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Hi all – my name is Matt King. I am an associate professor of history at the University of South Florida, and my latest book is A History of Goblins, which was published by Palgrave Macmillan this May. It considers the history of these fascinating creatures (and their many deriv…
Who actually coined the term 'Space'? I find it weird to think that there was a time when people looked at the sky and would call it something other than space. I assume that in different cultures it was called different things, but when did it become more universally known as '…
I have an ancestor who died under the title's circumstances and was curious if this was an antiquated term. There was a great deal of stress and generational trauma in his life, so it seems entirely plausible that he died from exhaustion, but was curious if there was any precede…
As I'm sitting here during yet another 90°F+ heatwave, it occurs to me that if it sucks this much to be doing white-collar work in a dark room with fans, cold water, and the knowledge I can go somewhere air conditioned at any time, it must have been unimaginably worse for people…
This is kind of a weird question since it's more about the practice of history than a question about what happened in history. Basically, is there an agreed-upon methodology or pedagogy about how historians interpret relationships that present as homosocial to the public, but wh…
So beaches obviously have always been useful for various activities scavange of washed out cargo, easy place to go in and with boats, etc.) but I got curious, is there any evidence of medieval people ever going to the beach for leisure. I cant imagine tanning was that needed, gi…
This is a period of time where the Papal States are being (or about to be) gobbled up by Italian Nationalism and Europe is hurtling into modernity. So a long ways away from the heydey of Papal influence it seems. How much did secular leaders of Catholic countries, especially if…
With this tongue in cheek question I have in fact several questions around the same topic: what were the southern elites really expecting seceding will achieve when they decided to do it (or in the months following it)? were they surprised that the Union rejected their secession…
Common views are that the very poor remained (as they couldn't afford to make the journey), as well as some of the elite (who had land and other assets). Were there any other perspectives on staying in India?
I know one-room schoolhouses (where one teacher taught multiple grades at once) were the norm in many rural areas for much of the 19th and early 20th centuries. But as a city slicker, I can't imagine how that would actually work since the teacher can only do one thing at a time.…
It's spaceships, star sailors, fleets and so on, even though space is 3D for navigational purposes and the sea is effectively 2D for everything but submersibles, rockets obviously fly and have to go through the sky first to get to space, and the first astronauts were all trained…
I hear about the Greek development of geometry, but not Chinese geometry. Chinese scholars worked on geometry around the same time as the Greeks, but independently from the Greeks. Euclid developed basic ideas. Did Chinese scholars come to the same conclusions as the Greeks? If…
I already listen to Ligioner’s Renewing Your Mind on my commute to work everyday, so I was wondering if there were any good podcasts I could listen to while I work my desk job or when I just am doing work around the house. Preferably, I’ve wanted to learn more about Church histo…
I’ve noticed that modern day Mongolia is very proud of their past especially during the Mongolian empire and the absolutely love for Genghis khan. his face is everywhere from bank notes to bottles of vodka. But has this always been the case? Did this glorification survive after…
I am an amateur historian, or perhaps just a history enthusiast, who has studied the Later Han period of Chinese history for about 15 years. My method of inquiry has been strongly influenced by the Chinese tradition of historical writing, and naturally, I have mainly built up kn…
Countries like India, Nigeria, Indonesia and many many more are all countries that emerged from colonial borders Most of these countries are very large, both geographyically and in regard to population and natural resources. As such, they carry a great amount of power on the wor…
Would your attitude change if the person telling you so professed to be Christian? Would your attitude change if the person telling you so was not a Christian?