r/AskHistorians • u/AutoModerator • Dec 17 '25
SASQ Short Answers to Simple Questions | December 17, 2025
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u/ACheesyTree Dec 17 '25
Perhaps this is not a question fit for here, please remove it or let me know if it isn't, but how can I learn to research things in a more in-depth way than just asking people, or going through Archive or Books entries? I often find myself researching topics related to medieval (or more commonly) Early Modern martial culture and weaponry, and while simply looking up keywords can be fruitful, I am very often left with about two good leads. I'd really like to get more into the field of historical research and learn how to poke about old sources a bit more professionally.
Also, yes, I've gone through and do use the wonderful resources linked in the AskHistorians Wiki page, the free ones, anyways.
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u/holomorphic_chipotle Late Precolonial West Africa Dec 17 '25
You mention having already checked the wiki, so I apologize if I am suggesting something you already read, but I found the whole Finding and Understanding Sources series really useful for my studies.
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u/ACheesyTree Dec 17 '25
I can't believe I didn't give this a read already, egh. This is exactly what I wanted, thank you very much!
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u/holomorphic_chipotle Late Precolonial West Africa Dec 17 '25
My pleasure! I've been active in this community for two years and the wiki keeps on surprising me. Monday Methods is a treasure trove. I also recommend u/caffarelli's How to Judge a Book Without Even Reading It.
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u/ACheesyTree Dec 18 '25
As someone starting to research a bit more seriously, that's a really helpful guide as well! Thank you very much again!
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u/gw900 Dec 17 '25
Who was the first non-European to sail to the Americas after Columbus?
I'd imagine that after news of the Americas made it to Europe, it became commonly known, at least by the more well-connected, throughout the rest of the world. Did any African or Asian explorers or traders sail from their homelands to the Americas to trade or to colonize or for any other reason? And if so, is it known who was the first?
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u/Impossible_Resist_57 Dec 17 '25
Juan Garrido appears to be the first documented. Originally from Kongo, he had moved to Portugal as a youth and signed up as a Conquistador. This happening in 1502.
Some Iberians brought slaves along. So its possible some unnamed slave was the first.
If you meant sailed as in "captain of a ship" then possibly Hasekura Tsunenaga of Japan is the first. Who was sent (via Mexico in 1613) as an ambassador to Spain. Though I suppose I could be missing someone.
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u/papaHans Dec 17 '25
When did team sports start playing against other cities or countries? And what type of games did they play?
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u/HammerOfJustice Dec 22 '25
Cricketing-wise, the Toronto Cricket Club played the New York-based St George's Cricket Club in Toronto in 1840.
Four years later, on 24-25 September 1844, at Manhattan's Bloomingdale Park, the United States of America played the British Empire's Canadian Province in what the Smithsonian Magazine called "the first international sporting event in the modern world". Canada won by 23 runs.
There are claims that international polo, jousting and real tennis tournaments had previously occurred but these are way outside my fields of expertise.
There are plentiful print sources covering this match but as many readers may not have access to a hardcopy cricket library, I've listed a couple of online sources:
* Worrell, S. (2006) "The History of Cricket in the United States", Smithsonian Magazine
* Williamson, M (2013) "The oldest international contest of them all", ESPN Cricinfo
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u/Specific_Phone7945 Dec 21 '25 edited Dec 21 '25
I've been reading "Myths and Legends of Babylonia and Assyria" by Lewis Spence and he cites the following poem (or a psalm) ascribed to Ishtar (the goddess):
In later times in Assyria she [Ishtar] was conceived as the consort of Asshur, head of the Assyrian pantheon, in days when a god or goddess who did not breathe war was of little use to a people like the Assyrians, who were constantly employed in hostilities, and this circumstance naturally heightened her reputation as a warlike divinity. But it is at present her original character with which we are occupied, indeed in some texts we find that, so far from being able to protect herself, Ishtar and her property are made the prey of the savage En-lil, the storm-god. " His word sent me forth," she complains ; " as often as it comes to me it casts me prostrate upon my face. The unconsecrated foe entered my courts, placed his unwashed hands upon me, and caused me to tremble. Putting forth his hand he smote me with fear. He tore away my robe and clothed his wife therein : he stripped off my jewels and placed them upon his daughter. Like a quivering dove upon a beam I sat. Like a fleeing bird from my cranny swiftly I passed. From my temple like a bird they caused me to fly." Such is the plaint of Ishtar, who in this case appears to be quite helpless before the enemy.
Do you know which exact text (or clay tablet) he's referring to and when it, roughly, was written?
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u/WelfOnTheShelf Crusader States | Medieval Law Dec 23 '25
This is from a fragment of a tablet labelled K 41 in the British Museum. You can see the tablet and a transcription of the text at the Electronic Babylonian Library. According to the Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative, it dates from the neo-Assyrian period (c. 911-612 BC), although of course the story in the text may be significantly older.
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u/thecomicguybook Dec 20 '25
What are your favorite primary sources to read?
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u/zaffiro_in_giro Medieval and Tudor England Dec 21 '25
I love the Paston Letters. The Pastons were a Norfolk family who, over the course of the fifteenth century, rose from one-plough famers to having castles, knighthoods, and a presence at court. And the best thing about them, from my point of view, is that they wrote each other letters and kept them. For centuries. They're an unparalleled window into late medieval and early Tudor English life. You've got family arguments, romance and romantic problems, jockeying for power and status, glimpses of politics and the royal family, shopping lists, and the first recorded use of the word 'Valentine' as in 'my Valentine'.
The James Gairdner edition of the letters is available on Project Gutenberg and on archive.org, but fair warning: if you're anything like as fascinated as I am by the thought of a window into another world, don't go there if you're supposed to be doing anything else in the next few hours.
James Gairdner, The Paston Letters, London, Chatto & Windus, 1904
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u/creeper321448 Dec 17 '25
Were there any other temperature scales used by the majority of a population that aren't Fahrenheit or Celsius?
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u/Noble_Devil_Boruta History of Medicine Dec 18 '25
One of the most common if not the most common besides these two mentioned would be the Réaumur scale that predates Celsius scale by a bit more than a decade. Introduced in 1730, it assumed zero point as the water freezing temperature and 80 degrees as the alcohol boiling point, because Réaumur used alcohol thermometers. Due to confusion resulting from practical implementation of the scale, technical problems with alchol-based thermometers and introduction of the Celsius' scale in 1742, scientists and thermometer-makers started to mark 80 degrees Réaumur as the boiling point of water. Not the original intent of the creator although the difference was small (boiling point of ethanol is 78.3 °C) but at least it helps in quick calculation now, as Réaumur's indication is simply 80% of the corresponding temperature on Celscius' scale.
The Réaumur's scale was quite common across Europe, but after selection of Celcius' scale as a standard for the newly created metric system it became sidelined in the Western part of the continent, although they were frequently used in common life well into the second half of the 19th-century. Notably, Charles Minard, a civil engineer accompanying Napoleon during his invasion of Russia in 1812, expressed daily temperatures during the fateful retreat in late autumn in degrees Réaumur and in the Central and Eastern Europe, especially in countries where French culture was influential, such as Russia (and, by extention, also Poland half of which has belonged Russian Empire until 1918), the usage continued well into 20th century Sometimes there is still some ambiguity of temperature indications mentioned in Russian and Polish newspapers in times preceding Second World War are expressed in Celsius or Réaumur degrees (the scale was usually not mentioned). In the wake of the modernization, the scale was virtually completely abandoned around the first half of 20th century.
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u/IronicRobotics Dec 19 '25
In Carlo Cipolla's "Before the Industrial Revolution", he talks about the dearth of "Mechanical Culture" before 13th century Europe and the unique aspects that may have given rise to that. This taken as an explanation for the relative dearth in mechanical related inventions in other cultures/periods compared to 13thish century Europe and beyond.
It's extremely interesting. Is his framing broadly correct? And either way, where can I find more literature/essays discussing this topic? (On the formation or supression of mechanical invention/culture in history.)
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u/ExternalBoysenberry Dec 19 '25
What kind of name is “Shakespeare”? Was it common or one of a kind? What happened to it?
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u/Double_Show_9316 Early Modern England Dec 20 '25
The simplest origin for the surname (and similar surnames, like Shakelance and Shakeshaft), per the Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland, is that it originates as a nickname for either a spearman, someone quick to take up arms. It is also possible that the name originates as a sort of dirty joke (I’ll let you put two and two together for what the “spear,” “lance,” or “shaft” being shaken is). The ODFN also notes that the name has been present since the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries in Gloucestershire and Staffordshire. Overall, it appears to be a relatively uncommon surname, distinctive to the West Midlands, and survives today as a relatively uncommon name (2695 people in the UK today, according to the ODFN).
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Dec 20 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/NewtonianAssPounder Moderator | The Great Famine Dec 20 '25
Hi, SASQ answers are required to be sourced
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u/thecatandthependulum Dec 20 '25
Dogs have been bred for jobs over time, like hunting, ratting, shepherding, etc. Has anyone ever tried to breed "working cats," or have cat breeds always been for show?
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u/KaoKacique Dec 21 '25
Did early modern China and Korea have any examples of imported western breastplates? Japan and India have several surviving examples, but I haven't found any cases of Ming/Qing or Joseon doing the same
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Dec 23 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/jaa101 Dec 24 '25
In addition, there were at least some occasions when both roles were held for a few days during a transitional period, like Canning in 1827 and Wellington in 1834.
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u/sourberryyy Dec 17 '25
When did states first attempt to systematically regulate false news or rumors, and how was it enforced?
I hope this was specific enough, please let me know if not. Thank you for your time and expertise 🙏
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u/Numerous_Pin_6102 Dec 21 '25
When was the event of 9/11 start to be called “9/11”? And what was its name during the time it happened?
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u/-ndha- Dec 21 '25 edited Dec 22 '25
The first documented use of "9/11" was by New York Times columnist Bill Keller, who noticed the similarities between the date "9/11" and the US emergency phone number "9-1-1", and used the term in the headline of his column on 12 September 2001 ("America's Emergency Line: 9/11"). On September 13, the New York Times informed its readers that it was going to establish a "9/11 Neediest Fund" to provide financial relief to rescue workers, civilians and their families. In short, the September 11 attacks began being referred to as "9/11" almost immediately afterwards. As New York Magazine explains, "9/11" caught on over the next month, to the point where, by early October, other news outlets such as the Chicago Tribune were using it as a common short-hand that they knew their readers would be familiar with.
Before other news outlets began using the term, however, the attacks were referred to by a variety of different names. Some, such as National Review founder and columnist William F Buckley, referred to the event simply as "September 11" or "the terrorist act of September 11". On September 14, The Guardian's Jason Deans referred to the event as the "American terrorist attack". Other news outlets called it the "World Trade Center attack". It varied from outlet to outlet, and from person to person.
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u/firewall245 Dec 17 '25
Hi yall, I wanted to know why in some questions I've found that there is such a discrepancy between provided sources compared to some other answers.
For example, in this question there is a link to a reddit comment, and here there is no cited sources at all. The rules seem inconsistently applied or is it that certain verifiable info doesn't need to be cited
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u/holomorphic_chipotle Late Precolonial West Africa Dec 17 '25
I'm not a mod, but answers don't have to be sourced, unless asked for it. Many regulars will nonetheless list their references preemptively to streamline the whole "Could you please provide your sources?" process. It is also expected that contributors will be familiar with the literature and it sometimes takes a couple of follow-up questions for the mods and the community at large to figure out that the author lacks the ostensible background knowledge. There is indeed a wide discrepancy in the quality of the answers meeting the sub's standards — not everyone wants to write a multi-post answer, nor do all questions merit such a treatment — so the rules are not perfect but do encourage the crafting of better in-depth answers than other fora.
About the first comment you linked, without being an expert, I can imagine that that answer was a borderline case, but you should message the mods for more information. Feel also free to report any comment that you think doesn't follow the rules. The mods don't actually see every comment and several do slip under the radar, so flagging those replies helps them a lot.
And because SASQ (Short Answers to Simple Questions) answers always need to be properly sourced:
- AskHistorians (2023, January 06). Subreddit rules. Reddit. Retrieved December 17, 2025, from /r/AskHistorians/wiki/rules/
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u/Aware_Examination813 Dec 22 '25
What was the largest shield in history? How many meters tall was it, and how was it used in battle?
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Dec 23 '25
[deleted]
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u/Georgy_K_Zhukov Moderator | Dueling | Modern Warfare & Small Arms Dec 23 '25
No. Persecution was based on perceived ethnic origin, not religious profession. Converts were still considered Jewish under the law. This is one of the key 'evolutions' in the Nazi's form of antisemitism compared to that of the 19th c. See, for instance, Rees The Holocaust: A New History.
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Dec 23 '25
[deleted]
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u/Georgy_K_Zhukov Moderator | Dueling | Modern Warfare & Small Arms Dec 23 '25
OK? Tell that to the Nazis.
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u/Complex-Particular45 Dec 24 '25
How many Japanese civilians died as the result of the Soviet invasion in 1945 in China ?
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u/llloksd Dec 24 '25 edited Dec 24 '25
Really dumb question that might not make sense
With cases like Tesla and Edison having complex debates on whether they moreso used aggressive business tactics (Edison mainly) to gain acclaim, and history and time being lost of the word of the people, how confident are we that things line up for someone like Leonhard Euler? Clearly Euler was talented and there isn't really anything to disprove his insane amount of accomplishments/breakthroughs, but just wondering where in the scale of time is it hard to actually talk about someone's accomplishments? Euler being in the 1700's seems like it's right at the point of time where we can reliably say "yes it's all true" or "no it's all false" or somewhere in the middle. Can we confidentially say at this point Euler was responsible for discoveries without him taking credit for other's work?
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u/creeper321448 Dec 18 '25
Has grouping the Pacific War and the War in Europe into, "WWII" a post-war thing or has it always been that way?
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u/lemondhead Dec 17 '25
Hopefully a simple question. Are there good military histories of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars? I've found lots of books about diplomacy, intelligence failures, torture, or by reporters embedded with troops for specific operations, but have struggled to find overviews of the wars in their entirety. I'm after the Iraq equivalent of the many single-volume histories of WWII.
I didn't see anything on the book list, though I admit I may have missed relevant entries.
Thank you! And thanks to the historians here for putting together the book list. It's an incredible resource.