Tradition: Did you mean...?

Baba Yaga (Baba Jaga) is a witch or ogress from Slavic folklore who lives in a magical hut in the forest and either helps, imprisons, or eats people (usually children). She is among the most famous figures from Slavic folklore as guardian...

The Temple at Uppsala was a religious center dedicated to the Norse gods Thor, Odin, and Freyr located in what is now Gamla Uppsala in Sweden. It is described by the 11th-century historian Adam of Bremen as the most significant...

The Protestant Reformation (1517-1648) refers to the widespread religious, cultural, and social upheaval of 16th-century Europe that broke the hold of the medieval Church, allowing for the development of personal interpretations...

The Diet of Worms (January-May 1521) was the assembly convened by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor to address, among other issues, the works of the reformer Martin Luther (l. 1483-1546) who openly criticized the Church. Luther was...

Gaius Cassius Longinus (circa 86-42 BCE) was a leader of the 'Liberators', the faction of Roman senators who assassinated Julius Caesar on the Ides of March (15 March) 44 BCE. Motivated by a...

Zephyrus was the god of the west wind and the messenger of spring in Greek mythology. He was known as one of the four Anemoi, or wind gods, each of whom represented a cardinal direction and, except for Eurus, a season. Zephyrus was...

The story of the ten plagues of Egypt is found in chapters 7-12 of the Book of Exodus. The story depicts the natural disasters sent by the God of Israel to convince Pharaoh to let the Hebrew slaves leave Egypt. The narrative...

Shajara al-Durr (r. 1250) was the founder of the Mamluk Dynasty in Egypt, and she was the first and only woman to sit on the Islamic Egyptian throne. She held the title of sultana for only 80 days but left a lasting mark through...

The ancient history of Afghanistan, a landlocked country in Central Asia, is full of fascinating cultures, from early nomadic tribes to the realms of Achaemenid Persia, the Seleucids, the Mauryans, the Parthians, and Sasanians...

Isocrates (436-338 BCE) was an ancient Athenian rhetorician, characterized as one of the most prominent orators of his time, even though it appears that he restricted himself to writing speeches and not orating them himself. His most...