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wake
(Encyclopedia)wake, watch kept over a dead body, usually during the night preceding burial. Ancient peoples in various parts of the world observed the custom. As an ancient ritual, it was rooted in a concern that n...Diamond Head
(Encyclopedia)Diamond Head, peak, 761 ft (232 m) high, along the rim of an extinct volcano, SE Oahu island, Hawaii. A prominent point in the Honolulu skyline, Diamond Head was designated a national natural landmark...Ezion-geber
(Encyclopedia)Ezion-geber –gāˈ– [key] [both: Heb.,=giant's backbone], ancient port, on the Gulf of Aqaba. The site, near Aqaba, is now some distance from the shore, which is advancing. The Bible reveals the e...Biarritz
(Encyclopedia)Biarritz byärētsˈ [key], town, Pyrénées-Atlantiques dept., SW France, on the Bay of Bisc...pagoda
(Encyclopedia) CE5 Pagoda pagoda pəgōˈdə [key], name given in the East to a variety of buildings of tower form that are usually part of a temple or monastery group and serve as shrines. Those of India (see s...manuscript
(Encyclopedia)manuscript, a handwritten work as distinguished from printing. The oldest manuscripts, those found in Egyptian tombs, were written on papyrus; the earliest dates from c.3500 b.c. parchment, which succ...Hippodamus
(Encyclopedia)Hippodamus hĭpŏdˈəməs [key], fl. 5th cent. b.c., Greek architect, b. Miletus. He was the first to plan cities according to geometric layouts. For Pericles he remodeled Piraeus (the port of Athens...Hadad, in ancient Middle Eastern religions
(Encyclopedia)Hadad āˈdăd [key], ancient weather god of Semitic origin, worshiped in Babylonia and Assyria. Important throughout the Middle East, he was worshiped under many names. As god of the storm, he was, a...Rzhev
(Encyclopedia)Rzhev ərzhĕfˈ [key], city (1989 est. pop. 70,000), NW European Russia, on the Volga River and on a major rail line to Moscow. It has textile plants and repair shops for railroad equipment. Rzhev, a...lycanthropy
(Encyclopedia)lycanthropy līkănˈthrəpē [key], in folklore, assumption by a human of the appearance and characteristics of an animal. Ancient belief in lycanthropy was widespread, and it still exists in parts o...Browse by Subject
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