Like other words such as “yule” and “mistletoe,” wassail — from the Middle English salutation wæs hæil, meaning “be in good health,” derived in turn from Old Norse — evokes some kind of ancient ...

Shroud-chewers, lip-smackers and suckers populate this fascinating study of ‘the unquiet dead’ across the centuries ...

When people think of the European Middle Ages, it often brings to mind grinding poverty, superstition and darkness. But the reality of the 1,000-year period from 500 to 1500 was much more complex.

The humble potato shows up in plenty of vintage recipes. Invented in places from Ireland to New York, these dishes still ...

With the recent visit of President Vladimir Putin to India to mark the 25th anniversary of the Declaration on Strategic ...

Christmas is for the Japanese, rather miserably, a regular working day. This might easily not have been the case.

If you look puzzled, or answer in your clearest English, “I’m sorry, I don’t understand, kid, I’m from Minnesota,” he will call in the troops: “Marek! Krzysztof! Piotr! Chodzi tu!” Each kid has a deck ...

Awarded the inaugural BRICS Literature Award, Egyptian novelist and critic Salwa Bakr reflects on writing from the margins, ...

St. Christopher About ten years, ago, my wife Harriet and I spent part of a summer with my parents-in-law at their house in Burnham-Overy-Staithe, on the ...