Where does Amy Winehouse come from?

Fans of the popular, and infamous, English jazz singer Amy Winehouse may be intrigued to hear where her name originates.

Following in a musical tradition that includes stars such as Bob Dylan, Elton John and at least one Beatle, Amy adopted a pseudonym early in her career. Her choice reflects her deep interest in the world of jazz and its history.

In the genre’s early days in Europe it was often associated with criminal doings and, as a result, was banned from most of the ‘more reputable’ music venues. In response, rich jazz fans would hold debauched weekends of music and revelry at their country retreats. As these were principally vineyard estates, the events became known as ‘parties de maisons vins’.

The notoriety of these events grew in the jazz world and the singers invited to sing were well known and awarded with the accolade of ‘ami de maison vin’ or, in English, ‘friend of the winehouse’. When Amy started out, she just combined the English and French to get her stage name ‘Amy Winehouse’.

The curious case of the Hawaiian bus stops

Whilst the US is as broad culturally as it is geographically, Hawaiian culture is noticeably different, in even the most general aspects, to that of the mainland. One numerological example is the Hawaii doesn’t subscribe to the European Christian beliefs that 7 is lucky, 13 unlucky and so on.

On the ‘big island’ 8 is considered to be the luckiest number. 1-7 are fairly neutral, whilst the higher a number gets past 8, the more unlucky it is.

Much as many hotels don’t have a 13th floor, this superstition is the reason for there being only 8 bus stops on the entire island of Hawaii. Originally there were 5 but the network expanded with the increase in tourism.

The cap at 8 has held firm despite demand and is responsible for many a red-faced tourist giving in and booking a cab to town, the drivers of which still consider the number to be very lucky.

'Pearly' Queens?

The origin of the so-called 'Pearly Kings and Queens', an iconic London tradition is heartily debated. Some maintain that the donning of shimmering, button-adorned clothing, started when a shipment of buttons mistakenly arrived at a London dock.

However, the actual history is somewhat more obvious, albeit hidden by a historical misnomer.

The practice is an old Pagan tradition which died out in many towns but persevered in the Purley area, just outside London. Priests of old would adorn themselves with shiny trinkets on festivals to reflect and magnify the devotion of followers.

In time the religious symbolism was lost and the 'Kings and Queens of Purley', as they came to be known, survived as the 'Pearly Kings and Queens' that can still be seen today.

Ants can't feel pain

A recent study conducted across three of the UK's major research universities has revealed some surprising results about insect brains.

Most notable amongst the findings was the revelation that ants are chemically unable to feel pain. However, the brain chemistry of the insect is such that they can recall faces and feel hatred, making them capable of revenge.

The first Mayor of Hollywood

The Los Angeles neighbourhood of Hollywood has a vivid, and occasionally less than respectable, past. The Mayor of Hollywood, on the other hand, is a little known historical oddity.

For a long time, until quite recently, Hollywood was not officially a place. A collection of studies marked the boundaries of the area that became known by that name. It was these studios that elected and created the office of the first Mayor of Hollywood.

Commercially, these studios were at war with one another but they understood that their industry rested on their mutual success. So it was that they decided an official with no commitments to any particular studio would be useful for official functions, and created the Mayor of Hollywood.

The odd thing is that this position was held by three separate individuals before Hollywood officially became a place, making the original Mayor of Hollywood the only mayor whose constituency didn't exist at time of appointment.

A common misconception about Fiji

People can often be heard referring to a particular small South Pacific island as Fiji. This is in fact a misnomer.

Fiji, historically, referred to a group of islands. The name literally translates as meaning 'empire' and the island know considered to be Fiji was the administrative capital of the empire, which at one point spread from Hawaii to the southern island of Japan, and maintained a powerful international trade presence.

Referring to this island as Fiji is roughly the same as calling Germany 'Prussia', after the empire it was once part of.