My degree is politics but I also do a few modules in history and will probably change to politics and history next year, so I say either depending on the situation.
'Politics' is usually, 'oh, so you want to be a politician?' No matter how much I explain that in the last year I haven't studied anything that would help me be an MP, and that most politicians usually study law, economics or PPE, they're convinced I'm just going to lie to them and take their money. People also tend to not talk to me much after.
History tends to be 'oh, okay'. That's about it. People seem to think it's easy and 'I done it at GCSE' and that puts them on a level with me.
I think the problem is with any 'academicy' degree is that it sounds so simple/easy; politics, history, philosophy etc. People don't realise that there's a lot more to having that sort of degree, and that most will tend to go into further education afterwards and into research.
Sometimes I wish I had done something useful instead of academic, like engineering or physics; but I'm completely useless with numbers.