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Balkh

(Encyclopedia) BalkhBalkhbälkh [key], town, N Afghanistan, on a dried-up tributary of the Amu Darya River. One of the world's oldest cities, it is the legendary birthplace of the prophet Zoroaster.…

predestination

(Encyclopedia) predestination, in theology, doctrine that asserts that God predestines from eternity the salvation of certain souls. So-called double predestination, as in Calvinism, is the added…

Ibn Saud

(Encyclopedia) Ibn Saud (Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud)Ibn Saudĭˈbən sä&oomacr;dˈ [key], c.1880–1953, founder of Saudi Arabia and its first king. His family, with its regular seat at Riyadh in the Nejd,…

Ismailis

(Encyclopedia) IsmailisIsmailisĭsmäēlˈēz [key], Muslim Shiite sect that holds Ismail, the son of Jafar as-Sadiq, as its imam. On the death of the sixth imam of the Shiites, Jafar as-Sadiq (d. 765),…

Melaka

(Encyclopedia) Melaka or MalaccaMalaccaboth: məlăkˈə [key], state (1991 pop. 504,502), 640 sq mi (1,658 sq km), Malaysia, S Malay Peninsula, on the Strait of Malacca. Formerly one of the Straits…

philanthropy

(Encyclopedia) philanthropy, the spirit of active goodwill toward others as demonstrated in efforts to promote their welfare. The term is often used interchangeably with charity. Every year vast sums…

Ali, Muhammad

(Encyclopedia) Ali, MuhammadAli, Muhammadməhămˈəd älēˈ [key], 1942–2016, American boxer, b. Louisville, Ky. Born Cassius Marcellus Clay, he was a 1960 Olympic gold medalist. Shortly after upsetting…

Druze

(Encyclopedia) Druze or DruseDruzedr&oomacr;z [key], religious community of Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan, with important overseas branches in the Americas and Australia. The religious…

Harijans

(Encyclopedia) HarijansHarijanshârˈĭjănzˌ [key] [children of God], in India, individuals who are at the bottom of or outside the Hindu caste system. They were traditionally sweepers, washers of…

Aga Khan

(Encyclopedia) Aga KhanAga Khanäˈgä khän [key], the title of the religious leader and imam of the Ismaili Nizari sect of Islam, originally bestowed by the Persian shah Fath Ali on Hasan Ali Shah,…