The original Mongolic text of The Secret History of the Mongols is lost. The only surviving version 元朝秘史 from the Ming era is itself a fascinating work using Chinese characters to transcribe the Mongolic pronunciation, with annotation on the meaning

「成吉思皇帝的根源 上天處命有的 生了的蒼色狼 有妻他的慘白色鹿 有來騰汲思(水名)渡著來了」

Just discovered hundreds of pages of geomantic texts in the Yongle dadian 永樂大典, including left "ghost of litigation and whipping followers" formation and right "ghost of temples of ill repute" formation.

I wrote a short post with links, and as ever huge appreciation for OUP designer Brady McNamara. 2// karinwulf.com/tidbits/what...

The book is about the power of genealogy, emotional texture and statecraft alike. In the weeks before publication in early July I'm highlighting individual items that make up the beautiful cover, starting with this 1776 Franktur birth certificate from the collections at the Newberry Library. 1/

This tiny forty-eighth stater is one of the first coins ever made. It was minted in the Kingdom of Lydia sometime between the 630s & 553 BC, making it up to 2,650 years old.

Apropos of Warren Zevon's deserved Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Not only did Kid Rock's "All Summer Long" steal Warren Zevon's hook from "Werewolves of London," it also stole the premise of Zevon's "Play it All Night Long." "Play that dead band's song" indeed.

The possible elimination of the lab threatens irreparable harm not only to global understanding of climate change and long-range scenarios for the planet but to the country’s safety, competitiveness and national security. @propublica.org www.propublica.org/article/trum...

It's #ManuscriptMonday! The Irk Bitig, a Book of Divination from the 9th–10th centuries CE was probably written in Old Turkic in Turkic Runes and was found in the Dunhuang cave complex in western China! You can read more about it here: idp.bl.uk/blog/an-omen...

Several thoughts about this very helpful interview on NYT w Chris Eisgruber, president of Princeton, about existential attacks on higher ed, how and what solidarity among American universities looks like. And why it's worth the listen. (Also a dopey headline.) 1/ www.nytimes.com/2025/04/09/p...

So many student visas have been revoked that Inside Higher Ed started mapping them

"This American Life" spoke to the Columbia student whose visa was revoked & who left the US for Canada after some days in hiding (while ICE kept trying to arrest her?), and it all sounds bizarre and terrifying www.thisamericanlife.org/857/transcript

I Hope Millions of Americans Will Participate Again…😊💙💙💙💙

Historians are going to have better records from the 19th century than the 21st, is my most medievalist futurist prediction.

DOGE wiping out your local libraries, arts councils, museums, historic sites: www.npr.org/2025/04/03/n...

If your NEH grant was terminated, please share that information with @humanitiesall.bsky.social via the form below.

How have I not wasted days on Michael Boym's Flora Sinensis yet?

Here's a depiction of a water mouth 水口 from a 19th century genealogy. It's clear to me that images like this do not just depict "generic" trees - they depict specific trees that mattered to the fengshui of the landscape. Any suggestions on how to identify them? I've had only some success.