Ancient Cities Quiz

Hey I'm Chinese how come I don't know there's a place called Xanadu, and it's wrong spelling. It's Chengdu. Oh whatever you didn't say that you need country names so I kept typing city names. :(

Xanadu is Marco Polo's spelling of Shangdu 上都 during the Yuan dynasty, not Chengdu.

I'm Chinese, too and I know Xanadu. Xanadu was the vacation capital of Kublai Khan. It is located in modern-day Shangdu.

So, where's the sacred river Alph? The caves of ice?

I just though of ELO.

How can you say it is the wrong spelling and also say you dont know it? (I ve never heard of gyyrvutar, but you spelled it wrong..)

His point was that it’s impossible to even construct the word Xanadu in Mandarin, thus he thought that it must be wrong. It would be like me telling you that there is a city in the UK called Новгород. You would immediately recognize that as being problematic.

Not if it is the Russian spelling of an English city - especially if it happens to be in a Russian quiz.

Plus it literally says "can you name the modern- day countries..."

No, you're wrong. Xanadu is a completely different place to Chengdu.

Machu Picchu is spelled with two Cs.

Only 19% got Karakorum... easy for me... but probably only because I'm used to seeing it as the capital city when you play as the Mongols in any of the Civilization computer games. oh and, though I'm sure I plug it enough already, oldest cities 2 of these clues are among the oldest continually-inhabited places on Earth.

Exposure to Civilization III since the age of six is paying off now that I've found this website!

Here's an easier version of the same quiz I linked to above:

Oldest Cities by Country

I don't play civilization, but I learned about the Mongol empire, so yah.

I too owe a great debt to Civ.

There's a mountain range by that name in China/Pakistan/India and, consequently, the name is used to brand a lot of mountaineering products. That might have steered some people away from Mongolia.

Yeah, I went for those countries.

Timbuktu still exists, same city, same location.

With that logic, Carthage still exists

What logic? The city still does exist and is still called Timbuktu.

So, it says some cities still exist.

Even if it didn't, by what logic is an ancient city supposed to not exist anymore?

Thanks for mentioning Nineveh, it took me back to schooldays and to 'Cargoes' a poem By John Masefield that starts ................. "QUINQUIREME of Nineveh from distant Ophir, Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine................ I loved that poem when I was a day-dreaming little boy.

I thought it was Timbikuku

it's not

Got 'em all except Kharakhorum... tried India and all -stans

How did I miss Timbuktu, Mali?

cant believe kharakorum was least famous! its where Ghengis Kahn ruled. I thought he was the most famous person rivalled only by Jesus christ, Muhammad and Confucius.

A big name with a big history, but not someone I learned alot about. Nor in later years hear a lot of info on, just, gets, mentioned now and then, would definitely not call most famous. So many people more famous. Cleopatra, hitler, elvis the list is rather endless.

I would argue even cthulhu is more famous he pops up in wayy more places, books, videogames, memes, tshirts (and basicly any product you can think of that is printed with an image) You havent made it untill you are on a tshirt and fanfiction is being made about you!

People know more about Chinggis Khaan's conquests and the influence himself and his Hordes had in the regions conquered, than the city where he ruled.

Probably because he's know for moving around a lot. :-)

I think that Cahokia would be a great addition to this quiz.

Does Edo really count as ancient?

Well, it's an old city that happens to be continuously inhabited, just like Aquae Sulis, Texcoco or Cusco.

I suppose it depends on whether, in this case, ancient means from ancient times or just old. If it is the former, then Edo would not be a correct fit, but then neither would Cusco or Texcoco, whereas Aquae Sulis would. Then again, while there were truly ancient cities in Peru and Mexico they aren't as well known.

Great quiz concept. Suggest it could be expanded to include Harappa/Mohenjo-daro (Pakistan) and Anuradhapura/Polonnaruwa (Sri Lanka)

I second Pakistan.

Agreed.

Please include England as a correct response to the UK :)

Acre and Tiberias still exists, with the same names.

True, but the quiz is about cities that existed in ancient times, not if they became lost in time or still exist

Dude, Ravenna is safe and sound