Pick up a newspaper or magazine, or turn on the radio or television, and the words Middle East leap out. People around the globe are becoming familiar with plac

Prussia. Gaul. The Holy Roman Empire. These places played a crucial role in the development of Western Europe. But where were they, and what happened to them? T

Saigon, Kampuchea, and Burma. These names of places in Asia are like many that once existed but now officially do not. As the times have changed, so have the na

Where are Gran Colombia, La Plata, and Dutch Guiana? And where are New Granada, the Isle of the True Cross, and the River of Silver? What makes them important?

Africa is a vibrant but all-too-often misunderstood continent. Outsiders know Africa from the evening news as a collection of countries plagued by war, famine,