Porto is one of the typical destinations for a vacation or tourist visit in Portugal. However, for those who are already familiar with the city or seek something beyond the usual, a trip to Póvoa de Varzim is highly recommended. This town, located about 30 kilometers away, boasts two particularly special spots not to be […]
Culture
Culture is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society (E.B. Tylor)
The Origin of Italo-Celtic and Graeco-Armenian Languages Discovered
A scientific discovery has unveiled one of history’s greatest enigmas: the origin of Italo-Celtic and Graeco-Armenian languages, fundamental pillars of Mediterranean civilizations. An international team of geneticists and archaeologists has reconstructed the migration patterns and cultural blending that gave rise to these significant linguistic families. The research, recently published on the preprint server bioRxiv, sequenced […]
Analysis of Mesopotamian Texts in Akkadian Reveals How Emotions Were Experienced: Love Was Felt in the Knees
Love and emotions have been universal themes throughout human history, expressed in diverse ways but with commonalities across different cultures and eras. A fascinating recent study reveals that people in ancient Mesopotamia experienced and conceptualized love and emotions in ways that, surprisingly, resonate with our modern understanding of these feelings. Using a multidisciplinary approach, researchers […]
Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty, the chronicles of the Korean kingdom spanning five centuries, are the longest uninterrupted ones of a single dynasty in history
In 2006, the Seoul government announced that the Guksa Pyeonchan Wiwonhoe (National Institute of Korean History) had undertaken the digitization of the Joseon Wangjo Sillok, that is, the “Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty”, 1,893 books distributed across 888 volumes written in Chinese characters. These chronicles document the successive reigns of the monarchs of that […]
Tsakonian Is the Only Current Greek Language That Derives from the One Spoken by the Spartans
Although it is officially considered a dialect, Tsakonian is a divergent variety of Greek frequently classified as a separate language, as it is not intelligible to speakers of standard Modern Greek. Today, it is spoken in a small mountainous area in the interior of the eastern coast of the Peloponnesian peninsula, in the Argolic Gulf, […]
Scientists Challenge the Kurgan Hypothesis: Horse Domestication Not Linked to Indo-European Language Spread
Riding a horse is a physical challenge that can be tough on the body. But can it actually change your skeleton? Archaeologists from the University of Colorado Boulder set out to explore this question and uncovered some surprising results. In a recent study, they examined evidence from medical studies of modern riders and ancient human […]
Alphonse Allais, the Writer Who Painted White Paintings and Composed Silent Scores Long Before Conceptual Art
Alphonse Allais is a name that perhaps not everyone immediately recognizes, but his influence in art, literature, and humor is undeniable. This French journalist, writer, and humorist from the Belle Époque left an indelible mark thanks to his unmistakable style, full of irony and absurdity. Born on October 20, 1854, in Honfleur, Normandy, Allais is […]
Utsuro-bune, the Japanese legend about a strange ship and its mysterious passenger
In Japanese folklore, there is a curious legend that is repeated in various current provinces of the country such as Hitachi, Kaga, Echigo, in addition to other historical territories like Owari no Kuni, Atsuta, or Iyo: the one about a boat of strange shape that came from the sea without anyone knowing its origin and […]
Previously unknown fragments of two lost tragedies by Euripides, discovered in an Egyptian papyrus
Two scholars from the University of Colorado Boulder have unearthed significant fragments from two lost tragedies by the ancient Greek playwright Euripides. This discovery, made after months of painstaking research, is hailed as one of the most substantial findings in over fifty years. The journey began in November 2022 when Basem Gehad, an archaeologist with […]
Hamnet, Shakespeare’s Son Whose Childhood Death May Have Influenced His Father in the Creation of Hamlet and Other Works
Are there any descendants of William Shakespeare today? The answer is no. It is known that the family endures through another line, that of his younger sister Joan, but the famous playwright’s line has died out. This is because, despite having three children with his wife Anne Hathaway, two were girls and thus took their […]