5 Surprising Trivia Facts About World History and Culture

It's always good to know about world history and culture so that you have a solid base of reference for everything happening today. Or maybe you just want to be a smartass and blurt out some random facts and pieces of trivia at the bar with your buddies or while trying to survive that dull office party. Here are 5 surprising trivia facts about world history and culture to keep in mind.

1. The End of World War II - We all know the story here... Hitler was being surrounded on one side by the advancing Russians and on the other by the Allies from Europe and North America... The United States drops two nuclear weapons on Japan and the war comes to an end, right? Well, not technically. Due to Germany being divided into two halves and the impending Cold War with its tense hostilities amongst former allies, a formal peace treaty was never signed with Germany, the United States and Russia until the fall of the Soviet Union. The German reunification, celebrated on June 3rd 1990 marks the official, in the books, end of World War II.

2. The Term "Limey" - Any good natured, Queen-fearing American chap will tell you that the word limey is used in reference to an Englishman. But why do we use the word and where did it come from? In the time of scurvy and painfully long voyages across oceans and around the globe, officials were at first left dumbfounded with how to deal with the sickness and death aboard their vessels. Eventually, a physician from Edinburgh by the name of James Lind recommended citrus fruit as a possible solution. Lemons were used with great success. However, for economic reasons, lemons were replaced with limes and were carried on all British ships as an order. Hence the term limey, deriving originally from lime juicer, was used in reference to a British sailor. Unfortunately and ironically, limes carried not nearly enough vitamin C to combat the illness and scurvy again ran rampant.

3. The Roman Gladiatorial Thumbs Up or Down - The thumbs up has become quite the pop culture reference in recent years following its appearance in the movie Gladiator. A thumps up was used when deciding to let the victorious gladiator live, a thumbs down, and we all know the rest. But that is not historically correct; the Romans did not use a thumbs down gesture in any area of life. In fact, a thumbs up, representing a drawn sword, was the signal for death. A closed fist, with the thumb or sword sheathed away, meant the gladiator would be spared. Ridley Scott, the director of Gladiator, did know this while making the movie but decided that it would be too confusing to the audience to use the traditional method.

4. The Capital City of Thailand - Let's clear it up right away, it's not Bangkok. It hasn't been known as Bangkok for over two hundred years. The current name is Krung Thep (pronounced Grung Tape). That name is in turn actually an abbreviation for the real name, a name that is the longest name for any place in the world. Planning a trip there? You might not want to be too eager to impress locals by calling the city by its full name-you'd have to remember 64 syllables.

5. The Sanctity of the Chastity Belt - Oh, the chastity belt...a very useful item for the crusading knight on the move. Going off to war for a few months or years at a time? Then have no worries! Lock up your lovely lady in a hulking metallic piece of underwear and ride off knowing she will have no choice but to be faithful to you, whether she likes it or not. This seems to be a completely fabricated myth. The little known usage of true chastity belts shows that they were worn at the behest of a woman, to protect herself from unwanted attention. Hundreds of years after the Middle Ages, they were used to keep young boys from masturbating if they could not contain themselves. Now, in the glorious 21st century, chastity belts appear to be quite the boutique item at sex and bondage shops, being used for the exact thing they were intended to prevent. Isn't it ironic, don't ya think?

Sources: John Lloyd and John Mitchinson, The Book of General Ignorance. Harmony Books, 2006.