The History Portal
History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categorize history as a social science, while others see it as part of the humanities or consider it a hybrid discipline. Similar debates surround the purpose of history—for example, whether its main aim is theoretical, to uncover the truth, or practical, to learn lessons from the past. In a more general sense, the term history refers not to an academic field but to the past itself, times in the past, or to individual texts about the past.
Historical research relies on primary and secondary sources to reconstruct past events and validate interpretations. Source criticism is used to evaluate these sources, assessing their authenticity, content, and reliability. Historians strive to integrate the perspectives of several sources to develop a coherent narrative. Different schools of thought, such as positivism, the Annales school, Marxism, and postmodernism, have distinct methodological approaches.
History is a broad discipline encompassing many branches. Some focus on specific time periods, such as ancient history, while others concentrate on particular geographic regions, such as the history of Africa. Thematic categorizations include political history, military history, social history, and economic history. Branches associated with specific research methods and sources include quantitative history, comparative history, and oral history.
History emerged as a field of inquiry in antiquity to replace myth-infused narratives, with influential early traditions originating in Greece, China, and later in the Islamic world. Historical writing evolved throughout the ages and became increasingly professional, particularly during the 19th century, when a rigorous methodology and various academic institutions were established. History is related to many fields, including historiography, philosophy, education, politics, and archaeology. (Full article...)
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Did you know (auto generated)
- ... that James Wade "hated every single minute" of his 2025 World Matchplay semi-final darts match—the longest semi-final in the tournament's history?
- ... that Juan Soto, before his blockbuster trade, rejected a 15-year, $440 million contract extension, which would have been the largest deal in Major League Baseball history at the time?
- ... that new employees of a business headquartered in the Editors Building chose their office decorations from a 7,000-piece collection of historic memorabilia of Washington, D.C.?
- ... that works presenting the future history of humanity have been penned since at least the late 18th century?
- ... that Black Council was the first Ukrainian historical novel?
- ... that the historic mansion Bulgur Palas in Istanbul hosted a birdhouse for hundreds of domestic canaries in one room during its ownership by the Ottoman Bank?
Jesus (c. 6 to 4 BC – AD 30 or 33), also known as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and by various other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader in the Roman province of Judaea. He is the central figure of Christianity, the world's largest religion. Most branches of Christianity consider Jesus the incarnation of God the Son and the awaited Messiah or Christ. Accounts of Jesus's life are contained in the Gospels, especially the four canonical Gospels of the New Testament. Since the Enlightenment, academic research has produced various views on the historical reliability of the Gospels and the extent to which they reflect the historical Jesus, but virtually all modern scholars of antiquity agree that Jesus existed historically.
According to Christian tradition, as represented in the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles, Jesus was circumcised at eight days old, presented at the Temple in Jerusalem at 40 days old, baptized by John the Baptist as a young adult, and, after 40 days and nights of fasting in the wilderness, began his public ministry. He was an itinerant teacher whom his followers believed to possess divine authority in interpreting Jewish law. Jesus often debated with other Jews, most commonly the Pharisees and Sadducees, about how best to follow God, engaged in healings, taught in parables, and gathered followers, 12 of whom he appointed as his apostles. According to the New Testament accounts, he was arrested in Jerusalem and tried by the Sanhedrin, handed over to the Roman authorities, and crucified on the order of Pontius Pilate, the Roman prefect of Judaea. In Christian theology, the Resurrection is the event in which Jesus rose from the dead, on the third day after his death, and this belief became the foundation of the early Christian Church, which expanded into a worldwide movement. (Full article...)
On this day
- 1547 – Anglo-Scottish Wars: English forces defeated the Scots at the Battle of Pinkie near Musselburgh, Lothian, Scotland.
- 1961 – At the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, German driver Wolfgang von Trips's car collided with another, causing it to become airborne and crash into a side barrier, killing him and 15 spectators.
- 1990 – Pope John Paul II consecrated the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, one of the largest churches in the world, in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast.
- 2017 – Hurricane Irma made landfall on Cudjoe Key, Florida, as a Category 4, after causing catastrophic damage throughout the Caribbean.
- 2025 – American political activist Charlie Kirk (pictured) was shot and killed at an event at Utah Valley University.
- John J. Crittenden (b. 1787)
- Jeppe Aakjær (b. 1866)
- Ho Feng-Shan (b. 1901)
- Stephen Jay Gould (b. 1941)
Selected quote
What is the use of living, if it be not to strive for noble causes and to make this muddled world a better place for those who will live in it after we are gone?
— Winston Churchill, British statesman
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More Did you know...
- ... that the Soviet Tupolev Tu-142 (pictured) maritime patrol aircraft was developed in response to the American UGM-27 Polaris submarine-launched ballistic missile?
- ... that Harry Powers said that watching his victims die was more fun than a brothel?
- ... that the effort put forth by the subject of Miró's 1937 Naked woman climbing a staircase and her heavy limbs are thought to reflect the tragedy of the Spanish Civil War?
- ... that 49% of German military losses happened in the last 10 months of the Second World War in Europe?
- ... that Thomas Edison lost a fortune in his ore-milling company, but "had a hell of a good time spending it"?
- ... that American McCaull Comic Opera Company actress May Yohé, once the owner of the Hope Diamond, died poor?
- ... that Egyptian political cartoonist Ahmad Nady took part in the 2011 Egyptian revolution, drawing cartoons while he demonstrated?
- ... that finds unearthed at the Israelite Tower in Jerusalem's Jewish Quarter attest to the Babylonian sack of the city in 586 BCE?
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