antiballistic missile (ABM), Weapon designed to intercept and destroy ballistic missiles. Effective ABM systems have been sought since the Cold War, when the nuclear arms race raised the spectre of complete destruction by unstoppable ballistic missiles. In the late 1960s both the U.S. and the

Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM Treaty), arms control treaty ratified in 1972 between the United States and the Soviet Union to limit deployment of missile systems that could theoretically be used to destroy incoming intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) launched by the other superpower.

ABN AMRO Holding NV: …company of the Dutch bank ABN AMRO Bank NV. Headquarters are in Amsterdam.

ABN AMRO Holding NV, holding company of the Dutch bank ABN AMRO Bank NV. Headquarters are in Amsterdam. Its origins date to 1824 when King William I of the Netherlands issued a royal decree that established the Netherlands Trading Society (Nederlandsche Handel-Maatschappij; NHM) in order to

Abenaki, Algonquian-speaking North American Indigenous people that united with other peoples in the 17th century to furnish mutual protection against the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy. The name refers to their location “toward the dawn.” In its earliest known form, the Abenaki Confederacy

Ishbosheth: …proclaimed king of Israel by Abner, Saul’s cousin and commander in chief, who then became the real power behind the throne. Judah, however, followed David, and war broke out between the two kingdoms. When Abner took Rizpah, one of Saul’s concubines, Ishbosheth objected because Abner’s action was a symbolic usurpation…

Li’l Abner: Its title character, Abner Yokum, was a handsome, muscle-bound hillbilly, as lazy as he was dull witted. Like Abner, most of the men of Dogpatch were cast as essentially useless to society; all the real work was done by the “wimmenfolk.” One such woman was the curvaceous and…

Guardians of the Galaxy: The writing team of Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, who were largely responsible for the revival of Marvel’s “cosmic” comic properties, introduced a new team, set in the present day, in Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2, no. 1 (May 2008). This new generation of Guardians included galactic adventurer…

Sir William de Wiveleslie Abney was a specialist in the chemistry of photography, especially noted for his development of a photographic emulsion that he used to map the solar spectrum far into the infrared. Commissioned in the Royal Engineers (1861), he taught chemistry and photography at the

human respiratory system: Abnormal gas exchange: Mechanisms of abnormal gas exchange are grouped into four categories—hypoventilation, shunting, ventilation–blood flow imbalance, and limitations of diffusion.

psychopathology, the study of mental disorders and unusual or maladaptive behaviours. An understanding of the genesis of mental disorders is critical to mental health professionals in psychiatry, psychology, and social work. One controversial issue in psychopathology is the distinction between

disease, any harmful deviation from the healthy structural or functional state of an organism, generally associated with certain signs and symptoms and differing in nature from physical injury. A diseased organism commonly exhibits signs or symptoms indicative of its state of health. Thus, the

Turku, city, southwestern Finland, at the mouth of the Aura River, west-northwest of Helsinki. Finland’s oldest city, it was originally a trading centre a few miles north of its present site, to which it was transferred at the beginning of the 13th century. It received its first known charter in

ABO blood group system, the classification of human blood based on the inherited properties of red blood cells (erythrocytes) as determined by the presence or absence of the antigens A and B, which are carried on the surface of the red cells. Persons may thus have type A, type B, type O, or type AB

Artesia: Artesia’s Abo Elementary School is the first underground school in the United States; it was designed to protect against atomic radiation and fallout. Inc. village, 1905; city, 1930. Pop. (2000) 10,692; (2010) 11,301.

Per, Count Brahe, the Younger: He founded the University of Åbo (Turku) in 1640 and acted as its chancellor from 1646 until his death. While serving as lord high chancellor (1641–80), he also exerted great influence as a member of the regency council (1660–72) for Charles XI. Brahe’s brother Count Nils Brahe also…

Treaty of Åbo, (1743), peace settlement that concluded the Russo-Swedish War of 1741–43 by obliging Sweden to cede a strip of southern Finland to Russia and to become temporarily dependent on Russia. As a result of the Great Northern War (Treaty of Nystad, 1721), Sweden had lost Estonia, Livonia,

Lucia dos Santos was a Portuguese shepherd girl, later a Carmelite nun, who claimed that she received visions of the Virgin Mary in 1917 at Fátima, Portugal, which subsequently became one of the most famous Marian shrines in the world. The first of six visions came to Lucia on May 13, 1917, while

African dance: Work dances: …Akan of Ghana perform the Abofor dance, a dance-mime staged after the killing of a dangerous animal. This is meant to placate the spirit of the beast and inform the community of the manner in which it was killed. Tutsi hunters in Congo (Kinshasa) commemorate a successful hunt in their…

Brazil: Pedro II: Nabuco’s book O Abolicionismo (1883; Abolitionism) argued that slavery was poisoning the very life of the nation. The movement succeeded: In 1884 the governments of Ceará and Amazonas freed the enslaved population in those regions, and the following year the national government liberated all enslaved people over 60 years of…

abolitionism, (c. 1783–1888), in western Europe and the Americas, the movement chiefly responsible for creating the emotional climate necessary for ending the transatlantic slave trade and chattel slavery. The intensification of slavery as a system, which followed Portuguese trafficking of enslaved

United Kingdom: The Jacobite rebellion: …powers were destroyed by the Abolition of Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act of 1747. Other statutes required oaths of allegiance to the Hanoverian dynasty from the Episcopalian clergy, banned the wearing of kilts and tartans in an attempt to erode distinctive Highlands practices, and confiscated arms. The administration also confiscated the…

The Abolition of Man, a book on education and moral values by C.S. Lewis, published in 1943. The book originated as the Riddell Memorial Lectures, three lectures delivered at the University of Durham in February 1943. Many people regard this as Lewis’s most important book. In it he argues that

abolitionism, (c. 1783–1888), in western Europe and the Americas, the movement chiefly responsible for creating the emotional climate necessary for ending the transatlantic slave trade and chattel slavery. The intensification of slavery as a system, which followed Portuguese trafficking of enslaved

Brazil: Pedro II: Nabuco’s book O Abolicionismo (1883; Abolitionism) argued that slavery was poisoning the very life of the nation. The movement succeeded: In 1884 the governments of Ceará and Amazonas freed the enslaved population in those regions, and the following year the national government liberated all enslaved people over 60 years of…

artiodactyl: Digestive system: …derived from the esophagus—and the abomasum (or reed), which corresponds to the stomach of other mammals. The omasum is almost absent in chevrotains. Camels have a three-chambered stomach, lacking the separation of omasum and abomasum; the rumen and reticulum are equipped with glandular pockets separated by muscular walls having sphincters…

Abomey, town, southern Benin. It is located about 60 miles (100 km) north of Cotonou. Probably founded in the early 17th century, it soon became the capital of the kingdom of Abomey (later Dahomey; the country’s previous name), which dominated production and trade with the European enterprises on

Benin: Relief: …found in the environs of Abomey, Kétou, Aplahoué (or Parahoué), and Zagnanado. The plateaus consist of clays on a crystalline base. The Abomey, Aplahoué, and Zagnanado plateaus are from 300 to 750 feet high, and the Kétou plateau is up to 500 feet in height.

Benin: Education: The University of Abomey-Calavi (previously known as the University of Dahomey [1970–75] and the National University of Benin [1975–2001]), located in Cotonou, was founded in 1970. The university’s student body has been, along with workers, the main political force in the country since the early 1980s.…

primate: Miocene: …Miocene fossils was the “abominable coalman,” so called because the best-preserved remains, a complete skeleton, were found during the 1950s in a lignite mine in northern Italy. Oreopithecus possessed a number of dental and bony characters that are typically hominid. The canines were relatively short and stout; the face…

Vincent Price: …1970s, and such movies as The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1971) and Theatre of Blood (1973) remain fan favourites. Shortly thereafter Price cut back substantially on his acting to devote himself to his other passions in life: fine art and gourmet cooking. In 1951 he established the Vincent Price Gallery and…

Abominable Snowman, mythical monster resembling a large, hairy, apelike being supposed to inhabit the Himalayas at about the level of the snow line. Though reports of actual sightings of such a creature are rare, certain mysterious markings in the snow have traditionally been attributed to it.

The Abominable Snowman, British horror film, released in 1957, that was one of the first in a long series of movies produced by Hammer Films and starring Peter Cushing. English botanist John Rollason (played by Cushing) is conducting research in the Himalayas when he encounters an expedition led by

The Abominable Snowman, British horror film, released in 1957, that was one of the first in a long series of movies produced by Hammer Films and starring Peter Cushing. English botanist John Rollason (played by Cushing) is conducting research in the Himalayas when he encounters an expedition led by

Tariff of 1828, restrictive tariff that triggered the Nullification Crisis in the United States in the early 19th century. The Tariff of 1828 was intended to protect burgeoning domestic industries by inflating the cost of imported goods by as much as 50 percent, making Americans less likely to buy

anarchism: Poetry and prose: The humorous Abomunist Manifesto (1959), by African American Beat poet Bob Kaufman, also had a markedly anarchist flavour. (According to Kaufman, “Abomunists vote against everyone by not voting for anyone.”) Both the Journal and Kaufman’s Manifesto were published by City Lights press, founded with the City Lights…

medal: Italy: Antonio Abondio drew his style from Leoni and from the charming Mannerist portrait medalists of Reggio nell’Emilia, particularly Alfonso Ruspagiari.

Degema: The Degema-Abonnema port (boats now anchor near the palm oil plant at Abonnema downstream) has been eclipsed by the success of Port Harcourt, 17 miles (27 km) east; but vessels of 16-foot (5-metre) draft still navigate the 42 miles (68 km) to the port from Bonny…

Aceh: Geography: …largely mountainous; Mounts Leuser and Abong Abong rise to elevations of 11,092 feet (3,381 metres) and 9,793 feet (2,985 metres), respectively. Except in the extreme north, there is a fairly wide coastal plain, and the rivers are short and have little value for shipping. The southwestern coast is dotted with…

Abong Mbang, port located in southeastern Cameroon. It lies on the upper Nyong River, at the head of seasonal river navigation from Mbalmayo. Timber (especially mahogany), tobacco, and coffee are major products in the area; bricks are manufactured locally. The Dja Faunal Reserve—which was

Abong Mbang, port located in southeastern Cameroon. It lies on the upper Nyong River, at the head of seasonal river navigation from Mbalmayo. Timber (especially mahogany), tobacco, and coffee are major products in the area; bricks are manufactured locally. The Dja Faunal Reserve—which was

Degema: The Degema-Abonnema port (boats now anchor near the palm oil plant at Abonnema downstream) has been eclipsed by the success of Port Harcourt, 17 miles (27 km) east; but vessels of 16-foot (5-metre) draft still navigate the 42 miles (68 km) to the port from Bonny…

Abood v. Detroit Board of Education, legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court, on May 23, 1977, ruled unanimously (9–0) that agency-shop (or union-shop) clauses in the collective-bargaining agreements of public-sector unions cannot be used to compel nonunion employees to fund political or

Suriname: Suriname since independence: …parties sought to persuade the General Liberation and Development Party (Algemene Bevrijdings- en Ontwikkelingspartij; ABOP), which had won eight seats in the election, to join them in coalition rule. In July the ABOP chose to enter a coalition government with the VHP. In his former capacities as police commissioner and…

Arunachal Pradesh: People of Arunachal Pradesh: The Adi, who constitute the largest tribal group in the state, live in the central region. The Mishmi inhabit the northeastern hills, and the Wancho, Nocte, and Tangsa are concentrated in the southeastern district of Tirap. Throughout the state, the tribal peoples generally share similar rural…

Sino-Tibetan languages: Tibetic languages: …comprises the Bodish-Himalayish, Kirantish, and Mirish language groups.

Indigenous peoples of the Americas, any of the aboriginal peoples of the Western Hemisphere. Inuit, Yupik/Yupiit, and Unangan (Aleuts) are sometimes excluded from this category, because their closest genetic and cultural relations were and are with other Arctic peoples rather than with the groups

Australian Aboriginal peoples: Prehistory: …30,000 years ago, and long-distance trade in objects before 10,000 years ago. It has not yet been ascertained whether there were single or multiple waves of migration into Australia, although recent genetic evidence indicates multiple donor groups, whether from a single heterogeneous migration or multiple waves. While there is no…

Australia: Strains of modern radicalism: …from 1966, and the federal Aboriginal Land Rights Act (1976), applying to the Northern Territory, was particularly important. In 1967 the general electorate overwhelmingly supported a constitutional amendment to increase Commonwealth powers in Aboriginal matters. Equality in formal civic rights, wage payments, and social welfare benefits became the norm. Some…

Tasmanian Aboriginal people: With the adoption of the Aboriginal Lands Act of 1995 , the Tasmanian government began returning control of significant places (including most of Cape Barren Island in 2005) to the Tasmanian Aboriginal community. In the 2011 census, more than 19,000 Tasmanians identified as Aboriginal people, though disputes…

Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) is a national Canadian broadcaster providing Indigenous content for Indigenous and non-Indigenous audiences. APTN’s programs express concerns largely absent from mainstream media and explore the cultures, challenges, and everyday experiences of

Australian Aboriginal peoples, one of the two distinct groups of Indigenous peoples of Australia, the other being the Torres Strait Islander peoples. It has long been conventionally held that Australia is the only continent where the entire Indigenous population maintained a single kind of

Australian Aboriginal peoples, one of the two distinct groups of Indigenous peoples of Australia, the other being the Torres Strait Islander peoples. It has long been conventionally held that Australia is the only continent where the entire Indigenous population maintained a single kind of

William Ferguson: The Aborigines Protection Board, the Aborigines Progressive Association, and the Day of Mourning: …began fighting back, founding the Aborigines Progressive Association (APA) in 1937 to organize the political struggle for Aboriginal rights. The association’s main goals were to achieve citizenship and other rights for Aboriginal people and to do away with the Aborigines Protection Board.

Victoria: European exploration and settlement: In 1886 the Aborigines Protection Act defined categories of Aboriginal Australians and forced those of mixed ancestry off the reserves. By 1917 all full-blooded Aboriginal peoples were concentrated on the two surviving mission stations largely against their will, and children were separated from their parents and placed in…

western Africa: The emergence of African leaders: …Aborigines’ Rights Protection Society (ARPS) to prevent the wholesale expropriation of African lands by European entrepreneurs or officials. The ARPS went on to campaign against the exclusion of qualified Africans from the colonial administration. Following this, in 1918–20, a National Congress of British West Africa was formed by professionals…

abortifacient, any drug or other chemical preparation or substance that is used to intentionally induce abortion. For centuries, herbal abortifacients have been made from infusions or oils of plants such as pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium), angelica (Angelica species), and tansy (Tanacetum vulgare).

Abortion is, according to Encyclopædia Britannica: The abortion debate generally focuses on induced abortions, though some laws and criticisms also include miscarriages. Induced abortions most often fall into one or more of four categories, according to Encyclopædia Britannica: Abortion techniques

abortion, the expulsion of a fetus from the uterus before it has reached the stage of viability (in human beings, usually about the 20th week of gestation). An abortion may occur spontaneously, in which case it is also called a miscarriage, or it may be brought on purposefully, in which case it is

RU-486, first trade name for mifepristone, a synthetic steroid drug prescribed for inducing abortion during the early weeks of pregnancy. The name is derived from an abbreviation for the pharmaceutical company Roussel-Uclaf plus a serial number. RU-486 was approved for use in France in 1988, and

pro-choice movement, in the United States, a political, legal, and social movement aimed at increasing and preserving women’s access to medical abortion. Although the movement has existed in some form since the 19th century, when the medical practice of abortion became subject to government

livestock farming: Diseases of beef and dairy cattle: Vibriosis, a venereal disease that causes abortion; pneumonia, an inflammation of the lungs; and shipping fever all cause serious losses and are difficult to control except through good management. Broad-spectrum antibiotics (antibiotics that are effective against various microorganisms), as well as powerful and specific pharmaceuticals,…

miscarriage, spontaneous expulsion of the embryo or fetus from the uterus before the 20th week of pregnancy, prior to the conceptus having developed sufficiently to live without maternal support. An estimated 10 to 25 percent of recognized pregnancies are lost as a result of miscarriage, with the

Chad: Ethnic groups: … (of the Guera Massif) and Abou Telfân are composed of refugee populations who, living on their mountainous terrain, have resisted various invasions. On the plains surrounding the Hadjeray are the Bulala, Kuka, and the Midogo, who are sedentary peoples. In the eastern region of Ouaddaï live the Maba, among whom…

Abū Qīr Bay, semicircular inlet of the Mediterranean Sea, lying between Abū Qīr Point (southwest) and the mouth of the Rosetta Branch (northeast) of the Nile River delta, in Lower Egypt. The bay was the scene of the Battle of the Nile (1798), in which an English fleet under Rear Admiral Sir Horatio

Battle of the Nile, battle that was one of the greatest victories of the British admiral Horatio Nelson. It was fought on August 1, 1798, between the British and French fleets in Abū Qīr Bay, near Alexandria, Egypt. (See “Napoleon’s Major Battles” Interactive Map) The French Revolutionary general

Nick Hornby: Other novels: Hornby’s second novel, About a Boy (1998), concerns another feckless 30-something and his unlikely friendship with a 12-year-old misfit. It was made into a movie in 2002 and a TV series in 2014. His other novels include How to Be Good (2001), A Long Way Down (2005; film…

Toni Collette: …brought to ancillary characters in About a Boy (2002) and The Hours (2002).

Aristophanes Of Byzantium: …school and wrote a treatise, About Analogy, which laid down rules for declension, etc. In editing the work of lyric and dramatic poets he introduced innovations in metrical analysis and textual criticism that were widely adopted by later scholars. Aristophanes also was responsible for arranging Plato’s dialogues in trilogies, and…

Wernher von Braun: Early life: …bore the nondescript title “About Combustion Tests,” contained theoretical investigation and developmental experiments on 300- and 660-pound-thrust rocket engines.

Lizzo: Music career and solo success: Its hit singles included “About Damn Time,” which also went to number one and won two Grammys, including record of the year.

Asghar Farhadi: In Darbāreye Elī (2009; About Elly), conflicts and emotional revelations arise when a young teacher disappears while vacationing with a group of friends at a seaside cabin. For the drama, Farhadi won the 2009 Berlin International Film Festival’s Silver Bear award for best director.

Brat Pack: Brat Pack films: …Pink (1986), Blue City (1986), About Last Night… (1986), Wisdom (1986), and Fresh Horses (1988).

Daniel Mann: Booth returned for the tearjerker About Mrs. Leslie (1954), playing the lover of a tycoon (Robert Ryan). In 1955 Mann helmed The Rose Tattoo, with a screenplay by Williams. It featured Italian actress Anna Magnani, in her Hollywood debut, as a grieving widow; Lancaster was the truck driver who revives…

Robert De Niro: Comedies and later work: …starred in the comedy films About My Father and Ezra and in the TV series Nada. De Niro next appeared in the miniseries Zero Day (2025), a political drama in which a former president, who may have dementia, is tasked with investigating a cyberattack against the United States. He then…

ProCon is a leading nonpartisan site for learning the top arguments behind debatable issues of the day. ProCon’s mission is to promote civility, critical thinking, education, and informed citizenship by presenting the pro and con arguments to debatable issues in a straightforward, nonpartisan,

Susan Sarandon: Films of the 2000s and later roles: …of a transgender teenager in About Ray and was praised for the sincerity of her performance as a cheerfully smothering mother in The Meddler (both 2015). Sarandon appeared as another troublemaking parent in A Bad Moms Christmas (2017) and then starred as a mother who turns to an underground network…

Kathy Bates: Films: …acted in such films as About Schmidt (2002), for which she received another Academy Award nomination; Failure to Launch (2006); and The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008), a remake of the 1951 classic. In 2008 Bates took a supporting role in Revolutionary Road, portraying a real estate agent in…

Barry Lopez: …collections Crossing Open Ground (1988), About This Life (1998), and Embrace Fearlessly the Burning World (2022), the latter of which was published posthumously. In Horizon (2019) Lopez recounted his various travels. In addition, he authored books for young adults on natural history.

Rachel McAdams: Memorable performances and critical acclaim: Midnight in Paris and Spotlight: …the Wonder (2012); and in About Time (2013), an introspective romantic dramedy that delved into the effects of time travel. In 2014 McAdams played a human rights lawyer in the espionage thriller A Most Wanted Man. The next year she joined the cast of the second season of True Detective,…

Jack Ludwig: The hero of Above Ground (1968), after spending most of his youth in hospital rooms, finds rejuvenation in sexual encounters with a series of willing women. Both novels received mixed critical reviews; Ludwig’s characters were two-dimensional and unsympathetic. He was more successful in his third novel, A Woman…

Helen Clark MacInnes: …MacInnes began her first book, Above Suspicion (1941), a tale of espionage in Nazi Europe. It was an immediate success, widely praised for its suspense and humour, and it was made into a motion picture in 1943. Assignment in Brittany followed in 1942 and was also made into a movie…

Pam Grier: Jackie Brown and other roles: She costarred in Above the Law (1988), action star Steven Seagal’s film debut.

nuclear reactor: Waste disposal: …in cooling pools or in aboveground storage casks.

Armenian literature: Modern: Khachatur Abovean, the “father of modern Armenian literature,” wrote Wounds of Armenia in 1841. The most celebrated Armenian novelist was Hakob Meliq-Hakobian, or Raffi. Among eastern poets, Hovhannes Thumanian wrote lyric and narrative poems; and his masterpiece, a short epic, Anush, full of songs that…

oil shale: Pyrolysis: …been designed for use in aboveground retorts as well as in situ. Three technologies that use this approach are the Kiviter process, employed in Estonia; the Fushun process of China; and the Paraho Direct process, designed in the United States. Hot-recycled-solids methods circulate either burned shale or an inert material…

Abqaiq, town, eastern Saudi Arabia, about 25 miles (40 km) west of the Persian Gulf. It is situated in the southern end of the Abqaiq oil field, one of the largest and most productive in the kingdom. Abqaiq grew rapidly following the discovery of the oil field in 1940. By 1950 the town was the

Lady Gaga: Later albums: …featured the hit singles “Abracadabra” and “Die with a Smile,” the latter of which had been released in 2024 and teamed her with pop singer Bruno Mars. Earlier in 2025 “Die with a Smile” snagged the Grammy for best pop duo performance. The next year Mayhem won the Grammy…

Dunash Ben Labrat was a Hebrew poet, grammarian, and polemicist who was the first to use Arabic metres in his verse, thus inaugurating a new mode in Hebrew poetry. His strictures on the Hebrew lexicon of Menahem ben Saruq provoked a quarrel that helped initiate a golden age in Hebrew philology.

hand tool: Cutting, drilling, and abrading tools: The same jagged crest on the Paleolithic chopper that developed into the ax also developed into another broad tool category, the knife, which combined a uniquely shaped sharp blade with a handle that optimized the position of the cutting edge.

Abraha was an Ethiopian Christian viceroy of Yemen in southern Arabia during the 6th century AD. Abraha was viceroy of the principality of Sabaʾ in Yemen for the (Christian) emperors of Ethiopia. A zealous Christian himself, he is said to have built a great church at Sanaa and to have repaired the

Abraham was the first of the Hebrew patriarchs and a figure revered by the three great monotheistic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. According to the biblical book of Genesis, Abraham left Ur, in Mesopotamia, because God called him to found a new nation in an undesignated land that he

Abraham Accords, series of agreements to normalize relations between Israel and several states with Muslim-majority populations. The name of the accords was given in reference to the biblical Abraham, whom Jews and Arabs consider as their common ancestor, and as an expression of brotherhood. The

Kent State shooting: Controversy: Controversy attended another commemorative sculpture, Abraham and Isaac, which had been commissioned from George Segal by the Mildred Andrews Foundation for donation to the university. The provocative bronze sculpture—depicting the biblical story of a father who is commanded by God to kill his son to prove his loyalty—was deemed “inappropriate”…

Abraham bar Hiyya was a Spanish Jewish philosopher, astronomer, astrologer, and mathematician whose writings were among the first scientific and philosophical works to be written in Hebrew. He is sometimes known as Savasorda, a corruption of an Arabic term indicating that he held some civic office

Moses Maimonides: Life: …the father of a son, Abraham, who was to make his mark in his own right in the world of Jewish scholarship.

School of Nisibis: …school experienced tremendous growth during Abraham de Bet Rabban’s tenure (until c. 569) as director. Its teachers wrote in the fields of literature, history, philology, and theology, as well as translating from Greek into Syriac. The school gained renown in the West and became a major centre of education for…

Il Guercino: …Guercino’s late works, such as “Abraham Driving Out Hagar and Ishmael” (1657–58; Brera Picture Gallery, Milan), are impressive achievements, but other paintings seem weak or sentimental.

Ibrāhīm al-Ḥāqilānī was a Maronite Catholic scholar noted for his Arabic translation of books of the Bible. Ordained a deacon, Ibrāhīm taught Arabic and Syriac first at Pisa, then in Rome, and in 1628 he published a Syriac grammar. In 1640 he began collaborating on the Le Jay Polyglot Bible,

D.W. Griffith: The Birth of a Nation and Intolerance: … (1924), and his next-to-last film, Abraham Lincoln (1930), was another view of the American Civil War in a somewhat ponderous biographical style. Despite his past success and the general acknowledgment of his vital contributions to the syntax of the motion picture, Griffith was unable to find permanent employment after Abraham…