Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Culture”
The origins of Christmas can be traced back to the ancient Roman and Norse civilizations. In fact, 25th December was not even Jesus’ date of birth. The early Christians appropriated what was originally a pagan holiday because it was convenient. Before that, the people of ancient Europe had celebrations of the pagan god Saturn or … Read the rest
Seasons 5 and 6 began with a combination of the first 2 episodes, so there were only 12 credits songs in those seasons. Everything by David Carbonara is music composed for the show.
SEASON 1
ORIGINS OF CHRISTMAS
The origins of Christmas stem from both the pagan and Roman cultures. The Romans actually celebrated two holidays in the month of December. The first was Saturnalia, which was a two-week festival honoring their god of agriculture Saturn. On December 25th, they celebrated the birth of Mithra, their sun god. Both celebrations … Read the rest
The rich tapestry of Greek mythology unfolds through a sprawling family tree, tracing the origins of the cosmos and its divine inhabitants. This lineage begins with Chaos, the formless void from which all existence emerged. Chaos serves as the primordial source of creation, giving rise to the Primordial Deities, who embody elemental forces … Read the rest
Flip through enough 13th- and 14th-century manuscripts, and you’re likely to come across a startling image in the margins: a group of bunnies roasting hunters over a fire and boiling their hounds. It’s called “The Rabbits’ Revenge,” and it was fairly popular among medieval texts.
Today, rabbits are most commonly depicted through their softer … Read the rest
This gentle lullaby about sheep might be a toddler’s favorite, but its backstory might raise an eyebrow. It is believed to allude to the medieval wool tax introduced by King Edward I. The King’s share? A third of the proceeds from each sack. In this context, if you had three bags … Read the rest
It may not be easy for most people to admit, but certain national holidays often get a little muddled in their minds—namely, Memorial Day and Veterans Day. Clearly, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has seen and/or been asked about the confusion enough times that it has gone ahead and dedicated some space on … Read the rest
Almost 170 years after the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe feasted together for the first unofficial Thanksgiving in 1621, the U.S. government decided to make it official. So on October 3, 1789, President George Washington declared that the nation would celebrate a “day of publick thanksgivin” on November 26 that year.
While November 26, … Read the rest
If you grew up in the English-speaking world, chances are you’ve heard this nursery rhyme before (probably while you were in a bath):
“Rub-a-dub-dub
Three men in a tub,
And who do you think they be?
The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker,
And all of them out to sea.”
Nursery rhyme origins are often … Read the rest
