Why is it important to know the history of other cultures then our own?

Because you are a person of the world, not just of your own little community. And as such, you should be compassionate and understanding of others and the history of others. So when you meet the emperor of Japan, you bow to him because you know that is the culture of that country.

The same reason it’s important to know the history of anything.

HIstory tends to repeat itself. Sometimes when we study another cultures we are able to be more objective then when we study our own. This in turn helps us be more objective even when it is a circumstance in our own backyard (hopefully). Also, as @Les said we are part of the world, understanding each other is a wonderful thing, especially if you live in a very diverse country like USA. Otherwise we tend to be very ethnocentric.

So that you may be able to answer the question you were just asking.

I would say it is important in, if nothing else, preventing conflict. It is a fact of life that varying cultures and religions can have completely opposite standpoints on certain issues, and this can bring conflicts to a boil. By understanding the beliefs of your opponent, you can gain perspective on the issue and possibly even understand why fighting may/may not be necessary, even if you don’t agree with their choices.

Know histories -> understanding cultures -> eliminate borders -> communicate better -> peace (someday, maybe?)

I think understanding the history of other countries helps us to understand their cultures. History can make up a huge part of a country’s culture and explain a lot of things we find quirky about another culture. For example, a lot of America’s culture is steeped in history (60’s drive-ins, etc.). Another reason would be that at some point we can see where we may or may not have been a part of that culture’s history, if that makes sense.

Plus all the other answers above. :)

I hated history until I was much older, but I was always interested in different cultures, cultural norms, traditions, mores. So, classes like sociology caught my attention more than history. Now I see how it all connects.

I think it’s important to know about other cultures so we see how similar we all are and that when you come right down to it, we all want the same things.

Because History (all history) is the story of mans actions. Understanding that, you can control the future. Or at least do your best to.

@ChazMaz exactly

“He who controls the present, controls the past. He who controls the past, controls the future.”
– George Orwell, 1984

To study the self is to understand the self. The history of others is the history of the transpersonal self. From an intellectual understanding of the history of others, one can begin to develop an intuitive knowledge about the nature of self (ie identity).

There was a time where Britain controlled massive amounts of the globe. They gave us many tenets of our modern legal system and they were key players (heh) in several important wars you may have heard of. Furthermore, all cultures and histories are valuable to study academically because they give the student perspective and challenge them to think outside of the most accessible history- their own- and recognize global parallels as well as legitimate divergences in history. Also, most early American history will include at least a cursory glance at Bristish history in the 18th century. Did I mention that Britain’s thinkers were among some of the most important to modern science and medicine?

History is a story of things that supposedly actually happened. Stories are how we learn. I think we need to learn more than is directly relevant to our lives at the moment. We never know when we will need the lessons we learn by understanding other people’s stories.

Learning is speculative. It shouldn’t always be directly put to work. We should all keep on continuously learning. It helps us understand our current lives better, and it also can be quite useful in the future. Even if it is never useful, knowledge is a pleasure, and it helps us build our internal models of how human beings and human societies and the natural world work.

The issue of relevance is important, because it motivates people. But we should also be motivated to learn things that are important for us to understand the world we live in.

British history obviously had a great influence on present day America. I mean to assume the founding fathers just came up with the idea of democracy on their own is naive(i’m not saying you are making that assumption). A lot of it came from ideas that were already in the British government, just not fully fleshed out yet. It is no coincidence that the British government today has many similarities to the american government.

Anyways in regards to other cultures, if you are interested in why the world is the way it is, and if you want to have an opinion worth having you should be interested. Then understanding other cultures and what is happening in other countries is the only way to grasp the world as it is. How can you understand the issues in the middle east if you don’t understand the fundamentals of Islam and the legacy of the Ottoman Empire, How can you understand Latin America without knowledge of the colonization of that region. How can you understand the struggles of Eastern Europe without any understanding of the Ideas of Marxism, the short commings Communism and the transition to a Market economy.

All of these cultures and regions has a cause and effect on our own and you will go a long way to understanding your own if you attempt to grasp these other situations.

I agree with most of the above.

My dad would say, “to see where others have failed so that we may recognize those mistakes in our own society before they become irreversible.”

To better understand your own history.

To better understand other people when traveling.

We live in a global society. It is important to know the history of other cultures in order to understand their perspective; how they view the world. For example it is necessary to understand the history of China, at least for the past 250 years, to understand why the Chinese government acts the way it does today. It is important to understand German history of the last century to understand why German troops in Afghanistan are under such tight rules of engagement. Likewise the history of Japan in the last century will give the reasons for their unwillingness to provide combat support troops or armed naval vessels in support of coillition activities.