About & Methodology

A sourced record of humanity's firsts and of how long states and governments endure.

Sourcing rules (World Firsts)

multi_sourced: 2 or more independent, non-wiki sources support the claim.
single_sourced: exactly one independent non-wiki source.
wiki_only: only Wikipedia/Wikidata (or mirrors) — these are leads, not primary sources, and never count toward independence.
unsourced: no source yet.
A source counts as independent only if its text supports the claim; copies and same-domain duplicates count once.
Year disputed badge: an automated check found a supporting source placing different year(s) near the claim (206 records). "First" questioned badge: a supporting text uses language like "predates", "disputed" or "not the first" (32 records). These are candidates for human review, not verdicts.

Counts by sourcing status

Sourcing status	Records	Share
multi_sourced	2,137	5.5%
single_sourced	4,856	12.4%
wiki_only	8,400	21.5%
unsourced	23,651	60.6%
Total	39,044	100%

Source entries by kind

Source kind	Source entries
structured_db	10,485
tertiary_wiki	8,081
reference	7,496
primary	6,381
scholarly_secondary	5,912
dataset_notes	677

Coverage is in progress. Most records are not yet independently sourced. Treat unsourced and wiki-only records as unverified claims. Nothing on this site is invented: every value is rendered from the project's research files.

Longevity methodology

Methodology — Government & State Longevity

Reference date for ages: 2026-09-13 (America/Chicago). Ages = calendar years from start date to this date (integer floor of year difference unless noted).

Two clocks (always label which)

1. State / polity continuity (`state_start`)

When a continuous country/polity is treated as existing under a chosen definition. Common definitions (pick one per row; document in state_def):

Independence / modern sovereignty — date of recognized independence or UN membership path.
Continuous polity — uninterrupted institutional identity of the state even through dynasty/regime change (e.g. “China as a continuous state,” “Iran/Persia,” “Ethiopia”).
Union / foundation — e.g. UK Act of Union 1707; USA Declaration 1776 vs Constitution 1789 (use notes).

Contested cases must carry alternate dates in notes and contested=true.

2. Government / regime continuity (`current_gov_start`)

When the current constitutional order, dynasty-as-ruling-system, or clear regime began — since the last clear rupture:

Revolution that replaces the constitutional order
Foreign occupation that resets sovereignty then new founding
Coup + new constitution that breaks legal continuity
Abolition of monarchy / founding of republic (or reverse)
Unification that creates a new state identity

Not counted as rupture by default (flag if debate): peaceful constitutional amendment, succession within same dynasty under same order, party change via election, name change of ruling party without constitutional break.

Dual tracks for monarchies

Where relevant, record both:

dynasty_or_house_start — continuous reigning house (e.g. Japanese imperial house)
constitutional_order_start — current constitution / Meiji / postwar order

Primary current_gov_start for ranking “government lasted” defaults to constitutional/regime order, with house continuity as a separate ranked series.

Scope

All UN member states
Non-UN flagged: Taiwan, Vatican City / Holy See, Kosovo, Palestine, Western Sahara, Cook Islands, Niue, etc.
Historical regimes table is global, not limited to current states

Evidence rules

Every date needs a citation in sources (URL or standard reference)
Never invent dates; if unknown → uncertain + blank or range
Prefer primary texts (constitutions, treaties) and standard reference works (CIA World Factbook, Britannica, national archives, UN)
Mark confidence: high | medium | low

Ranking outputs

Longest current governments/regimes (constitutional order)
Longest current dynastic/house continuity (separate)
Longest historical governments/regimes ever (ended or ongoing)
Longest states under each state_def (independence vs continuous polity)

Known contested seeds (wave-1 focus)

Japan, San Marino, UK, Ethiopia, Iran, China, Vatican/Holy See, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Switzerland, USA, Sweden, Denmark, Oman, Bhutan, Tonga, Thailand.

Phase 2 sourcing report (world firsts)

Phase 2 report — targeted source finding + verification

Date: 2026-10-09 (America/Chicago) Input: phase1.csv → Output: phase2.csv (+ parquet) Rules: Wikipedia/Wikidata/mirrors are leads only. A source counts toward independent_source_count only if its text (page fetch or OpenAlex abstract) supports the claim (supports_claim yes/partial); copies (>50% shingle overlap) and same-domain duplicates count once. Notes citations resolved to a DOI upgrade the existing notes citation (same key), they don't double-count. verified_source_count = independent sources with text evidence.

By pass

pass	rows	requests	ok	fail	success %	credits	avg cr/req	avg cr/ok	avg latency s	→multi	→single
2a	858	17	8	9	47%	20	1.2	2.5	6.7	19	0
2b	823	736	427	309	58%	733	1.0	1.7	8.1	264	245
2c	3000	5700	3528	2172	62%	5,840	1.0	1.7	11.9	206	908
2d	1000	1934	1032	902	53%	1,740	0.9	1.7	24.3	566	264

sourcing_status before → after

status	targeted rows before	targeted after	all rows before	all rows after
multi_sourced	0	1055	1082	2137
single_sourced	981	2289	3548	4856
unsourced	4342	201	27792	23651
wiki_only	358	2136	6622	8400

Contradictions (candidates for human review — automated, not verdicts)

Year: 223 rows/sources where a supporting page puts different year(s) next to the claim than the row's span (phase2/contradictions.json).
First-claim: 36 supporting texts use 'predates / disputed / not the first / earlier example' language near the claim (phase2/first_claim_flags.json).
Country: rows whose supporting text never names the row's country are counted in phase2_verification.country_not_mentioned_in_supporting; not treated as contradiction automatically.

id 3 (2a) Oldowan tools used to butcher megafauna (Nyayanga) — row -2900000, text near claim: [-2598000] — https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abo7452
id 106 (2a) Earliest deep-sea fishing (Jerimalai) — row -40000, text near claim: [-48000] — https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1207703
id 491 (2a) Earliest Egyptian embalming recipes (Mostagedda) — row -4300, text near claim: [-1600, 1600, 2000] — https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103608
id 38739 (2a) Origin of the Black Death traced to the Tian Shan (Chuy Valley gravest — row 2022, text near claim: [1346, 1353] — https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-04800-3
id 422 (2b) Chicken domestication in Neolithic north China (disputed claim) — row -5400, text near claim: [-2000, 2000] — https://doi.org/10.1079/wps19890012
id 896 (2b) Anau seal with possible early signs — row -2300, text near claim: [-1000, 1000, 1864, 1933, 1995, 2000] — https://doi.org/10.1484/j.jiaaa.2.302555
id 1658 (2b) Roman calendar of twelve months (Calendar of Numa) — row -713, text near claim: [-45] — https://doi.org/10.21971/p7gc73
id 5386 (2b) Abbas ibn Firnas' reported glider flight — row 875, text near claim: [1010] — https://doi.org/10.3844/jastsp.2017.30.49
id 5827 (2b) Cave paintings of Punta del Este (Isle of Youth) — row 1000, text near claim: [1922] — https://openalex.org/W2620898497
id 5907 (2b) Maras salt pans (Salineras de Maras) — row 1000, text near claim: [500, 695, 877, 1980, 2024] — https://www.machutravelperu.com/blog/maras-salt-mines

Scaling estimate to all 37,962 residual rows (measured)

Measured: 1.48 scraper requests/row, 0.99 credits/request, success 60%
Projected: ~56,044 requests → ~55,683 credits → $6.46 @Hobby / $4.79 @SCALE
Yield in this round: 1055 of 5681 targeted rows reached multi_sourced (18.6%); 2372 went from unsourced/wiki_only to ≥1 independent source. Cost per row moved to multi_sourced: ~8 credits.
Caveat: residual rows outside 2a/2b are mostly rows without a reliable Wikidata match, so lead quality (and yield) is lower than for 2a.

15 sample rows with sources (spot-check)

id 23210 (2d) — Devil's claw (Harpagophytum) remedy — 1904, Namibia — multi_sourced (indep 3, verified 3)

[primary] https://doi.org/10.1089/acm.2006.12.981 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=no country=no
[reference] https://openalex.org/W2159575519 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=unknown country=no
[primary] https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/natural/984.html — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=no year=unknown country=no
[primary] https://dailynews.gov.bw/news-detail/11294 — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=partial year=no country=no

id 9656 (2a) — Drametse Ngacham masked drum dance — 1550, Bhutan — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 0)

[reference] UNESCO — how=dataset_notes_mine verified_by=- claim=- year=- country=-

id 216 (2a) — Possible earliest cereal cultivation (Abu Hureyra rye) — -11000, Syria — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 0)

[dataset_notes] Reported by Gordon Hillman et al. — how=dataset_notes_mine verified_by=- claim=- year=- country=-

id 4498 (2d) — Saint Catherine's Monastery, Sinai — 548, Egypt — multi_sourced (indep 3, verified 3)

[primary] https://doi.org/10.1553/978oeaw89107 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=no country=no
[primary] https://doi.org/10.12681/eadd/51267 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=no country=no
[primary] https://egymonuments.gov.eg/en/monuments/the-fatimid-mosque/ — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=partial year=no country=yes
[scholarly_secondary] https://doi.org/10.1163%2F156853354X00136 — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown

id 9270 (2b) — Kiplingcotes Derby, oldest annual horse race — 1519, United Kingdom — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 1)

[primary] https://doi.org/10.1080/09523367.2023.2242282 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=no year=unknown country=yes
[reference] https://openalex.org/W7132479751 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=no year=no country=no
[reference] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-47651700 — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=yes year=yes country=yes
[reference] https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=AWGLNB&t=&sort=YMD_date:A&fld-base-0=alltext&maxresults=20&val-ba — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown

id 4508 (2b) — Yared and Ethiopian church chant (zema) — 550, Ethiopia — multi_sourced (indep 2, verified 2)

[primary] https://doi.org/10.1109/ict4da62874.2024.10777238 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=unknown country=yes
[primary] https://doi.org/10.5815/ijeme.2022.02.02 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=unknown country=yes

id 1552 (2b) — Well-field (jingtian) land system — -900, China — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 1)

[primary] https://doi.org/10.1111/ajes.70017 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=unknown country=yes
[primary] https://doi.org/10.19026/ajfst.5.3126 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=no year=unknown country=no
[reference] http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/639289/well-field-system — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown
[scholarly_secondary] https://doi.org/10.1177%2F009770048100700101 — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown

id 23793 (2a) — Gullstrand's schematic eye and dioptrics of the eye — 1909, Sweden — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 0)

[dataset_notes] Handbuch (1909) — how=dataset_notes_mine verified_by=- claim=- year=- country=-

id 4755 (2d) — Baqt: the long-lasting treaty between Muslim Egypt and Christian Nubia — 652, Egypt — multi_sourced (indep 2, verified 2)

[reference] https://openalex.org/W4390235655 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=no year=unknown country=no
[primary] https://doi.org/10.12775/etudtrav.38.004 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=partial year=unknown country=yes
[reference] http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/severus_hermopolis_hist_alex_patr_03_part3.htm — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=yes year=no country=yes

id 7815 (2a) — Pre-Columbian chickens at El Arenal-1 (Polynesian contact claim) — 1350, Chile — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 0)

[primary] PNAS — how=dataset_notes_mine verified_by=- claim=- year=- country=-

id 35524 (2d) — Truth and Reconciliation Commission — 1996, South Africa — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 1)

[primary] https://justice.gov.za/trc/trccom.html — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=yes year=yes country=no
[primary] http://www.doj.gov.za/trc/report/index.htm — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown

id 36032 (2d) — Enforceable socio-economic rights (Government v Grootboom) — 2000, South Africa — multi_sourced (indep 3, verified 3)

[reference] https://openalex.org/W2612295135 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=no country=yes
[primary] https://doi.org/10.21991/c9s953 — how=openalex_search verified_by=openalex_abstract claim=yes year=unknown country=yes
[reference] http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=139&art_id=nw20080805152744175C993743 — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown
[reference] https://mg.co.za/article/2008-08-08-grootboom-dies-homeless-and-penniless — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=yes year=no country=no

id 8779 (2c) — Bishnoi faith and its 29 rules of conservation — 1485, India — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 1)

[reference] https://www.bishnoi.co.in/2012/05/about-shri-guru-jambeshwar-bhagwan.html — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=yes year=yes country=yes
[primary] http://www.rajasthan.gov.in/StateProfile/RajasthanTourism/Pages/Major-Attractions.aspx — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown

id 5820 (2a) — Seabird guano fertilisation of desert crops — 1000, Chile — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 0)

[primary] Nature Plants (2021) — how=dataset_notes_mine verified_by=- claim=- year=- country=-

id 34462 (2c) — St. Kliment Ohridski Antarctic Base — 1988, Bulgaria — single_sourced (indep 1, verified 1)

[reference] https://www.vagabond.bg/bulgaria-antarctica-4210 — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=spiderscrapers_extract claim=yes year=no country=yes
[scholarly_secondary] https://lux.collections.yale.edu/view/group/3f9ada0e-7394-4dbc-86ba-76e1dfb3167e — how=wikipedia_extlink verified_by=fetch_failed claim=no year=unknown country=unknown