AskHistorians

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I once read a historical novel set in 1942 Japan. One of the characters was an army officer, he carried a Katana and knew hand to hand martial arts besides. Are either of those things plausible or realistic?	46
Suppose you're a 25 year old Native American man, in (what it now) New York State in 1315. How much of your time is taken up with hunting? How far did North American Indians travel from their home settlements, when hurting? how long did they stay away?	46
In stories about the Depression there's always the implication that guys wondering the US looking for work could be from any background pre1929. In the 1930s in the USA if you had a college degree how likely were you to end up long term unemployed? & how does that compare to the general population?	46
how did farmland ownership work in Ancient Egypt (middle kingdom circa 1800BC ....if it matters)? did it belong to the people who actually worked it, or was everybody the aristocracy and/or king's tenant?	46
what differences (if any) are there between the version of Shinto beliefs dominant in Japan when Commodore Perry arrived in 1852, and the version that would have been dominant in japan 750 years earlier in 1102?	46
in the 14th century were wealthy byzantines still using slaves as domestic servants like their Roman forebears did a 1000 years before?	46
when did books and literacy become common enough for reading fiction to become a common leisure activity?	46
after the civil war how many former slaves ended up living out the rest of their lives on the plantations they were once owned by the owners of?	45
suppose you visited japan in 1628 (towards the start of the Edo) and in 1828 (towards the end of the Edo). How could you tell which was which (without asking someone the date)?	45
100 years ago was there a Russian equivalent of what the British would call "a posh accent"? if so did the communists try to wipe it out?	45

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