AskHistorians

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In the film "True Grit" (2010), which takes place in Arkansas in 1873, the characters never use contractions when speaking. Is this accurate for the time? If so, why did people not use contractions then?	4032
We often hear of "killing the messenger," but how dangerous was it, really, to be a messenger bearing bad news or unwelcome demands in Classical or Medieval Europe/Near East/North Africa?	2873
Why did "Jesus" become a popular name in Mexico, but not the rest of the Christian world?	1033
Jerusalem has Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and Armenian quarters. Why Armenian?	867
A trope in fiction both from and about the Ottoman Empire is the conniving, adulating "Grand Vizier." What exactly was a vizier (or Grand Vizier), and why did the role come to be negatively stereotyped in fiction?	842
"Motherf**ker" is, when you think about it, a rather bizarre insult. When and where did it begin to be used in English, and why did it become so popular?	814
How old are reflexive interjections like "ouch" and "oops" in English? Might a medieval monk exclaim "a-ha!" upon thinking of the perfect turn of phrase for his translation of Boethius?	795
Why has men's formal wear remained largely the same for the past 125 years?	693
In his landmark history manga "Showa," Shigeru Mizuki states that the Japanese high command only narrowly voted to invade China rather than the USSR in the early 1930's. What, if any, were Japan's plans for an invasion and occupation of Russia before and during WWII?	656
Pavel Chekov, the "Star Trek" character, was a positive portrayal of a Russian in American popular culture during the Cold War. Were there any analogously positive portrayals of Americans in Soviet popular culture at the time?	599

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