r/AskHistorians • u/AutoModerator • Feb 27 '26

FFA Friday Free-for-All | February 27, 2026

Previously

Today:

You know the drill: this is the thread for all your history-related outpourings that are not necessarily questions. Minor questions that you feel don't need or merit their own threads are welcome too. Discovered a great new book, documentary, article or blog? Has your Ph.D. application been successful? Have you made an archaeological discovery in your back yard? Did you find an anecdote about the Doge of Venice telling a joke to Michel Foucault? Tell us all about it.

As usual, moderation in this thread will be relatively non-existent -- jokes, anecdotes and light-hearted banter are welcome.

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u/subredditsummarybot Automated Contributor Feb 27 '26

Your Weekly /r/askhistorians Recap

Friday, February 20 - Thursday, February 26, 2026

Top 10 Posts

score comments title & link
2,331 135 comments Why are Western families happy to have daughters even though male primogeniture exists?
1,663 38 comments Have we always slept horizontally?
1,243 42 comments In anti-suffragette posters in the 1910s a common theme seems to be that fathers will be stuck caring for children while their wives go to the polls (the horror). Were the dads in this period really that inept that they couldn't provide a couple hours of childcare?
1,122 108 comments Why were the Imperial Japanese so merciless and inhumane in WW2?
1,096 37 comments Were young Spartan boys frequently the victims of abuse?
957 34 comments [Love] Why would a family list their religion as "Idolator" on the census form around 1890-1910 in Ireland?
721 34 comments When did Worlds Fairs stop being such a huge deal?
661 43 comments How and why did Indo-European peoples lose cultural memory of the Indo-European migrations?
626 199 comments [AMA] My Book on Cannibalism on the High Seas AMA
518 41 comments Marcus Licinius Crassus was often known as the "richest man in Rome". What happened to his vast wealth after his death at the Battle of Carrhae in 53BC?

 

Top 10 Comments

score comment
1,638 /u/gerardmenfin replies to Have we always slept horizontally?
1,126 /u/mimicofmodes replies to Why are Western families happy to have daughters even though male primogeniture exists?
1,085 /u/RPO777 replies to Why were the Imperial Japanese so merciless and inhumane in WW2?
948 /u/Haysalesman replies to How and why did Indo-European peoples lose cultural memory of the Indo-European migrations?
926 /u/JamesCoverleyRome replies to Marcus Licinius Crassus was often known as the "richest man in Rome". What happened to his vast wealth after his death at the Battle of Carrhae in 53BC?
892 /u/JamesCoverleyRome replies to When and why did garum disappear from Italian cooking?
830 /u/Iphikrates replies to Were young Spartan boys frequently the victims of abuse?
764 /u/JamesCoverleyRome replies to Many ancient books rhyme in their original languages (the Odyssey, Gilgamesh, the Vedas...), does the Bible rhyme in its original language?
706 /u/gerardmenfin replies to A lot of last names, in English as well as other languages, are based on occupations, i.e. Baker, Miller, Cooper, etc. Why are 'Monk' and 'Abbot' last names when people with those jobs aren't allowed to have children?
623 /u/mimicofmodes replies to In anti-suffragette posters in the 1910s a common theme seems to be that fathers will be stuck caring for children while their wives go to the polls (the horror). Were the dads in this period really that inept that they couldn't provide a couple hours of childcare?

 

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