathfinder, I might have the trait increase your bard level for the purpose of bardic knowledge by 1 (although that may be too good as well). Alternatively, it might be better to give a +1 trait bonus to knowledge (local) in addition to knowledge (history).

[Xaratherus]

By RAW, it adds a +1 trait bonus on all checks you make that utilize Bardic Knowledge - i.e., any Knowledge check the Bard makes. It's potent, but not game-breaking.

[Kazaan]

Just be an Elf and take Breadth of Knowledge. It gives +2 to both Knowledge and Profession checks for all subjects and professions. Since Elves starting age is greater than 100, they can take it straight from lvl 1 and it isn't limited to Bardic Knowledge.

[Nefreet]

Xaratherus wrote:

By RAW, it adds a +1 trait bonus on all checks you make that utilize Bardic Knowledge - i.e., any Knowledge check the Bard makes. It's potent, but not game-breaking.

That is not what the trait does.

Historian wrote:

"Your parents were scholars of history, whether genealogists of your own family tree, sages on the subject of ancient empires, or simply hobbyists with a deep and abiding love for the past."

Benefit You gain a +1 trait bonus on Knowledge (history) checks and bardic knowledge checks, and Knowledge (history) is always a class skill for you.

There is no such thing in Pathfinder as a "bardic knowledge check", so RAW the trait is broken and does not work.

It was designed using 3.5 rules and belongs there.