Questions tagged [world]

Questions related to the history of the planet Earth and all life and societies and geographical features upon it.

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What was the first city directory?

A great genealogical and social historical source are city directories. These are books that typically list the heads of households and businesses within a city. Information contained can include ...
Curious Layman's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
309 views

Were the Western World's general political and ideological consensus and consequent actions primarily responsible for the global ending of slavery?

Would one be accurate in stating that it was the general ideological and political consensus and subsequent actions of the Western World during the early to mid 1800s that were primarily responsible ...
Keith626's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
88 views

Where can I find military records for soldiers in Merrill's Marauders?

My uncle fought with Merrill's Marauders. Can I get more information on his military awards?
Rocketman's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
328 views

Did humans live more densely in the past, and if so, how much denser?

I know family sizes were larger in the past, "average U.S. household – from 5.79 people per household in 1790 to 2.58 in 2010." but how closely did those family members live in their houses? ...
Malady's user avatar
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-1 votes
2 answers
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Why are the borders of the Islamic world where they are? [closed]

I think I can answer a lot of this question myself. Geography, of course, played a major role: In the south, the Sahara put a powerful brake on the religion's expansion further into Africa. (...
Tom Hosker's user avatar
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15 votes
1 answer
4k views

When was the 50 billionth human born? [closed]

I don't know if this question belongs precisely at History.SE, but I can't think of a more fitting alternative. I've heard the estimate several times that about 100 billion humans have existed ...
WillG's user avatar
  • 253
9 votes
4 answers
2k views

Why has English become the global language?

I love the English and English. I am truly fascinated by the expansion of the English language across the globe. According to linguists all languages are great and unique. If it is a fact, why ...
Jvlnarasimharao's user avatar
11 votes
3 answers
729 views

What was the primary motivation for a historical figure like Xenophon to create an extensive collection of written material?

Xenophon of Athens created a large amount of written material even by today's standards. Did he create this work knowing it would be read by future generations, or was it for his own satisfaction? I ...
bn.'s user avatar
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-1 votes
2 answers
284 views

Is there an accurate "World History Timeline" for all geographic areas?

Many years ago I had in my possession a large poster of a timeline that attempted to depict the main events attached to all the cultures known to have existed. I think I found it in a Japanese museum (...
wip's user avatar
  • 115
4 votes
3 answers
434 views

What was the first recorded non-violent toppling of a dictator?

There has been a lot of research on non-violent resistance, but looking at Wikipedia's page on the topic, I can't seem to answer this question: What was the first non-violent toppling of a dictator? ...
Dolphin 613 Motorboat's user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
3k views

What was the world's largest religion in 1500?

Prior to the colonization of the Americas and Africa by the West, it appears somewhat unlikely that Christianity was the largest religion in the world. If I am not mistaken, the majority of the world'...
Kalis's user avatar
  • 329
3 votes
1 answer
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U-Boat Mutiny in WW2?

In the 2018 'Das Boot' TV series, the crew of the U-Boat mutinies against their captain as they perceive him to be too cautious and unwilling to engage the enemy. Is there any historical record of a ...
pmarflee's user avatar
  • 133
-2 votes
2 answers
796 views

Are empires inherently stable over time? [closed]

Are empires stable organisational units with normalising tendencies, or do they have inherent instability? Has an empire ever demonstrated itself to be perpetually stable? If not, why not?
52d6c6af's user avatar
  • 153
1 vote
3 answers
791 views

World War I Britain supplies cut

I was watching a documentary regarding World War I and one of the things that was depicted was how the commercial trade was cut off from Germany by England blocking the sea which resulted in Germany ...
Jose Ferro's user avatar
9 votes
1 answer
2k views

How many officers on board Type VII-C U-boat? [closed]

As the topic states I am curious of how many offiers were on board a type VII-C U-boat during WW2. I know the crew size was typically 42 to 48, but what was the breakdown of the crew? Bonus points ...
Chad's user avatar
  • 253
1 vote
3 answers
950 views

Has anyone ever got more than a 21 Gun Salute?

The 21 gun salute is given at the funeral for US military personnel. Has there ever been someone who got more than 21 rounds fired? Primarily for the US but not limited to I am looking for instances ...
Muze's user avatar
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37 votes
4 answers
7k views

What is the highest number of brothers who became ruler of the same country?

While researching the Danish monarchy for another question on this site (the life expectancy of a Medieval European monarch), I came across the five sons of King Sweyn II who all became kings of ...
Lars Bosteen's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
288 views

Who was the first Renaissance cartographer to include rich content in their maps that went beyond spatial points, borders, and location names?

In other words, which Renaissance cartographer was the first to really enrich their maps with imagery or icons that indicated other attributes about the locations they were mapping, or the people who ...
maximumViable's user avatar
23 votes
3 answers
6k views

How do historians know the details of a seemingly private event?

Sometimes I read in history that someone said something, but it seems, it's just a daily conversation, or even in private, or a secret event. So how do history writers know these details? It seems ...
user2174870's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
365 views

Most recently settled area habitable without modern technology

Among islands or archipelagos with a size, climate, and ecology suitable to sustain a healthy population of stone age technology humans, which one was settled most recently? Among "large" landmasses ...
gerrit's user avatar
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0 votes
1 answer
168 views

Have there ever been any instances of complete (or almost) world peace? [duplicate]

I'm now 55, and although I've never lived through a World War, there have been numerous major conflicts in my lifetime - Cold War, 'troubles' in Northern Ireland, Gulf War 1 and 2. Has there ever been ...
Wonderdog's user avatar
1 vote
4 answers
770 views

What is the largest mutiny in human history? [closed]

What is the largest mutiny in terms of people involved (approx.) or the number of days it lasted in the recorded history? - Mutiny - Mutiny is a criminal conspiracy among a group of people (typically ...
Arun S's user avatar
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-2 votes
1 answer
228 views

What is the significance of the term "never start changing the borders in Eastern Europe by force?" [closed]

I have read this was the cause of both World War 1 and World War 2. Russia has now seized the Crimea and followed that up with a War in Eastern Ukraine. What are some political theories behind such ...
Doctor Zhivago's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
297 views

What happened to all the Germans living east of the Oder?

After the second world war, what happened to all the Germans living east of the Oder? I mean, are all the descendants of the Germans living in Danzig, Breslau, Königsberg, etc., concentrated in a ...
Marcus Hellström's user avatar
19 votes
6 answers
7k views

What is the historical reason for 18 years being the most commonly accepted age of adulthood?

Most countries define the age of adulthood at 18 years. Why is this? Was there some historical precedent set in ancient Rome/Greece or something like that? Why 18 years and not some "nicer" number ...
DrZ214's user avatar
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0 votes
1 answer
124 views

Short Snorter Pacific Theatre

I am a collector of World War ll memorabilia. I have one piece called a short snorter. They were done in both the pacific and european theatres. These were usually bomber crews or groups of men in ...
Tony O's user avatar
  • 3
4 votes
2 answers
1k views

Were there more than 4 River Valley Civilizations? [closed]

If you graduated U.S. Public School education system(k-12), you might have learned about the 4 great River Valley Civilizations: Indus, HuangHe, Nile, Euphrates. They were basically the birthing ...
pacman2's user avatar
  • 61
-1 votes
1 answer
163 views

World History - Big Bang to TODAY [closed]

I am a very new World History enthusiast, pretty much a new kid on the block. Of late(the past few years), I have been having this sudden urge of understanding and learning everything that has ...
Jeet's user avatar
  • 7
12 votes
2 answers
2k views

Historical, academic explanations for the near-universal second-class citizenship of women?

I just heard on the news that, in 70 countries, girls face risks by simply going to school and being girls. How did women come to be second-class citizens throughout the world? Are there any ...
shadowtalker's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
852 views

Yearly population growth rate throughout history

Has there been a comprehensive analysis of relative human population growth rate throughout history? I'm interested in seeing how the growth rate (not world population) has evolved in the past ...
Lilienthal's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
2k views

Did syphilis, polio, hepatitis, and encephalitis come to general world from the Americas?

This site asserts that syphilis, polio, hepatitis, and encephalitis come to general world from the Americas but I am unable to prove that statement could someone confirm or deny it?
user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why has monarchy appeared just about everywhere? [closed]

Why is hereditary monarchy so common across history? It seems to turn up everywhere, yet it seems unlikely to have been spread. For instance various South American civilizations had it.
Carlos's user avatar
  • 139
1 vote
1 answer
268 views

Are there any incidents of war / brutalities because of Football match other than the famous one between El Salvador and Honduras?

We all know that football is most popular game all over the world, And it has emotional big touch to it. There are many weird incidents happened because of this wonderful game, I am looking for ...
Pramod Nikam's user avatar
-2 votes
2 answers
961 views

Why America waged war against Vietnam? [closed]

First of all I am non American so I am novice in American History ( thats why raising very basic Question ). I am looking to google for it but everything is too descriptive. If anybody know very ...
Pramod Nikam's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
2k views

What was the last landmass on Earth to be settled by human beings?

As the abstract of this article claims, Madagascar was one of the last landmasses to be reached by people ... Madagascar was settled approximately 1200 years ago by a very small group of women (...
user avatar
10 votes
6 answers
538 views

Has there been other settlements in occupied territories in recent history?

The issue of Israeli settlements in the West Bank (and other territories) is quite controversial, including its legality and its impact on the peace process. I'm wondering if there was any similar ...
ASandhiyudha's user avatar
  • 1,388
13 votes
6 answers
4k views

Is every major culture in the same year?

In the Western world the current year is 2014, which is the number of years since the birth of the Christian messiah. Given that Christianity is not the dominant religion in every part of the world, I ...
Paul Manta's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
742 views

In the British Invasion of Greece, what happened to the British troops who were not captured?

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/british-forces-arrive-in-greece I also was wondering what happened to the soldiers who were not caught, if any? Where did they go, and what happened to ...
maddie's user avatar
  • 79
9 votes
2 answers
21k views

Why have major sporting events been held every 4 years?

Many major sporting events are held every 4 years such as the Olympics, Football World Cup, UEFA European Championship, Rugby World Cup, etc. I've had a look around and I've yet to find an answer ...
Kobunite's user avatar
  • 4,800
18 votes
4 answers
4k views

What was the first successful non violent independence movement?

It is a known fact that Mahatma Gandhi launched a non-violent movement which freed the Indian subcontinent from the British rule on 15th August 1947. But was this the first instance that a freedom ...
Max's user avatar
  • 291
17 votes
5 answers
1k views

To what degree has the historical effectiveness of non-violent resistance movements been impacted by parallel violent resistance movements?

Martin Luther King had Malcolm X. Gandhi had Bhagat Singh. I've lately been involved in a pretty radical movement in which there are many people arguing against the movement being only non-violent....
Daniel Bingham's user avatar