/u/not_galactic_police's posts in /r/AskHistorians

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In both the Odyssey and the Ramayana, there is a contest with a bow in order to win a woman's hand in marriage. Was this an actual practice in the ancient world? If so, was it very common?

138 upvotes

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In the Akkadian myth about the plague deity Erra, the deity claims himself as being a "campaign standard." What do we know, if anything, about ancient Mesopotamian military standards?

50 upvotes

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In the Arabian Nights, rulers (be it governors or caliphs) ride out of their city to greet visiting nobles and accompany them into the city itself. Was this an actual practice in the medieval Islamic world?

16 upvotes

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In the Arabian Nights, Byzantine Christians are shown to like to smear feces onto themselves. In reality, what did the average Muslim during the Middle Ages think of Christians?

2 upvotes

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Did the usage of honorifics, as used by Muslims today, exist in the Middle East before the coming of Islam?

1 upvotes

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Title	Upvotes	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
In both the Odyssey and the Ramayana, there is a contest with a bow in order to win a woman's hand in marriage. Was this an actual practice in the ancient world? If so, was it very common?	138
In the Akkadian myth about the plague deity Erra, the deity claims himself as being a "campaign standard." What do we know, if anything, about ancient Mesopotamian military standards?	50
In the Arabian Nights, rulers (be it governors or caliphs) ride out of their city to greet visiting nobles and accompany them into the city itself. Was this an actual practice in the medieval Islamic world?	16
In the Arabian Nights, Byzantine Christians are shown to like to smear feces onto themselves. In reality, what did the average Muslim during the Middle Ages think of Christians?	2
Did the usage of honorifics, as used by Muslims today, exist in the Middle East before the coming of Islam?	1