The History Portal
History (derived from Ancient Greek ἱστορία (historía) 'inquiry; knowledge acquired by investigation') is the systematic study and documentation of the human past.
The period of events before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well as the memory, discovery, collection, organization, presentation, and interpretation of these events. Historians seek knowledge of the past using historical sources such as written documents, oral accounts or traditional oral histories, art and material artifacts, and ecological markers. History is incomplete and still has debatable mysteries.
History is an academic discipline which uses a narrative to describe, examine, question, and analyze past events, and investigate their patterns of cause and effect. Historians debate which narrative best explains an event, as well as the significance of different causes and effects. Historians debate the nature of history as an end in itself, and its usefulness in giving perspective on the problems of the present.
Stories common to a particular culture, but not supported by external sources (such as the tales surrounding King Arthur), are usually classified as cultural heritage or legends. History differs from myth in that it is supported by verifiable evidence. However, ancient cultural influences have helped create variant interpretations of the nature of history, which have evolved over the centuries and continue to change today. The modern study of history is wide-ranging, and includes the study of specific regions and certain topical or thematic elements of historical investigation. History is taught as a part of primary and secondary education, and the academic study of history is a major discipline in universities.
Herodotus, a 5th-century BC Greek historian, is often considered the "father of history", as one of the first historians in the Western tradition, though he has been criticized as the "father of lies". Along with his contemporary Thucydides, he helped form the foundations for the modern study of past events and societies. Their works continue to be read today, and the gap between the culture-focused Herodotus and the military-focused Thucydides remains a point of contention or approach in modern historical writing. In East Asia, a state chronicle, the Spring and Autumn Annals, was reputed to date from as early as 722 BC, though only 2nd-century BC texts have survived. The title "father of history" has also been attributed to Sima Qian and Ibn Khaldun in their respective societies. (Full article...)
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- ... that Clement Crisp, a dance critic for the Financial Times from 1956 to 2020, authored or co-authored 17 books on dance and dance history?
- ... that 25 years after her career ended, Jennifer Martz remains second in NCAA Division III history in hitting percentage?
- ... that the Chinese government began compiling an official history of the Qing dynasty in 2002, but as of 2023 a protracted political review is forestalling its publication?
- ... that throughout the history of education in Wales, schools have been held in monastic settlements, cathedrals, residential houses, marketplaces, barns, churches, and village halls?
- ... that the Harlem Park Three were awarded US$48 million, the largest sum in Baltimore history, after being falsely imprisoned for murder?
- ... that at over 400 pounds (180 kg), Desmond Watson is one of the largest players in NCAA Division I football history?
Maximus the Confessor (Greek: Μάξιμος ὁ Ὁμολογητής, romanized: Maximos ho Homologētēs), also spelled Maximos, otherwise known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople (c. 580 – 13 August 662), was a Christian monk, theologian, and scholar.
In his early life, Maximus was a civil servant, and an aide to the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius. He gave up this life in the political sphere to enter the monastic life. Maximus had studied diverse schools of philosophy, and certainly what was common for his time, the Platonic dialogues, the works of Aristotle, and numerous later Platonic commentators on Aristotle and Plato, like Plotinus, Porphyry, Iamblichus, and Proclus. When one of his friends began espousing the Christological position known as Monothelitism, Maximus was drawn into the controversy, in which he supported an interpretation of the Chalcedonian formula on the basis of which it was asserted that Jesus had both a human and a divine will. Maximus is venerated in both the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches. He was eventually persecuted for his Christological positions; following a trial, his tongue and right hand were mutilated. (Full article...)On this day
June 21: Fête de la Musique; International Day of Yoga; National Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada; Xiazhi in China (2024)
- 217 BC – Second Punic War: The Carthaginians under Hannibal ambushed a Roman army at the Battle of Lake Trasimene, capturing or killing 25,000 men.
- 1848 – In the Wallachian Revolution, Ion Heliade Rădulescu and Christian Tell proclaimed a new republican government in present-day Romania.
- 1898 – In a bloodless event during the Spanish–American War, the United States captured Guam from Spain.
- 1919 – During a general strike in Winnipeg, Canada, members of the Royal North-West Mounted Police attacked a crowd of strikers, armed with clubs and revolvers.
- 1948 – The Manchester Baby (replica pictured), the world's first stored-program computer, ran its first program.
- Claude Auchinleck (b. 1884)
- Maureen Connolly (d. 1969)
- William, Prince of Wales (b. 1982)
- Wong Ho Leng (d. 2014)
Selected quote
There cannot be two suns in the sky, nor two emperors on the earth.
— Confucius, Chinese Sage and Philosopher
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- ... that finds unearthed at the Israelite Tower in Jerusalem's Jewish Quarter attest to the Babylonian sack of the city in 586 BCE?
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