Beyond the answers - interesting background to this quiz

The knotting craft behind macramé

Macramé is created almost entirely through knotting rather than weaving or knitting. The technique uses patterns such as square knots and half hitches to build decorative textiles, from wall hangings and plant holders to jewellery. Its name likely derives from a thirteenth-century Arabic word for fringe, and the craft later travelled through Italy and France before enjoying waves of popularity in Victorian homes and 1970s interiors.

Two Russian novels, two very different authors

Although Crime and Punishment and The Trial are both associated with existential anxiety and oppressive systems, they come from different literary traditions. Fyodor Dostoevsky published Crime and Punishment in 1866, exploring guilt, poverty, and redemption in St Petersburg. The Trial, by contrast, was written by Franz Kafka and published posthumously in 1925. The two are often grouped in discussions of philosophical fiction, but their authors never met.

Victor Hugo and the long life of Les Misérables

Victor Hugo published Les Misérables in 1862 after nearly two decades of work and political exile. The novel spans French society from the Napoleonic era to the 1832 Paris uprising, weaving together characters such as Jean Valjean, Fantine, and Javert. Its publication was a major commercial event, and the story has since been adapted into dozens of films, musicals, and television productions, keeping Hugo’s social themes alive far beyond nineteenth-century France.

Pyongyang and the geography of East Asia

Pyongyang sits on the Taedong River in the northern part of the Korean Peninsula and is one of East Asia’s oldest capital cities. The name is often translated as “flat land” or “peaceful land.” Although it is sometimes confused with other Asian capitals in quick-fire quizzes, Pyongyang has been the centre of North Korean political life since the country’s division after the Second World War.

Georgetown, Managua, and the capitals of the Americas

Capital cities in Latin America and the Caribbean often blur together in memory. Georgetown, Guyana’s capital, lies on the Atlantic coast and carries a distinctly Anglophone character as a former British colonial port. Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, sits on the southwestern shore of Lake Managua and has been rebuilt several times after earthquakes and floods. Recognising both helps anchor a mental map of the Americas beyond the better-known capitals.