featured Wiki of the Day

Abulsme Productions

One featured Wikipedia article highlighted and summarized each day.

  1. 8H AGO

    Splatoon 3: Side Order

    fWotD Episode 3295: Splatoon 3: Side Order Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Wednesday, 13 May 2026, is Splatoon 3: Side Order. Splatoon 3: Side Order is a 2024 downloadable content (DLC) expansion pack for the single-player mode of Splatoon 3, a 2022 third-person shooter video game by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. Announced in February 2023, Side Order is the second half of the Splatoon 3 Expansion Pass. It was released on 22 February 2024. Side Order follows an Octoling named Agent 8, the protagonist of Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion, who finds themselves trapped in the featureless Memverse, a virtual reality created by Marina of the duo Off the Hook. Accompanied by a drone version of Marina's co-star Pearl, Agent 8 uncovers Order, a rogue artificial intelligence who threatens to forcefully abduct souls from the outside world to remove their free will and instigate a world of pure orderliness. With the assistance of Marina, Pearl, and another victim named Acht, Agent 8 journeys up a thirty-floor spire to destroy Order. Development began shortly after the release of Splatoon 3 in 2022. The team sought to reinvent the traditional structure of Splatoon single-player campaigns, such as having the player's death force the loss of all progress from their current climb, and granting the ability to purchase upgrades to ease future attempts. Side Order received favorable reviews from critics, with praise given to its art direction and integration of Splatoon's gameplay mechanics into the roguelite genre. Some were displeased with a perceived lack of level diversity over time. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:15 UTC on Wednesday, 13 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see Splatoon 3: Side Order on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm neural Amy.

    2 min
  2. 1D AGO

    Golden Bough (Aeneid)

    fWotD Episode 3294: Golden Bough (Aeneid) Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Tuesday, 12 May 2026, is Golden Bough (Aeneid). The Golden Bough is a fantastical object described in the Aeneid, an epic poem by the Roman poet Virgil composed between 29 and 19 BCE narrating the adventures of the Trojan hero Aeneas after the Trojan War. The episode of the Golden Bough is found in its sixth book and is part of Aeneas's journey into the Underworld. The bough itself acts as proof of Aeneas's divine favour, and allows him to pass into the Underworld. He is tasked to find it in an expansive forest, which he accomplishes with the aid of his mother, the goddess Venus, and to remove it from its host tree. Although Aeneas has been told that it would come easily, if his journey is ordained by fate, Virgil describes the bough as briefly hesitating before he takes it. Virgil's portrayal of the bough has no direct literary antecedents, though it draws on several precedents from literature, folklore and philosophy. Scholars have connected it with, among others, the Golden Fleece in the story of the Argonauts; symbolic objects associated with deities such as Hermes, Dionysus and Circe; and the branches carried by prospective initiates into the Eleusinian Mysteries, a Greek religious rite centred on a symbolic journey into the Underworld. Virgil associates it with both death and immortality, partly by way of symbolic associations in Graeco-Roman culture between gold and the gods. It also recalls ideas put forth by the Roman philosopher Lucretius as to the nature of the soul. The episode of the Golden Bough was parodied by authors including Virgil's contemporary Ovid, and drawn upon by later Roman poets including Lucan and Valerius Flaccus. Early interpretations of the Golden Bough tended to give it an allegorical function, particularly via Pythagorean and Neoplatonist philosophy, which viewed it as symbolic of the choice between virtue and vice. Medieval commentators often considered it a symbol of wisdom, and several Christian theologians interpreted it as representing Christian wisdom and virtue. In the sixteenth century, it became a heraldic symbol of the Florentine House of Medici. Early modern receptions of the bough, including those of François Rabelais and Jonathan Swift, were often parodic or obscene. In the twentieth century, scholars following the Harvard School interpretation of the Aeneid argued that Virgil's use of the bough reflected his ambivalence towards Aeneas and the latter's mission to set in motion the rise of the Roman Empire. Other critics have highlighted echoes between the episode of the Golden Bough and the morally charged deaths of two of Aeneas's antagonists, Dido and Turnus. In the fourth or fifth century CE, the commentator Servius connected the bough to rex Nemorensis, a priest of the goddess Diana at Lake Nemi whose office was passed on by the killing of its holder. This equation influenced the anthropologist James George Frazer, who used the bough for the title of his 1890 work on comparative religion. The bough is recalled in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy and was the subject of an 1834 painting by J. M. W. Turner, which was used as the frontispiece for the early editions of Frazer's book. It was an influential motif in the "Byzantium" poems of W. B. Yeats and in the poetry of Seamus Heaney, who made several translations of Virgil's account of the episode. Scholars have also drawn parallels between the Golden Bough and significant objects in the novels of J. R. R. Tolkien. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:53 UTC on Tuesday, 12 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see Golden Bough (Aeneid) on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm standard Emma.

    4 min
  3. 2D AGO

    Japan Cup

    fWotD Episode 3293: Japan Cup Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Monday, 11 May 2026, is Japan Cup. The Japan Cup (ジャパンカップ, Japan Kappu; JPN G-1) is a Group 1 horse race in Japan, held annually on the last Sunday of November, post time of 15:40 at Tokyo Racecourse in Fuchū, Tokyo. It is a flat race run over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1+1⁄2 miles, or 12 furlongs) with a maximum of 18 horses. First run in 1981, the Japan Cup was created by the Japan Racing Association (JRA) to give local horses the opportunity to compete against those of international calibre and to promote goodwill within the racing community worldwide. Similar to the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, the Melbourne Cup and the Breeders' Cup, the Japan Cup extends invitations to top-performing horses aged three and above from around the world. The race is one of the world's richest, with a total prize purse of over one billion yen since 2023, and regularly attracts an audience of 100,000 people. It is the middle leg of the informal "Autumn Triple Crown" along with the Tennō Shō (Autumn) and the Arima Kinen. Despite a short history, the Japan Cup has established itself as an international contest with winners from all over the world, and is regularly ranked highly in the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA)'s Top 100 Group 1 Races of the Year compilation due to its high quality and depth of racers. In its early history, the race was dominated by foreign horses, with eight of the first ten winners coming from abroad. However, in recent years the number of overseas entries has significantly declined, and in the last 20 years only one horse from outside of Japan has won. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 01:09 UTC on Monday, 11 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see Japan Cup on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Bluesky at @wikioftheday.com. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm generative Niamh.

    2 min
  4. 3D AGO

    Ben&Ben

    fWotD Episode 3292: Ben&Ben Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Sunday, 10 May 2026, is Ben&Ben. Ben&Ben are a Filipino indie folk-pop band from Manila. They were formed in 2016 by twin brothers Paolo and Miguel Benjamin Guico (lead vocals and acoustic guitars), calling themselves The Benjamins. A year later, they expanded into an ensemble and settled on the current name, adding Poch Barretto (electric guitar), Keifer Cabugao (violin), Patricia Lasaten (keyboards), Toni Muñoz (percussion), Andrew de Pano (percussion), Agnes Reoma (bass guitar), and Jam Villanueva (drums). The band's musical style has garnered praise for its anthemic quality and emotional engagement that appeals to a broad audience, while their lyrics focus on subjects including loss, heartbreak and relationship, and the journey towards self-love. The band's first effort, a self-titled extended play (EP), was released in 2016. The EP's singles, "Leaves" and "Kathang Isip", helped raise Ben&Ben to prominence. Under Sony Music Philippines, the band released their debut studio album Limasawa Street (2019) to critical and commercial success; the single "Pagtingin" earned them the Awit Award for Best Performance by a Group Recording Artist. Their second studio album Pebble House, Vol. 1: Kuwaderno (2021) received acclaim for its reflective lyricism and sociopolitical themes. It won the Awit Award for Album of the Year and was named by NME as one of the 25 best Asian albums of the year. Ben&Ben have received numerous accolades, including an Asia Artist Award, an Aliw Award, a NME Award, two Myx Music Awards, three Star Awards, and sixteen Awit Awards. In 2020, they placed 29th on the Billboard Social 50 chart. Having amassed more than two billion streams thus far, Ben&Ben have been named the most-streamed Filipino artist of all time on Spotify. Beyond music, they promote causes such as mental health, environmental awareness, and digital well-being. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:10 UTC on Sunday, 10 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see Ben&Ben on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Bluesky at @wikioftheday.com. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm long-form Patrick.

    3 min
  5. 4D AGO

    The Great Mecca Feast

    fWotD Episode 3291: The Great Mecca Feast Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Saturday, 9 May 2026, is The Great Mecca Feast. The Great Mecca Feast (Dutch: Het Groote Mekka-Feest) is a 1928 documentary film by George Krugers. Divided into four acts, it opens with a group of Muslim men from the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia) beginning the hajj pilgrimage, then showcases elements of everyday life and worship in the Hejaz region of the Arabian Peninsula – including the hajj itself. As Mecca had long been closed to non-Muslims, Krugers passed as a Muslim and recorded film and still-photographic documentation of the pilgrimage. In this endeavour, he was supported by people in both the Dutch East Indies and the Hejaz. Krugers intended for The Great Mecca Feast to be screened at the Paris Colonial Exposition. Although it was well-received upon its Dutch première on 9 November 1928, subsequent showings were rare and the film faded into obscurity. Described as the first documentary about the hajj, the film is the only one of Krugers's works known to have survived. The Great Mecca Feast began receiving scholarly interest in the 2010s. Since then, it has been analysed within the context of colonial networks and control over the hajj process, as well as a primary document providing insight into the experiences of contemporary pilgrims. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:32 UTC on Saturday, 9 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see The Great Mecca Feast on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Bluesky at @wikioftheday.com. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm neural Emma.

    2 min
  6. 5D AGO

    First Treaty of London

    fWotD Episode 3290: First Treaty of London Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Friday, 8 May 2026, is First Treaty of London. The First Treaty of London, also known as the Treaty of Windsor, was formally agreed on 8 May 1358 at Windsor Castle in England. Its terms ended the then 21-year-old Anglo-French conflict now known as the Hundred Years' War. It was sealed by Edward III, king of England, and John II, king of France; the latter was a prisoner in England, having been captured with much of his council at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356. The treaty set John's ransom at four million écus. This was £667,000 – the equivalent of the peacetime income of the English Crown for about 20 years. In exchange for peace, France was to transfer to England approximately a quarter of its territory; Edward would give up his claim to the French throne. The first instalment of the ransom – 600,000 écus (£100,000) – was due to be paid on 1 November, but with the French government collapsing into insurrection and anarchy it proved impossible to raise. Edward refused to accept less than full performance of the terms of the treaty and it lapsed. Subsequent negotiations led to the Second Treaty of London in March 1359, but its terms were so harsh that the French government repudiated it. Hostilities resumed in October, when Edward again invaded France. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:54 UTC on Friday, 8 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see First Treaty of London on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm standard Aditi.

    2 min
  7. 6D AGO

    Truganini

    fWotD Episode 3289: Truganini Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Thursday, 7 May 2026, is Truganini. Truganini ( TROO-gə-NIH-nee; c. 1812 – 8 May 1876) was an Aboriginal Tasmanian woman who was widely described as the last surviving Aboriginal Tasmanian. A member of the Nuenonne people, she grew up on Bruny Island in south-eastern Tasmania. During her teenage years, she saw the death and displacement of much of Tasmania's Aboriginal population as a result of European colonisation during the Black War. She became a guide to the colonial official George Augustus Robinson and accompanied him on a series of expeditions that resulted in the exile of Tasmania's remaining Aboriginal population. Truganini was herself exiled to the Wybalenna Aboriginal Establishment on Flinders Island at the conclusion of the expeditions in 1835. She later spent time in the Port Phillip District (modern-day Victoria), where she became a fugitive and was tried alongside four others for the murder of a pair of whalers. After being acquitted of the crime, she was returned to Wybalenna and was eventually moved to Oyster Cove. By 1872, she was the only Aboriginal resident left at Oyster Cove and began to be mythologised as the last of her race, attracting the fascination of colonial scientists and the settler population. After Truganini's death in 1876, the Tasmanian government declared the island's Aboriginal population extinct. Truganini became a symbol of her people's supposed extinction and has featured prominently in art, music, and literature. The narrative that Truganini was the last Aboriginal Tasmanian has been rejected by scholars and by the contemporary Aboriginal Tasmanian community as part of efforts to contest the popular myth of Aboriginal Tasmanian extinction. Once cast as the final survivor of a race doomed to extinction, she has since been reframed by some as a memorial to the genocide of Indigenous Australians, and claimed by others as an anti-colonial resistance figure. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:11 UTC on Thursday, 7 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see Truganini on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Bluesky at @wikioftheday.com. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm standard Kendra.

    3 min
  8. MAY 6

    Hurricane Joaquin

    fWotD Episode 3288: Hurricane Joaquin Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles. The featured article for Wednesday, 6 May 2026, is Hurricane Joaquin. Hurricane Joaquin ( hwah-KEEN; Spanish: Huracán Joaquín [uɾaˈkaŋ xoaˈkin]) was a powerful tropical cyclone that devastated several districts of the Bahamas in early October 2015. It was also the strongest Atlantic hurricane of non-tropical origin recorded in the satellite era. The tenth named storm, third hurricane, and second major hurricane of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season, Joaquin evolved from a non-tropical low to a tropical depression on September 28, well southwest of Bermuda. The depression drifted towards the southwest and became a tropical storm the next day. Joaquin then underwent rapid intensification, becoming a Category 4 major hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson scale on October 1. Meandering over the southern Bahamas, Joaquin's eye passed near or over several islands. On October 3, the hurricane weakened somewhat and began moving northeastwards. Abrupt re-intensification ensued later that day, and Joaquin acquired sustained winds of 155 mph (250 km/h), just below Category 5 strength. Joaquin was one of the strongest hurricanes to affect the Bahamas on record. Hurricane warnings were issued for most of the Bahamas before Joaquin reached the country's southern islands. Between October 1 and 3, Joaquin caused extensive damage on Acklins, Crooked Island, Long Island, Rum Cay, and San Salvador Island. Severe storm surge inundated many communities, trapping hundreds of people in their homes; flooding persisted for days after the hurricane's departure. Prolonged, intense winds brought down trees and power lines, and unroofed homes. Relief efforts in the wake of Joaquin were hampered by heavy damage to airstrips and flooded roads. Offshore, the American cargo ship El Faro and her 33 crew members were lost to the hurricane. Coastal flooding impacted the nearby Turks and Caicos Islands, washing out roadways, compromising seawalls, and damaging homes. Strong winds and heavy rainfall caused some property damage in eastern Cuba. In Haiti, storm tides resulted in severe flooding in several departments, forcing families from their homes and destroying crops, while large waves killed a fisherman at sea. Over the Southeastern United States, a separate storm system drew tremendous moisture from the hurricane, leading to catastrophic flooding in South Carolina. A weakened Joaquin passed just west of Bermuda on October 4, bringing strong winds that caused power outages but only minor damage. Afterwards, the hurricane accelerated eastwards into colder waters, weakening further and becoming extratropical on October 8. Its remnants reached Portugal before dissipating a week later. Across its lifetime, Joaquin killed 34 people and caused US$120 million in damage. This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:55 UTC on Wednesday, 6 May 2026. For the full current version of the article, see Hurricane Joaquin on Wikipedia. This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes. Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai. Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast. Until next time, I'm generative Danielle.

    4 min

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One featured Wikipedia article highlighted and summarized each day.