askhistorians

Title	Upvotes	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
Not a question, just a “thank you.”	10758
Is this tweet correct? “The average 18 year old student in, say, York in AD 800 (the middle of the so-called "Dark Ages") had read more, knew more languages, was better trained in logic, could read more music, knew more mathematics and astronomy than the average student from a university today.”	8945
How did Oregon, a state founded exclusively for whites and a hotbed for the Ku Klux Klan, become one of the most liberal states in the US?	7338
What were electric eels called before electricity?	6701
I’m a middle class Roman citizen planning to check out the Colosseum. How do I find the schedule? Do I bring friends or go alone? Should I eat before, or will they have food?	6331
Currently in the U.S., poor whites predominantly live in rural areas and poor blacks and poor Latinos predominantly live in inner cities. What historical factors and events led to this being the case? Has it always been this way?	6259
Did Ancient Romans have any ethical dilemmas around slavery? NSFW	6051
In 1952, Republicans and Democrats were close enough that Eisenhower could feasibly run for either party. What differentiated the parties and how did people choose which to vote for?	5759
I heard the claim that since Homo Sapiens first emerged around 200,000 BC, it could be possible that there were civilisations akin to those of the Bronze Age something like 150,000+ years ago, but all archaeological evidence would have eroded in the long time span. Is that so?	5635
George Orwell, an Englishman, once said that the "rifle on the wall of the labourer’s cottage or working class flat is the symbol of democracy. It is our job to see that it stays there." Was gun ownership once widespread among commoners in the UK, as in the US?	5523

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