askhistorians

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Where does the flavor "fruit punch" come from? It's a flavor I'm familiar with growing up here in the United States, but I've never thought to ask where it comes from.	823
The ninth amendment of the United States Constitution states that any rights not explicitly stated in the Constitution does not imply those rights do not exist for its citizens. I don't think I've ever heard this amendment cited in common discourse. Has it ever been historically significant?	438
Islam is famously aniconic, especially of the prophet Muhammad. In the early 14th-century, a manuscript, Jami' al-Tarwarikh, was completed by a Muslim author, Rashid-al-din Hamadani. It depicts an image of Muhammad receiving a revelation from Gabriel. Why was this allowed?	395
During my researching of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, I read that the beheading game is actually a motif used in other medieval literature. I only know of the 8th-century Irish poem, Fled Bricrenn, that uses this device. How prevalent was the "beheading game" and, if so, why beheading?	310
What was whiskey like in the Wild West?	267
In Andy Williams's rendition of "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year", one of the lyrics states, "There'll be scary ghost stories..." When and where were ghost stories a part of Christmas tradition? Why aren't they a part of American Christmas tradition?	254
Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus and is so vilified by Christians his name is synonymous with "traitor". In Pietro Perugino's "Delivery of the Keys" he is depicted with a halo (fifth figure to the left of Christ). What is going on here?	238
In 1686, The Royal Society published, De Historia Piscium (On the History of Fish). It was expensive to produce and performed so poorly, that the Royal Society was severely crippled financially. Why did the book perform so poorly?	120
Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus and is so vilified by Christians his name is commonly used to indicate someone as a traitor. In Pietro Perugino's "Delivery of the Keys" he is depicted with a halo (fifth figure to the left of Christ). What is going on here?	88
Why can't a find any articles on the merciless killer bee swarm/deadly kung-fu deathmatch recordings on Staten Island in 1993?	45

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