Today:
You know the drill: this is the thread for all your history-related outpourings that are not necessarily questions. Minor questions that you feel don't need or merit their own threads are welcome too. Discovered a great new book, documentary, article or blog? Has your Ph.D. application been successful? Have you made an archaeological discovery in your back yard? Did you find an anecdote about the Doge of Venice telling a joke to Michel Foucault? Tell us all about it.
As usual, moderation in this thread will be relatively non-existent -- jokes, anecdotes and light-hearted banter are welcome.
To all here, best wishes for the holidays and a great 2023. This month marks a full decade (December 28, 2012) since my retirement, liberating me to comment here more frequently (my son set up my account ten years ago last summer, to keep his addled father occupied in my twilight years).
Thanks to all for indulging my answers for ten years! May you be rewarded with wonderful holiday gifts and a brilliantly happy New Year. And may we all see a little more peace in the world in 2023.
edit: to make sure more people see the link I provided, buried within a thread here, I want to recommend a video starring one of esteemed colleagues here at /r/AskHistorians: the video is a brilliant review of combat depicted in recent films by Roel Konijnendijk. All sensible redditors will follow the link and upvote the video!!!
Merry Christmas to all who celebrate! I'm supposed to be studying for my PhD candidacy exam next month, but I'm too distracted by reading about my prospective dissertation topic... and by wrapping presents of course
Brother just sent me Roel's new insider video - only one ditch reference :(
Your Weekly /r/askhistorians Recap
Friday, December 16 - Thursday, December 22
###Top 10 Posts
| score | comments | title & link |
|---|---|---|
| 4,224 | 151 comments | [Great Question!] How would a professional historian look for the One Ring? |
| 2,609 | 114 comments | Credit Scores were invented in 1989. What was borrowing like before then? |
| 2,574 | 144 comments | Did left-handed swordsmen have an advantage on the battlefield, like left-handed batters do in baseball? |
| 2,417 | 49 comments | How did Lacrosse, originally a Native American sport, become so strongly associated with private schools and colleges in the US? |
| 1,713 | 10 comments | Who built and maintained the roads between city-states in ancient Greece? Did each city only build its own section of the road, or was there some international cooperation? |
| 1,633 | 42 comments | Where did our modern stereotypical image of a caveman come from, where they wear loin clothes, carry a big club, grunt, hunt sabertooth tigers, and live in a cave come from? And where does the term “caveman” originate? |
| 1,393 | 68 comments | Why did polygamy never catch on in European monarchies? |
| 1,198 | 10 comments | Why did Christianity spread to the Amhara and Tigray people in Ethiopia in the early 4th century but it didn’t spread to the Somalis,Oromo,Afar or other Cushitic groups during that time frame? |
| 1,189 | 102 comments | Did medieval people really believe in dragons/sea monsters or it was a just a weird belief like Aliens are today? |
| 1,079 | 36 comments | What happened to all of the Napoleonic-era cannonballs? |
###Top 10 Comments
If you would like this roundup sent to your reddit inbox every week send me a message with the subject 'askhistorians'. Or if you want a daily roundup, use the subject 'askhistorians daily'. Or send me a chat with either askhistorians or askhistorians daily.
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For historians, how have your profession impacted your view and old opinions of historical events that happened within your lifetime?
Wasn't sure where else to throw this, as it's a bit of a longshot, but I was curious if anyone is well versed in the actions/history of the British Indian Army in WWII. My Grandfather served in the 4th Battalion and I've been trying to chart an outline of his experiences, but have been met with a series of roadblocks and deadends.
Watched ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ last night, brilliant movie that really drives home how tragic and unnecessary the whole conflict was.
Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays, hope everyone has a good time this weekend.
Here's a question I've been meaning to ask: I have a few old, unanswered questions in this sub, about 5-7 years old.
I think they're old enough to repost, but generally speaking, how long should someone wait before reposting a question? Is a month ok? A quarter? Half year? Longer?