Peter Frankopan
@peterfrankopan.bsky.social
Historian. Coffee drinker
Pinned
What if we measured progress not just by income or life expectancy - but by how well we live with the rest of nature?
A major new paper proposes the 'Nature Relationship Index (NRI)' - a bold rethink of development metrics.
Here’s why it matters.👇
#NatureRelationshipIndex #GlobalThreads
A major new paper proposes the 'Nature Relationship Index (NRI)' - a bold rethink of development metrics.
Here’s why it matters.👇
#NatureRelationshipIndex #GlobalThreads
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
open.substack.com/pub/peterfra...
One of my favourite historians @peterfrankopan.bsky.social has an appropriate historical analogy for Trump: the Mongol Great Khan Guyuk. Well worth a read.
One of my favourite historians @peterfrankopan.bsky.social has an appropriate historical analogy for Trump: the Mongol Great Khan Guyuk. Well worth a read.
The ruler of the universe: Donald Trump, the heir to Genghis Khan
When Donald Trump was elected in 2016, I wrote a piece for the Evening Standard comparing him to Genghis Khan.
open.substack.com
January 20, 2026 at 6:25 PM
open.substack.com/pub/peterfra...
One of my favourite historians @peterfrankopan.bsky.social has an appropriate historical analogy for Trump: the Mongol Great Khan Guyuk. Well worth a read.
One of my favourite historians @peterfrankopan.bsky.social has an appropriate historical analogy for Trump: the Mongol Great Khan Guyuk. Well worth a read.
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
China was outmaneuvered by the US and let down by Russia in the operation in Venezuela, @peterfrankopan.bsky.social writes in The Times.
Russia understood that a US invasion of some sort into Venezuela was inevitable, and withdrew its diplomatic personnel from the country.
Russia understood that a US invasion of some sort into Venezuela was inevitable, and withdrew its diplomatic personnel from the country.
January 19, 2026 at 7:51 PM
China was outmaneuvered by the US and let down by Russia in the operation in Venezuela, @peterfrankopan.bsky.social writes in The Times.
Russia understood that a US invasion of some sort into Venezuela was inevitable, and withdrew its diplomatic personnel from the country.
Russia understood that a US invasion of some sort into Venezuela was inevitable, and withdrew its diplomatic personnel from the country.
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
A special issue needs to discuss its main theme across multiple periods of Chinese history. If you have ideas or questions, feel free to get in touch with us via email or meet with us in person at the @asianstudies.org meeting in Vancouver. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Editorial board
Welcome to Cambridge Core
www.cambridge.org
January 15, 2026 at 9:54 PM
A special issue needs to discuss its main theme across multiple periods of Chinese history. If you have ideas or questions, feel free to get in touch with us via email or meet with us in person at the @asianstudies.org meeting in Vancouver. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
An honour to join my brilliant colleague Elleke Boehmer to say a few words at the launch of her magnificent Southern Imagining
January 15, 2026 at 10:12 PM
An honour to join my brilliant colleague Elleke Boehmer to say a few words at the launch of her magnificent Southern Imagining
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
Fascinating substack series from Prof @peterfrankopan.bsky.social on what’s currently happening in Iran, with frequent updates (some paid, some free).
The curious case of Iran and the push for Scottish independence
Unless you are a football fan - and can remember the 1978 World Cup - Scotland and Iran do not seem to have much in common.
open.substack.com
January 14, 2026 at 6:15 AM
Fascinating substack series from Prof @peterfrankopan.bsky.social on what’s currently happening in Iran, with frequent updates (some paid, some free).
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
If the figures we're getting out of Iran are in the right league, this weekend was, I think, one of the bloodiest state crackdowns of all time. People are talking 12,000-20,000 dead; for comparison Hungary in 1956 was about 2,500, Tiananmen - across country, in multiple cities - probably 1000+
January 13, 2026 at 7:41 PM
If the figures we're getting out of Iran are in the right league, this weekend was, I think, one of the bloodiest state crackdowns of all time. People are talking 12,000-20,000 dead; for comparison Hungary in 1956 was about 2,500, Tiananmen - across country, in multiple cities - probably 1000+
Here’s a something that first caught my eye just over ten years ago. The strange connections between Iran and….Scotland 1/5
January 13, 2026 at 9:13 PM
Here’s a something that first caught my eye just over ten years ago. The strange connections between Iran and….Scotland 1/5
Iran is seeing some of the most serious protests since 1979. Assessing what is actually happening is extremely difficult: internet and phones are down; Starlink is being jammed, thanks (presumably) to tools from allies 1/6
January 11, 2026 at 6:23 PM
Iran is seeing some of the most serious protests since 1979. Assessing what is actually happening is extremely difficult: internet and phones are down; Starlink is being jammed, thanks (presumably) to tools from allies 1/6
Iran is facing the most serious and wide-ranging unrest in years. Over the past ten days, demonstrations have spread from Tehran’s Grand Bazaar to cities and towns across all 31 provinces - and they continue to grow in scale and intensity 1/5
January 9, 2026 at 7:00 PM
Iran is facing the most serious and wide-ranging unrest in years. Over the past ten days, demonstrations have spread from Tehran’s Grand Bazaar to cities and towns across all 31 provinces - and they continue to grow in scale and intensity 1/5
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
A hoard of 21 silver pennies, dating back to the mid-7th to 8th centuries, has been saved for Oxfordshire’s museums following a successful community fundraiser. Villagers from Stoke Row, together with local businesses, raised £1,300 to acquire the treasure. news.oxfordshire.gov.uk/stoke-row-co...
Stoke Row community unite to bring unique treasure to the Oxfordshire Museum
An early medieval treasure hoard is now in the hands of Oxfordshire County Council’s museum service to go on display following a successful fundraising campaign by residents in Stoke Row.Dating back t...
news.oxfordshire.gov.uk
December 22, 2025 at 5:29 PM
A hoard of 21 silver pennies, dating back to the mid-7th to 8th centuries, has been saved for Oxfordshire’s museums following a successful community fundraiser. Villagers from Stoke Row, together with local businesses, raised £1,300 to acquire the treasure. news.oxfordshire.gov.uk/stoke-row-co...
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
Pleasure to work with @peterfrankopan.bsky.social on this piece: "the lesson from the past is not that cities must simply find more water, but that they must also confront their limits." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/19/o...
Opinion | How Did a City of 10 Million People Nearly Run Out of Water?
www.nytimes.com
December 19, 2025 at 5:38 PM
Pleasure to work with @peterfrankopan.bsky.social on this piece: "the lesson from the past is not that cities must simply find more water, but that they must also confront their limits." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/19/o...
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
On Free Thinking: geology considered as one of the humanities and everything you wanted to know about Object Oriented Ontology but were afraid to ask. With Rosemary Hill, Sarah Jackson, @anjanakhatwa.bsky.social @peterfrankopan.bsky.social @objectoriented.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...
BBC Radio 4 - Free Thinking, Rocks
How can earth sciences like geology transform our understanding of history and society?
www.bbc.co.uk
November 21, 2025 at 9:05 PM
On Free Thinking: geology considered as one of the humanities and everything you wanted to know about Object Oriented Ontology but were afraid to ask. With Rosemary Hill, Sarah Jackson, @anjanakhatwa.bsky.social @peterfrankopan.bsky.social @objectoriented.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
How delightfully quaint some of these old Devon village names are, their etymologies lost in the mists of time.
November 17, 2025 at 3:24 PM
How delightfully quaint some of these old Devon village names are, their etymologies lost in the mists of time.
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
when you wear a size 9.5 shoe but the 8.5 was on sale
November 11, 2025 at 9:54 PM
when you wear a size 9.5 shoe but the 8.5 was on sale
Iran is facing a crisis unlike any in its modern history. Water shortages, record heat, and failing infrastructure are forcing officials to plan something unthinkable - evacuating parts of the capital 1/5
November 11, 2025 at 4:27 PM
Iran is facing a crisis unlike any in its modern history. Water shortages, record heat, and failing infrastructure are forcing officials to plan something unthinkable - evacuating parts of the capital 1/5
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
"It's not the Western idea of a nuclear family." Afua Hirsh breaks down the matrilineal system. Listen to this week's Legacy topic on Kwame Nkrumah. Available now on the link in bio!
#Africa #matrilineal #AfricanHistory #Legacy
#Africa #matrilineal #AfricanHistory #Legacy
November 10, 2025 at 5:32 PM
"It's not the Western idea of a nuclear family." Afua Hirsh breaks down the matrilineal system. Listen to this week's Legacy topic on Kwame Nkrumah. Available now on the link in bio!
#Africa #matrilineal #AfricanHistory #Legacy
#Africa #matrilineal #AfricanHistory #Legacy
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
Martin Luther: the original Halloween decorator
It's 31 October. Most people will be thinking about Halloween. Historians, of course, will be thinking about Martin Luther, who nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg on this day in 1517. 1/4
October 31, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Martin Luther: the original Halloween decorator
It's 31 October. Most people will be thinking about Halloween. Historians, of course, will be thinking about Martin Luther, who nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg on this day in 1517. 1/4
October 31, 2025 at 6:11 PM
It's 31 October. Most people will be thinking about Halloween. Historians, of course, will be thinking about Martin Luther, who nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg on this day in 1517. 1/4
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
“Clear-eyed and pragmatic, it maps a realistic path from crisis to renewal through investment, innovation and international cooperation. A hopeful work that redefines growth for a sustainable age.”
— @peterfrankopan.bsky.social
Free to read & download from 5th Nov doi.org/10.31389/lse...
— @peterfrankopan.bsky.social
Free to read & download from 5th Nov doi.org/10.31389/lse...
October 31, 2025 at 8:28 AM
“Clear-eyed and pragmatic, it maps a realistic path from crisis to renewal through investment, innovation and international cooperation. A hopeful work that redefines growth for a sustainable age.”
— @peterfrankopan.bsky.social
Free to read & download from 5th Nov doi.org/10.31389/lse...
— @peterfrankopan.bsky.social
Free to read & download from 5th Nov doi.org/10.31389/lse...
Reposted by Peter Frankopan
This week, we explore the surprising story behind England’s most famous symbol — the flag of #StGeorge. How did a man born in what’s now Turkey, with Palestinian and Greek roots, become the patron saint of England? And what does his red cross really stand for today? Listen now!
#history #Legacy
#history #Legacy
October 28, 2025 at 8:00 AM
Boom. New ep on Martin Luther on #Legacy - where @afuahirsch.bsky.social and I show how Luther split Europe 1/4
October 21, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Boom. New ep on Martin Luther on #Legacy - where @afuahirsch.bsky.social and I show how Luther split Europe 1/4
Fabulous stuff !
The scale of imported luxury goods in late antique Britain:
752 ivory rings from 78 sites. In some C5th contexts, 8-15% of graves contained one. Research by Katie Hemer, @hugh-willmott.bsky.social & @rowane.bsky.social.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
752 ivory rings from 78 sites. In some C5th contexts, 8-15% of graves contained one. Research by Katie Hemer, @hugh-willmott.bsky.social & @rowane.bsky.social.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
October 19, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Fabulous stuff !
Power, protest & the physics of change.
Four stories this week on Global Threads:
Ukraine; Madagascar; Gen Z unrest; and a Chinese leap in quantum tech. 1/5
Four stories this week on Global Threads:
Ukraine; Madagascar; Gen Z unrest; and a Chinese leap in quantum tech. 1/5
October 19, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Power, protest & the physics of change.
Four stories this week on Global Threads:
Ukraine; Madagascar; Gen Z unrest; and a Chinese leap in quantum tech. 1/5
Four stories this week on Global Threads:
Ukraine; Madagascar; Gen Z unrest; and a Chinese leap in quantum tech. 1/5