'abd Al-mu'min
Information about 'Abd al-Mu'min and his work may be found in the general histories by Henri Terrasse, Histoire du Maroc, vol. 2, pp. 261 - 316 (1950); and Ambrosio Huici Miranda, Historia pol�tica del Imperio Almohade, 2 vol. (1956 - 57), both with numerous bibliographic references.
Writing
This definition highlights the fact that writing is in principle the representation of language rather than a direct representation of thought and the fact that spoken language has a number of levels of structure, including
Air Law, Criminal jurisdiction
Although some systems of national law still adhere to the view that ships and aircraft are part of the territory of the state the nationality of which they possess, this is merely a crude metaphor. In international law, a distinction has to be made between three types of state jurisdiction: territorial jurisdiction over national territory and all persons and things
Alcmaeonid Family
A powerful Athenian family, claiming descent from the legendary Alcmaeon, that was important in 5th- and 6th-century-BC politics. During the archonship of one of its members, Megacles (632? BC), a certain Cylon failed in an attempt to make himself tyrant, and his followers were slain at an altar sanctuary. Accused of sacrilege and murder, the Alcmaeonids incurred the bloodguilt that
Pencil Fish
Any of several slender South American fishes belonging to three groups of characins, treated by some authorities as three separate families and by others as a single family, Characidae. Pencil fish pick animal food from the bottom or from plant surfaces. Most species inhabit slow-moving water and all live in fresh water. Some habitually swim at an angle, tail down,
Field Trial
Any of the competitions among individual sporting dogs, under conditions that approximate or simulate those found in the hunting field. Competing dogs need not necessarily be of the same breed. In the United States many of the field trials in the bird-dog (pointing dog) category are staged under the sanction of the American Kennel Club, the official governing body
Topographical Poetry
Verse genre characterized by the description of a particular landscape. A subgenre, the prospect poem, details the view from a height. The form was established by John Denham in 1642 with the publication of his poem Cooper's Hill. Topographical poems were at their peak of popularity in the 17th and 18th centuries, though there are examples from the early 19th century, including
Mesopotamia, History Of, The last kings of Babylonia
Awil-Marduk (called Evil-Merodach in the Old Testament; 561 - 560), the son of Nebuchadrezzar, was unable to win the support of the priests of Marduk. His reign did not last long, and he was soon eliminated. His brother-in-law and successor, Nergal-shar-usur (called Neriglissar in classical sources; 559 - 556), was a general who undertook a campaign in 557 into the �rough� Cilician land, which may have
China, Sui and T'ang periods
The best general account of Chinese relations with its northern neighbours in the steppes is Rene Grousset, The Empire of the Steppes (1970; originally published in French, 1939; 4th French ed., 1960). On Chinese overseas trade and relations with Southeast Asia, see Gungwu Wang, The Nanhai Trade: A Study of the Early History of Chinese Trade in the South China Sea (1958).
M�lln
City, Schleswig-Holstein Land (state), northern Germany, situated south of L�beck, on the Elbe-L�beck Canal, and built around two small lakes. First mentioned in 1188, it was chartered about 1220. According to legend, the prankster Till Eulenspiegel, the representative of Low German humour and the subject of both literary and musical works, died there in 1350, and his tombstone (16th century)
L�pez Michelsen, Alfonso
The son of Alfonso L�pez Pumarejo, who was twice president of Colombia (1934 - 38 and 1942 - 45), L�pez Michelsen was educated in Bogot�, Paris, London, and Brussels, with postgraduate studies at Georgetown University and the University of Chile. Returning to Colombia from voluntary exile in Mexico in 1958, he organized a new party of dissident Liberals, the
Pacific Islands, Polynesia
Polynesians are the most homogeneous in speech, custom, and physical appearance, although western Polynesians (Samoans and Tongans) are moderately distinct from the rest. Accomplished as cultivators and fishermen, they have directed their principal energies to nonmaterial pursuits. Epic mythology, copious genealogies, sophisticated social etiquettes, hereditary
Amarna, Tell El-
Also spelled �Tall al-Amarna�, or �Tel el-Amarna� site of the ruins and tombs of the city of Akhetaton (�Horizon of Aton�) in Upper Egypt, 44 miles (71 km) north of modern Asyut in al-Minya muhafazah (governorate). On a virgin site on the east bank of the Nile, Akhenaton (Amenhotep IV) built the city in about 1348 BC as the new capital of his kingdom when he abandoned the worship of Amon and devoted himself to that of Aton. About four years after Akhenaton's
Argentina, Political developments
Works on Juan Per�n and Peronism include Frederick C. Turner and Jos� Enrique Miguens (eds.), Juan Per�n and the Reshaping of Argentina (1983); Joseph A. Page, Per�n: A Biography (1983); Nicholas Fraser and Marysa Navarro, Eva Per�n (1980, reissued as Evita, 1996); Jeane Kirkpatrick, Leader and Vanguard in Mass Society: A Study of Peronist Argentina (1971); and Guido Di Tella, Argentina Under Per�n, 1973 - 76: The Nation's Experience with a Labour-Based Government (1983).
Caudata, Size range and diversity of structure
The most typical salamanders are short-bodied, four-legged, moist-skinned vertebrates about 100 to 150 millimetres (about 4 to 6 inches) long. The tail is usually about as long as the body. There is much variation in size, and terrestrial salamanders range from 40 to nearly 350 millimetres, with a few exceeding 1 metre (39 inches) in length. Members of most species live in moist places on land
Anarchism, Poetry and prose
Anarchist presses published an enormous quantity of verse - indeed, before 1960 they published more poetry than all other forms of creative writing put together. Among the finest poets of anarchism was Voltairine de Cleyre, whom Emma Goldman considered the �most gifted and brilliant anarchist woman America ever produced.� Although the anarchist themes of de Cleyre's
Yersin, Alexandre
Yersin studied medicine at the universities of Marburg and Paris and bacteriology with �mile Roux in Paris and Robert Koch in Berlin. In 1888 he and
Hoess, Rudolf Franz
After serving in World War I, Hoess joined conservative cliques, was arrested and imprisoned (1923 - 28), and then joined the Nazi Party, becoming a member of the SS. In 1934 he began serving
Chi-tsang
Chi-tsang was the son of a Parthian father and a Chinese mother, but his education and upbringing were wholly Chinese. In an age characterized by social unrest and military
Coosa River
River flowing through northwestern Georgia and eastern Alabama, U.S. It is formed by the confluence of the Etowah and Oostanaula rivers at Rome, Ga., and flows southward for 286 mi (460 km) through the Appalachian Ridge and Valley region into the Gulf coastal plain at Wetumpka, Ala. Its initial course is southwesterly into Cherokee County, Ala., where it receives the Chattooga
Nacka
Town in the l�n (county) of Stockholm, southeastern Sweden, on the S�dert�rn peninsula of the landskap (province) of S�dermanland. A southeastern suburb of Stockholm, it developed into a residential and industrial area with the coming of the railroad in 1893, and in 1949 was incorporated as a town. Leading industries include chemical technology, flour milling, and the manufacture
Lance
The combination of lance and stirrup gave the armoured knights of the European
Athelstan
On the death of his father, Edward the Elder, in 924, Athelstan was elected king of Wessex and Mercia, where he had been brought up by his aunt, Aethelflaed, Lady of the Mercians. Crowned king of the whole country at Kingston on Sept. 4, 925, he proceeded to establish boundaries and rule firmly. His dominion
Malatesta, Sigismondo Pandolfo
Sigismondo was one of three illegitimate sons of Pandolfo Malatesta, who had ruled over Brescia and Bergamo from about 1404 to 1421. Sigismondo was legitimated by Pope Martin V, but he felt no loyalty toward the papacy, which deprived his family of many of
Akron
City, seat (1842) of Summit county, northeastern Ohio, U.S. It lies along the Cuyahoga River, 41 miles (66 km) south-southeast of Cleveland. Akron is the centre of a metropolitan area that includes the cities of Cuyahoga Falls, Tallmadge, and Stow and several villages. At 1,200 feet (370 m) above sea level, it was named for its �high place� (Greek: akros) on the watershed between the Mississippi River and
China, Population distribution
Because of complex natural conditions, the population of China is quite unevenly distributed. Population density varies strikingly, with the greatest contrast occurring between the eastern half of China and the lands of the west and the northwest. Exceptionally high population densities occur in the Yangtze Delta, in the Pearl River Delta, and on the Ch'eng-tu
Pittosporaceae
Family of nine genera of trees, shrubs, or vinelike plants, in the order Rosales, distributed from tropical Africa to the Pacific islands. Members of the family have long, leathery, evergreen leaves; resin in stem ducts; and white, blue, yellow, or reddish flowers. Species of the genus Pittosporum are commonly known as Australian laurel. Tobira, or house-blooming mock orange
Brahmaputra River, Plant and animal life
The most notable
Amalric Ii
Amalric had been constable of Palestine before he was summoned by the Franks in Cyprus to become king there after the death of his brother Guy of Lusignan. Amalric planned a close alliance with Henry of Champagne, the uncrowned ruler of Palestine, betrothing his three sons to Henry's
