If you liked this video, you might enjoy these: WHEN FAKE ARCHAEOLOGY MEETS FAKE SCIENCE ua-cam.com/video/j0OMxE_D1pE/v-deo.html THE 10 MOST EVIL RULERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD ua-cam.com/video/J2JhrShDEX8/v-deo.htmlsi=IONDzFMwyBlCod2O ANCIENT HYPERBOREA AND THE WAR IN UKRAINE ua-cam.com/video/Lzerb627oRo/v-deo.html
i would like to know the true histry of palestine and jerusalem as far as a iknow the original isrealites were the same people as the egyptians and we can see them in egyupt on the wall not todays egyptians obviously goto Garbb Aswan (ibbit al hawa) and you will meet the real egyptians (they are dravidains) ... .very simular to aborigionals ? very strange but the original langueg is like a form of swahli as well !
Please enlighten every one about 1. Why Vedik Indians do not have R1b. The late entrants from Steppe also call themselves as Aryans but have 15% R1b 2. Why Vedik Indians are lactose intolerant completely 3. Why Saraswati is described in details when saraswati has stopped flowing 4000 BCE 4. Which is parent population of Vedik Aryans among various cultures.
I raise you the fact that I have ancestry from Ireland, Wales, Scotland, England, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Poland, Israel, Lenapehoking, Virginia, North Carolina & Nigeria. Top that off with the ancestors from Virginia & North Carolina once likely held a lot of land on the coast of Lake Erie & in northern Alabama at different points in history before this & the Lenape later held land in West Virginia & Ohio, I feel rather entitled to have my people's rather extensive empire back, sir.
"As one of 16 Million descendants of Genghis Khan, I rightfully claim all of Asia and Europa. You may serve as my loyal vassal in the West." - Me, who is most definitely an actual descendant of Genghis Khan, according to this dynastic record that my Chancellor -forged- researched and discovered.
On Star Trek once, the question came up as to why Worf was so dark-skinned next to another Klingon nearby. "I'm from the South." When he got a funny look, he glowered, saying, "Every planet has a South!"
I love how much they lampshaded the Klingon character evolution in Trials and Tribbulations. (The real answer being “they had half a shoe string budget and that TOS was 50 years ago”) and in DS9 Worf just says “we do not speak of it.” And everyone else just nods in awkward confusion
Employing knowledge provided by history, "woke" appeared first around 100 years ago in black music about racist wolves in sheep's clothing in their midst: Beware. Be woke. And look today where "woke" became unacceptable: In the banning of books on black history in schools. It should send a shudder down intelligent spines to beat it back, as I believe awareness will.
The internets have taught me that ancient aliens fought dinosaurs and then became the first MMA fighters and also built a lot of ancient ruins with cool tools and stuff.
I’ve been researching Linear A, and the amount of nationalist quackery that gets unleashed on it is unreal. One of the most persuasive videos on UA-cam is from an actual professor who claims that Linear A is ancient Hungarian. It all sounds well thought out and completely plausible, if you’re not familiar with the field. As a result, he’s gotten a following. The truth is that although the professor isn’t at a Hungarian university, his argument is pure Hungarian nationalist nonsense.
Is this the Hungarian-American computational linguist at Madison, Wisconsin? He says Linear A is a Finno-Ugric language, and that Greek (as in Linear B) has a Finno-Ugric substrate. Sumerian was a hybrid Dravidian and Finno-Ugric language. I don't see what's so nationalist about what he says, other than the ability to spot Hungarian words. One of his students was working on the IVC seals. I was waiting for the IVC to be Finno-Ugric too.
@@faithlesshound5621 Claiming that Greek has a Finno-Ugric substrate is equally silly, especially when you look at some of his “evidence.” He has a table of “cognate words” where the words share, at most, two sounds. Several of the words aren’t even the same-star/moon, wall/brick, tie/tunic, nose/mountain. That’s not a table of cognates, it’s a fishing expedition.
Social media is a bit like the local pub . Those who shout the loudest and act as if they know what they'r talking about get a lot of attention. Most don't bother contradicting the loudmouths . The few who take the time to debunk their nonsense , get drawn into an exhausting exchange .
Agreed, this is a great analogy. I would not, and I don't know anybody who would talk to someone who is shouting in a bar. If they are shouting anything starting with "my ancestry..." I would promptly leave the bar.
It seems like the alt history and ancient alien crowd don't understand the culture they are talking about. A good example is the tomb of King Pacal of Palenque. They say it shows an 'astronaut' flying a craft and ignore how all the elements figure into Mayan belief and art.
More critically they don't see that they themselves are part of a culture in that there's an origin to the points they discuss rather than a truth which exists in a vacuum. They're so high on the belief of discovering their own genius that they'd rather believe to be misunderstood than to acknowledge facts (as observable evidence).
From their perspective, all that information about Mayan belief and art comes from academic experts who are all a bunch of liars, and only they, the conspiracy theorist, is telling the truth. No need to read thousands of books and articles once you've decided they're full of lies, feel free to turn off your brain and enjoy the smugness of believing you are always right.
Mostly because, as the video details, alt history is about supporting one's own political agenda, not uncovering the truth. It's confirmation bias in action.
WWII Nazis were obsessed with the Germanic warlords of the past.. from Hermann/Arminius to Theodoric to Friedrich Barbarrosa. It didn't end well for the Nazis.
The nazis lost because the allies overwhelmed them and they lost their attempt at global dominance. Also of note, there were issues internally, because it turns out command economies are awful.
@@ninthheretic2498the Nazis were high on their own propaganda that they were the master race. All other peoples were degenerate. That’s why they underestimated the Russians. Plus they got really poor lol
Thanks for making this video. We have a Greek friend who always says "Everything is Greek!" like the dad from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. We all joke with him and say every random thing is "Greek" : Aztec pyramids, Maple syrup, Playstation console, etc. It's all in good fun.
There was a british comedy show back in the 1990s called *Goodness Gracious Me* One of the recurring characters was Mr "Everything Comes From India" - you can probably guess the rest from there haha You can find some of the bits on youtube. - Leonardo Da Vinci Was Indian - Jesus was Indian
@@claudiaxander which is hilarious as the Classical Greeks seem to have expressed the view that the Macedonians where not quite proper Greeks, but not full on barbarians until after the conquest of Greece by them
Although I cringe with fellow Greeks who make ridiculous claims about ancient Greeks and how much the ancient Greek civilization contributed to modern world, the study you mentioned about the ancestry of bronze age and modern Greeks is significant in my opinion because it counters Falmerayer's theory that modern Greeks have no connection whatsoever to ancient Greeks which oppinion is ridiculous and likewise politically motivated
Yeah see his part on Jewish and Palestinian claims to show how it gets ridiculous with each blaming another of being effectively illegal migrants and denying ancient heritage. It's absolutely a thing in Anatolia and surroundings as well with Turks vs Armenians vs Greeks vs Kurds vs Syrians etc.
You couldn't have even possibly finished this video BY FAR when you posted this. Even as I post this - if I started watching it the second it dropped id still have 20 min to go.
Great video as always, Dr. M.! Thank you for being you; you are a fantastic teacher to all of us. Please consider making a video on the real history of Israel/Palestine. With all the misinformation on social media and the internet, this is the perfect time to educate ourselves. I’m sure many viewers would agree that we can all benefit from an objective perspective on this topic. Thanks again :)
When it comes to the hindutva movement the key phrase in it is “consider the Indian subcontinent as their father land AND HOLY LAND”. This by default excludes not only ethnic foreigners but also Hindi and other indigenous people to the Indian subcontinent who adhere to islam and Christianity. It’s impossible for any Abrahamic adherent to consider anywhere other than the Levant and it’s immediate surroundings to be holy land. It is a convenient criteria not only to root out ethnic minorities but religious minorities as well.
Importantly, their definition roots out the indigenous people of the country, who have been relegated to the hills and the backwaters of society, while in our democratic age their population numbers have been appropriated as Hindus, despite their historic exclusion from Hindu sites and ceremonies.
> It’s impossible for any Abrahamic adherent to consider anywhere other than the Levant and it’s immediate surroundings to be holy land Not exclusively... Mormons and some other American offshoots of Protestants claim (falsely) that America is the REAL lands from the Bible, and also by New Testament, Jesus kind of downplays the importance of a PLACE (any place) in His talk with a Samaritan woman, so any Christian technically can claim ANYWHERE else as another "Holy Land". Notably, for us it's Kyiv. The place where Rus' was first Christened, down with a myth of Andrew the Disciple visiting the hills it stands on and proclaiming that it would be a place for a great city. That's why russian imperialism keeps trying their 2-3 day march on it, as their entire racial supremacy theory doesn't work without holding Ukrainian capital. Hell, biggest denomination of Christians is Roman Catholic and their Holy Place is Rome, in Italy... And we Orthodox kind of hold Constantinople in similar regard.
12:49 you articulated that beautifully. I hear so many professors trying to say the same thing, but it comes out as “race isn’t real” which in my experience puts off people who appreciate their diverse background. A much clearer way to say it. Thank you.
As someone born in Aryavart, right on the banks of Saraswati*, right beside IVC ruins, and a seeker of truth I would like to apologise on behalf of my fellow countrymen and their manners, biases and ignorance. I would also like to thank you for your educational content that has helped me change the mind of a few people I know, an accomplishment I hope you are proud of. *sarcasm *modern day Puadh region of Punjab & Haryana in India, Saraswati is supposedly the river Ghagar Hakra although we always just called it '[locality name]'s stream' ([locality name] ka nala).
Though whatever the truth maybe about our ancestors people often forget why these outlandish things are spread by each side Left wing - India is not a country and every identity is fighting each other is not that good for the future of nation Right Wing - India is a nation from the beginning and should remain so for eternity is kind of good for the future of the nation Yes , both have problems, left willingly or unwillingly destroying the native faiths Right is hell bent on destroying foreign faith . On that note ,please don't be apologetic for stupid people all around us . Because shouldn't't they need to learn about it.
Have you heard of the Heggarty et al paper from last year about the hybrid model of Indo-European languages. It suggests that the Indo-Iranic branch could have been around the Indus valley by 5000 years ago, and makes sense of the language distribution, some of the genetic evidence, and the Anatolian languages, among other features. I found it interesting. I'd previously been convinced of a Pontic steppe origin for the IE languages but this paper made reconsider. I think there may be some conflicts with the archaerology though, but I'm not well-informed enough to evaluate those
A friend of mine from Gaza is from a family that claims decent from the very first Christians in the region, certainly their church is 1600 years old. The origins of the Palestinians are a mixture of ancient Canaanites, Jews who were just one subset of Canaanites, Philistines and other ancient immigrants, followed by medieval Arabs and more immigrants, and so on. Until recent times Mizrahi Jews living there were also considered Palestinian and many now seek to reclaim that identity.. Palestine has been a melting pot for millenia and for anyone to seek to claim it on the basis of a narrow set of genetic markers is ridiculous. The only relevant criteria is international law and human rights.
It seems that Arab colonization was limited due to the fact there weren't many of them which is bourne out though modern DNA analysis Also there is actually zero evidence to prove the Romans wanted to clear out the Jews anymore than any other rebellious province
Regarding your last argument about your aside, I came into the discussion fully on the side of the commenters; but due to your clear explanation, I can absolutely see where I was previously in error. Thank you!
19:50 - 20:05 I disagree with this assertion about anti colonialism and nationalism being some how at odds. It may be true that modern nationalism that is most often expressed in nation states mostly came out of the west, but that does not mean that it is “western”. Nationalism, or the idea that a group of people with a common culture and/or language should resist oppression and fight for a homeland is a concept so old the second book in the Bible is dedicated to it. You can go to the most isolated tribe in the Amazon and see a primitive form of nationalism being expressed, whether or not it’s expressed in clear or definitive terms. I caution to ask if not nationalism, what should a anti-colonialist movements be built around? Class struggle? I can hardly think of a concept more western in nature since ideas of class consciousness only truly came into being in Europe during and after the Industrial Revolution.
@@WorldofAntiquity Then with all due respect sir, what were you trying to say there, I run into that argument a lot in university from my professors and they often use similar language when making that point.
@@jake_from_state7143 "Normally, we think of anticolonialism as left wing. But Hindutva is right wing. So both sides use it." I am not sure what is so hard to understand about that.
"The idea that a group of people with a common culture and/or language should resist oppression and fight for a homeland" conflates two distinct things when applying it to pre-modern conditions. Yes, there were peoples identifying with a shared culture, language or polity, and yes, there's a natural desire to resist oppression and defend your land (though that might just be your part of it, or the land of your village). But the second doesn't follow from the first, it's a different and universal phenomenon. Nationalism is a fairly recent (and western) innovation, but it's taken three forms: a desire for independence from a foreign oppressor (the anti-colonialist variant); pursuit of cultural, linguistic or political unity (the "nation-building" form, often well-intentioned but too easily tipping into oppression of minorities); and belief in a mystical underlying unity too often accompanied by notions of exceptionalism or superiority - ironically the very doctrines that propelled the colonialism that the more "defensive" nationalism opposed. I long shared your view that nationalism could be "civilised" and turned to positive ends, but I'm afraid experience both before and since the 20th-century heyday of classic anti-colonial struggle suggests that it's too dangerous a doctrine. That doesn't preclude nationhood or the right to self-determination and for peoples to live in peace under institutions of their choosing (which I'd offer as an answer to your question about alternatives), but as an ideology nationalism has become more of a menace to our shared human civilisation than a force for good.
I remember my grandmother telling me, "I don't care what they teach you in school. The World of Antiquity UA-cam channel was researched and presented by Prof. Graham Hancock PhD."
This may just be one of the most relevant videos i've seen on UA-cam, Thank you very much for addressing this issue, i just discovered your channel, awesome! Greets from Mexico
I was thoroughly offended that this video didn’t offend me!!! I went into this video assuming I’d be offended! You took the time to offend a lot of other people, but neglected to offend me! Also please make that Levant video. Would love to learn about historical accuracy of the story of Passover, not the plagues part but Jewish people being enslaved in Egypt
Yet one must discern between what is individual bias versus a supposed collective bias. Here is what I mean: 1 - religious believers all ascribe to what is often a dogmatic adherence to their religious doctrine. To that end they often per _"confirmation bias"_ interpret events based upon that preexisting belief structure = hence collective bias. 2 - in the case of say LAHT one sees individuals generating what are typically flawed historical/archeological claims which represent "their opinion". Because their claims reflect ones which originate to a sole individual typically dependent upon a desire to accept as true what they have chosen to believe = individual bias. Moral: in science and science-derived subjects we have however = _"peer-review."_ While peer-review is contingent upon consensus - it is not collective bias. You have rather otherwise unaffiliated individuals knowledgeable in the subject-matter who upon review all conclude the evidence supports the claimed outcome. It is the basis of the adage all are familiar with: _"2 heads are better than 1"_ Above helps to mitigate your "all have bias" effect. Whether or not bias plays a role in some assertion = peer-review helps to identify that bias if present and ascertain the plausibility or not of said assertion. That is about as good as it gets I'm afraid.
@@nebulan went straight to the comments in the "politicized history" video and the 3rd comment in was history-free snark about Jews. (Excuse me, I only mean the 9 million "Zionists" and the Jews worldwide who like Israel. Not saying that's antisemitic or anything).
Good work Dr. M. You have been a great spokesperson for the practice of examining evidence and moderating conclusions based upon what can be reasonably drawn from it. Your insight into the many ways our knowledge of the ancient past can be impacted, altered, and distorted by those who endeavor to propound a given historical narrative in promotion of an ideological agenda is legitimate and valuable, in my opinion. The fact that you present with such rigor and enthusiasm for the topics you cover while honoring the mainstream historical method, and your debunking of heavy hitters in the LAHT throng has made you a natural target of certain taxa of alt-theorists. In my view you acquit yourself admirably whilst addressing and responding to critics.
David's claims to not want to politicize history comes off as crypto-natoinalist motivated. On the one side he frames DNA evidence, a legitimate source of scientific evidence, as pseudo-scientific ethno nationalism. On the other he flip-flops by using DNA evidence to argue Jews are related to ancient Jews. David changes his own alleged scientific principles when it suits him. David isn't very credible.
I enjoyed hearing your thoughts. When I was at the Yerkes Primate Center at Emory University, we had an initiative to bring hard scientists like molecular biologists together with sociologists, primatologists, and psychologists. The idea was to bring the tools of molecular biology and chemistry, etc. Into those fields.... and to enhance the scientific tools they used. As a molecular biologist by training, I enjoyed sitting in on lab meetings and journal clubs with sociologists and psychologists. The topics were amazing. But the culture clash was huge. Their ideas of what a control is would never survive in a molecular lab. Their endpoints and measurement techniques were shockingly subjective, despite their best efforts. Some of this is inevitable. I came away deeply impressed by the extreme difficulty in designing an objective test of the human mind - a nearly impossible task if there were not ethical constraints. You seem to be more toward the hard data and objective results end of the spectrum - even though ancient civilizations make deciding what the hard data actually means extremely difficult. I think you might gain a lot by taking a similar journey - sitting in on journal clubs in the women's studies department and in the chemistry or physics department. The differences in the "scientific method" as it exists in these areas of inquiry are quite informative.
Love your video. I think it is very important people are reminded that politics has no business in investigating history, and using it to validate their belief system. History needs to be looked at objectively, and presented factually.
I love your "guilt and glory" example. I've always felt people's pride for what their distant distant relatives did as odd. It's like just learn a skill and be proud of that.
As an Israeli who always believed in both the right of Jews on the land and the right of Palestinians for statehood - exactly because, like you say, 'so much has happened since then' - I really do appreciate the professionalism and unbiased approach you took in addressing the usage of ancient history (fabricated or real) in this conflict. I knew I was right to subscribe to this channel... 🙂
All we have is the here and now and we should think in those terms alone therefore it's my opinion that those Palestinians who have never known Palestine should be given status in the place they happen to be and where appropriate compensated too Within Israel/Palestine itself civil rule should be extended across the Green Line and the barriers removed
Israeli Archaeology graduate here. I appreciate the sober treatment of such a touchy subject. I would like to comment though, in regards to Israeli Archaeologists trying to use archaeology for justification of our self determination on this land; While it's certainly true, especially in regards to the older generation of archaeologist (probably our greatest being an IDF Chief of Staff), the current generation, especially in my alma mater in Tel Aviv, painstakingly works to divorce this legacy from the pure study of archaeology, a lot of progress has been made in the field thanks to dropping both national agendas and Holy Scripture from the archaeologist's tool kit. I would also like to refer to a book written recently by one of the faculty members on this subject: Archaeology, Nation, and Race: Confronting the Past, Decolonizing the Future in Greece and Israel, by Raphael Greenberg and Yannis Hamilakis.
"Sober treatment" -- I doubt if I'm the only one that stared at the angry raving figure in the thumbnail for a long while wondering if I was looking at the right channel after all...
Decolonization is always bloody and was always meant to be. Be mindful of the words you use and where they came from. The lack of foresight that I see within the people pushing for it is deeply disturbing. Just be sure that you are ok with the tradeoffs. There is no such thing as problem solving. There are only tradeoffs. Be careful what you wish for and be mindful of what you promote. International law is a fairly recent phenomenon. It was noble to try to stabilize the world with fixed borders, but I don’t see it lasting, unfortunately. Outside of the West no one cares about a free press, individual rights, or free speech. As the West collapses due to “decolonization” the world will get very dark. Of course we won’t hear about the atrocities happening all over because no one cares about what happens to anyone if the perpetrator is not white or can at least be blamed. It took me along time to realize this, but it’s unmistakable at this point.
I read a discussion between two Israeli archaeologists, one of whom insisted on a nationalist vision and the other on a civic vision of the state of Israel. An interesting dispute. And while the nationalist stance may have served ethno-nationalism, the "civic" approach was already fair and objective.
@@acaydia2982”free press, individual rights, free speech”? Nobody hates it more than western elites who are making sure to destroy all of those in their countries to have some kind of neofeudalism. Also: why would decolonized countries would care about them while colonized they didn’t got them? I guess you have walked the earth and just know that your i existent “enlightenment” fantasy is just the best for everybody else… You are a first for me in this platform: a colonial bot. Go figure.
It’s so much more than that. Every middle eastern ethnic and religious minority know what colonization and oppression is. Especially when it’s about arabization an Islamization. And we are all used to the fake stories of Arabs and Muslims but it’s interesting how the left spreads their delusions as well. It’s insanity. Lying and denying the oppression and genocides committed over centuries till even now. And creating this fairytale in which we all supposedly lived peacefully together.🤣
Thank you so much David ! Everything you said in this video is just, you don't take any side, you stick to evidence, you're not afraid to express ideas if they are valid. Thank you for your courage, and this scientific video on History, specially the touchy questions. Thank you for saying what you said on the other video that some people felt offended about. I appreciate that you precised it. Indeed it seems today some people want to protect (possible) racism, by using bad faith and the victim card. Your videos are refreshing and reassuring, specially after having heard people like Graham Hancock, spreading lies on Ancient History. We need professors like you. Thank you for being on UA-cam and the courses you propose. It makes me want to become a patron for your channel and your work, and subscribe to your courses. Take care, Gaby
Plenty... It's all the stuff that's boring to people who aren't interested in history unless there's some political, social, religious, treasure, or other aspect that's relevant to that person. So much history is "boring" in that sense.
@@GizzyDillespee sure, but it’s still all just used for some political agenda or another, even the “boring stuff” because it’s often the “boring stuff” that people latch on to and use to prove whatever point they are trying to make. Like people that want to talk about the daily lives of people in the 50’s compared to today and try to make an argument about how much better things were back then. They aren’t using things like the Korean War.
A fair point: it's always been invoked in political debate, and formal "history" (too much of it concerning politics & government anyway) was notoriously for long the account left by the winners. I think the issue today is that we have the methods to advance beyond such partial & partisan interpretation, but an industry has arisen aimed at turning the clock back and promoting division and supremacist doctrines in place of improved common understanding of our shared past. it's hyper-politicisation that seeks not just to use the record for its own ends, but to suppress findings & perspectives that are inconvenient to it.
@@scottnunnemaker5209 It's more than tribalism, though. As you indicated, we've always had competing ideological or sectional perspectives - but we learned to take account of that in our reading and conclusions: "OK, this person's coming at it from the left/right, let's note that and see if they've an objectively valid contribution to bring to the table beyond mere partisanship." Today's onslaught on scholarship is something different, for altogether more destructive ends, the objective being not just to promote a subjective viewpoint (which we all inevitably do anyway because we all have them) but to undermine learning & knowledge itself. Dark times.
The inherent morality vs facts part of this discussion is extremely interesting to me - at university ten years ago I was strictly instructed that well researched facts were suitable for inclusion in essays on archaeology, but was marked down more than once for not making value judgements in history essays, and I'm still torn as to which is 'correct'. Certainly history is more interesting when someone tries to make a point with it, but something happening to be interesting doesn't necessarily mean it is of value. Left me with a strong feeling that history, as practiced by the education system, is a political plaything to be aimed in any direction the wielder wishes rather than an earnest effort to understand humanity. Has that whole "doomed to repeat it" maxim constantly gnawing at me.
This is a great video. I respect you IMMENSELY for refusing to talk about your own politics on your channel. You're being educational, first and foremost, and ancient history is for everyone to learn and appreciate. You set a good example!
12:44 just so we're on the same page here.... not everyone who finds the Indo-European migrations interesting is a stormfront fascist..... There is some fascinating history there. And those migrations definitely happened, and there was a replacement in Northern Europe. It's so similar to what happened to the Americas (replacement in North, intermarriage in the more populous and advanced regions of Meso-america), it begs the question: was disease involved? but I digress... not everyone who finds this stuff interesting is a fascist, and we shouldn't give the field to fascists.
Yes a small group of people definitely managed to mix up the majority. Logically impossible. Federico Navarrete, Historian, Anthropologist UNAM. Between 1821 and 1910: 3.5 million Indigenous people were categorized as Mestizo. •By the time the Mexican census of 1930 took place: 30% of the entire Mexican population who has been categorized as Indigenous, was now categorized as “Mestizo.” Historians argue that this was also done to repress “Casta Wars” and erase the power of the Indigenous population. The white elites feared that they would lose power. •Mestizaje was not a racial reality but rather a “massive linguistic displacement.” Indigenous people were whiten through language and culture markers, not racial.
Exactly! all I can think is if I was asked to read the script over, I would have said the same thing, or to use the analogy that he used in this video "maybe it's not good to go over and offer those kids candy from an optics standpoint"
Fantastic video and I fully support the thesis about the dangers of allowing politics to dictate history. I wanted to comment to commend your rhetoric in this video. It’s really difficult to argue about political subjects without seeming to come down on one side and attacking the other , even if very implicitly, and I thought you did a really good job disarming the common attacks leveled at academics from detractors on both sides while still showing sympathy.
@@Giantcrabz If I compare what is happening in the Gaza Ghetto today and what happened in the Warsaw Ghetto almost a century ago, being evenhanded would be called prejudiced and antisemitism. If I quote both Hillel the Elder, "What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow: this is the whole Torah; the rest is the explanation; go and learn." and Mohammad in the Kitab Al-Kafiy, "As you would have people do to you, do to them; and what you dislike to be done to you, don't do to them." Then both sides will be angry and both will ignore the content.
@@Giantcrabz- Not all topics need a 'side', and for history, what we want is accuracy and truth. Six million Jews, and some four million others, were murdered by the Nazis. But if we approach it with a simplistic 'Good v Evil' mindset, we won't understand how and why it happened.
@@JMM33RanMA Gaza is like the one conflict where it IS actually "both sides". Especially compared to such one-sided things as Assad massacring his own people, Myanmar junta destroying local villages on helicopters or the russia... everything they do.
@@KasumiRINA That is why I reluctantly take a position of, "A pox on both their houses," from Shakespeare. However I pity the innocents on both sides, caught between both sides' militant 'muminun kadhibun,'which could be translated as ignorant aggressors or partisans.
a great lecture. you touched on some key aspects of quality scholarship; - it demands that one examine the a priori foundations (implicit assumptions) of topics & practitioners. - it demands the capacity for in-depth understanding of alternative & competing techniques & analysis of others in one's field (& over time). - it is valuable to clearly distinguish & state what one claims to be; evidence > fact > analysis > conjecture > truth > belief > ideology / faith. {these all have distinct meanings... they are even spelled differently} kinda revealing how reactive folk were your remark about "optics"... clear (to me) you were addressing perception sensitivity, rather than a subjective judgment.
I think my first run-in with this in my life was with my social studies tutor in junior high. I'd come to her house every week for help with my textbook studies. But then she started going on really bizarre tangents when we got to the chapter on ancient rome. She called Julius Caesar a "liberal communist" who destroyed the republic by "giving property/wealth to the lazy poor" and called the Roman Empire "the world's first socialist dictatorship." Even as a completely clueless 14 year old I was rendered speechless how someone that unhinged and ignorant could be tutoring me on history.
You should film yourself wandering around Foerster"s house whilst exclaiming loudly how the people that live here now were far too primitive to have ever constructed such complexity. And how it must have been some superior immigrants ! ❤
Something I didn't know when I first arrived in the DC area, that after 30 years having my face rubbed in it daily I was forced to admit is true, is that to the political mentality, every aspect of life is potentially political. The more psychopathic the political mentality becomes, the more aspects of life are politicized, particularly with regard to the established sciences or any other settled fact. It has been said that DC is among the most beautiful cities in the world, to which I would add that it's never more beautiful as when viewed in the rear view mirror. I left 20 years ago hoping to escape it all, only to find that it's once again in my face all the time through the news outlets and social media.
Everything is political. Especially any kind of "identity politics". The only time you can pretend it isn't, is when your version is the dominant default.
The internet has grown into silos and echo chambers. Ideology is rewarded with more sharing and views the more strident it is. This is leading to anarchy on a global scale.
@jeffmacdonald9863 When you think everything relates to politics in some way, sure everything is political. But it doesn't have to be. Things like hobbies can pass on or muse on political subjects but you don't have to compare it to the real world all the time. Sometimes it is okay to let the universe you are looking at have its own isolated politics. "Everything is political" is just a phrase parties use to strongarm or guilt your support. No matter the side, they do it. From how conservatives use the bible to teach "conservative lessons" all the way to pride flags being the literal definition of political symbols. People must break free of the great lie that everything you day or don't say supports something.
@@Drako9823 How do you avoid it? Even with your hobbies. Plenty of hobbies see fights over inclusion or representation. Excluding people based on identity isn't non-political.
Sumerians were the ancestors of everyone in the world. So were the Assyrians, because they are that far back in history that members of that ancient community would have moved around and mixed with other communities and over time everyone would have at least some ancestry that traces to the ancient Assyrian and Sumerian communities. That's what this video is about. It's impossible to remain an isolated community for a generation, let alone many generations. The fact that people hide behind these claims is evidence of individual and community laziness and lack of achievements.
It really boils down to what you mean by "our ancestors". Assyrian identity itself is an evolution of the Northern subgroup of Akkadians, which was highly influenced by Sumerians who lived in the South of Mesopotamia. Its ethno-genesis mostly occurred in the Late Bronze Age and there is certainly a Sumerian component in your people's genetics and culture. But you must always keep in mind three very important things : 1- You aren't just descended from Sumerians and Akkadians, you are also descended from Arameans, Israelites, Armenians, Arabs and various other peoples who faded from memory, all of whom migrated or were deported (by the Neo-Assyrians) to the region from which you originate. Those groups themselves aren't any less mixed than you are as well and if you look at them you will also find a complex mosaic in terms of genetics and culture. 2- You aren't the sole inheritor of Sumerians as almost everyone in the region can trace at least some ancestry to them and were greatly influenced by them historically speaking. In other words, your claim should not be regarded as exclusive to your people group. 3- You should be aware that Assyrian identity was never static, and "what it means to be Assyrian" changed over history. There is undeniable continuity between Ancient and Modern Assyrians, but the Assyria of Old would be alien to you, as they would be speaking a different language (Akkadian vs Neo-Aramaic), following a very different religion (Mesopotamian polytheism vs Christianity) with a very different culture, traditional dress and set of practices. In conclusion, be proud of who you are and being part of the legacy of Ancient Sumeria, but be weary of 1- thinking that's the only component of your ancestry or culture that matters 2- thinking you hold exclusive right to their legacy and 3- thinking your identity is frozen in time, otherwise you will fall into dangerous and pseudo-historical notions of who you are. Much love to Assyrians from a Tunisian Arab ❤
They are different peoples, speaking different languages. Yes, cultural heritage can be debated, but as a modern human being, you are probably heir to Sumer in the same measure as any of us -- it is a component of our civilization (because it inherits from Rome, from Greece, from Persia, from Babylonia, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Akkad, from Sumer, as well as from barbarian peoples). In terms of genetics, you probably have more in common with the Sumerians than I do, but you're not a direct heir either -- maybe someone in Iraq?
It amazes me to still hear politician's using language that could have been lifted right out of Thucydides to describe current events, and to justify policy decisions.
I like what you said about other areas of history being kind of filled in more recently. When I studied history in college (4 schools over a decade and a half to get my BA), my professors wanted to make sure I could do research at lower levels. Upper level stuff was trying to get you interested in more niche topics because that's what you're doing as you move up the academic ladder. In my upper level courses, It was hard to get an A for a paper on a topic they've seen every semester since they became a graduate assistant unless it's written really well. It's like that feeling some folks get about Superhero Movies but Battles or Generals in History. As you said certain topics are underresearched and therefore it's easier to get recognition for your research when you cover less tread ground. I feel bad for anyone doing groundbreaking research and has to deal with all the culture war stuff. Stellar video Doc, keep up the good work!
Likely. Those who approach such videos with a preexisting bias - such as the LAHT fanboy club - cannot be expected to finish the video. Upon seeing their fantastical assumptions go up in smoke this will generate "angst" which they invariably counter by ceasing to watch it. Moral: LAHT lives in the fantasy world of _"my belief......"_ They comically - yet sadly - assume their supposed reality based upon a subjective desire to = assume themselves as always right - which of course is nonsense. When people do not accede to reality they might be wrong about something they are on the path of self-delusion. The key here per science/logic is for them to learn = they are not the arbiters of validity here - the experts are. They are simply "cursory viewers" of information presented on the internet where misinformation can abound depending upon source. The reason we educate ourselves is not simply to learn new things = it is to learn to recognize above........
Wait isn't Conan a Cimerrian? I hardly know much about them, we only learned a little bit in ancient history of Ukraine. Something about blood of your enemies, women weeping?
At 51:35, re. your hypothetical "History of Queer People in Ancient Times", that title is already political. Were there ancient people who called themselves "queer" or some ancient analog? (I understand the non-derogatory meaning of queer to be a thoroughly postmodern descriptor) If it is the case that ancient people didn't have a comparable concept, then any book on "queer" ancient history is probably filled with projection.
Your comment seems to be unaware of the fact that we describe things in our own language. Was the "Bronze Age" called the Bronze Age back then? No. Was Alexander III called Alexander III? No. We gave him the number. Was the Akkadian Empire called the Akkadian Empire? No. These are our names.
@WorldofAntiquity Names are one thing (i.e Bronze Age) but queer (as opposed to homosexual) is a concept and what I'm getting at is "did ancient peoples have that concept?". In an academic context I would define queer as being self-consciously subversive of societal norms regarding sexuality or gender (see the transitive verb "to queer"). Is the historical or archeological record of ancient times really good enough to establish that there were "queer" people? Or is it more likely a case of modern projection onto ancient peoples?
That's like suggesting that red headed people are a modern invention because we don't find enough red headed dead people. Queer people are born, not made. There's no doubt that the labels and expressions would be different in a radically different culture. But people who we would call gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, etc. would still be born and have atypical experiences. And you can't just hand waive away the fact that these lives are often lived underground due to skepticism and hostility from the mainstream. That's going to impact how they are recorded, and how often.
@WorldofAntiquity I agree with your sentiments... but ask yourself this: have you ever met someone who wrote a book called "Queer society in antiquity" or somesuch who isn't also motivated by ideology. One of my favorite books about ancient history in college was a study of ancient sex toys. A gay friend had it as a coffee table conversation piece. It was fascinating and as an 18 year old kid it changed my perception of ancient people, making them more real. Human sexuality is obviously an incredibly important aspect of culture, and obviously deserving of serious study, despite the inherent difficulty in obtaining data. But finding someone who wants to dedicate their life to specializing in finding aspects of genderqueer culture in ancient South American societies who isn't motivated by personal ideology might be a tall ask.
Problem is that archeology is rooted in nationalism and there are great divisions between individual national "schools" that are not able to talk to each other AT ALL.... :(
I think it's not about archaeology, because I live in a country where archaeology was nationalistic -- but it's not. On the other hand, it's a general principle that we look at the past through the glasses of the present. I recently encountered such an example as the participation of barbarians in the fall of Rome -- in the shadow of World War II, when the Germans were the perpetrators of crimes, the barbarians were seen as pre-Nazis almost, a murderous horde that came to murder. We are in the 21st century, the EU, nations are making friends, and the barbarians are spoken of in the context of the "migration of peoples," as a complex process. I can throw a lot of such examples from my national history and relations with my neighbours, but these barbarians and Rome should be understood more universally.
This is true often times. There is a lot of Russian archeological papers that have never been translated into English. etc. They don't want to translate it.
Same goes for history and most subjects in that field. I wanted to study near eastern studies, because I’m part of an ethnic minority of the Middle East and wanted to learn more in general. I was shocked by how biased this field is. Very dishonest teachings and little to no truth about the history of ethnic and religious minorities. It’s basically pro Islam pro arabization 🤣. Any critique is seen as an attack. I wonder if it’s the fear to say the truth or just actual delusion.
As someone staunchly on the Left, the Cleopatra, Netflix special is a joke, Netflix docs on Ancient history is questionable, though their recent history, pretty good. Love your work Dr Miano, this is the 180 to the bullshit on YT, cheers from Buffalo.
You couldn't have even possibly finished this video BY FAR when you posted this. Even as I post this - if I started watching it the second it dropped id still have 20 min to go.
If that woman would have been of Arab or North African decent instead of American African no one would have said a thing. Yes, the woman is an American African. However, her phenotype would have been pretty common in the Mediterranean region at the time. The Greeks saw themselves as between the people of the north and the people of the south.
@@kudjoeadkins-battle2502 Sorry, but the Ptolemies were Macedonian and they sought to keep their bloodlines true. They adopted the Egyptian practice of royal incest. Presenting her as otherwise, such as Netflix has, is an historical falsehood.
@@intractablemaskvpmGy how did they look? They would have looked like other people in the region and that actress that played the part isn't that far off. Let's not pretend that the Macedonians were some pale skinned people. No one ever described them as such. They would have been more than likely similar to the Greeks who saw themselves as a medium between the lightest and the darkest.
This is why I respect and admire you so much. You don't alienate anyone by injecting political thought into your videos. I like that your videos are for everyone :)
So he first says he won’t be expressing a political bias, that everyone on both sides of the aisle does it but then lists four ways this is done ... three of which were right wing.
ethnic claims are only associated with the right if you're a Yuro or a yank. He even says this in the video, and it only takes taking a look at south america or asia to know this is truth.
@@ColasTeam you think that anti-ethnic claims of left wing academics aren't also inherently political? Just as some people falsely attribute extra greatness, exclusivity and credit to their ancestors for political reasons so too do others falsely discredit, disparage and even outright deny the existence of a people for political reasons. In the west right now the latter is far more common than the former and has large amount of institutional backing. That's why so many of them get their panties in a knot when it comes time to deal with integrating the results of advanced in archeogenetics
The main problem with value judgements is that when many people call some historical (or modern political) person or entity "bad", they tend to assume, that the opponents of the said person or entity are or were "good". I may be biased and generally wrong, but in my opinion conflicts are rarely between "good" and "evil'. Much more frequently you'll run into several "evils" fighting to have an upper hand and sacrificing a lot of people in the process. My country is currently at war and is internationally acclaimed as "good". But from inside the mess i see only two oppressive cleptocratic murderous regimes mass-killing their misguided and heavily indoctrinated people in a crazy struggle, while other actors do their best to extract as much gain from the situation as possible.
14:30 "I don't believe we inherit the glory, or the guilt of our ancient ancestors." I share this mindset, even up to just a few generations ago. They can inspire you if you want, but you can never own them. They would not recognize me as a relative, and I would not recognize anything about their lives. It is too far away to share the glory or the guilt.
Very interesting and well put together video, as usual. I really just wanted to comment on the beautiful warm lighting on display; 'tis a very pleasant change of pace to the rather cool, LED look most of the other UA-camrs I watch prescribe to for their videos.
Just look at the China claim to south china sea and Israel claim to Palestinian land. Imagine your family clan lived there for 200 years then some stranger start attacking and stealing your land and sea the reason they do this is because their ancestors owned it 1000 years ago.
If you liked this video, you might enjoy these:
WHEN FAKE ARCHAEOLOGY MEETS FAKE SCIENCE
ua-cam.com/video/j0OMxE_D1pE/v-deo.html
THE 10 MOST EVIL RULERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD
ua-cam.com/video/J2JhrShDEX8/v-deo.htmlsi=IONDzFMwyBlCod2O
ANCIENT HYPERBOREA AND THE WAR IN UKRAINE
ua-cam.com/video/Lzerb627oRo/v-deo.html
you intelligent person
i would like to know the true histry of palestine and jerusalem
as far as a iknow the original isrealites were the same people as the egyptians and we can see them in egyupt on the wall not todays egyptians obviously goto Garbb Aswan (ibbit al hawa) and you will meet the real egyptians (they are dravidains) ... .very simular to aborigionals ?
very strange but the original langueg is like a form of swahli as well !
Please enlighten every one about
1. Why Vedik Indians do not have R1b. The late entrants from Steppe also call themselves as Aryans but have 15% R1b
2. Why Vedik Indians are lactose intolerant completely
3. Why Saraswati is described in details when saraswati has stopped flowing 4000 BCE
4. Which is parent population of Vedik Aryans among various cultures.
You need to get on Rogan, would be easier 5 years ago, but even if you make good points talking to him, his giant audience will learn.
He's never had Kyle Kulinski or David Pakman in years though, not that your political, but facts and Rogan now are like nails on a chalkboard
”You have not experienced Shakespeare until you have read him in the original Klingon.”
Mach plach......Plach MACH.
Brilliant.
Elcor Hamlet appreciation society begs to differ!
As a descendant of Charlemagne, I claim France, Belgium, parts of Netherlands and Germany as well as Italy.
Ha!
Descendents of Napoleon would like a word with you :)
I raise you the fact that I have ancestry from Ireland, Wales, Scotland, England, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Poland, Israel, Lenapehoking, Virginia, North Carolina & Nigeria. Top that off with the ancestors from Virginia & North Carolina once likely held a lot of land on the coast of Lake Erie & in northern Alabama at different points in history before this & the Lenape later held land in West Virginia & Ohio, I feel rather entitled to have my people's rather extensive empire back, sir.
"As one of 16 Million descendants of Genghis Khan, I rightfully claim all of Asia and Europa. You may serve as my loyal vassal in the West." - Me, who is most definitely an actual descendant of Genghis Khan, according to this dynastic record that my Chancellor -forged- researched and discovered.
@@williamchamberlain2263 He was probably an indirect descendant of Charlemagne too.
I lost a relative in the Culture War. He stepped on a sourdough. They tried to save him but he was toast.
Oh, don't even _start_ with him!!
This is really sad, it really got a *rise* out of me; I batter not get angrier, I really knead to calm down a little bit..
I hope that you got *proof* of this
Dad keeps sliding to the right. I pull him center left once every month. Rinse and repeat.
@@ninadgadre3934why were the unvaxxed ever a threat to the vaxxed?
Explain, we know now who was right all along but I never understood the logic.
On Star Trek once, the question came up as to why Worf was so dark-skinned next to another Klingon nearby.
"I'm from the South." When he got a funny look, he glowered, saying, "Every planet has a South!"
I love how much they lampshaded the Klingon character evolution in Trials and Tribbulations. (The real answer being “they had half a shoe string budget and that TOS was 50 years ago”) and in DS9 Worf just says “we do not speak of it.” And everyone else just nods in awkward confusion
@@Kasamirawoke wasn't invented yet
@@brettmuir5679 …what?
@@Kasamira Pay him no mind. Some people need to bring in their political boggiemen into every conversaton.
Employing knowledge provided by history, "woke" appeared first around 100 years ago in black music about racist wolves in sheep's clothing in their midst: Beware. Be woke. And look today where "woke" became unacceptable: In the banning of books on black history in schools. It should send a shudder down intelligent spines to beat it back, as I believe awareness will.
The internets have taught me that ancient aliens fought dinosaurs and then became the first MMA fighters and also built a lot of ancient ruins with cool tools and stuff.
and the dinosaurs had lasers.
we are in the wrong timeline
Sounds legit.
@@Giantcrabz Any timeline without dinosaurs is the worst timeline.
You forgot about the giants… who are also mountains. And they all had clean energy and helicopters!
I’ve been researching Linear A, and the amount of nationalist quackery that gets unleashed on it is unreal. One of the most persuasive videos on UA-cam is from an actual professor who claims that Linear A is ancient Hungarian. It all sounds well thought out and completely plausible, if you’re not familiar with the field. As a result, he’s gotten a following. The truth is that although the professor isn’t at a Hungarian university, his argument is pure Hungarian nationalist nonsense.
wait...really? wow...
@@nco_gets_it Ayup. It’s maddening.
Is this the Hungarian-American computational linguist at Madison, Wisconsin? He says Linear A is a Finno-Ugric language, and that Greek (as in Linear B) has a Finno-Ugric substrate. Sumerian was a hybrid Dravidian and Finno-Ugric language. I don't see what's so nationalist about what he says, other than the ability to spot Hungarian words. One of his students was working on the IVC seals. I was waiting for the IVC to be Finno-Ugric too.
@@faithlesshound5621 It’s Peter Revesz. In the video on YT, he makes it clear that it’s specifically linked with Old Hungarian.
@@faithlesshound5621 Claiming that Greek has a Finno-Ugric substrate is equally silly, especially when you look at some of his “evidence.” He has a table of “cognate words” where the words share, at most, two sounds. Several of the words aren’t even the same-star/moon, wall/brick, tie/tunic, nose/mountain. That’s not a table of cognates, it’s a fishing expedition.
People should identify more with their Activity Logs, and less with their Factory Specs.
what a fucking nerdy and beautiful sentiment
Absolutely!
on the average those two are directly correlated
@@steviechampagne So are ice cream and hot weather. Thing is you can’t choose to not have hot weather, whereas you can choose not to have ice cream.
@@Sophiedorian0535 absolutely, yet few people in arctic climate will go for the ice cream.
A cheery 'Hi!' to all the googledebunkers of the Minuteman tribe.
Greetings from a googledebunkering cell-tick!
I've been turned googledebonkers, I now hear milo's voice when I read googledebunkers in comments.
@@neoqwerty Same here. Haven't heard that word anywhere else. Now I've got an earworm.
Googly eyed gooblygoo.
Hi back to you as well~!
balkaners citing medieval battles and historic migration patterns to win nationalist debates against their neighbors
And DNA tests as well. They have turned into pseudo-geneticists, analyzing Y-DNA Haplogroup a and basing ethnicity on them
THERE ARE NO BALKANS, ONLY GREATER MACEDONIA
As opposed to people in the rest of Europe and the rest of the world that don't do the same?
In their apartment in Germany.
@@Rct3master44 real
Social media is a bit like the local pub . Those who shout the loudest and act as if they know what they'r talking about get a lot of attention. Most don't bother contradicting the loudmouths . The few who take the time to debunk their nonsense , get drawn into an exhausting exchange .
Plus: social media promotes controversy.
Agreed, this is a great analogy.
I would not, and I don't know anybody who would talk to someone who is shouting in a bar.
If they are shouting anything starting with "my ancestry..." I would promptly leave the bar.
@@98Zai lol.yep
I claim the Sumerians as my people.
Because they were Human
Only because the Anunnaki built them that way!
Who hasn't tried beer through a straw! They were wise people for sure.
"I am a memetic descendent of the summerians because i carry the culture(i.e. civilisation)."
@@alexandrub8786 but the marsh arabs carry their dna.
Based
I read that book of scholarship to my frog, and now my frog's gay
The frog was always gay. It's just now he has a frame of reference.
Dang! The history is making the freaking frogs gay?!?!?!!!
@@cedaremberr Science helps prove history so... "Let's Make Science History"!
(See Rob Newman's "The History of the World Backwards" for details...)
But what are the gays doing to the soil?
It seems like the alt history and ancient alien crowd don't understand the culture they are talking about. A good example is the tomb of King Pacal of Palenque. They say it shows an 'astronaut' flying a craft and ignore how all the elements figure into Mayan belief and art.
understanding the culture is irrelevant to their purposes
More critically they don't see that they themselves are part of a culture in that there's an origin to the points they discuss rather than a truth which exists in a vacuum.
They're so high on the belief of discovering their own genius that they'd rather believe to be misunderstood than to acknowledge facts (as observable evidence).
From their perspective, all that information about Mayan belief and art comes from academic experts who are all a bunch of liars, and only they, the conspiracy theorist, is telling the truth. No need to read thousands of books and articles once you've decided they're full of lies, feel free to turn off your brain and enjoy the smugness of believing you are always right.
Mostly because, as the video details, alt history is about supporting one's own political agenda, not uncovering the truth. It's confirmation bias in action.
@@NewNecro Kind of like how they don’t realize or refuse to believe that their beliefs/theories originate from white supremacist thinking and ideals.
WWII Nazis were obsessed with the Germanic warlords of the past.. from Hermann/Arminius to Theodoric to Friedrich Barbarrosa. It didn't end well for the Nazis.
They lost because they were obsessed with past Germans or because of a 20 v 1?
The nazis lost because the allies overwhelmed them and they lost their attempt at global dominance. Also of note, there were issues internally, because it turns out command economies are awful.
Try explaining that to today's MAGAt party.
Maybe a comparison chart of shared beliefs would help.
The nazis lost because they underestimated the Russians. Now what have we learned from history? As per usual, very little.
@@ninthheretic2498the Nazis were high on their own propaganda that they were the master race. All other peoples were degenerate. That’s why they underestimated the Russians. Plus they got really poor lol
You're a brave man. Keep up the good work.
Just showing my appreciation for talking about a difficult & divisive topic ❤
Thank you!
Great video, thoroughly enjoyed it and will excitedly await your future discussions on other political topics
Those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it. Those who do know history are determined to change it!
Thanks for making this video. We have a Greek friend who always says "Everything is Greek!" like the dad from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. We all joke with him and say every random thing is "Greek" : Aztec pyramids, Maple syrup, Playstation console, etc. It's all in good fun.
There was a british comedy show back in the 1990s called *Goodness Gracious Me*
One of the recurring characters was Mr "Everything Comes From India" - you can probably guess the rest from there haha
You can find some of the bits on youtube.
- Leonardo Da Vinci Was Indian
- Jesus was Indian
It is good to be proud of one's heritage. But not to think that people who do not share that heritage are somehow inferior.
@@TheEvertw agreed.
Until you suggest ancient Macedon wasn't...
@@claudiaxander which is hilarious as the Classical Greeks seem to have expressed the view that the Macedonians where not quite proper Greeks, but not full on barbarians until after the conquest of Greece by them
Although I cringe with fellow Greeks who make ridiculous claims about ancient Greeks and how much the ancient Greek civilization contributed to modern world, the study you mentioned about the ancestry of bronze age and modern Greeks is significant in my opinion because it counters Falmerayer's theory that modern Greeks have no connection whatsoever to ancient Greeks which oppinion is ridiculous and likewise politically motivated
Yeah see his part on Jewish and Palestinian claims to show how it gets ridiculous with each blaming another of being effectively illegal migrants and denying ancient heritage. It's absolutely a thing in Anatolia and surroundings as well with Turks vs Armenians vs Greeks vs Kurds vs Syrians etc.
Not all heroes wear capes. Thank you.
You couldn't have even possibly finished this video BY FAR when you posted this. Even as I post this - if I started watching it the second it dropped id still have 20 min to go.
@@JaggerbushIncredible work, Jaggerbush. Your investigations never come up empty.
@@Jaggerbush guilty as charged, but this isn't the first video of Dr M's that I find helpful.
Watched it all now, and hold my position.
A super-hero should NEVER wear a cape.
-- Edna Mode
@@Jaggerbushwoah, guys, watch out. We’ve got a real Sherlock Homeboy here
So many are still trying to settle their ancestor's grievances
Which is what all that “sins of the father” stuff is really about. It’s an admonition, a maxim even, to leave the past in the past.
@@StoneInMySandal- The sins of the father are visited upon descendants to the fourth generation. Because YHWH is a vindictive jerk.
And doing more grievences to people in the present
Great video as always, Dr. M.! Thank you for being you; you are a fantastic teacher to all of us. Please consider making a video on the real history of Israel/Palestine. With all the misinformation on social media and the internet, this is the perfect time to educate ourselves. I’m sure many viewers would agree that we can all benefit from an objective perspective on this topic. Thanks again :)
Thank so much!
When it comes to the hindutva movement the key phrase in it is “consider the Indian subcontinent as their father land AND HOLY LAND”. This by default excludes not only ethnic foreigners but also Hindi and other indigenous people to the Indian subcontinent who adhere to islam and Christianity. It’s impossible for any Abrahamic adherent to consider anywhere other than the Levant and it’s immediate surroundings to be holy land. It is a convenient criteria not only to root out ethnic minorities but religious minorities as well.
Importantly, their definition roots out the indigenous people of the country, who have been relegated to the hills and the backwaters of society, while in our democratic age their population numbers have been appropriated as Hindus, despite their historic exclusion from Hindu sites and ceremonies.
@@faithlesshound5621These hindu right wings are dumbest people
> It’s impossible for any Abrahamic adherent to consider anywhere other than the Levant and it’s immediate surroundings to be holy land
Not exclusively... Mormons and some other American offshoots of Protestants claim (falsely) that America is the REAL lands from the Bible, and also by New Testament, Jesus kind of downplays the importance of a PLACE (any place) in His talk with a Samaritan woman, so any Christian technically can claim ANYWHERE else as another "Holy Land". Notably, for us it's Kyiv. The place where Rus' was first Christened, down with a myth of Andrew the Disciple visiting the hills it stands on and proclaiming that it would be a place for a great city. That's why russian imperialism keeps trying their 2-3 day march on it, as their entire racial supremacy theory doesn't work without holding Ukrainian capital.
Hell, biggest denomination of Christians is Roman Catholic and their Holy Place is Rome, in Italy... And we Orthodox kind of hold Constantinople in similar regard.
It’s a sad thing for any place to be designated a holy land. It does not bode well for the inhabitants or the future of that land.
12:49 you articulated that beautifully. I hear so many professors trying to say the same thing, but it comes out as “race isn’t real” which in my experience puts off people who appreciate their diverse background. A much clearer way to say it. Thank you.
As someone born in Aryavart, right on the banks of Saraswati*, right beside IVC ruins, and a seeker of truth I would like to apologise on behalf of my fellow countrymen and their manners, biases and ignorance.
I would also like to thank you for your educational content that has helped me change the mind of a few people I know, an accomplishment I hope you are proud of.
*sarcasm
*modern day Puadh region of Punjab & Haryana in India, Saraswati is supposedly the river Ghagar Hakra although we always just called it '[locality name]'s stream' ([locality name] ka nala).
You’re the goat
you don't have to apologize for a nation. thank you for your comment
Though whatever the truth maybe about our ancestors people often forget why these outlandish things are spread by each side
Left wing - India is not a country and every identity is fighting each other is not that good for the future of nation
Right Wing - India is a nation from the beginning and should remain so for eternity is kind of good for the future of the nation
Yes , both have problems, left willingly or unwillingly destroying the native faiths
Right is hell bent on destroying foreign faith .
On that note ,please don't be apologetic for stupid people all around us . Because shouldn't't they need to learn about it.
Maybe apologise for left wing Marxists in india that profusely lied about history and suppressed evidence which resulted in the right wing retaliation
Have you heard of the Heggarty et al paper from last year about the hybrid model of Indo-European languages. It suggests that the Indo-Iranic branch could have been around the Indus valley by 5000 years ago, and makes sense of the language distribution, some of the genetic evidence, and the Anatolian languages, among other features. I found it interesting. I'd previously been convinced of a Pontic steppe origin for the IE languages but this paper made reconsider. I think there may be some conflicts with the archaerology though, but I'm not well-informed enough to evaluate those
A friend of mine from Gaza is from a family that claims decent from the very first Christians in the region, certainly their church is 1600 years old.
The origins of the Palestinians are a mixture of ancient Canaanites, Jews who were just one subset of Canaanites, Philistines and other ancient immigrants, followed by medieval Arabs and more immigrants, and so on. Until recent times Mizrahi Jews living there were also considered Palestinian and many now seek to reclaim that identity..
Palestine has been a melting pot for millenia and for anyone to seek to claim it on the basis of a narrow set of genetic markers is ridiculous. The only relevant criteria is international law and human rights.
Are they the Christians that are now called the "standing stones"?
Are they the Christians that are called "the standing stones"?
Perfectly said.
It seems that Arab colonization was limited due to the fact there weren't many of them which is bourne out though modern DNA analysis
Also there is actually zero evidence to prove the Romans wanted to clear out the Jews anymore than any other rebellious province
And now international law has decided that Israeli occupation of Palestinian land is illegal
11:49 The irony, as Turkic peoples didn’t migrate into Anatolia until centuries later.
Thanks!
And thank you!
Regarding your last argument about your aside, I came into the discussion fully on the side of the commenters; but due to your clear explanation, I can absolutely see where I was previously in error. Thank you!
19:50 - 20:05 I disagree with this assertion about anti colonialism and nationalism being some how at odds. It may be true that modern nationalism that is most often expressed in nation states mostly came out of the west, but that does not mean that it is “western”. Nationalism, or the idea that a group of people with a common culture and/or language should resist oppression and fight for a homeland is a concept so old the second book in the Bible is dedicated to it. You can go to the most isolated tribe in the Amazon and see a primitive form of nationalism being expressed, whether or not it’s expressed in clear or definitive terms. I caution to ask if not nationalism, what should a anti-colonialist movements be built around? Class struggle? I can hardly think of a concept more western in nature since ideas of class consciousness only truly came into being in Europe during and after the Industrial Revolution.
For the record, I didn't say anticolonialism and nationalism were at odds.
@@WorldofAntiquity Then with all due respect sir, what were you trying to say there, I run into that argument a lot in university from my professors and they often use similar language when making that point.
@@jake_from_state7143 "Normally, we think of anticolonialism as left wing. But Hindutva is right wing. So both sides use it."
I am not sure what is so hard to understand about that.
@@jake_from_state7143 Hindutva is as right-wing as N@zis using Germanic tribes fighting against the Roman conquers.
"The idea that a group of people with a common culture and/or language should resist oppression and fight for a homeland" conflates two distinct things when applying it to pre-modern conditions. Yes, there were peoples identifying with a shared culture, language or polity, and yes, there's a natural desire to resist oppression and defend your land (though that might just be your part of it, or the land of your village). But the second doesn't follow from the first, it's a different and universal phenomenon.
Nationalism is a fairly recent (and western) innovation, but it's taken three forms: a desire for independence from a foreign oppressor (the anti-colonialist variant); pursuit of cultural, linguistic or political unity (the "nation-building" form, often well-intentioned but too easily tipping into oppression of minorities); and belief in a mystical underlying unity too often accompanied by notions of exceptionalism or superiority - ironically the very doctrines that propelled the colonialism that the more "defensive" nationalism opposed.
I long shared your view that nationalism could be "civilised" and turned to positive ends, but I'm afraid experience both before and since the 20th-century heyday of classic anti-colonial struggle suggests that it's too dangerous a doctrine. That doesn't preclude nationhood or the right to self-determination and for peoples to live in peace under institutions of their choosing (which I'd offer as an answer to your question about alternatives), but as an ideology nationalism has become more of a menace to our shared human civilisation than a force for good.
I remember my grandmother telling me, "I don't care what they teach you in school. The World of Antiquity UA-cam channel was researched and presented by Prof. Graham Hancock PhD."
Hancock is a quack.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on these subjects in a well presented way.
And thank you!
A good example of cultural bias in archaeology is the early excavation of the Great Zimbabwe.
This may just be one of the most relevant videos i've seen on UA-cam,
Thank you very much for addressing this issue, i just discovered your channel, awesome!
Greets from Mexico
I am amazed at how well said this whole video was
I was thoroughly offended that this video didn’t offend me!!! I went into this video assuming I’d be offended! You took the time to offend a lot of other people, but neglected to offend me!
Also please make that Levant video. Would love to learn about historical accuracy of the story of Passover, not the plagues part but Jewish people being enslaved in Egypt
I'm offended that your comment made me laugh! You should have offended me!
I would suggest History with Cy who has done quite a bit about the ancient Levant/Palestine its history & peoples
congratulations! you found a zionist "historian" to back you up
@@evilgingerminiatures5820History with Cy is a great history channel
History is and always will be POLITICIZED.
All humans have a bias which affects the studied subject in one way or another.
Yet one must discern between what is individual bias versus a supposed collective bias. Here is what I mean:
1 - religious believers all ascribe to what is often a dogmatic adherence to their religious doctrine. To that end they often per _"confirmation bias"_ interpret events based upon that preexisting belief structure = hence collective bias.
2 - in the case of say LAHT one sees individuals generating what are typically flawed historical/archeological claims which represent "their opinion". Because their claims reflect ones which originate to a sole individual typically dependent upon a desire to accept as true what they have chosen to believe = individual bias.
Moral: in science and science-derived subjects we have however = _"peer-review."_ While peer-review is contingent upon consensus - it is not collective bias. You have rather otherwise unaffiliated individuals knowledgeable in the subject-matter who upon review all conclude the evidence supports the claimed outcome. It is the basis of the adage all are familiar with:
_"2 heads are better than 1"_
Above helps to mitigate your "all have bias" effect. Whether or not bias plays a role in some assertion = peer-review helps to identify that bias if present and ascertain the plausibility or not of said assertion. That is about as good as it gets I'm afraid.
Tell me you didn't watch the video without telling me you didn't watch the video....
there's having a bias and then there's lying on purpose to show an agenda
Israel: we were here thousands of years ago
Non-native americans: uh oh
Thanks for pointing that out. Although, most Natives don't want to drive anyone out or anything like that.
And THIS is why left wing Americans target Israel: it's easier than moving out of their own homes & returning it to the First Nations.
@@MikeGraceJediDad Neither did israel. If nothing else, the 40% of locals who remained 7 were welcomes into israel would prove that.
@@nebulan went straight to the comments in the "politicized history" video and the 3rd comment in was history-free snark about Jews. (Excuse me, I only mean the 9 million "Zionists" and the Jews worldwide who like Israel. Not saying that's antisemitic or anything).
@@SafetySpooonis a lying genocider.
For real history read Ben Gurion, Einstein and Arendt.
Good work Dr. M. You have been a great spokesperson for the practice of examining evidence and moderating conclusions based upon what can be reasonably drawn from it. Your insight into the many ways our knowledge of the ancient past can be impacted, altered, and distorted by those who endeavor to propound a given historical narrative in promotion of an ideological agenda is legitimate and valuable, in my opinion.
The fact that you present with such rigor and enthusiasm for the topics you cover while honoring the mainstream historical method, and your debunking of heavy hitters in the LAHT throng has made you a natural target of certain taxa of alt-theorists. In my view you acquit yourself admirably whilst addressing and responding to critics.
David's claims to not want to politicize history comes off as crypto-natoinalist motivated. On the one side he frames DNA evidence, a legitimate source of scientific evidence, as pseudo-scientific ethno nationalism. On the other he flip-flops by using DNA evidence to argue Jews are related to ancient Jews. David changes his own alleged scientific principles when it suits him. David isn't very credible.
About the culture war and politics. It reminds me of climate change, and how so many reject the science for politics.
What about those that reject the science and use the dogmatic for politics?
I enjoyed hearing your thoughts.
When I was at the Yerkes Primate Center at Emory University, we had an initiative to bring hard scientists like molecular biologists together with sociologists, primatologists, and psychologists. The idea was to bring the tools of molecular biology and chemistry, etc. Into those fields.... and to enhance the scientific tools they used.
As a molecular biologist by training, I enjoyed sitting in on lab meetings and journal clubs with sociologists and psychologists. The topics were amazing.
But the culture clash was huge. Their ideas of what a control is would never survive in a molecular lab. Their endpoints and measurement techniques were shockingly subjective, despite their best efforts.
Some of this is inevitable. I came away deeply impressed by the extreme difficulty in designing an objective test of the human mind - a nearly impossible task if there were not ethical constraints.
You seem to be more toward the hard data and objective results end of the spectrum - even though ancient civilizations make deciding what the hard data actually means extremely difficult.
I think you might gain a lot by taking a similar journey - sitting in on journal clubs in the women's studies department and in the chemistry or physics department.
The differences in the "scientific method" as it exists in these areas of inquiry are quite informative.
Thank you for untangling so many knots! Thank you for your clear words! Your extraordinary diligence is greatly appreciated!
Love your video. I think it is very important people are reminded that politics has no business in investigating history, and using it to validate their belief system. History needs to be looked at objectively, and presented factually.
This was a fantastic, very informative video! Thank you for making it!
I love your "guilt and glory" example. I've always felt people's pride for what their distant distant relatives did as odd. It's like just learn a skill and be proud of that.
It's a strong part of British culture today, a pining for past Empire.
As an Israeli who always believed in both the right of Jews on the land and the right of Palestinians for statehood - exactly because, like you say, 'so much has happened since then' -
I really do appreciate the professionalism and unbiased approach you took in addressing the usage of ancient history (fabricated or real) in this conflict.
I knew I was right to subscribe to this channel... 🙂
And the right of Palestinians on the land and the right of Israelis for statehood.
Israelis have no right to statehood.
All we have is the here and now and we should think in those terms alone therefore it's my opinion that those Palestinians who have never known Palestine should be given status in the place they happen to be and where appropriate compensated too
Within Israel/Palestine itself civil rule should be extended across the Green Line and the barriers removed
Israeli Archaeology graduate here.
I appreciate the sober treatment of such a touchy subject. I would like to comment though, in regards to Israeli Archaeologists trying to use archaeology for justification of our self determination on this land; While it's certainly true, especially in regards to the older generation of archaeologist (probably our greatest being an IDF Chief of Staff), the current generation, especially in my alma mater in Tel Aviv, painstakingly works to divorce this legacy from the pure study of archaeology, a lot of progress has been made in the field thanks to dropping both national agendas and Holy Scripture from the archaeologist's tool kit.
I would also like to refer to a book written recently by one of the faculty members on this subject: Archaeology, Nation, and Race: Confronting the Past, Decolonizing the Future in Greece and Israel, by Raphael Greenberg and Yannis Hamilakis.
"Sober treatment" -- I doubt if I'm the only one that stared at the angry raving figure in the thumbnail for a long while wondering if I was looking at the right channel after all...
Decolonization is always bloody and was always meant to be. Be mindful of the words you use and where they came from.
The lack of foresight that I see within the people pushing for it is deeply disturbing.
Just be sure that you are ok with the tradeoffs.
There is no such thing as problem solving.
There are only tradeoffs.
Be careful what you wish for and be mindful of what you promote.
International law is a fairly recent phenomenon.
It was noble to try to stabilize the world with fixed borders, but I don’t see it lasting, unfortunately.
Outside of the West no one cares about a free press, individual rights, or free speech.
As the West collapses due to “decolonization” the world will get very dark.
Of course we won’t hear about the atrocities happening all over because no one cares about what happens to anyone if the perpetrator is not white or can at least be blamed.
It took me along time to realize this, but it’s unmistakable at this point.
I read a discussion between two Israeli archaeologists, one of whom insisted on a nationalist vision and the other on a civic vision of the state of Israel. An interesting dispute. And while the nationalist stance may have served ethno-nationalism, the "civic" approach was already fair and objective.
@@acaydia2982”free press, individual rights, free speech”? Nobody hates it more than western elites who are making sure to destroy all of those in their countries to have some kind of neofeudalism. Also: why would decolonized countries would care about them while colonized they didn’t got them? I guess you have walked the earth and just know that your i existent “enlightenment” fantasy is just the best for everybody else…
You are a first for me in this platform: a colonial bot. Go figure.
It’s so much more than that.
Every middle eastern ethnic and religious minority know what colonization and oppression is.
Especially when it’s about arabization an Islamization. And we are all used to the fake stories of Arabs and Muslims but it’s interesting how the left spreads their delusions as well.
It’s insanity.
Lying and denying the oppression and genocides committed over centuries till even now. And creating this fairytale in which we all supposedly lived peacefully together.🤣
Thanks for articulating how I've been feeling about ancient history and prehistory, so well.
I like your fair approach on history, I love history and I want the truest take on it no matter how it falls. Keep it up.
Thank you so much David ! Everything you said in this video is just, you don't take any side, you stick to evidence, you're not afraid to express ideas if they are valid. Thank you for your courage, and this scientific video on History, specially the touchy questions. Thank you for saying what you said on the other video that some people felt offended about. I appreciate that you precised it. Indeed it seems today some people want to protect (possible) racism, by using bad faith and the victim card. Your videos are refreshing and reassuring, specially after having heard people like Graham Hancock, spreading lies on Ancient History. We need professors like you. Thank you for being on UA-cam and the courses you propose. It makes me want to become a patron for your channel and your work, and subscribe to your courses. Take care, Gaby
When has history not been politicized?
Plenty... It's all the stuff that's boring to people who aren't interested in history unless there's some political, social, religious, treasure, or other aspect that's relevant to that person. So much history is "boring" in that sense.
@@GizzyDillespee sure, but it’s still all just used for some political agenda or another, even the “boring stuff” because it’s often the “boring stuff” that people latch on to and use to prove whatever point they are trying to make. Like people that want to talk about the daily lives of people in the 50’s compared to today and try to make an argument about how much better things were back then. They aren’t using things like the Korean War.
A fair point: it's always been invoked in political debate, and formal "history" (too much of it concerning politics & government anyway) was notoriously for long the account left by the winners. I think the issue today is that we have the methods to advance beyond such partial & partisan interpretation, but an industry has arisen aimed at turning the clock back and promoting division and supremacist doctrines in place of improved common understanding of our shared past. it's hyper-politicisation that seeks not just to use the record for its own ends, but to suppress findings & perspectives that are inconvenient to it.
@@davepx1 exactly, all impartially is lost in a sea of tribalism.
@@scottnunnemaker5209 It's more than tribalism, though. As you indicated, we've always had competing ideological or sectional perspectives - but we learned to take account of that in our reading and conclusions: "OK, this person's coming at it from the left/right, let's note that and see if they've an objectively valid contribution to bring to the table beyond mere partisanship."
Today's onslaught on scholarship is something different, for altogether more destructive ends, the objective being not just to promote a subjective viewpoint (which we all inevitably do anyway because we all have them) but to undermine learning & knowledge itself. Dark times.
Hell yea. Love this, first video I am watching this morning and probably one of the better videos Ive watched in a very long time.
Thanks.
Extremely well written video. Thank you ❤
“So Much Has Happened Since Then” is a fantastic slogan for history in general.
The inherent morality vs facts part of this discussion is extremely interesting to me - at university ten years ago I was strictly instructed that well researched facts were suitable for inclusion in essays on archaeology, but was marked down more than once for not making value judgements in history essays, and I'm still torn as to which is 'correct'. Certainly history is more interesting when someone tries to make a point with it, but something happening to be interesting doesn't necessarily mean it is of value.
Left me with a strong feeling that history, as practiced by the education system, is a political plaything to be aimed in any direction the wielder wishes rather than an earnest effort to understand humanity. Has that whole "doomed to repeat it" maxim constantly gnawing at me.
It depends on whether the purpose is ascertaining what happened or evaluating what happened.
Absolutely fantastic video, one of the best you've made
This is a great video. I respect you IMMENSELY for refusing to talk about your own politics on your channel. You're being educational, first and foremost, and ancient history is for everyone to learn and appreciate. You set a good example!
12:44 just so we're on the same page here.... not everyone who finds the Indo-European migrations interesting is a stormfront fascist..... There is some fascinating history there. And those migrations definitely happened, and there was a replacement in Northern Europe. It's so similar to what happened to the Americas (replacement in North, intermarriage in the more populous and advanced regions of Meso-america), it begs the question: was disease involved? but I digress... not everyone who finds this stuff interesting is a fascist, and we shouldn't give the field to fascists.
Most history books say the Nazis falsely claim to descend from the Aryans, but Aryans were a part the steppe migration into Europe.
Yes a small group of people definitely managed to mix up the majority. Logically impossible.
Federico Navarrete, Historian, Anthropologist UNAM. Between 1821 and 1910: 3.5 million Indigenous people were categorized as Mestizo. •By the time the Mexican census of 1930 took place: 30% of the entire Mexican population who has been categorized as Indigenous, was now categorized as “Mestizo.” Historians argue that this was also done to repress “Casta Wars” and erase the power of the Indigenous population. The white elites feared that they would lose power. •Mestizaje was not a racial reality but rather a “massive linguistic displacement.” Indigenous people were whiten through language and culture markers, not racial.
Whew, this video is way overdue 👏👏👏 Youre the only adult in the room on this issue.
Outstanding! Thank you, Professor Miano!
You never cease to amaze me! Love your channel and love to learn from your videos. Keep up the great work.
You have explained in the most objective and logical way possible.❤
This is such an important video! Great content as always.
Referring to Foerster as a visiting foreigner might have taken the "edge" off :D
Very good video, as usual :)
Exactly! all I can think is if I was asked to read the script over, I would have said the same thing, or to use the analogy that he used in this video "maybe it's not good to go over and offer those kids candy from an optics standpoint"
Fantastic video and I fully support the thesis about the dangers of allowing politics to dictate history. I wanted to comment to commend your rhetoric in this video. It’s really difficult to argue about political subjects without seeming to come down on one side and attacking the other , even if very implicitly, and I thought you did a really good job disarming the common attacks leveled at academics from detractors on both sides while still showing sympathy.
there's nothing wrong with picking a side. Do you need to have an "unbiased" opinion on whether the Holocaust was bad?
@@Giantcrabz If I compare what is happening in the Gaza Ghetto today and what happened in the Warsaw Ghetto almost a century ago, being evenhanded would be called prejudiced and antisemitism. If I quote both Hillel the Elder, "What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow: this is the whole Torah; the rest is the explanation; go and learn." and Mohammad in the Kitab Al-Kafiy, "As you would have people do to you, do to them; and what you dislike to be done to you, don't do to them." Then both sides will be angry and both will ignore the content.
@@Giantcrabz- Not all topics need a 'side', and for history, what we want is accuracy and truth. Six million Jews, and some four million others, were murdered by the Nazis. But if we approach it with a simplistic 'Good v Evil' mindset, we won't understand how and why it happened.
@@JMM33RanMA Gaza is like the one conflict where it IS actually "both sides". Especially compared to such one-sided things as Assad massacring his own people, Myanmar junta destroying local villages on helicopters or the russia... everything they do.
@@KasumiRINA That is why I reluctantly take a position of, "A pox on both their houses," from Shakespeare. However I pity the innocents on both sides, caught between both sides' militant 'muminun kadhibun,'which could be translated as ignorant aggressors or partisans.
Commenting for the algorithm.. love your show, you're awesome
a great lecture. you touched on some key aspects of quality scholarship;
- it demands that one examine the a priori foundations (implicit assumptions) of topics & practitioners.
- it demands the capacity for in-depth understanding of alternative & competing techniques & analysis of others in one's field (& over time).
- it is valuable to clearly distinguish & state what one claims to be; evidence > fact > analysis > conjecture > truth > belief > ideology / faith. {these all have distinct meanings... they are even spelled differently}
kinda revealing how reactive folk were your remark about "optics"... clear (to me) you were addressing perception sensitivity, rather than a subjective judgment.
I think my first run-in with this in my life was with my social studies tutor in junior high. I'd come to her house every week for help with my textbook studies. But then she started going on really bizarre tangents when we got to the chapter on ancient rome. She called Julius Caesar a "liberal communist" who destroyed the republic by "giving property/wealth to the lazy poor" and called the Roman Empire "the world's first socialist dictatorship." Even as a completely clueless 14 year old I was rendered speechless how someone that unhinged and ignorant could be tutoring me on history.
You should film yourself wandering around Foerster"s house whilst exclaiming loudly how the people that live here now were far too primitive to have ever constructed such complexity. And how it must have been some superior immigrants ! ❤
Sadly there is no "time before the culture wars."
Very brave of you to tackle this topic. I enjoyed this video and thank you for making it.
Something I didn't know when I first arrived in the DC area, that after 30 years having my face rubbed in it daily I was forced to admit is true, is that to the political mentality, every aspect of life is potentially political. The more psychopathic the political mentality becomes, the more aspects of life are politicized, particularly with regard to the established sciences or any other settled fact. It has been said that DC is among the most beautiful cities in the world, to which I would add that it's never more beautiful as when viewed in the rear view mirror. I left 20 years ago hoping to escape it all, only to find that it's once again in my face all the time through the news outlets and social media.
Everything is political. Especially any kind of "identity politics". The only time you can pretend it isn't, is when your version is the dominant default.
The internet has grown into silos and echo chambers. Ideology is rewarded with more sharing and views the more strident it is. This is leading to anarchy on a global scale.
@jeffmacdonald9863
When you think everything relates to politics in some way, sure everything is political. But it doesn't have to be.
Things like hobbies can pass on or muse on political subjects but you don't have to compare it to the real world all the time. Sometimes it is okay to let the universe you are looking at have its own isolated politics.
"Everything is political" is just a phrase parties use to strongarm or guilt your support. No matter the side, they do it. From how conservatives use the bible to teach "conservative lessons" all the way to pride flags being the literal definition of political symbols. People must break free of the great lie that everything you day or don't say supports something.
@@Drako9823 How do you avoid it? Even with your hobbies. Plenty of hobbies see fights over inclusion or representation. Excluding people based on identity isn't non-political.
what is the politics of an anime girl eating a burger? Yeah thought so.
I loved this. Thank you! Couldn’t agree more.
I admire your bravery for tackling such questions, very nicely thought out.
As an Assyrian, I was always told that Sumerians were our ancestors, am I wrong in thinking this?
I have no idea, but you're awesome either way❤.
I would assume at least distantly the Akkadian peoples from north of the Sumerian cities, the Ancient Assyrians where an Akkadian people
Sumerians were the ancestors of everyone in the world. So were the Assyrians, because they are that far back in history that members of that ancient community would have moved around and mixed with other communities and over time everyone would have at least some ancestry that traces to the ancient Assyrian and Sumerian communities. That's what this video is about. It's impossible to remain an isolated community for a generation, let alone many generations. The fact that people hide behind these claims is evidence of individual and community laziness and lack of achievements.
It really boils down to what you mean by "our ancestors".
Assyrian identity itself is an evolution of the Northern subgroup of Akkadians, which was highly influenced by Sumerians who lived in the South of Mesopotamia. Its ethno-genesis mostly occurred in the Late Bronze Age and there is certainly a Sumerian component in your people's genetics and culture. But you must always keep in mind three very important things :
1- You aren't just descended from Sumerians and Akkadians, you are also descended from Arameans, Israelites, Armenians, Arabs and various other peoples who faded from memory, all of whom migrated or were deported (by the Neo-Assyrians) to the region from which you originate. Those groups themselves aren't any less mixed than you are as well and if you look at them you will also find a complex mosaic in terms of genetics and culture.
2- You aren't the sole inheritor of Sumerians as almost everyone in the region can trace at least some ancestry to them and were greatly influenced by them historically speaking. In other words, your claim should not be regarded as exclusive to your people group.
3- You should be aware that Assyrian identity was never static, and "what it means to be Assyrian" changed over history. There is undeniable continuity between Ancient and Modern Assyrians, but the Assyria of Old would be alien to you, as they would be speaking a different language (Akkadian vs Neo-Aramaic), following a very different religion (Mesopotamian polytheism vs Christianity) with a very different culture, traditional dress and set of practices.
In conclusion, be proud of who you are and being part of the legacy of Ancient Sumeria, but be weary of 1- thinking that's the only component of your ancestry or culture that matters 2- thinking you hold exclusive right to their legacy and 3- thinking your identity is frozen in time, otherwise you will fall into dangerous and pseudo-historical notions of who you are.
Much love to Assyrians from a Tunisian Arab ❤
They are different peoples, speaking different languages. Yes, cultural heritage can be debated, but as a modern human being, you are probably heir to Sumer in the same measure as any of us -- it is a component of our civilization (because it inherits from Rome, from Greece, from Persia, from Babylonia, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Akkad, from Sumer, as well as from barbarian peoples). In terms of genetics, you probably have more in common with the Sumerians than I do, but you're not a direct heir either -- maybe someone in Iraq?
I am offended! that I didn't come across this earlier!!!
It amazes me to still hear politician's using language that could have been lifted right out of Thucydides to describe current events, and to justify policy decisions.
I like what you said about other areas of history being kind of filled in more recently. When I studied history in college (4 schools over a decade and a half to get my BA), my professors wanted to make sure I could do research at lower levels. Upper level stuff was trying to get you interested in more niche topics because that's what you're doing as you move up the academic ladder. In my upper level courses, It was hard to get an A for a paper on a topic they've seen every semester since they became a graduate assistant unless it's written really well. It's like that feeling some folks get about Superhero Movies but Battles or Generals in History. As you said certain topics are underresearched and therefore it's easier to get recognition for your research when you cover less tread ground. I feel bad for anyone doing groundbreaking research and has to deal with all the culture war stuff.
Stellar video Doc, keep up the good work!
Definitely would like to see more on this subject. Good information
Excellent presentation David! Thank you for such honest work & professionalism on this subject. I appreciate the evidence based conclusions!
I feel like science and history deniers don’t have the attention span and critical thinking skills to even finish this video
Likely. Those who approach such videos with a preexisting bias - such as the LAHT fanboy club - cannot be expected to finish the video. Upon seeing their fantastical assumptions go up in smoke this will generate "angst" which they invariably counter by ceasing to watch it.
Moral: LAHT lives in the fantasy world of _"my belief......"_ They comically - yet sadly - assume their supposed reality based upon a subjective desire to = assume themselves as always right - which of course is nonsense. When people do not accede to reality they might be wrong about something they are on the path of self-delusion.
The key here per science/logic is for them to learn = they are not the arbiters of validity here - the experts are. They are simply "cursory viewers" of information presented on the internet where misinformation can abound depending upon source. The reason we educate ourselves is not simply to learn new things = it is to learn to recognize above........
I read the entire history of summeria in the Robert E Howard encyclopedia set.
Kull and Conan had a hard life before becoming kings.
They pre-date Sumeria. Kull pre-dates Conan.
Wait isn't Conan a Cimerrian? I hardly know much about them, we only learned a little bit in ancient history of Ukraine. Something about blood of your enemies, women weeping?
@@KasumiRINA- I think he misspelled Cimmerian. You should read the stories. Conan had one heck of a life before he became king of Aquilonia.
@@KasumiRINA auto correct
@julietfischer5056 not even sure why encyclopedia ended up here. It was the complete original book set of the Robert E Howard Conan.
This is such a great video. Well done.
this is good work, keep it up
At 51:35, re. your hypothetical "History of Queer People in Ancient Times", that title is already political. Were there ancient people who called themselves "queer" or some ancient analog? (I understand the non-derogatory meaning of queer to be a thoroughly postmodern descriptor) If it is the case that ancient people didn't have a comparable concept, then any book on "queer" ancient history is probably filled with projection.
or maybe straightness is an aberration
Your comment seems to be unaware of the fact that we describe things in our own language. Was the "Bronze Age" called the Bronze Age back then? No. Was Alexander III called Alexander III? No. We gave him the number. Was the Akkadian Empire called the Akkadian Empire? No. These are our names.
@WorldofAntiquity Names are one thing (i.e Bronze Age) but queer (as opposed to homosexual) is a concept and what I'm getting at is "did ancient peoples have that concept?". In an academic context I would define queer as being self-consciously subversive of societal norms regarding sexuality or gender (see the transitive verb "to queer"). Is the historical or archeological record of ancient times really good enough to establish that there were "queer" people? Or is it more likely a case of modern projection onto ancient peoples?
That's like suggesting that red headed people are a modern invention because we don't find enough red headed dead people. Queer people are born, not made. There's no doubt that the labels and expressions would be different in a radically different culture. But people who we would call gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, etc. would still be born and have atypical experiences. And you can't just hand waive away the fact that these lives are often lived underground due to skepticism and hostility from the mainstream. That's going to impact how they are recorded, and how often.
@WorldofAntiquity I agree with your sentiments... but ask yourself this: have you ever met someone who wrote a book called "Queer society in antiquity" or somesuch who isn't also motivated by ideology.
One of my favorite books about ancient history in college was a study of ancient sex toys. A gay friend had it as a coffee table conversation piece. It was fascinating and as an 18 year old kid it changed my perception of ancient people, making them more real.
Human sexuality is obviously an incredibly important aspect of culture, and obviously deserving of serious study, despite the inherent difficulty in obtaining data.
But finding someone who wants to dedicate their life to specializing in finding aspects of genderqueer culture in ancient South American societies who isn't motivated by personal ideology might be a tall ask.
Problem is that archeology is rooted in nationalism and there are great divisions between individual national "schools" that are not able to talk to each other AT ALL.... :(
I think it's not about archaeology, because I live in a country where archaeology was nationalistic -- but it's not.
On the other hand, it's a general principle that we look at the past through the glasses of the present. I recently encountered such an example as the participation of barbarians in the fall of Rome -- in the shadow of World War II, when the Germans were the perpetrators of crimes, the barbarians were seen as pre-Nazis almost, a murderous horde that came to murder. We are in the 21st century, the EU, nations are making friends, and the barbarians are spoken of in the context of the "migration of peoples," as a complex process.
I can throw a lot of such examples from my national history and relations with my neighbours, but these barbarians and Rome should be understood more universally.
@@PKowalski2009 Its not in the generation who studies now, but it still is in the generation who teaches....
This is true often times. There is a lot of Russian archeological papers that have never been translated into English. etc. They don't want to translate it.
Same goes for history and most subjects in that field. I wanted to study near eastern studies, because I’m part of an ethnic minority of the Middle East and wanted to learn more in general.
I was shocked by how biased this field is.
Very dishonest teachings and little to no truth about the history of ethnic and religious minorities. It’s basically pro Islam pro arabization 🤣. Any critique is seen as an attack.
I wonder if it’s the fear to say the truth or just actual delusion.
As someone staunchly on the Left, the Cleopatra, Netflix special is a joke, Netflix docs on Ancient history is questionable, though their recent history, pretty good. Love your work Dr Miano, this is the 180 to the bullshit on YT, cheers from Buffalo.
You couldn't have even possibly finished this video BY FAR when you posted this. Even as I post this - if I started watching it the second it dropped id still have 20 min to go.
@@Jaggerbush look at the edit genius
If that woman would have been of Arab or North African decent instead of American African no one would have said a thing. Yes, the woman is an American African. However, her phenotype would have been pretty common in the Mediterranean region at the time. The Greeks saw themselves as between the people of the north and the people of the south.
@@kudjoeadkins-battle2502 Sorry, but the Ptolemies were Macedonian and they sought to keep their bloodlines true. They adopted the Egyptian practice of royal incest. Presenting her as otherwise, such as Netflix has, is an historical falsehood.
@@intractablemaskvpmGy how did they look? They would have looked like other people in the region and that actress that played the part isn't that far off. Let's not pretend that the Macedonians were some pale skinned people. No one ever described them as such. They would have been more than likely similar to the Greeks who saw themselves as a medium between the lightest and the darkest.
Doc, you rock! Thank you for a well thought out video. Keep up the good work. ❤
This is why I respect and admire you so much. You don't alienate anyone by injecting political thought into your videos. I like that your videos are for everyone :)
So he first says he won’t be expressing a political bias, that everyone on both sides of the aisle does it but then lists four ways this is done ... three of which were right wing.
ethnic claims are only associated with the right if you're a Yuro or a yank. He even says this in the video, and it only takes taking a look at south america or asia to know this is truth.
@@ColasTeam you think that anti-ethnic claims of left wing academics aren't also inherently political? Just as some people falsely attribute extra greatness, exclusivity and credit to their ancestors for political reasons so too do others falsely discredit, disparage and even outright deny the existence of a people for political reasons. In the west right now the latter is far more common than the former and has large amount of institutional backing. That's why so many of them get their panties in a knot when it comes time to deal with integrating the results of advanced in archeogenetics
The main problem with value judgements is that when many people call some historical (or modern political) person or entity "bad", they tend to assume, that the opponents of the said person or entity are or were "good". I may be biased and generally wrong, but in my opinion conflicts are rarely between "good" and "evil'. Much more frequently you'll run into several "evils" fighting to have an upper hand and sacrificing a lot of people in the process. My country is currently at war and is internationally acclaimed as "good". But from inside the mess i see only two oppressive cleptocratic murderous regimes mass-killing their misguided and heavily indoctrinated people in a crazy struggle, while other actors do their best to extract as much gain from the situation as possible.
Which country are you from?
14:30 "I don't believe we inherit the glory, or the guilt of our ancient ancestors."
I share this mindset, even up to just a few generations ago. They can inspire you if you want, but you can never own them.
They would not recognize me as a relative, and I would not recognize anything about their lives. It is too far away to share the glory or the guilt.
Thanks for this very good video...
Very interesting and well put together video, as usual. I really just wanted to comment on the beautiful warm lighting on display; 'tis a very pleasant change of pace to the rather cool, LED look most of the other UA-camrs I watch prescribe to for their videos.
The lighting is great.
I don't know what you are talking about. The Sumerians were clearly Serbian 🇷🇸🇷🇸🇷🇸
Great video btw
Lmao
Just look at the China claim to south china sea and Israel claim to Palestinian land. Imagine your family clan lived there for 200 years then some stranger start attacking and stealing your land and sea the reason they do this is because their ancestors owned it 1000 years ago.
Well you over simplyfying A LOT with a clear biased view.
This is an excellent and much-needed analysis! Great work!
Your channel is the legit best thing to come into my life lmao. Thanks so much!