Most of early history was passed on through oral tradition and hand-written documents.

History is the study of the past, particularly the written record of the human race, but more generally including scientific and archaeological discoveries about the past. Recently, there has been an increased interest in oral history, passed down from generation to generation. New technology, such as photography, sound recording, and motion pictures, now complement the written word in the historical record. History is a term for information about the past. ... For the history of Earth which includes the time before human existence, see History of Earth. ... Oral tradition or oral culture is a way of transmitting history, literature or law from one generation to the next in a civilization without a writing system. ... The Human Race could be: The Human race. ...

The word history derives from the Greek ἱστορία (historia), "learning by inquiry" and that from ἱστορέω (historeō), "to examine, to observe, to inquire", in turn from ἵστωρ (histōr), "a wise man, and one who knows right, a judge".^[1][2] Academically, history is the field of research producing a continuous narrative and a systematic analysis of past events of importance to the human race.^[3] Those who study history as a profession are called historians. This article is about the concept. ... Look up Story in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Look up analysis in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Human Race could be: The Human race. ... A profession is an occupation, vocation or career where specialized knowledge of a subject, field, or science is applied. ... For other uses, see Historian (disambiguation). ...

Description

Since historians are simultaneously observers of and participants in the historical process, the historical works they produce are written from the perspective of their own time and sometimes with due concern for possible lessons for their own future. In the words of Benedetto Croce, "All history is contemporary history". History is facilitated by the formation of a 'true discourse of past' through the production of narrative and analysis of past events relating to the human race^[4]. The modern discipline of history is dedicated to the institutional production of this discourse. More precisely, history is the narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race;^[4] as well as the study of all events in time, in relation to humanity.^[3] This emphasis on the 'human' has made human subjects central to the narratives of the classical discourse of modern history. Consequently, history has assumed a sense, which is broader than being solely the true narratives of human past. History is not just the past as an object of systematic knowledge or the discipline, that produces knowledge out of that object; history also carries a sense that is implicit in the expression 'making history'. Benedetto Croce (February 25, 1866 - November 20, 1952) was an Italian critic, idealist philosopher, and politician. ... This article is about the concept of time. ...

All events that are remembered and preserved in some form (that cannot be invalidated as unhistorical or that otherwise remain amenable to historical discourse) constitute the historical record.^[3] The self-assigned task of historical discourse is to identify the sources which can contribute to the production of truthful accounts of past. Thus, the constitution of the historian's archive is a result of circumscribing a more general archive by invalidating the usage of certain texts and documents (by falsifying their claims to represent the 'true past').

The study of history has sometimes been classified as part of the humanities and at other times as part of the social sciences^[5] It can also be seen as a bridge between those two broad areas, incorporating methodologies from both. Some individual historians strongly support one or the other classification.^[6] In modern academia, history is increasingly classified as a social science. In the 20th century, French historian Fernand Braudel revolutionized the study of history, by using such outside disciplines as economics, anthropology, and geography in the study of global history. For other uses, see Humanities (disambiguation). ... The social sciences are a group of academic disciplines that study human aspects of the world. ... Academia is a collective term for the scientific and cultural community engaged in higher education and research, taken as a whole. ... The social sciences are groups of academic disciplines that study the human aspects of the world. ... For other uses, see Historian (disambiguation). ... Fernand Braudel (August 24, 1902–November 27, 1985) was a French historian. ... Face-to-face trading interactions on the New York Stock Exchange trading floor. ... This article is about the social science. ...

Traditionally, historians have recorded events of the past, either in writing or by passing on an oral tradition, and have attempted to answer historical questions through the study of written documents and oral accounts. For the beginning, historians have also used such sources as monuments, inscriptions, and pictures. In general, the sources of historical knowledge can be separated into three categories: what is written, what is said, and what is physically preserved, and historians often consult all three.^[7] But writing is the marker that separates history from what comes before.

Archaeologists excavate historical sites to discover information about the past.

Archaeology is a discipline that is especially helpful in dealing with buried sites and objects, which, once unearthed, contribute to the study of history. But archaeology rarely stands alone. It uses narrative sources to complement its discoveries. Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 590 pixelsFull resolution (1948 × 1436 pixel, file size: 3. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 590 pixelsFull resolution (1948 × 1436 pixel, file size: 3. ... For referencing in Wikipedia, see Wikipedia:Citing sources. ...

There are varieties of ways in which history can be organized, including chronologically, culturally, territorially, and thematically. These divisions are not mutually exclusive, and significant overlaps are often present, as in "The International Women's Movement in an Age of Transition, 1800–1945." It is possible for historians to concern themselves with both the very specific and the very general, although the modern trend has been toward specialization. The area called Big History resists this specialization, and searches for universal patterns or trends. History has often been studied with some practical or theoretical aim, but also may be studied out of simple intellectual curiosity.^[8] For other uses, see Culture (disambiguation). ... Big History is a discreet field of historical study that arose in the late 1980s. ... The word theory has a number of distinct meanings in different fields of knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion. ...

History and prehistory

Further information: Protohistory

Stonehenge, located in the United Kingdom

By "prehistory", historians mean the recovery of knowledge of the past in an area where no written records exist, or where the writing of a culture is not understood. By studying painting, drawings, carvings, and other artifacts, some information can be recovered even in the absence of a written record. Since the 20th century, the study of prehistory is considered essential to avoid history's implicit exclusion of certain civilizations, such as those of Sub-Saharan Africa and pre-Columbian America. Historians in the West have been criticized for focusing disproportionately on the Western world.^[9] In 1961, British historian E. H. Carr wrote: Protohistory refers to a period between prehistory and history, during which a culture or civilization has not yet developed writing, but other cultures have already noted its existence in their own writings. ... Download high resolution version (1752x1196, 311 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1752x1196, 311 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... For other uses, see Stonehenge (disambiguation). ... Satellite image of Africa, showing the ecological break that defines the sub-Saharan area Sub-Saharan Africa is a geographical term used to describe the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara, or those African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara. ... The term Pre-Columbian is used to refer to the cultures of the New World in the era before significant European influence. ... Occident redirects here. ... Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Edward Hallett Carr (28 June 1892 – 5 November 1982) was a British historian, journalist and international relations theorist, and fierce opponent of empiricism within historiography. ...

The line of demarcation between prehistoric and historical times is crossed when people cease to live only in the present, and become consciously interested both in their past and in their future. History begins with the handing down of tradition; and tradition means the carrying of the habits and lessons of the past into the future. Records of the past begin to be kept for the benefit of future generations.^[10]

Such a definition would include within the scope of history peoples such as Australian Aboriginals and New Zealand Maori who, before contact with Europeans, already possessed a strong interest in the past and maintained oral records transmitted to succeeding generations. Aboriginal Flag Indigenous Australians are the people who lived in the Australia and its nearby islands before the arrival of European settlers in 1788, and who continue to live there as minority peoples. ... Te Puni, Māori Chief Māori is the name of the indigenous people of New Zealand, and their language. ...

Historiography

Main article: Historiography

Historiography has a number of related meanings. Firstly, it can refer to how history has been produced: the story of the development of methodology and practices (for example, the move from short-term biographical narrative towards long-term thematic analysis). Secondly, it can refer to what has been produced: a specific body of historical writing (for example, "medieval historiography during the 1960s" means "Works of medieval history written during the 1960s"). Thirdly, it may refer to why history is produced: the Philosophy of History (Historiosophy). As a meta-level analysis of descriptions of the past, this third conception can relate to the first two in that the analysis usually focuses on the narratives, interpretations, worldview, use of evidence, or method of presentation of other historians. Historiography studies the processes by which historical knowledge is obtained and transmitted. ... The historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians use primary sources and other evidence to research and then to write history. ... In epistemology the prefix meta- is used to mean about. ... A narrative is a construct created in a suitable medium (speech, writing, images) that describes a sequence of fictional or non-fictional events. ... Interpretation, or interpreting, is an activity that consists of establishing, either simultaneously or consecutively, oral or gestural communications between two or more speakers who are not speaking (or signing) the same language. ... This article is about the radio show. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Historian (disambiguation). ...

Historical methods

Main article: Historical method

A depiction of the ancient Library of Alexandria. Historical method basics The following questions are used by historians in modern work. The historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians use primary sources and other evidence to research and then to write history. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Inscription regarding Tiberius Claudius Balbilus of Rome (d. ... When was the source, written or unwritten, produced (date)? Where was it produced (localization)? By whom was it produced (authorship)? From what pre-existing material was it produced (analysis)? In what original form was it produced (integrity)? What is the evidential value of its contents (credibility)? The first four are known as higher criticism; the fifth, lower criticism; and, together, external criticism. The sixth and final inquiry about a source is called internal criticism. A date in a calendar is a reference to a particular day represented within a calendar system. ... Internationalization redirects here. ... Authorship is the act of creating a work, idea or theory. ... Synthesis (from the ancient Greek σύν (with) and θεσις (placing), is commonly understood to be an integration of two or more pre-existing elements which results in a new creation. ... This article is about the ethical concept. ... “Cred” redirects here. ... Historical criticism or Higher criticism is a branch of literary analysis that investigates the origins of a text: as applied in biblical studies it naturally investigates foremost the books of the Bible. ... Lower Criticism is a method for studying ancient texts. ...

The historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians use primary sources and other evidence to research and then to write history. For other uses, see Historian (disambiguation). ... In historical scholarship, a primary source is a document, or other source of information that was created at or near the time being studied, by an authoritative source, usually one with direct personal knowledge of the events being described. ... Historiography studies the processes by which historical knowledge is obtained and transmitted. ...

Herodotus of Halicarnassus (484 BC – ca.425 BC)^[11] has generally been acclaimed as the "father of history". However, his contemporary Thucydides (ca. 460 BC – ca. 400 BC) is credited with having begun the scientific approach to history in his work the History of the Peloponnesian War. Thucydides, unlike Herodotus and other religious historians, regarded history as being the product of the choices and actions of human beings, and looked at cause and effect, rather than as the result of divine intervention.^[11] In his historical method, Thucydides emphasized chronology, a neutral point of view, and that the human world was the result of the actions of human beings. Greek historians also viewed history as cyclical, with events regularly recurring.^[12] Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: HÄ“ródotos Halikarnāsseús) was a Greek historian who lived in the 5th century BC (c. ... Halicarnassus (Ancient Greek: ; Turkish: , modern Bodrum) was an ancient Greek city on the southwest coast of Caria, Anatolia (Asia Minor), on a picturesque, advantageous site on the Ceramic Gulf (Gulf of Kos, Gulf of Gökova). ... For other uses, see Thucydides (disambiguation). ... Tenth-century minuscule Manuscript of Thucydidess History The History of the Peloponnesian War is an account of the Peloponnesian War in Ancient Greece, fought between the Peloponnesian League (led by Sparta) and the Athenian league (Athens). ... A cycle is anything round, in the physical sense (e. ...

There were historical traditions and sophisticated use of historical method in ancient and medieval China. The groundwork for professional historiography in East Asia was established by the Han Dynasty court historian known as Sima Qian (145–90 BC), author of the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian). For the quality of his timeless written work, Sima Qian is posthumously known as the Father of Chinese Historiography. Chinese historians of subsequent dynastic periods in China used his Shiji as the official format for historical texts, as well as for biographical literature. This article is about the geographical region. ... Han Dynasty in 87 BC Capital Changan (206 BC–9 AD) Luoyang (25 AD–220 AD) Language(s) Chinese Religion Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Chinese folk religion Government Monarchy History  - Establishment 206 BC  - Battle of Gaixia; Han rule of China begins 202 BC  - Interruption of Han rule 9 - 24  - Abdication... Sima Qian Si Ma Qian (司馬遷) (c. ... The Records of the Grand Historian or the Records of the Grand Historian of China was the magnum opus of Sima Qian, in which he recounted Chinese history from the time of the mythical Yellow Emperor until his own time. ... The Records of the Grand Historian or the Records of the Grand Historian of China (Chinese: 史記; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Shih-chi; literally Historical Records), written from 109 BCE to 91 BCE, was the magnum opus of Sima Qian, in which he recounted Chinese history from the time of the mythical... Chinese historiography refers to the study of methods and assumptions made in studying Chinese history. ...

Saint Augustine was influential in Christian and Western thought at the beginning of the medieval period. Through the Medieval and Renaissance periods, history was often studied through a sacred or religious perspective. Around 1800, German philosopher and historian Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel brought philosophy and a more secular approach in historical study.^[8] Augustinus redirects here. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      Western Christianity... The term Western thought is usually associated with the cultural tradition that traces its origins to Greek thought and Jewish and Christian religion (See also Western culture). ... This article is about the European Renaissance of the 14th-17th centuries. ... A sacred history is a retelling of history, in either a literary or oral format, with less emphasis on historical fact and more upon instilling faith, defining a group of believers, and/or explaining natural phenomenon. ... Hegel redirects here. ... For other uses, see Philosophy (disambiguation). ... This article concerns secularity, that is, being secular, in various senses. ...

In the preface to his book the Muqaddimah, historian and early sociologist Ibn Khaldun warned of seven mistakes that he thought that historians regularly committed. In this criticism, he approached the past as strange and in need of interpretation. The originality of Ibn Khaldun was to claim that the cultural difference of another age must govern the evaluation of relevant historical material, to distinguish the principles according to which it might be possible to attempt the evaluation, and lastly, to feel the need for experience, in addition to rational principles, in order to assess a culture of the past. The Muqaddimah, or the Muqaddimah of Ibn Khaldun (Arabic: مقدّمة ابن خلدون), records an early Muslim view of universal history. Many modern thinkers view it as one of the first works of sociology. ... Ibn Khaldūn or Ibn Khaldoun (full name, Arabic: , ) (May 27, 1332 AD/732 AH – March 19, 1406 AD/808 AH), was a famous Berber Muslim polymath: a historian, historiographer, demographer, economist, philosopher, political theorist, sociologist and social scientist born in present-day Tunisia. ...

Other historians of note who have advanced the historical methods of study include Leopold von Ranke, Lewis Bernstein Namier, Geoffrey Rudolph Elton, G.M. Trevelyan and A.J.P. Taylor. In the 20th century, historians focused less on epic nationalistic narratives, which often tended to glorify the nation or individuals, to more objective analyses. French historians introduced quantitative history, using raw data to track the lives of typical individuals, and were prominent in the establishment of cultural history (cf. histoire des mentalités). American historians, motivated by the civil rights era, focused on formerly overlooked ethnic, racial, and socio-economic groups. In recent years, postmodernists have challenged the validity and need for the study of history on the basis that all history is based on the personal interpretation of sources. In his book In Defence of History, Richard J. Evans, a professor of modern history at Cambridge University, defended the worth of history. Leopold Von Ranke in 1877. ... Sir Lewis Bernstein Namier (June 27, 1888 – August 19, 1960) was an English historian. ... Sir Geoffrey Rudolph Elton (August 17, 1921 – December 3, 1994) was a pre-eminent British historian of the Tudor period. ... George Macaulay Trevelyan (February 16, 1876 – July 21, 1962), was an English historian, son of Sir George Otto Trevelyan and great-nephew of Thomas Babington Macaulay, whose staunch liberal Whig principles he espoused in accessible works of literate narrative avoiding a consciously dispassionate analysis, that became old-fashioned during his... For others named John Taylor, see John Taylor. ... Cultural history (from the German term Kulturgeschichte), at least in its common definition since the 1970s, often combines the approaches of anthropology and history to look at popular cultural traditions and cultural interpretations of historical experience. ... The term history of mentalities is a calque on the French histoire des mentalités (which might also be translated as history of attitudes, history of world-views), a historical movement whose origins are associated with the Annales School. ... Postmodernism (sometimes abbreviated Po-mo[1]) is a term originating in architecture, literally after the modern, denoting a style that is more ornamental than modernism, and which borrows from previous architectural styles, often in a playful or ironic fashion. ... Professor Richard Evans (born 1947) is a British historian of Germany. ... The University of Cambridge (often Cambridge University), located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world and has a reputation as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. ...

Is history a science?

Professional historians debate the question of whether history is a science or a liberal art, and whether history be taught as fact or as narrative.

Areas of study

Periods

Main article: Periodisation

Historical study often focuses on events and developments that occur particular blocks of time. Historians give these periods of time names in order to allow "organising ideas and classificatory generalisations" to be used by historians.^[13] The names given to a period can vary with geographical location, as can the dates of the start and end of a particular period. Centuries and decades are commonly used periods and the time they represent depends on the dating system used. Most periods are constructed retrospectively and so reflect value judgments made about the past. The way periods are constructed and the names given to them can affect the way they are viewed and studied.^[14] Periodization is the attempt to categorize or divide historical time into discrete named blocks. ... Periodization is the attempt to categorize or divide time into discrete named blocks. ... These pages contain the trends of millennia and centuries. ... For other senses of this word, see decade (disambiguation). ... A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. ...

Geographical locations

Particular geographical locations can form the basis of historical study, for example, continents, countries and cities. Physical map of the Earth (Medium) (Large 2 MB) Geography is the scientific study of the locational and spatial variation in both physical and human phenomena on Earth. ... Animated, colour-coded map showing the various continents. ... This article describes a type of political entity. ... A city is an urban area, differentiated from a town, village, or hamlet by size, population density, importance, or legal status. ...

Military history

Main article: Military history

Military history concentrates on the study of conflicts that have happened in human society. This includes the examining wars, battles, military strategies and weaponry. Military history is composed of the events in the history of humanity that fall within the category of conflict. This may range from a melee between two tribes to conflicts between proper militaries to a world war affecting the majority of the human population. Military historians record the events of military history. Battlespace Weapons Tactics Strategy Organization Logistics Lists War Portal         Military history is composed of the events in the history of humanity that fall within the category of conflict. ... Battlespace Weapons Tactics Strategy Organization Logistics Lists War Portal         Military history is composed of the events in the history of humanity that fall within the category of conflict. ... For other uses, see Conflict (disambiguation). ... For the Brian Yuzna film, see Society (film). ... -1... Battles is an American instrumental rock band. ... This article is about real and historical warfare. ... A weapon is a tool used to kill or incapacitate a person or animal, or destroy a military target. ... History is often used as a generic term for information about the past, such as in geologic history of the Earth. When used as the name of a field of study, history refers to the study and interpretation of the record of human societies. ... For other uses, see Conflict (disambiguation). ... http://www. ... A world war is a war affecting the majority of the worlds major nations. ... The current estimated world human population is 6,427,631,117. ...

Social history

Main article: Social history

Social history is the study of how societies adapt and change over periods of time. Social history is an area of historical study considered by some to be a social science that attempts to view historical evidence from the point of view of developing social trends. In this view, it may include areas of economic history, legal history and the analysis of other aspects of civil society that show the evolution of social norms, behaviors and more. Å…Social history is an area of historical study considered by some to be a social science that attempts to view historical evidence from the point of view of developing social trends. ... Å…Social history is an area of historical study considered by some to be a social science that attempts to view historical evidence from the point of view of developing social trends. ... The social sciences are groups of academic disciplines that study the human aspects of the world. ... Economic history is the study of how economic phenomena evolved in the past. ... Legal history is a term that has at least two meanings. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Civil society is composed of the totality of voluntary civic and social organizations and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society as opposed to the force-backed structures of a state (regardless of that states political system) and commercial institutions. ...

Propaganda masquerading as history

In many countries, such as the Japan, Russia, and the United States, the subject taught in the primary and secondary schools under the name "history" is censored for political reasons. To give just a few of many examples: in Japan, mention of the Nanking Massacre has been removed from textbooks; in Russia under Stalin, history was rewritten to conform with communist party doctrine^{[citation needed]}; and in the United States the history of the American Civil War is censored to avoid giving offense to White Southerners. ^[15][16] A primary school in ÄŒeský Těšín, Czech Republic. ... Secondary school is a term used to describe an institution where the final stage of compulsory schooling, known as secondary education, takes place. ... Rape of Nanking redirects here. ... Iosif (usually anglicized as Joseph) Vissarionovich Stalin (Russian: Иосиф Виссарионович Сталин), original name Ioseb Jughashvili (Georgian: იოსებ ჯუღაშვილი; see Other names section) (December 21, 1879[1] – March 5, 1953) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and leader of the Soviet Union. ... This article is about communism as a form of society and as a political movement. ... Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America (Confederacy) Commanders Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee Strength 2,200,000 1,064,000 Casualties 110,000 killed in action, 360,000 total dead, 275,200 wounded 93,000 killed in action, 258,000 total...

This practice goes back to the earliest recorded times. In Book Three of The Republic, Plato recommends that citizens be taught lies in order to instill patriotism.^[17] Plato. ... For other uses, see Plato (disambiguation). ...

Those who do not understand how real history is researched and annotated may believe what they learn in primary and secondary school, and develop a distorted worldview. There is evidence, however, that few students remember any of the "history" they are taught.^[18].

Etymology

Look up history in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The word history comes from Greek ἱστορία (historia), from the Proto-Indo-European *wid-tor-, from the root *weid-, "to know, to see". This root is also present in the English word wit, in the Latin words vision and video, in the Sanskrit word veda, and in the Slavic word videti and vedati, as well as others.^{[citation needed]} (The asterisk before a word indicates that it is a hypothetical construction, not an attested form.). Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 151 languages. ... The Proto-Indo-European language (PIE) is the hypothetical common ancestor of the Indo-European languages, spoken by the Proto-Indo-Europeans. ... The root is the primary lexical unit of a word, which carries the most significant aspects of semantic content and cannot be reduced into smaller constituents. ... The Sanskrit language ( , for short ) is a classical language of India, a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... The Vedas are part of the Hindu Shruti; these religious scriptures form part of the core of the Brahminical and Vedic traditions within Hinduism and are the inspirational, metaphysical and mythological foundation for later Vedanta, Yoga, Tantra and even Bhakti forms of Hinduism. ... The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages) comprise the languages of the Slavic peoples. ...

The Ancient Greek word ἱστορία, historía, means "inquiry, knowledge acquired by investigation". It was in that sense that Aristotle used the word in his Περί Τά Ζωα Ιστορία, Peri Ta Zoa Istória or, in Latinized form, Historia Animalium.^[19] The term is derived from ἵστωρ, hístōr meaning wise man, witness, or judge. We can see early attestations of ἵστωρ in Homeric Hymns, Heraclitus, the Athenian ephebes' oath, and in Boiotic inscriptions (in a legal sense, either "judge" or "witness," or similar). The spirant is problematic, and not present in cognate Greek eídomai ("to appear"). The form historeîn, "to inquire", is an Ionic derivation, which spread first in Classical Greece and ultimately over all of Hellenistic civilization. Beginning of Homers Odyssey The Ancient Greek language is the historical stage of the Greek language[1] as it existed during the Archaic (9th–6th centuries BC) and Classical (5th–4th centuries BC) periods in Ancient Greece. ... For other uses, see Aristotle (disambiguation). ... The anonymous Homeric Hymns are a collection of ancient Greek hymns. ... Heraclitus of Ephesus (Ancient Greek - Herákleitos ho Ephésios (Herakleitos the Ephesian)) (about 535 - 475 BC), known as The Obscure (Ancient Greek - ho Skoteinós), was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, a native of Ephesus on the coast of Asia Minor. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ... EPHEBE is either the anglicisized form (via the French Éphèbe) of the Greek word Ephebos a location of Discworld ... Boeotia or Beotia (//, (Greek Βοιωτια; see also list of traditional Greek place names) was the central area of ancient Greece. ... Distribution of Greek dialects, ca. ... Parthenon This article is on the term Classical Greece itself. ... The term Hellenistic (derived from HéllÄ“n, the Greeks traditional self-described ethnic name) was established by the German historian Johann Gustav Droysen to refer to the spreading of Greek culture over the non-Greek people that were conquered by Alexander the Great. ...

It was still in the Greek sense that Francis Bacon used the term in the late 16th century, when he wrote about "Natural History". For him, historia was "the knowledge of objects determined by space and time", that sort of knowledge provided by memory (while science was provided by reason, and poetry was provided by fantasy). For other persons named Francis Bacon, see Francis Bacon (disambiguation). ... Table of natural history, 1728 Cyclopaedia Natural history is an umbrella term for what are now often viewed as several distinct scientific disciplines of integrative organismal biology. ... For other uses, see Memory (disambiguation). ... A magnet levitating above a high-temperature superconductor demonstrates the Meissner effect. ... For other uses, see Reason (disambiguation). ... This article is about the art form. ... For other uses, see Fantasy (disambiguation). ...

The word entered the English language in 1390 with the meaning of "relation of incidents, story". In Middle English, the meaning was "story" in general. The restriction to the meaning "record of past events" arises in the late 15th century. In German, French, and most Germanic and Romance languages, the same word is still used to mean both "history" and "story". The adjective historical is attested from 1561, and historic from 1669.^[4] The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Events Births December 27 - Anne de Mortimer, claimant to the English throne (died 1411) Domenico da Piacenza, Italian dancemaster (died 1470) John Dunstable, English composer (died 1453) Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson, Swedish statesman and rebel leader (died 1436) Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester (died 1447) John VIII Palaeologus Byzantine Emperor (died 1448) Deaths... Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... // Events The Edict of Orleans suspends the persecution of the Huguenots. ... // Events Samuel Pepys stopped writing his diary. ...

Historian in the sense of a "researcher of history" is attested from 1531. In all European languages, the substantive "history" is still used to mean both "what happened with men", and "the scholarly study of the happened", the latter sense sometimes distinguished with a capital letter, "History", or the word historiography^[19] January 26 - Lisbon, Portugal is hit by an earthquake - thousands die. ... European languages are the object of Eurolinguistics. ... Historiography studies the processes by which historical knowledge is obtained and transmitted. ...

See also

History Portal

Current events Portal

Ancient redirects here. ... This article is about the academic discipline of art history. ... Big History is a discreet field of historical study that arose in the late 1980s. ... Look up epoch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For the novel by Michael Crichton, see Timeline (novel). ... Contemporary history describes the term of historical events, that are immediately relevant to the present time. ... Counterfactual history, also sometimes referred to as virtual history, is a recent form of history which attempts to answer what if questions known as counterfactuals. ... Cultural history (from the German term Kulturgeschichte), at least in its common definition since the 1970s, often combines the approaches of anthropology and history to look at popular cultural traditions and cultural interpretations of historical experience. ... Economic history is the study of how economic phenomena evolved in the past. ... Futurology is the detailed critical inspection and reasoning of the state in which things will develop in the future on the basis of existing circumstances in history. ... Intellectual history means either: the history of intellectuals, or: the history of the people who create, discuss, write about and in other ways propagate ideas. ... The Clipper Ship Flying Cloud off the Needles, Isle of Wight, off the southern English coast. ... Modern history describes the history of the Modern Times, the era after the Middle Ages. ... Battlespace Weapons Tactics Strategy Organization Logistics Lists War Portal         Military history is composed of the events in the history of humanity that fall within the category of conflict. ... Naval warfare is combat in and on seas and oceans. ... Palaeography, literally old writing, (from the Greek words paleos = old and grapho = write) is the study of script. ... A peoples history is a type of historical work which tries to look at historical events from the perspective of the common people: the disenfranchized, oppressed, poor, non-conformist, or otherwise forgotten, as opposed to that of the power structure. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Political history is the narrative and analysis of political events, ideas, movements, and leaders. ... Psychohistory is the study of the psychological motivations of historical events. ... Pseudohistory is a pejorative term applied to texts which purport to be historical in nature but which depart from standard historiographical conventions in a way which undermines their conclusions. ... A typical 18th century phrenology chart. ... Å…Social history is an area of historical study considered by some to be a social science that attempts to view historical evidence from the point of view of developing social trends. ... World History is a field of historical study that emerged as a distinct academic field in the 1980s. ... Table of natural history, 1728 Cyclopaedia Natural history is an umbrella term for what are now often viewed as several distinct scientific disciplines of integrative organismal biology. ... This box:      A graphical timeline is available here: Graphical timeline of the Big Bang This timeline of the Big Bang describes the events according to the scientific theory of the Big Bang, using the cosmological time parameter of comoving coordinates. ... Geological time put in a diagram called a geological clock, showing the relative lengths of the eons of the Earths history. ... Life on Earth  â€¢  â€¢  | Axis scale: millions of years ago. ...

References

Notes

Jack Goody (born 1918 or 1919) is a British social anthropologist. ... // Google offers a variety of services and tools besides its basic web search. ...

Bibliography

• Asimov, Isaac; Asimov's Chronology of the World; Harper Collins, 1991, ISBN 0062700367.
• Carr, E.H. with a new introduction by Richard J. Evans; What is History?; Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2001, ISBN 0333977017.
• Durant, Will & Ariel; The Lessons of History; MJF Books, (1997), ISBN 1567310249.
• Evans, Richard J.; In Defence of History; W. W. Norton (2000), ISBN 0393319598.
• Tosh, John; The Pursuit of History; Longman (2006), ISBN 1405823518.

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