Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 May 2016
This contribution reviews ideas about the origins of stellar halos. It includes discussion of the theoretical understanding of and observational evidence for stellar populations formed “in situ” (meaning formed in orbits close to their current ones), “kicked-out” (meaning formed in the inner galaxy in orbits unlike their current ones) and “accreted” (meaning formed in a dark matter halo other than the one they currently occupy). At this point there is general agreement that a significant fraction of any stellar halo population is likely “accreted”. There is modest evidence for the presence of a “kicked-out” population around both the Milky Way and M31. Our theoretical understanding of and the observational evidence for an “in situ” population are less clear.