Top 10 Most Common Misconceptions in Human History

History is replete with many fascinating stories that sometimes factual information are muddled or colored by erroneous suppositions and myths. A lot of us fail to distinguish fact from fiction. In this article, we are going to take a look at the list of top 10 most common myths in history. After reading the article, we can hopefully put an end to these untruths and misinformation and separate them from the real ones.

1. Jesus can speak in Hebrew

Jesus spoke Aramaic, which is a Semitic language, and the main language of communication in Israel during the period 539 BC until 70 AD. In fact, contrary to common belief, there are several portions of the Bible that were not even written in Hebrew but in Aramaic, particularly Ezra and Daniel.

2. The amazons cut off one of their breast so they can shoot better with their bow and arrow

This is simply ridiculous and the only reason why this myth may have survived is the fact that it has not deserved any serious consideration by those sectors in the know. The myth was took its root from the misguided interpretations of the works of the amazons during the 5 century when they dabbled in the dark craft of etymology.

3. Spanish flu

The pandemic did not originate in Spain, contrary to common belief. This pandemic got its name mainly because Spain was recognized at the time as being the most transparent and reliable source of the information. Hence, Spain was associated with the disease to give credence to the information.

4. Catherine the Great died while having a steamy sex with her horse

This myth can be amusing or disgusting depending who you are talking with. The truth of the matter is that Catherine the Great died of illness and there were no equines around when she drew her last breath. This myth persisted during her time and until her death to attack her reputation and besmirch her memory.

5. Emperor Caligula appointed his horse as consul

This myth may have taken its roots to the renowned and legendary love of Emperor Caligula for his horse, Incitatus. However, there are records that show that Emperor Caligula has showered his beloved horse with all the material trimmings and luxuries that are fit for a person of high position but not appointing the horse consul.

6. The Inquisition resulted to the death of tens and thousands of innocent victims

All the information that we associate with the dark era of Christianity is a mix of facts and misinformation spread by those with hidden and selfish motives and agenda. What is definite about the events during this period is that there was a sustained but limited persecution of the small sector of Protestants and was mainly committed in Italy and Spain.

7. The Egyptian pyramids were built by slaves

We are all too familiar of those many images and graphic illustrations that we see in the movies and reading materials that we assume that indeed slaves built these great wonders of human feat. However, excavation results show that these super structures were actually built by Egyptians who were permanently working for the pharaoh.

8. Cleopatra was an Egyptian

Cleopatra may have assumed the title of pharaoh; however, the Ptolemaic dynasty of which she belonged was Hellenistic or Greek by descent. In fact, Cleopatra spoke Greek, which was the language of the Hellenistic aristocracy.

9. Starvation was prevalent during the Great Depression

We usually conjure images of families suffering from starvation due to lack of food and money during the Great Depression. This is far from truth. While there was scarcity of money during this financial upheaval, people were able to pull it through by their ingenuity, resourcefulness and support for each other.

10. There was an old religion in rural Europe the killed large number of women

This witch-cult legend is in direct reference to pagan religion which was believed to have existed in ancient Europe. However, there are no such thing as old religion in Europe and the neo-pagan religions such as Stregheria and Wicca started during the 20th century.