There’s nothing unique about disputed territory. It is one of the most common causes of war. When two nations cannot agree on who holds the right to possess a piece of real […]
Welcome to the Land Wanted By No Nation
Why Do Thousands of Mysterious Arrows Cover the USA?
You can be driving through what appears to be the middle of nowhere when you see it. With no explanation as to its presence in that place, you will find a massive […]
Some of the Articles We Never Got Around To
“How do you come up with ideas for articles on Commonplace Fun Facts?” Not a week goes by without that question being posed to members of the Commonplace creative team. The tone […]
Who Was the Richest Person in History?
When you think of countries with vast wealth and power, there’s a good chance Mali is not on that list. The United Nations ranks Mali 121st out of 213 on its list […]
The Strange Story of the Town that Keeps Switching Between Two Countries
National boundaries are nice, clean methods of distinguishing who owns what. If something is on one side of the border, it belongs to one country; if it is on the other side, […]
Sharpen Up Your Knowledge of the Pencil
As summer ends and students return to school, it is appropriate to take a moment and reflect on one of the things that is as indispensable to studies as notebooks and backpacks: […]
The Scam to Search for a Country that Didn’t Exist — And What Was Discovered Instead
Bob was a con man. That’s not how he would have described himself. He would have told you that he was a visionary and hero — someone who sought out new frontiers […]
The Kingdom the Mapmakers Forgot
1992 saw the birth of a new nation: the Kingdom of Torgu. If you happened to overlook this momentous occasion, don’t feel bad. The whole reason the new country sprang into existence […]
Which Country is in All Four Hemispheres?
The Republic of Kiribati is located in the central Pacific Ocean, 2,400 miles (3,855 km) southeast of Hawaii. Its population of 100,000 is spread over its 33 atolls and reef islands. Those […]
Escape From POW Camp? It Might Be In the Cards
Escape maps were printed on Bicycle playing cards and distributed to Allied prisoners of war during World War II. The deck of cards was created specifically to help Allied prisoners of war […]
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