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Democracy spreads in waves – but shared cultural history might matter more than geography

<p>Recent events like the war in Ukraine, conflicts over Taiwan and the rise of authoritarian ideology have renewed interest in the foundations of modern democracy.</p> <p>They have raised questions about why some nations are more democratic than others, and how democratic institutions, freedoms and values are spread or lost.</p> <p>We tend to think of this variation in terms of geography – democratic Western Europe or autocratic Middle East.</p> <p>But in a <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/evolutionary-human-sciences/article/shared-cultural-ancestry-predicts-the-global-diffusion-of-democracy/90C7A170B924FC305DD66FF8853799FC" target="_blank" rel="noopener">new analysis of 220 years of political data</a>, we show that deep cultural connections between countries such as shared linguistic or religious ancestry matter more than geography.</p> <h2>Waves of democratisation</h2> <p>The emergence of modern democracy coincides with the rise of nation states in Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. Democracy spread across European nations and their colonies, over <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Third_Wave:_Democratization_in_the_Late_Twentieth_Century" target="_blank" rel="noopener">three waves</a>.</p> <p>The first wave lasted about a century, from 1828 to 1926, halting after the first world war. A second, rapid wave (1945-1962) followed the second world war and decolonisation.</p> <p>The third wave began in 1974 and continues today. It encompassed political transitions and new countries in Europe, Latin America and the Pacific.</p> <p>Each wave was followed by a period of reversals when nations turned to autocratic regimes, junta or fascism. Indeed, some researchers speculate we are heading into <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13510347.2019.1582029" target="_blank" rel="noopener">another period of reversal</a>.</p> <h2>What drives modern democracy?</h2> <p>Scholars traditionally considered factors internal to a country – economic growth, rates of education or the natural environment – as the drivers of these waves. However, the geographic clustering of democracy and the wave-like pattern of expansion suggest the process may also involve a kind of contagion where democracy passes from one nation to another.</p> <p>One explanation for this is that democratic change spreads across borders, so that neighbouring countries end up with similar levels of democracy.</p> <p>Culture provides another explanation. Neighbouring countries tend to share a common cultural heritage, such as related languages or religions. This shapes national institutions, norms and values.</p> <p>In our research, we tested the idea that common cultural ancestry explains variation and change in democracy around the globe. We brought together 220 years of democracy data with information on the cultural relationships between nations. The cultural relationships we examined were based on languages and religious beliefs.</p> <p>For example, Portugal is linguistically closer to Spanish-speaking Argentina and Spain than to England and Germany (which speak Germanic languages). Likewise, Myanmar, a Theravada Buddhist country, is religiously closer to Mongolia (where Vajrayana Buddhism is predominant) than to Muslim Malaysia.</p> <h2>Culture is more important than geography</h2> <p>The democracy data we studied cover 269 modern and historical nations and three widely-used democracy indicators, measuring democratic and autocratic authority in governing institutions (<a href="https://www.systemicpeace.org/polityproject.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Polity 5</a>), electoral participation and competition (<a href="https://www.prio.org/data/20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vanhanen Index</a>) and individual rights and freedoms (<a href="https://freedomhouse.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Freedom House</a>).</p> <p>Across all three indicators of democracy, we found countries that share linguistic or religious ancestry tend to have more similar democracy scores. These shared cultural ties were better predictors of democracy than geography, especially during the third wave of democratisation.</p> <p>Knowing the democratic status of a country’s linguistic or religious relatives helps predict that country’s future level of democracy five, ten or even 20 years later.</p> <p>These effects were not just due to countries sharing a language (for example, the English-speaking world) or religion (such as the Sunni Islam majority countries). This suggests deeper cultural connections between countries are important.</p> <h2>What this means for the spread of democracy</h2> <p>These effects could be the result of a number of processes.</p> <p>One possibility is that countries directly inherited institutions along the same pathways they inherited cultural features like language. For instance, Aotearoa New Zealand and other Commonwealth countries inherited the British legal system along with the English language.</p> <p>Another possibility is that cultural similarities might make countries more likely to maintain ongoing social connections, including foreign relations, which then aid the spread of institutions. For example, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-arab-spring-changed-the-middle-east-and-north-africa-forever-161394" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Arab Spring</a> spread among a set of countries with common linguistic and religious heritage.</p> <p>A third possibility is that inherited cultural values could steer countries towards similar institutions. For example, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-019-0769-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in previous research</a> we found that tolerance of diversity (cosmopolitan values) promotes a shift to more democratic institutions, but the reverse is not true. Democratic institutions do not shift tolerance.</p> <p>Countries that have inherited cosmopolitan values as part of their shared cultural ancestry may be more likely to shift towards democracy. If this theory is correct, it calls into question the assumption that democratic institutions can endure without sustained efforts to promote the cultural values that support them. The US interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq may be tragic examples of this.</p> <p>Our findings indicate cultural history matters for understanding the spread of democracy around the globe. This does not mean culture is the only factor at play (our analyses still leave a lot of variation unexplained). Neither do our findings speak to a population’s ultimate potential to achieve democratic outcomes, but we see this as within the reach of all populations.</p> <p>This means those wishing to support democracy at home or abroad should take cultural barriers seriously. We cannot assume that institutions that work well in one cultural setting can be easily transplanted to another, very different setting, with different values, norms and traditions. We should pay more attention to culturally closely related countries that have succeeded at merging local norms and values with democratic institutions.</p> <p><strong>This article originally appeared on <a href="https://theconversation.com/democracy-spreads-in-waves-but-shared-cultural-history-might-matter-more-than-geography-189959" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a>.</strong></p> <p><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p>

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Meteors seem to be raining down on New Zealand, but why are some bright green?

<h1 class="legacy">Meteors seem to be raining down on New Zealand, but why are some bright green?</h1> <figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476788/original/file-20220731-19335-76trxr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;rect=5%2C304%2C3828%2C1851&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="attribution"><span class="source">Greg Price</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jack-baggaley-1366298">Jack Baggaley</a>, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-canterbury-1004">University of Canterbury</a></em></p> <p>New Zealand may seem to be under meteor bombardment at the moment. After a <a href="https://theconversation.com/equivalent-to-1-800-tonnes-of-tnt-what-we-now-know-about-the-meteor-that-lit-up-the-daytime-sky-above-new-zealand-186636">huge meteor exploded</a> above the sea near Wellington on July 7, creating a sonic boom that could be heard across the bottom of the South Island, a smaller fireball was captured two weeks later above Canterbury.</p> <p><a href="https://fireballs.nz/">Fireballs Aotearoa</a>, a collaboration between astronomers and citizen scientists which aims to recover freshly fallen meteorites, has received a lot of questions about these events. One of the most frequent is about the bright green colour, and whether it is the same green produced by auroras.</p> <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476789/original/file-20220731-20-zrewrz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476789/original/file-20220731-20-zrewrz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=399&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476789/original/file-20220731-20-zrewrz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=399&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476789/original/file-20220731-20-zrewrz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=399&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476789/original/file-20220731-20-zrewrz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=502&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476789/original/file-20220731-20-zrewrz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=502&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476789/original/file-20220731-20-zrewrz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=502&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w" alt="An image of an aurora australis" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An aurora australis observed from the international space station.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure> <p>Green fireballs have been reported and filmed in New Zealand regularly. Bright meteors often signal the arrival of a chunk of asteroid, which can be anywhere between a few centimetres to a metre in diameter when it comes crashing through the atmosphere.</p> <p>Some of these asteroids contain nickel and iron and they hit the atmosphere at speeds of up to 60km per second. This releases an enormous amount of heat very quickly, and the vapourised iron and nickel radiate green light.</p> <p>But is this the same as the bright green of an aurora? For the most recent meteor, the answer is mainly no, but it’s actually not that simple.</p> <h2>The colours of a meteor trail</h2> <p>The green glow of the aurora is caused by oxygen ions in the upper atmosphere, created by collisions between atmospheric oxygen molecules and particles ejected by the sun.</p> <p>These oxygen ions recombine with electrons to produce oxygen atoms, but the electrons can persist in an excited state for several seconds. In an energy transition known as “forbidden” because it does not obey the usual quantum rules, they then radiate the auroral green light at 557nm wavelength.</p> <p>A meteor can also shine by this route, but only if it’s extremely fast. Very fast meteors heat up in the thin atmosphere above 100km where auroras form.</p> <p>If you want to see a green auroral wake from a meteor, watch out for the Perseid meteor shower, which has now started and will peak on August 13 in the southern hemisphere.</p> <p>Also arriving at about 60km per second, the Perseids are extremely fast bits of the <a href="https://www.space.com/33677-comet-swift-tuttle-perseid-meteor-shower-source.html">comet Swift-Tuttle</a>. Some Perseids trail a beautiful, glowing and distinctly green wake behind them, particularly at the start of their path.</p> <p>Once the Canterbury meteor hit on July 22, the capricious winds of the upper atmosphere twisted the gently glowing trail, resulting in a pale yellow glow towards the end (as seen in the GIF below, also recorded by Greg Price for an earlier meteor). This is caused by sodium atoms being continually excited in a catalytic reaction involving ozone.</p> <p><img src="https://cdn.theconversation.com/static_files/files/2231/The_22_July_meteor_-_persistent_train_-_credit_Greg_Price.gif?1659310010" width="100%" /></p> <h2>Are we being bombarded by meteors?</h2> <p>Yes and no. The arrival of big, booming green meteors and the dropping of meteorites isn’t rare in New Zealand, but it is rare to recover the rock. Fireballs Aotearoa is working to improve the recovery rate.</p> <p>In an average year, perhaps four meteorites hit New Zealand. We’re encouraging citizen scientists to build their own meteor camera systems so they can catch these events.</p> <p>By comparing the meteor against the starry background and triangulating images caught by multiple cameras, we can pin down the meteor’s position in the atmosphere to within tens of metres.</p> <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476790/original/file-20220731-43929-h2dp31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476790/original/file-20220731-43929-h2dp31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=450&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476790/original/file-20220731-43929-h2dp31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=450&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476790/original/file-20220731-43929-h2dp31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=450&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476790/original/file-20220731-43929-h2dp31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=566&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476790/original/file-20220731-43929-h2dp31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=566&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476790/original/file-20220731-43929-h2dp31.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=566&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w" alt="The July 22 meteor as seen by a specialised meteor camera near Ashburton." /><figcaption><span class="caption">The July 22 meteor as seen by a specialised meteor camera near Ashburton.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Campbell Duncan/NASA/CAMS NZ</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure> <p>Not only does that help us find the rock, but it tells us what the pre-impact orbit of the meteoroid was, which in turn tells us which part of the solar system it came from. This is a rather efficient way of sampling the solar system without ever having to launch a space mission.</p> <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476791/original/file-20220731-31484-7i4x0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476791/original/file-20220731-31484-7i4x0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=440&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476791/original/file-20220731-31484-7i4x0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=440&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476791/original/file-20220731-31484-7i4x0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=440&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476791/original/file-20220731-31484-7i4x0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=553&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476791/original/file-20220731-31484-7i4x0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=553&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476791/original/file-20220731-31484-7i4x0t.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=553&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w" alt="Map of witness reports and cameras." /><figcaption><span class="caption">Witness reports and high-resolution meteor cameras help to calculate a meteor’s trajectory. This map shows the approximate trajectory of the July 22 meteor at the top of the red shape in the centre.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Fireballs Aotearoa and International Meteor Association</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure> <p>Fireballs Aotearoa is rapidly populating Otago with meteor cameras and there are half a dozen more in other parts of the South Island. The North Island isn’t well covered yet, and we’re keen for more people (in either island) to build or buy a meteor camera and keep it pointed at the sky.</p> <p>Then next time a bright meteor explodes with a boom above New Zealand, we may be able to pick up the meteorite and do some good science with it.</p> <hr /> <p><em>Many thanks for the input from Jim Rowe of the UK Fireball Alliance, and Greg Price who photographed the July 22 meteor and the persistent train.</em><!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187836/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/jack-baggaley-1366298">Jack Baggaley</a>, Professor Emeritus Physics and Astronomy, <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-canterbury-1004">University of Canterbury</a></em></p> <p>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/meteors-seem-to-be-raining-down-on-new-zealand-but-why-are-some-bright-green-187836">original article</a>.</p>

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15 countries that existed 100 years ago but don’t anymore

<p><strong>Yugoslavia </strong></p> <p><span>A hundred years ago, World War I wreaked all kinds of havoc on the borders of Europe. Yugoslavia, a southeastern European country created in 1918 as “the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes” and renamed Yugoslavia a decade later, united many culturally and ethnically diverse territories that were part of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. </span></p> <p><span>The new nation included the current states of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo and Macedonia. </span></p> <p><span>But Yugoslavia was headed for more strife in the 20th century: broken up and occupied during World War II, reunited under a communist leader post-war, followed later by fighting during the 1990s. </span></p> <p><span>Now that the country is officially no longer, much of the region is experiencing greater peace. </span></p> <p><span>Croatia’s coastal city of Dubrovnik doubles for the hit HBO series </span><em>Game of Thrones</em><span>’ King’s Landing, making it such a popular tourist destination that it had to limit the number of visitors.</span></p> <p><strong>Tibet</strong></p> <p><span>Although we associate Tibet with peaceful Buddhist monks and its spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, this region northwest of India has been fought over for centuries. </span></p> <p><span>Tibet was actually its own independent country only from 1912 to 1951, when it was made part of China. </span></p> <p><span>Efforts to ‘free Tibet’ are ongoing, and the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Dalai Lama, now retired, still resides in exile in India. </span></p> <p><span>The country is also a destination for adventure seekers and mountaineers because it contains the highest point on Earth, the nearly 8849 metre Mount Everest, which lies on the border of Nepal.</span></p> <p><strong>Neutral Moresnet</strong></p> <p><span>Never heard of Neutral Moresnet? You’re not the only one. </span></p> <p><span>This minuscule country of just over two-and-a-half square kilometres was carved out of an agreement between the Dutch and the Prussians (more on them later) in 1816, so both nations would have access to its zinc mine. </span></p> <p><span>Neutral Moresnet had its own flag and even made its own coins. Efforts were made to turn the tiny nation into a utopia with its own artificial ‘world language,’ Esperanto. </span></p> <p><span>But it fell victim to World War I, and then became part of Belgium. </span></p> <p><span>The present-day residents of the area, however, still celebrate the anniversary of Neutral Moresnet’s creation.</span></p> <p><strong>Newfoundland</strong></p> <p><span>You might think of the rugged island of Newfoundland as part of Canada, but that wasn’t always the case. </span></p> <p><span>The island off North America’s northeastern coast was also previously a British colony, but its isolation created a culture distinct from the surrounding region. </span></p> <p><span>Newfoundland became a self-governing independent nation, although still a British ‘dominion,’ from 1907 until 1934, when it voluntarily chose to go back to being a colony after the Great Depression hit hard. </span></p> <p><span>In 1949, Newfoundland became a Canadian province, now known as Newfoundland and Labrador (interestingly, both names of dog breeds as well!).</span></p> <p><strong>Abyssinia</strong></p> <p><span>This romantic-sounding name was actually the Arab and European moniker for Ethiopia a hundred years ago. </span></p> <p><span>In the ‘Scramble for Africa’ at the end of the 19th century, Italy had tried to snatch it up, but was unable to overthrow its monarchy. </span></p> <p><span>In fact, the country was never colonised and was one of the few independent states in Africa – until the Italians under Mussolini were able to briefly occupy it during the late 1930s. </span></p> <p><span>After World War II, Ethiopia became one of the founding countries of the United Nations. </span></p> <p><span>The country’s rich history also lays claim to the world’s oldest human fossil ever found, and allegedly the biblical Ark of the Covenant (you know, the one in <em>Raiders of the Lost Ark</em>). </span></p> <p><span>The surreal landscape of Ethiopia’s lava lake is one of the most remote places on earth.</span></p> <p><strong>Czechoslovakia</strong></p> <p><span>This eastern European country was another melding of different ethnic groups created in 1918 at the end of World War I. </span></p> <p><span>Part of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, Czechoslovakia was made up of the historical regions Moravia, Slovakia and Bohemia (yes, as in ‘bohemian’). </span></p> <p><span>The Nazi occupation of the area helped propel Europe into World War II; after being liberated by the Soviet Union it became an Eastern Bloc nation in the later half of the 20th century. </span></p> <p><span>Czechoslovakia eventually peacefully split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993.</span></p> <p><strong>Ceylon</strong></p> <p><span>You probably know of this large island south of India as Sri Lanka, but until 1972 it was called Ceylon. </span></p> <p><span>That’s the name the Europeans gave to it when the island was colonised centuries earlier. Under British control until 1948, it then became an independent nation and threw off its colonial moniker in 1972, when it became Sri Lanka. </span></p> <p><span>After some civil war in the early 21st century, the area is now stable. In 2011, the country decided to change the title of any state institutions still bearing the name Ceylon in an effort to remove any vestiges of colonialism.</span></p> <p><strong>Basutoland</strong></p> <p><span>Now called Lesotho since its independence from Britain in 1966, Basutoland was united as a nation in the 19th century under King Moshoeshoe I, who later applied to the British for help in warding off invaders. </span></p> <p><span>Only one of three countries in the world to be surrounded completely by another (along with the Vatican and San Marino, both enclaves within Italy), Basutoland was located inside what is today South Africa.</span></p> <p><span> Lesotho still has a royal family and is now a constitutional monarchy. Prince Harry, who’s very fond of the country, founded his charity for children in Africa, Sentebale, with Lesotho’s Prince Seeiso.</span></p> <p><strong>Ottoman Empire</strong></p> <p><span>Unlike the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, which still encompassed Turkey and some surrounding areas by 1920, survived World War I. </span></p> <p><span>But not for long – in 1923, after losing most of its other territories, it became the Turkish Republic. Prior to the Great War, though, the empire ruled for more than 600 years over lands that also included parts of eastern Europe, north Africa and the Middle East. </span></p> <p><span>Its influence is still seen today in the culture and architecture of Turkey. For an up-close look, visit Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar, which has been wowing shoppers since 1455.</span></p> <p><strong>Sikkim</strong></p> <p><span>Have you heard of this tiny mountain region in the Himalayas? Sikkim was a sovereign monarchy from 1642 until it became an Indian protectorate in 1950, and then a state of India in 1975. </span></p> <p><span>Also bordering Bhutan, Tibet Autonomous Region of China, and Nepal today, Sikkim is dominated by snow-covered mountains, which the people revere as both a god itself and the home of gods. </span></p> <p><span>A footprint of the Yeti, aka the Abominable Snowman, was allegedly found in Sikkim in 1948.</span></p> <p><strong>Persia</strong></p> <p><span>The name of Persia conjures up an ancient Middle Eastern kingdom, one of the oldest civilisations in history. </span></p> <p><span>Since the height of its power in ancient times, the country was oft fought over but still retained its old moniker all the way until 1935, when it officially became Iran. </span></p> <p><span>Today, we mostly think of Persia when speaking of Persian rugs and Persian cats, but its culture is alive and well – unfortunately, continuing unstable international relations (not to mention a certain global pandemic) are keeping Westerners from visiting.</span></p> <p><strong>Siam</strong></p> <p><span>Anyone who’s seen the musical <em>The King and I</em> might wonder where on earth the king of Siam (the real-life King Mongkut, who ruled from 1851 to 1868) actually lived. </span></p> <p><span>The answer? Present-day Thailand, whose new name was adopted in 1939. </span></p> <p><span>Never colonised by Europeans, Siam was an absolute monarchy; after unrest in the 20th century, Thailand is now a constitutional monarchy. </span></p> <p><span>Thanks to its hundreds of islands, clear water and gorgeous coastlines, Thailand is a popular tourist destination today.</span></p> <p><strong>Prussia</strong></p> <p><span>You read right: not Russia, Prussia. </span></p> <p><span>This country, which encompassed land in central and eastern Europe including present-day Germany and Poland, existed in some form all the way until 1947. </span></p> <p><span>The kingdom of Prussia enjoyed much success in the 18th century but started to lose territory in the 19th, until the unification of the German empire placed the Prussian king at its head in 1871. </span></p> <p><span>Although it’s a little complicated where Prussia ends and Germany begins, the defeat of the empire and the abolishment of the Prussian monarchy after World War I extinguished its influence. </span></p> <p><span>But Prussia continued to exist as a German state until the land was divided up and the name formally dismissed after World War II, erasing it from the map forever. </span></p> <p><span>Interestingly, though, the descendants of the defunct monarchy continue to carry their titles – Prince Georg Friedrich Ferdinand of Prussia is the current head of the former ruling family.</span></p> <p><strong>Zanzibar</strong></p> <p><span>The islands of Zanzibar, an archipelago off Africa’s east coast, sound exotically alluring – the name probably makes you think of spices, explorers and adventure. </span></p> <p><span>And for good reason: the area was once an important trading locale, and was established as an independent sultanate in the 19th century. </span></p> <p><span>Although it became a British protectorate soon after, the sultan continued to rule until 1964. Having gained full independence the previous year, Zanzibar then merged with mainland Tanganyika to form present-day Tanzania. </span></p> <p><span>Today, see the highest point in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro, before heading for the tropical paradise of the islands’ beaches.</span></p> <p><strong>Sarawak</strong></p> <p><span>Now a state in Malaysia on the island of Borneo, Sarawak is a land full of natural beauty. </span></p> <p><span>Created as a kingdom by the adventurer James Brooke in the 1840s, Sarawak was ruled by his descendants until World War II, when it was occupied by Japan and later ceded to Britain. </span></p> <p><span>In 1963, Sarawak became part of the new country of Malaysia. Interestingly, although Brooke was English, he resisted British imperialism and is largely regarded positively in the country. </span></p> <p><span>Rudyard Kipling’s <em>The Man Who Would Be King</em> was likely based on Brooke, and he’s also the inspiration for the planned upcoming film <em>White Rajah</em>. </span></p> <p><span>The Brooke family is still active in Sarawak through The Brooke Trust.</span></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.readersdigest.com.au/culture/15-countries-that-existed-100-years-ago-but-dont-anymore?pages=1" target="_blank">Reader's Digest</a>.</em></p>

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How many famous landmarks can you name?

<p>Think you’re a geography buff? You might need to rethink that title after this test. UK travel site <a href="https://www.destination2.co.uk/" target="_parent"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Destination2.co.uk</span></strong></a> has put together the ultimate puzzle for lovers of all things travel, and while it sounds simple, in reality, it’s quite the challenge.</p> <p>All you have to do is see if you can name all 31 landmarks in the image below. But don’t be fooled – it’s harder than it seems.</p> <p><img width="498" height="415" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/38291/image__498x415.jpg" alt="Image_ (354)" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p> <p>Ready for the answers? See how many you correctly guessed.</p> <ol start="1"> <li>Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia</li> <li>Ayers Rock, Australia</li> <li>Tower Bridge, London, England</li> <li>London Eye, London, England</li> <li>The Shard, London, England</li> <li>Houses of Parliament, London, England</li> <li>Red Telephone Box, London, England</li> <li>Stonehenge, Salisbury, England</li> <li>Angel of the North, Newcastle, England</li> <li>The Parthenon, Athens, Greece</li> <li>White Tower of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece</li> <li>St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City, Italy</li> <li>The Colosseum, Rome, Italy</li> <li>Leaning Tower of Pisa, Pisa, Italy</li> <li>Great Wall of China, Beijing, China</li> <li>Forbidden City, Beijing, China</li> <li>Empire State Building, New York, USA</li> <li>Mount Rushmore, South Dakota, USA</li> <li>Abraham Lincoln, Washington, USA</li> <li>Las Vegas Sign, Las Vegas, USA</li> <li>Statue of Liberty, New York, USA</li> <li>Chichen Itza, Yucatán, México</li> <li>Kremlin Wall, Moscow, Russia</li> <li>Kremlin, Moscow, Russia</li> <li>Petronas Towers, Kuala lumpur, Malaysia</li> <li>Humayun's Tomb, New Delhi, India</li> <li>Virupaksha Temple, Hampi, India</li> <li>Taj Mahal, Agra, India</li> <li>The Sphinx, Egypt</li> <li>Pyramids of Giza, Egypt</li> <li>el-Bahari, Egypt</li> </ol> <p>How many did you name? Share your result with us in the comments below!</p>

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