The 4 Weirdest Epithets in History

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An epithet is a title added to a person's name to describe them in a single word or an adjective that summarizes their life in one phrase. Usually, epithets are related to a person's achievements, feats, or an event that is considered the highlight or low point of their life.

We know famous historical figures like Alexander the Great, Ivan the Terrible, "The King of Pop" (for Michael Jackson), or Honest Abe (for Abraham Lincoln). But there are some epithets that just sounds bizarre, and you wonder how they got those names.

Check out this article from Big Think for four of history's most bizarre epithets.

Jonathan the Tortoise Turns 191, Becomes World's Oldest Living Land Animal

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We all know from Finding Nemo how old turtles can get. After being asked by Marlin about his age, Crush replies smoothly, "150, dude, and still young!"

Of course, Crush is not the only animated movie turtle we know. Master Oogway from the Kung Fu Panda franchise is said to have been thousands of years old. And these are not far from reality because, on average, turtles can live up to 150 years, depending on their species. Larger turtles are said to reach well beyond 200 years old, and even be able to live up to 400 or 500 years.

Right now, the world's oldest living land animal is a tortoise named Jonathan, who was born around 1832 and has just turned 191. What's more, he doesn't show any signs of slowing down.

Currently, Jonathan lives in the island of St. Helena, and has been bestowed an official birthday of December 4, 1832, although his exact date of birth is unknown. He arrived on the island from Seychelles as a gift to the governer in 1882.

Learn more about Jonathan's life on the Smithsonian Magazine.

5 Countries That No Longer Exist Today

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Over the centuries, many things happen around the world that change the history of a nation. Wars between two countries can result in territories of the losers to be split up among the victors, just like what happened in World War I.

At certain points, once-sovereign states become annexed by a conquering nation, countries change their names, and previous states simply get blotted off the map. Here are five countries that no longer exist today.