Culture & Traditions

The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in New York City may be an iconic symbol of the holidays, but how well do you know this tree-dition?

By Laurie L. Dove

Day of the Dead is not a Mexican version of Halloween. It's a celebration of life - both here and beyond - when the souls of the departed come home for feasting and fun. Here's how it started.

By Dave Roos

In our modern vernacular, the phrase "that's just semantics" has somehow become shorthand to insinuate the speaker has argued something trivial or unimportant. But what does it really mean?

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

When your broomstick just won't do, and you're forced to fly the "friendly skies," at least you can feel safe knowing you can still show up dressed to kill.

By Stephanie Vermillion & Nicole Antonio

Many Ghanians honor their dead by burying them in vibrant works of art made by skillful master carpenters. These fantasy coffins are shaped like everything from elaborate fish and lions to limos and even sneakers.

By Mark Mancini

This fall festival is about food, faith, lights and gifts. But please don't call it an Indian Hanukkah.

By Dave Roos

They're ghostly warriors who stride through jungles and towns in brilliant costumes, holding torches. Flee now or risk their wrath.

By Nathan Chandler

As more states are swapping Columbus Day celebrations for Indigenous Peoples' Day observances, does Columbus Day still have any relevance?

By Dave Roos

This Scandinavian lifestyle term has become very popular in the rest of Europe and the U.S. But what does it really mean and how can you incorporate it into everyday life?

By Carrie Whitney, Ph.D.

The late Aleister Crowley liked being known as the "wickedest man in the world." But today he's most remembered as a brash cultist who was the father of a strange religion.

By John Donovan

The two terms are often used interchangeably, though they have distinct meanings. We'll explain how they're different.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

How exactly did these two fried friends get together and become so beloved in the U.K.? Like many a national cuisine, its roots started in faraway lands.

By Dave Roos

You've seen the presidential seal whenever you've heard a U.S. president formally speak, but do you know its history and significance?

By Patrick J. Kiger

Atlanta's Susan Bennett never knew she was primed to become one of the world's most famous voices until Siri first debuted on American iPhones in 2011.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

There's a fascinating story behind how punk, both the music and the cultural movement, spanned the globe, becoming way more than just a sound and a mohawk.

By Chris Opfer

We all think we know what it means, but is it possible that a monogamous relationship is a bit more complicated than we think it is?

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Abbreviations are supposed to make things easier, but when people misuse or misunderstand them they often do just the opposite. How well do you know these commonly flubbed abbreviations?

By Alia Hoyt

Many people are attracted to the principles behind the Law of Attraction as one way to have a better life. But does it really work?

By Nathan Chandler

Which three presidents died on July 4? What's the Horribles Parade? And, should America be celebrating on July 2 instead?

By Dave Roos

Every year, the city of Santa Fe collectively shouts "Burn him!" and sets fire to Zozobra, the enemy of all that is good.

By Michelle Konstantinovsky

Our daily language is often geared for a world that recognizes people as either male or female. But with our growing recognition that not everyone falls into these categories, how can we speak more gender-inclusively?

By Danielle Douez

Few rules on funeral processions are enshrined in law; most are just customs. But that doesn't mean you should break them.

By Melanie Radzicki McManus

In about 100 years, Pentecostalism went from a startup renewal movement to the second-largest Christian denomination in the world, bested only by Catholics. What caused that astonishing rise?

By Dave Roos

"Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad" is a famous quote by baseball player Wade Boggs and lots of men have passed both tests. Learn more about these famous fathers and their offspring with our quiz.

By Kathryn Whitbourne

The soldiers who stand vigil over the Tomb are the Sentinels of The Old Guard, a hand-picked group dedicated to honoring the memory of those who gave their lives for their country.

By John Donovan