Michele Gama Sosa
Location
Berries Springs, MI
School
Yale University, University Of Chicago
Expertise
Ancient Middle East History, Christianity And Church History, Indo-European Languages
- In 2020, Michele finished a dissertation on how the Trojan War might have actually happened historically — no mean feat considering there are barely any texts.
- Michele's blog "Hidden Gems of History" discusses little known events, languages, and people that give our world its diversity and flavor — like the Dalmatian language, or Christianity in China in 800 AD.
- Language study is key to providing perspectives and material otherwise unknown to English speakers — and that's why Michele has endeavored to learn the languages of his primary interests, especially in Eastern Europe and the Romance-speaking world.
Experience
Michele has worked as a writer since finishing graduate school. His expertise is primarily in the Bronze Age Mediterranean, with a focus on the Hittite Empire. However, his interests extend into other historical fields, particularly the history of Christianity, linguistics, Romance languages, and Eastern Europe. His training as a historian is particularly relevant for weaving different threads together to form a coherent picture to explain how the past influences our present world and why it matters.
Education
Michele earned a B.A. in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations from Yale University in 2014 and a Ph.D. in Near Eastern History from the University of Chicago in 2020.
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Stories By Michele Gama Sosa
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With phones and cameras everywhere, misbehavior is much harder to hide. Here are some politicians who decided to misbehave and were caught red-handed.
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Mobsters have a well-deserved reputation for brutality and criminality. But many members of the mafia have served in the military, and some with distinction.
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The Trojan War wasn't a fun time for anybody involved, but there were a few participants - and innocent bystanders - who got a particularly raw deal.
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History has shown that a much superior military force doesn't always easily prevail. Sometimes the underdog puts up a fierce fight, and occasionally prevails.
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Wars have been won and lost for a variety of reasons, and not always due to just human effort or error. Sometimes the weather played a key role in battle.
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Behind every photo is a story. Here are some of the stories behind some of the first color photos ever taken.
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Europe - particularly since World War II - has seen its monarchies fall one after the other. Here's what happened to some of Europe's last kings and queens.
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Here are some royals who decided (or were forced) to ditch their old lives to try and make it in a land of no kings, the United States of America.
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Evidence suggests that the legend of St. Brendan's voyage should not be discarded. Here is the legend of the Irishman who may have "discovered" America.
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Professional athletes always face some degree of danger, not just in competition. Here are some of the sports stars who've been violently attacked by people.
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The Catholic Church is one large umbrella organization consisting of 24 different churches. Here are the 24 different Catholic churches explained.
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Europe is a large continent with many different unique languages. However, there are many European languages that some Americans have not even heard of.
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From Mexico's Night of the Radishes to Thailand's monkey banquet and Florida's Underwater Music Festival, here are some of the world's most unique festivals.
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There have been countless countries, empires, and kingdoms that are now lost due to war, politics, and happenstance.
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In some other cases, body parts have been severed and disappeared for no apparent reason - even the genitalia of one famous French emperor and general.
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The first decade of the 2000s, in particular, gave us some of the most recognizable faces of the Olympic Games, many of whom have moved on to further pursuits.
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Here are some of the greatest and wildest moments of the FIFA World Cup that have made the tournament one of the most popular sporting events in the world.
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While most athletes play with some sort of injury, there are some performances that are defining, such as these 12, who pushed through their pain to compete.
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The gospels, the four accounts that tell the story of Jesus' ministry, have many differences among them.
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A sports game is a place where many a fan goes for fun. But tensions between opposing fans can boil over. These are the wildest fan brawls in sports history.
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Here is the story of how Vermont, the Green Mountain State, held its head high in the original rebellion against the United States.
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When people think of great victories of the 20th century, Poland rarely comes to mind. But here's how Poland might have saved Europe from communism.
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Behind every man is a powerful woman — or so the old cliche goes. In Benito Mussolini's case, there were many women behind him. One was Margherita Sarfatti.
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Since marijuana became illegal in 1937, politicians, pundits, users, and everyone in between have debated the merits of the federal ban.
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Every two weeks, a language dies. Linguists have argued that this is a global calamity of epic proportions, as we're at risk of losing a wealth of knowledge.
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Alaska is known as the 49th state, and it is culturally distinct, in part from a century or so of Russian rule. This is the untold truth of Russian Alaska.
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Russia has called for the United States to return Alaska, but the reality of that isn't too simple. What would happen if Russia tried to take Alaska back?