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cemetery

(Encyclopedia)cemetery, name used by early Christians to designate a place for burying the dead. First applied in Christian burials in the Roman catacombs, the word cemetery came into general usage in the 15th cent...

Shevardnadze, Eduard Amvrosiyevich

(Encyclopedia)Shevardnadze, Eduard Amvrosiyevich ĕdˈwärd shəvˈärdnädˈzyə [key], 1928–2014, Georgian politician and diplomat. Known for pragmatism rather than polemicism, Shevardnadze served as the head o...

Northumbria, kingdom of

(Encyclopedia)Northumbria, kingdom of nôrthŭmˈbrēˈə [key], one of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in England. It was originally composed of two independent kingdoms divided by the Tees River, Bernicia (including mod...

Safra

(Encyclopedia)Safra, family of Brazilian bankers with Sephardic Jewish roots. They began as merchant bankers in Syria and Lebanon, financing caravans throughout the Middle East. The Safras are also noted philanthro...

oryx

(Encyclopedia)oryx ôrˈĭks [key], name for several small, horselike antelopes, genus Oryx, found in deserts and arid scrublands of Africa and Arabia. They feed on grasses and scrub and can go without water for lo...

Islam in Africa

(Encyclopedia)Islam in Africa, the development of the Muslim religion on the African continent. During Muhammad's lifetime a group of Muslims escaped Meccan persecution (615) by fleeing to Ethiopia, where the Negus...

Dili

(Encyclopedia)Dili dēˈlē [key], city (2002 est. pop. 49,900), capital of East Timor. on the N coast of Timor, on Ombai Strait. Dili is the largest city and chief port and commercial center of East Timor. Soap, p...

illustration

(Encyclopedia)illustration, any type of picture or decoration used in conjunction with a text to embellish its appearance or to clarify its meaning. Illustration is as old as writing, with both originating in the p...

fabliau

(Encyclopedia)fabliau, plural fabliaux both: fäblēōˈ [key], short comic, often bawdy tale in verse that deals realistically and satirically with middle-class or lower-class characters. Fabliaux were often direc...
 

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