HISTORY

The phrase has evolved somewhat since its first uses—and its origin is something of a mystery.

Asking a police officer “do you drink?” in the 1970s had nothing to do with grabbing a beer at a nearby bar.

Cinco de Mayo, or May 5, is recognized around the country as a time to celebrate Mexico’s cultural heritage. Like a lot of days earmarked to commemorate a specific idea or event, its origins can be a little murky. Who started it, and why?

Millennial women across the United States will remember rushing to their mailboxes after school to grab the hottest catalog of the ‘90s: dELiA*s.

Legend has it that a heroic American commander at the Battle of Bunker Hill implored his men to hold their fire until their enemies were under their noses. But did the event actually happen?

How the bourbon-mint concoction took the horse-racing world by storm.

The average body temperature isn't actually 98.6°F, a fact scientists have known for at least three decades. So why does this myth persist?

Picasso and his Blue Period have nothing on Yves Klein, who created art almost exclusively in a shade of his own invention.

The original Luddites were workers whose jobs were threatened by new technology—and who fought back.

The names were put into one of six different categories: ancestral, occupational, geographical, toponymic (or place name), personal characteristics, and patronage.

The oldest joke in recorded history is a fart joke that dates all the way back to 1900 BCE.

You’ve probably grown up your entire life without putting much thought into the nursery rhymes drilled into your head. But there are tales behind each of them—some pretty dark.