· January, 2009

Stories about History from January, 2009

Azerbaijan: Mammed Amin Rasul-zadeh

  31 January 2009

In Mutatione Fortitudo marks the 125th anniversary of the birth of Mammed Amin Rasul-zadeh by introducing its readers to one of the founding fathers of the short-lived Azerbaijani Democratic Republic in the early 20th Century.

Latvia: “Beginning to Smell Like the 90s”

  31 January 2009

All About Latvia writes that “it’s hard not to notice that it is beginning to smell like the 90s”: “In the last week, strangers asked me three times for some changes to buy a tram ticket. Usually, asking for a smoke, or some change is used as a way to...

Ukraine: KGB Archive

  30 January 2009

Sean's Russia Blog writes this about Ukraine's plans “the entire KGB archive dating 1917-1991″: “These materials will certainly be employed in the further crafting of Ukraine’s ‘imagined community’ of victimization by, rather than a participant in, the Soviet regime. Sadly, using these documents for this purpose has little to do...

Poland: Maanam

  30 January 2009

the POLSKI blog writes about Maanam, a Polish band that, in the early 1980s, was “the epitome of cool, largely thanks to their unique sound and the distinctive voice and fiery personality of their lead singer, Kora.”

Jamaica: Local Obama?

  29 January 2009

“Jamaicans should ask for nothing but the best from those who would aspire to lead”: Abeng News Magazine‘s Trevor Dawes thinks it might be time for a Jamaican Obama.

Jamaica, Zimbabwe: Hunger Strike

  29 January 2009

“Do people in Jamaica and the Caribbean care enough about events in Zimbabwe to lend their help to this call for moral action?”: Annie Paul has a friend who is on a hunger strike to draw attention to the humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe and tells us how we can help.

Trinidad & Tobago: Pelham and Pan

  28 January 2009

From Trinidad and Tobago, Caribbean Free Radio publishes another podcast, this time focusing on “veteran producer and steel orchestra arranger, Pelham Goddard” as he discusses the evolution of steel pan music.

Slovenia: Honoring Auschwitz Survivors

  28 January 2009

Dr. Filomena dedicates a post to her grandfather’s sister, an Auschwitz survivor: “She was not a Jew, she was not Roma, she was simply the sister of a man who would not bow to the territory-hungry aggressor who’d tried to make his Slovenian family deny its roots and turn its...

Romania: Czech Villages in Banat

  27 January 2009

CzechFolks.com writes about the Czech villages in the south of the Romanian Banat: “People in Banat have preserved their heritage for more than 180 years by simply passing it from one generation to another.”

Russia: Siege of Leningrad Photos

  27 January 2009

On the 65th anniversary of the lifting the siege of Leningrad, one of the most popular posts in the Russian blogosphere, by LJ user komen-dant (RUS), features Sergei Larenkov's selection of contemporary photos of St. Petersburg merged with historic images that were taken during the siege from the same vantage...

Cuba: Political Prisoners

  27 January 2009

Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense reports on the experience of some of Cuba's political prisoners because he believes that “it is a truth that one day will set them, and their country, free.”