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History
Meet the world's largest landowners.
For linguists, the uniqueness of the Basque language represents an unsolved mystery. For its native speakers, long oppressed, it is a source of pride.
Centuries ago, the typical British coffeehouse was more like a "school without a master" than a place to grab a quick boost of caffeine.
We don't know what causes Miyake events, but these great surges of energy can help us understand the past — while posing a threat to our future.
Before Rome was an empire, it was a republic. And before it was a republic, it was a kingdom ruled by seven mythical kings — some better than others.
The meaning of the cryptic text has eluded scholars for centuries. Their latest efforts include computational analyses seeking new insights into the medieval enigma.
Once a cosmopolitan faith, Islam valued intellectualism and modernity. It was derailed by various geopolitical and religious forces.
A new book by historian and author Paul Strathern argues that the Northern European Renaissance has long been overlooked.
Bram Stoker's mother survived a terrible cholera outbreak and recounted the ghastly scenes to her son years later.
If we manage to avoid a large catastrophe, we are living at the early beginnings of human history.
Evolutionary pressures drove the formation of tribes who encoded their values in myths and symbols. Was this cooperation cursed?
Before Constantine received his history-defining vision, a pagan Sun god paved the way for Jesus Christ’s triumphal entry into the Eternal City.
Mansa Musa, perhaps history's richest man, claims he ascended the throne of Mali after his predecessor sailed west and never came back. Could he have made it to the New World?
Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Soviet censorship was thorough yet fallible.
500 sheep were slaughtered to produce the 2,060 pages of the "Codex Amiatinus," a Latin translation of the Bible.
Let us share this miracle with mothers in poor countries.
Man does not live by measurement alone.
John Templeton Foundation
"The Man in the High Castle" may be the most beloved alternate history book, but it is not the most historically accurate.
Glimpse into the ancient Maya empire through the writing of its own inhabitants.
Billy was a local celebrity in the early 1900s. And he might have been a murderer.
Not every classic enjoyed rave reviews from the start.
Here’s what Europe would have looked like if the Confederation of the Danube had been established after WWII.
How one man's divine dream became a poultry-shaped reality.
Journaling helped Marcus Aurelius cultivate the emotional intelligence necessary to steer Rome through turbulent times.
And her clothing tells an important story, says archeologist Rita Wright.
To understand Vincent van Gogh, we must first debunk the myth of the tortured artist. Van Gogh believed his illness inhibited his creativity.
Nearly 2000 years ago, Mt. Vesuvius erupted, burying Pompeii but incinerating Herculaneum. The most lethal volcanic phenomenon is at fault.
Zombies aren't a modern-day obsession. Throughout history, fear of the undead led to bizarre burial rituals all over the world.