Would love to see more ethnic themed shops start popping up in every town!

“The only physician of the people for a thousand years was the Witch. The emperors, kings, popes, and richer barons had indeed their doctors of Salerno, their Moors and Jews; but the bulk of people in every state, the world as it might well be called, consulted none but the Saga, or wise-woman. When she could not cure them, she was insulted, was called a Witch. But generally, from a respect not unmixed with fear, she was called good lady or fair lady (belle dame—bella donna, the very name we give to the fairies.”

Sorcière: The Witch of the Middle Ages, by Jules Michelet, 1863

The Mari (formerly Cheremisses) are a Finno-Ugric people in Russia and the Russian constituent republic Mari El. They belong to the Volga Finns. The Mari are one of the last pagan peoples and have resisted Christianisation until the 19th century. Today many Mari are baptized Russian Orthodox, but in the Republic of Mari El there are three pagan communities. The Mari have a pantheon of deities with 4 hierarchies of gods, including the "Great White God" Oš Kugu Jumo and a thunder god. The Mari originally had the idea of a world tree, later it was a heavenly pillar. People worshipped and prayed in the sacred groves along the Volga River. One distinguishes the "Mountain Mari" who live on the high southern bank of the Volga, the "Forest Mari" in the west, the "Meadow Mari" on the northern bank of the Volga and the "East Mari".

The Mari (formerly Cheremissen) are a Finno-Ugrian people in Russia and the Russian subRepublic of Mari El. They are one of the Volga Finns. The Mari are one of the last pagan peoples and have opposed Christianization until the 19. th century. Today many Mari are baptized Russian Orthodox, but there are three pagan communities in the Republic of Mari El. The Mari have a pantheon of deities with 4 hierarchies of gods, including the "Great White God" Oš Kugu Jumo and a thunder god. The Mari originally had the idea of a world tree, later it was a heavenly pillar. Worshipped and prayed in the sacred groves along the Volga. The mountain mari, which live on the high southern Wolgaufer, the " Wald-Mari " in the west, the " Wiesen-Mari " on the northern Wolgaufer and the " East Mari ".

Picture from Wikipedia By Petr Vasiliev https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61274457

Early Domesticated Dogs By K. Kris Hirst
The earliest confirmed domestic dog anywhere so far is from a burial site in Germany called Bonn-Oberkassel, which has joint human and dog interments dated to 14,000 years ago. The earliest confirmed domesticated dog in China was found in the early Neolithic (7000–5800 BCE) Jiahu site in Henan Province.

Evidence for co-existence of dogs and humans, but not necessarily domestication, comes from Upper Paleolithic sites in Europe. These hold evidence for dog interaction with humans and include Goyet Cave in Belgium, Chauvet cave in France, and Predmosti in the Czech Republic. European Mesolithic sites like Skateholm (5250–3700 BC) in Sweden have dog burials, proving the value of the furry beasts to hunter-gatherer settlements.