200 Items Tagged

Language

Winchester, England

Curle’s Passage Riddle

Four hundred years ago, this turned-about message was carved into one of Winchester Cathedral's exterior walls.

Seoul, South Korea

National Hangeul Museum

Celebrating the history of Hangul, the Korean writing system invented by King Sejong to improve his realm’s literacy.

Podcast: Gullah Museum

A small museum tells the stories of the Gullah Geechee people and how they've shaped America.

The Podcast Team August 9, 2023

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: Sing Along

Alex Bellos August 7, 2023

The use of the letter x as a mathematical unknown is a relatively modern convention. Algebra has been around for a lot longer.

Why Is 'X' Such a Big Deal?

From Twitter's rebranding to algebra, this single letter has an uncommon amount of...X factor. A historian of mathematics gets to the root of it.

Peter Schumer August 4, 2023

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: The Mystery of the Missing Runes

Alex Bellos July 10, 2023

Tomb of the Wet Kimono

The birthplace of the Japanese idiom "wet clothes" meaning “false accusation."

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: Generation Gaps

Alex Bellos June 12, 2023

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: A Number System of Their Own

Alex Bellos May 8, 2023

Gold Bug Guardian Statue

Gold Bug Guardian Statue

Guarding the city of Chiyoda is a bizarre insectile creature with a name no one can pronounce.

Helen Keller's water pump

Tuscumbia, Alabama

Helen Keller's Water Pump

Underneath this water pump, Annie Sullivan helped Keller speak her first words.

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: What's Yours Is Yours, What's Mine Is Mine

Alex Bellos April 10, 2023

Over the years, dendroglyphs—motifs and images carved into tree bark—have been documented on 22 boab trees in the Tanami Desert of western Australia.

Saving the Mystery Symbols Carved into Australia's Boab Trees

Researchers are rushing to document the Indigenous art before it is lost to time and climate change.

Shoshi Parks April 7, 2023

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: Does English Need a New Alphabet?

Alex Bellos March 13, 2023

"China girls"—also known as "leader ladies"—appeared at the start of films in the early days of Hollywood, though few people ever saw them.

8 Unexpected Stories That Go Behind the Scenes in Hollywood

Frozen lettuce, a ghost subway station, and an unplaceable accent all have starring roles.

April White March 8, 2023

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: Official Language, Social Weapon

Alex Bellos February 20, 2023

Archaeologists believe that the Dholavira signboard hung above the northern entrance to the city thousands of years ago.

objects of intrigue

The Mystery of the World’s Oldest Billboard

No one knows what it says.

Harish Alagappa January 20, 2023

All illustrations: John Mata for Atlas Obscura

Puzzle Monday: The Signs of Ethiopian Identity

Alex Bellos January 16, 2023