Podgorica, city, administrative centre of Montenegro. It is situated in southern Montenegro near the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers. The first recorded settlement was Birziminium, a caravan stop in Roman times, though it probably was an Illyrian tribal centre earlier. As a feudal state

Bank for International Settlements (BIS), international bank established at Basel, Switzerland, in 1930, as the agency to handle the payment of reparations by Germany after World War I and as an institution for cooperation among the central banks of the various countries (see Young Plan). It has

Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), agency of the Indian government established in 1987 to devise uniform standards of quality for broad categories of manufactured and agricultural goods, to perform product testing, and to license the use of an official mark to indicate that a product has been

bisj pole, carved wooden pole used in religious rites of the South Pacific Islands. Bisj poles are occasionally found in North America, but they are more common in New Zealand, Vanuatu (formerly the New Hebrides), and especially the Asmat area in southwestern (Indonesian) New Guinea and along the

myrrh: Myrrh trees and harvest: Arabia, and Somalia, while bisabol myrrh is obtained from C. erythraea, which is an Arabian species of similar appearance. Myrrh trees are found on parched rocky hills and grow up to 3 meters (9 feet) tall. Myrrh exudes as a fluid from resin ducts in the tree bark when…

Bisaya, indigenous people of northwestern Borneo, in Malaysia, concentrated above the Padas River and below Beaufort in Sabah state, and in northern Sarawak state. They are of Malay stock and possibly related to the Visayan of the Philippines. The Bisaya speak Murut, leading some to believe they

Bisaya, indigenous people of northwestern Borneo, in Malaysia, concentrated above the Padas River and below Beaufort in Sabah state, and in northern Sarawak state. They are of Malay stock and possibly related to the Visayan of the Philippines. The Bisaya speak Murut, leading some to believe they

Visayan, any of three ethnolinguistic groups of the Philippines—Cebuano, Hiligaynon, and

Visayan Islands, island group, central Philippines. The Visayan group consists of seven large and several hundred smaller islands clustered around the Visayan, Samar, and Camotes seas. The seven main islands are Bohol, Cebu, Leyte, Masbate, Negros, Panay, and Samar. These islands and their smaller

Bisbee, city, seat (1929) of Cochise county, southeastern Arizona, U.S., 8 miles (13 km) north of the Mexican border. It is built on steep canyon slopes (east of the Mule Mountains) and was for many years a major copper-producing centre; area mines also produced large quantities of malachite,

George Patton: Controversies and appraisal of George Patton: …to be known as the Biscari Massacre. Both claimed that they were following orders not to take prisoners that Patton himself had set forth in a fiery speech to their division a month earlier. Patton denied responsibility, and he was exonerated of any crime.

Vizcaya, provincia (province) in the comunidad autónoma (autonomous community) of Basque Country, northern Spain. Originally a tribal territory of the Vascones (4th century), Vizcaya was vested in the crown of Castile and Leon in 1379, but the central government has always had difficulties ruling

Bay of Biscay, wide inlet of the North Atlantic Ocean indenting the coast of western Europe. Forming a roughly triangular body with an area of about 86,000 square miles (223,000 square km), it is bounded on the east by the west coast of France and on the south by the north coast of Spain. Its

Biscayne Bay, shallow inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, indenting the southeast coast of Florida, U.S. About 40 miles (65 km) long and up to 10 miles (16 km) wide, the bay covers about 220 square miles (570 square km) and forms a part of the Intracoastal Waterway. The bay connects with the ocean mainly

Biscayne National Park, area of coral reefs and other marine features in the Atlantic Ocean off the southeastern coast of Florida, U.S., about 20 miles (32 km) south of Miami. Authorized as Biscayne National Monument in 1968 (with a boundary change in 1974), it became a national park in 1980. The

Bisceglie, town and episcopal see, Puglia (Apulia) regione, southeastern Italy. It lies along the Adriatic Sea and is about 120 miles (190 km) east-northeast of Naples. The Romans called the place Vigiliae, from the watchtowers that were used there in guarding the coast. The town was conquered by

Lucrezia Borgia: …the 17-year-old Alfonso, duke of Bisceglie, an illegitimate son of Alfonso II of Naples. Upon Cesare’s alliance with the French king Louis XII (1499) and his subsequent campaign in the Romagna, which threatened Naples, Alfonso fled Rome in August but returned with Lucrezia in October. In July 1500 he was…

Werner Bischof was a Swiss photojournalist whose photographs are notable for their empathy, strong sense of design, and sensitive use of light. From 1932 to 1936 Bischof attended the Zürich School of Applied Arts, where he studied photography with Hans Finsler. He worked as an advertising and

Werner Bischof was a Swiss photojournalist whose photographs are notable for their empathy, strong sense of design, and sensitive use of light. From 1932 to 1936 Bischof attended the Zürich School of Applied Arts, where he studied photography with Hans Finsler. He worked as an advertising and

California: The arts: …such painters as David Park, Elmer Bischoff, and Richard Diebenkorn. Los Angeles has been more successful as a marketplace for art, with a thriving colony of galleries along La Cienega Boulevard. Carmel, Big Sur, Ojai, and Sausalito have harbored communities of practitioners of diverse arts.

Australia: The economy: Tin also became significant, Mount Bischoff in Tasmania being the world’s largest lode at its discovery in 1871. The 1880s were predominantly the decade of silver; western New South Wales proved richest, and in 1883 Charles Rasp, a German migrant, first glimpsed the varied riches of Broken Hill. The…

Simon Episcopius was a Dutch theologian and systematizer of Arminianism, a liberal reaction to the Calvinist doctrine of predestination. He studied theology at Leiden and in 1610 became a pastor at Bleiswyk. He was made a professor at Leiden in 1612, succeeding the strict Calvinist Franciscus

Enderby Land: The English navigator John Biscoe, sailing for Enderby Brothers, a London whaling firm, discovered the coast in 1831 and named it for his employers. Enderby Land, claimed by Australia, is the site of a research station opened by the Soviet Union in 1963.

Saint Benedict Biscop ; feast day January 12; for English Benedictines and dioceses of Liverpool and Hexham February 13) was the founder and first abbot of the celebrated twin monasteries of SS. Peter (at Wearmouth) and Paul (at Jarrow on Tyne, nearby); he is considered to be the father of

Simon Episcopius was a Dutch theologian and systematizer of Arminianism, a liberal reaction to the Calvinist doctrine of predestination. He studied theology at Leiden and in 1610 became a pastor at Bleiswyk. He was made a professor at Leiden in 1612, succeeding the strict Calvinist Franciscus

pottery: Decorative glazing: …without a glaze are called biscuit. Early earthenware pottery, as discussed above, was unglazed and therefore slightly porous. Of the unglazed stonewares, the most familiar are the Chinese Ming dynasty teapots and similar wares from Yixing in Jiangsu province, the red stoneware body made at Meissen in Saxony during the…

biscuit, in the United States, a small quick bread usually made from flour, salt, and butter or vegetable shortening, with baking powder as a leavening agent. The dough is kneaded briefly and rolled out, and the biscuits are cut with a round cutter. The dough may also be dropped by spoonfuls for an

porcelain: …fired without a glaze, called biscuit porcelain, was introduced in Europe in the 18th century. It was generally used for figures. In the 19th century biscuit porcelain was called Parian ware. Some soft-paste porcelains, which remain somewhat porous, require a glaze. After the body has been fired, the glaze, usually…

Switzerland: Wind systems: …local winds such as the Bise, a cold northeast wind that sweeps across the Mittelland and funnels down Lake Geneva to the city of Geneva. Foehn (German: Föhn) winds, which are associated with the leading edge of a low-pressure system moving across Europe north of Switzerland, often blow for one…

bisexuality, in biology, the condition of an organism capable of producing both male and female gametes (sex cells). In plants and microorganisms, this is often referred to as monoecism. In multicellular animals, bisexuality is usually called hermaphroditism

bisexuality, in human sexuality, sexual interest in and attraction to members of one’s own and the opposite sex. A bisexual is thus a person with both heterosexual and homosexual desires. Some clinical surveys suggest that a significant number of persons experience bisexual desires and engage in

Chinese pottery: The Five Dynasties (907–960) and Ten Kingdoms (902–978): …pale olive-green glaze, were called biseyao (“secret,” or “reserve, colour ware”) by 10th-century writers. It is not known whether this referred to a secret process or to the fact that the ware was reserved for the court.

British Steel Corporation PLC: …the creation (1934) of the British Iron and Steel Federation (BISF), an association of major firms that negotiated both with the government and with rival foreign cartels and firms on issues of pricing, tariffs, quotas, and other policies. During World War II the staff of BISF became almost wholly the…

Bishamon, in Japanese mythology, one of the Shichi-fuku-jin (“Seven Gods of Luck”). He is identified with the Buddhist guardian of the north, known as Kubera, or Vaiśravaṇa. Bishamon is always depicted as dressed in full armour, carrying a spear and a miniature pagoda. He is the protector of the

Kubera, in Hindu mythology, the god of wealth and the king of the yakshas (nature spirits). He is associated with the earth, mountains, all treasures such as minerals and jewels that lie underground, and riches in general. He is sometimes called Dhanada (“giver of wealth”) and for his fellow gods

Bishamon, in Japanese mythology, one of the Shichi-fuku-jin (“Seven Gods of Luck”). He is identified with the Buddhist guardian of the north, known as Kubera, or Vaiśravaṇa. Bishamon is always depicted as dressed in full armour, carrying a spear and a miniature pagoda. He is the protector of the

Bishandas was one of the most skilled portrait painters of the 17th-century Jahāngīr school of Mughal painting. Almost nothing is known of his life, though his name indicates that he was a Hindu. Bishandas was praised by the emperor Jahāngīr as “unequaled in his age for taking likenesses” and was

Shāpūr II: Conquest of Armenia.: At Bishāpūr in southwestern Iran, a tremendous rock-cut relief depicts him seated on a throne and witnessing a triumph of his army: in the top row he is flanked by nobles of the court, and the lower row contains soldiers who present captives and trophies of…

Egypt: Ethnic groups: …two tribes—the ʿAbābdah and the Bishārīn. The ʿAbābdah occupy the Eastern Desert south of a line between Qinā and Al-Ghardaqah; there are also several groups settled along the Nile between Aswān and Qinā. The Bishārīn live mainly in Sudan, although some dwell in the ʿIlbah Mountain region, their traditional place…

Bishkek, city and capital of Kyrgyzstan. It lies in the Chu River valley near the Kyrgyz Mountains at an elevation of 2,500–3,000 feet (750–900 metres). Bishkek is situated along the Alaarcha and Alamedin rivers and intersects in the north with the Bolshoy (Great) Chuysky Canal. In 1825 the Uzbek

Bishnupur, historic town, central West Bengal state, northeastern India. It lies just south of the Dhaleshwari (Dhalkisor) River (a tributary of the Damodar River), about 18 miles (29 km) southeast of Bankura. Bishnupur was the capital of the Hindu Mallabhum kingdom, which was founded in the 8th

chess: The pragmatists: …was a depreciation of the bishop: The Hypermoderns had attacked Tarrasch’s high opinion of an unobstructed bishop and said a bishop could profitably be traded for a knight. The post-Soviet players often traded bishop for knight for minimal compensation. They also often exchanged their good bishop, the one less encumbered…

bishop, in some Christian churches, the chief pastor and overseer of a diocese, an area containing several congregations. Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and other churches have maintained the view that bishops are the successors of the Apostles and that an unbroken line of succession connects

bishop, any of several small African birds belonging to the family Ploceidae (order Passeriformes) and constituting the genus Euplectes. The breeding males are black-bellied and reddish or yellow above, with rufflike head feathering and fluffy rump feathers nearly covering their stumpy tails. The

railroad: The Stockton and Darlington Railway: Investment in the Bishop Auckland coalfield of western County Durham was heavily concentrated in Darlington, where there was agitation for improvement in the outward shipment of the increasing tonnages produced. The region had become the most extensive producer of coal, most of which was sent by coastal sloop…

Bishop Blougram’s Apology, long poem by Robert Browning, published in the two-volume collection Men and Women (1855). The poem contains conversations between Bishop Blougram and Gigadibs, a journalist. The two men argue about the nature of reality and the nature of faith. Neither man finally

Bishop Hill State Historic Site, historic site, Henry county, northwestern Illinois, U.S. It lies about 45 miles (70 km) northwest of Peoria. The village was established in 1846 by Swedish immigrants led by Erik Jansson, who had been influenced by the Pietist movement in Sweden. Fearing persecution

Bishop Museum, research centre and museum for the study of Hawaiian and Polynesian archaeology, natural history, and culture in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. The largest museum in the state of Hawaii, it exhibits Hawaiian and Polynesian arts, crafts, artifacts, and flora and fauna. Among items on display

David Belasco was an American theatrical producer and playwright whose important innovations in the techniques and standards of staging and design were in contrast to the quality of the plays he produced. As a child actor, Belasco appeared with Charles Kean in Richard III and later played in stock

The Bishop Orders His Tomb at St. Praxed’s Church, poem considered to be the first blank verse dramatic monologue in English, by Robert Browning, published in the collection Dramatic Romances and Lyrics (1845). The poem is a character study of a powerful, worldly prince of the Roman Catholic Church

Bishop Rock Lighthouse, 19th-century lighthouse, Scilly Islands, Cornwall. The 19th-century civil-engineering landmark takes perhaps the worst buffeting from heavy seas of any lighthouse in the world. The first tower, begun in 1847, was swept away before the lantern could be installed. The present

Western architecture: First period, to 313 ce: The double church of Bishop Theodore of Aquileia marks a step toward the creation of a monumental edifice of the Christian religion. Standing within the enclosure of a Roman villa, it occupied all the space of the earlier building and more. Two sanctuaries of considerable size, 121…

Quaternary: Correlation of Quaternary deposits: …“instantaneous” marker horizon is the Bishop Tuff, erupted from the Long Valley Caldera in California about 740,000 years ago. This ash is found in Pleistocene sediments as far away as eastern Nebraska. This and other ashes can be identified by their chemistry and confidently dated with radiometric techniques such as…

Bishop v. Wood, legal case in which the U.S. Supreme Court held (5–4) on June 10, 1976, that a municipal employee who was dismissed from his position without a formal hearing and for false causes was not thereby deprived of property or liberty in violation of the due process clause of the

William Of Saint Carilef was a Norman-French bishop of Durham (1081–96), adviser to William I the Conqueror, and chief minister to William II Rufus (1088). Bishop William distinguished himself in his early years as a diligent and practical monk and abbot at the monasteries of St. Carilef (later

bishop’s cap cactus, (Astrophytum myriostigma), species of spineless cactus (family Cactaceae) native to Texas and central Mexico. The plant is a common ornamental species. Bishop’s cap cactus usually reaches no more than 100 cm (39 inches) in height and up to 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter. It has

Sitka National Historical Park: The Bishop’s House (completed 1842) in downtown Sitka, just west of the main park area, became part of the national historical park in 1973. Long the seat of the Russian Orthodox Church in North America, the house is the oldest intact Russian American building in the…

bishop’s cap cactus, (Astrophytum myriostigma), species of spineless cactus (family Cactaceae) native to Texas and central Mexico. The plant is a common ornamental species. Bishop’s cap cactus usually reaches no more than 100 cm (39 inches) in height and up to 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter. It has

Bishop’s Stortford, town (parish), East Hertfordshire district, administrative and historic county of Hertfordshire, southeastern England. It lies along the River Stort on the northeast periphery of the metropolitan complex centred on London. In Norman times the manor was held by the bishop of

Bishop’s University, Privately endowed university in Lennoxville, Quebec, Canada, founded in 1843. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, business, and

Henry Koster: Films of the 1940s: …his career, Koster then made The Bishop’s Wife (1947). The Christmas classic starred Cary Grant as an angel who comes to earth to help a bishop (David Niven) and his wife (Loretta Young) raise money for their church. It received an Academy Award nomination for best picture, and Koster earned…

Mount Everest: The U.S. ascent of 1963: …Unsoeld and Hornbein, along with Barry C. Bishop and Luther G. Jerstad (who had also reached the summit that day via the South Col), were forced to bivouac in the open at 28,000 feet (8,535 meters). All suffered frostbite, and Bishop and Unsoeld later lost their toes; the two had…

William Avery Bishop was a Canadian fighter ace who shot down 72 German aircraft during World War I. Bishop was educated at the Royal Military College, Kingston, and went overseas during World War I with the Canadian cavalry. In 1915 he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps, joining the 60th

Salem witch trials: The trials: On June 2 Bridget Bishop—who had been accused and found innocent of witchery some 12 years earlier—was the first of the defendants to be convicted. On June 10 she was hanged on what became known as Gallows Hill in Salem Village. On July 19 five more convicted persons…

Bronwyn Bishop is an Australian Liberal Party politician who served in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016); she was the speaker of the House from 2013 to 2015. Bishop was educated at the University of Sydney. She was admitted to practice law in 1967 and was elected

Bronwyn Bishop is an Australian Liberal Party politician who served in the federal Senate (1987–94) and House of Representatives (1994–2016); she was the speaker of the House from 2013 to 2015. Bishop was educated at the University of Sydney. She was admitted to practice law in 1967 and was elected

Bishop Museum: …was founded in 1889 by Charles R. Bishop, the American husband of Hawaiian Princess Bernice Pauahi (died 1884), the last direct descendant of Kamehameha I. In 1961 a planetarium and an observatory were added to emphasize the role of astronomy in the cultural history of Pacific Island peoples. The Bishop…

Elizabeth Bishop was an American poet known for her polished, witty, descriptive verse. Her short stories and her poetry first were published in The New Yorker and other magazines. Since her death in 1979, her reputation has grown as one of the most important American poets of the 20th century.

Southern rock: …the Marshall Tucker Band, the Elvin Bishop Group, and others. Soon, as groups such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Charlie Daniels Band, the Outlaws, and Wet Willie joined the fray, fans began to rally around anthems such as Daniels’s “The South’s Gonna Do It.”

Jamie Foxx is an American comedian, musician, and actor who became known for his impersonations on the television sketch-comedy show In Living Color and later proved himself a versatile film actor, especially noted for his Academy Award-winning portrayal of Ray Charles in Ray (2004). Bishop’s

analysis: Constructive analysis: …initiated by the American mathematician Errett Bishop has developed a new framework for analysis in which no object can be deemed to exist unless a specific rule is given for constructing it. This school is known as constructive analysis, and its devotees have shown that it is just as rich…

Hazel Bishop was an American chemist and businesswoman who is best remembered as the inventor of the cosmetics line that bore her name. Bishop graduated from Barnard College in 1929 and attended graduate night courses at Columbia University. From 1935 to 1942 she was an assistant in a dermatologic

Hazel Bishop was an American chemist and businesswoman who is best remembered as the inventor of the cosmetics line that bore her name. Bishop graduated from Barnard College in 1929 and attended graduate night courses at Columbia University. From 1935 to 1942 she was an assistant in a dermatologic

Isabel Bishop was an American painter, draughtsman, and etcher who worked in an urban realist style. Isabel Bishop was reared in Detroit, Michigan. She moved to New York City at age 16 to study commercial art, attending the New York School of Design for Women in 1918. She shifted from commercial

J. Michael Bishop was an American virologist and cowinner (with Harold Varmus) of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1989 for achievements in clarifying the origins of cancer. Bishop graduated from Gettysburg College (Pennsylvania) in 1957 and from Harvard Medical School in 1962. After

Sammy Davis, Jr.: Success on Broadway and joining the Rat Pack: …Shirley MacLaine, Angie Dickinson, and Joey Bishop, marked the emergence of the Rat Pack. During the movie’s production in Las Vegas, Davis, Sinatra, Martin, Lawford, and Bishop regularly performed at the Sands Hotel and Casino; their boozy, humorous appearances soon became legendary. Davis appeared again with various members of the…

Adelaide Festival of Arts: …University of Adelaide music professor John Bishop. Inspired by Scotland’s Edinburgh Festival, the two men formulated a plan and a budget to stage a similar event in Adelaide. Their idea won the support of the city’s mayor, who subsequently helped to generate funding for the festival. With the patronage of…

J. Michael Bishop was an American virologist and cowinner (with Harold Varmus) of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1989 for achievements in clarifying the origins of cancer. Bishop graduated from Gettysburg College (Pennsylvania) in 1957 and from Harvard Medical School in 1962. After

John Peale Bishop was an American poet, novelist, and critic. He was a member of the "lost generation" and a close associate of the American expatriate writers in Paris in the 1920s. At Princeton University, from which he graduated in 1917, Bishop formed lifelong friendships with Edmund Wilson, the

20th-century international relations: Nicaragua and El Salvador: …Movement led by the charismatic Maurice Bishop. Over the next several years the Bishop regime socialized the country, signed mutual-assistance agreements with Soviet-bloc states, and hastened construction of a large airstrip that the United States feared would ultimately be used by Soviet aircraft. The evident incompetence of the New Jewel…

Sir Henry Rowley Bishop was an English composer and conductor remembered for his songs “Home, Sweet Home” and “Lo, Here the Gentle Lark.” Bishop composed, arranged, and conducted dramatic musical productions at Covent Garden Theatre (1810–24), King’s Theatre, Haymarket (1816–17), Drury Lane (from

William Avery Bishop was a Canadian fighter ace who shot down 72 German aircraft during World War I. Bishop was educated at the Royal Military College, Kingston, and went overseas during World War I with the Canadian cavalry. In 1915 he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps, joining the 60th

biblical literature: The Bishops’ Bible: The failure of the Great Bible to win popular acceptance against the obvious superiority of its Geneva rival, and the objectionable partisan flavor of the latter’s marginal annotations, made a new revision a necessity. By about 1563–64 Archbishop Matthew Parker of Canterbury had…

Bishops’ Wars, (1639, 1640), in British history, two brief campaigns that were fought between Charles I and the Scots. The wars were the result of Charles’s endeavour to enforce Anglican observances in the Scottish Church and of the determination of the Scots to abolish episcopacy. A riot in

Synod of Bishops, in the Roman Catholic Church, the institution of periodic meetings of bishops established in 1965 by Pope Paul VI. According to the “Decree on the Bishops’ Pastoral Office in the Church” issued by the Second Vatican Council, the synod is convoked by the pope with the intention of

Yogi Adityanath is a Hindu monk and Indian political leader. He is a prominent member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and is the only politician to have served two full consecutive terms as chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, a key electoral state. He is also the mahant, or head priest, of the

Chengde: History: …summer residence there, calling it Bishu Shanzhuang (“Mountain Estate for Escaping the Heat”). It became the usual practice for the Chinese emperor to leave Beijing for Chengde every summer. About this time the area around Chengde became one of the first intensively colonized and cultivated areas outside the Great Wall;…

Mbari Mbayo Club: Yemi Bisiri made lost-wax brass figures for the Ogboni cult, but in a contemporary style. Jinadu Oladepo created brass figures and bracelets and pendants that were worn by the Oshogbo artists as a kind of insignia. Senabu Oloyede and Kikelomo Oladepo both worked in cloth…

Bīsitūn, village and precipitous rock situated at the foot of the Zagros Mountains in the Kermanshah region of Iran. In ancient times Bīsitūn was on the old road from Ecbatana, capital of ancient Media, to Babylon, and it was on that scarp that the Achaemenid king Darius I the Great (reigned

bisj pole, carved wooden pole used in religious rites of the South Pacific Islands. Bisj poles are occasionally found in North America, but they are more common in New Zealand, Vanuatu (formerly the New Hebrides), and especially the Asmat area in southwestern (Indonesian) New Guinea and along the

porgy: …is the home of the musselcrackers—popular sport fishes growing as heavy as 45 kg (100 pounds). In Australia several important food species are known as snappers and belong to the genus Chrysophrys; in Japan a related species, the red tai (C. major), is another important food fish.

Biskra, town, northeastern Algeria, on the northern edge of the Sahara. It is the centre of the Zab (Ziban) group of oases south of a wide, open depression between the Aurès Massif and the Tell Atlas Mountains. On the site of Vescera, a fortified Roman post, Biskra prospered after Arab conquest in

Atlas Mountains: Transportation: The Biskra Gap, situated between the Ouled-Naïl and Aurès ranges, provides a natural conduit for traffic between Constantine on the Rhumel River and Touggourt in the Sahara. Between Algeria and Morocco both the road and the railroad pass through the Atlas along the Taza Pass, which…

saga: Native historical accounts: …prominent bishops are in the Biskupa sǫgur. Though some of these have a strong hagiographical flavour, others are soberly written and of great historical value. The period from about 1100 to 1264 is also dealt with in several secular histories, known collectively as Sturlunga saga, the most important of which…

Opolskie: Geography: The highest point is Biskupia Kopa (2,916 feet [889 metres]) in the Opawskie Mountains. The main rivers are the Oder (Odra), Neisse (Nysa Kłodzka), Mała Panew, and Stobrawa. Forests, most of which are coniferous, cover one-fourth of the province. The Oder River valley is one of the warmest regions…

Vanuatu: People: …languages and dialects are spoken; Bislama, an English-based Melanesian pidgin, is the national language and, along with English and French, is one of three official languages.

Yobes Ondieki: …sights on the July 1993 Bislett Games Grand Prix 10,000-metre race in Oslo, which was held on a track where dozens of records had fallen. When he began training for the 10,000 metres in February 1993, he had not run the event on a track in 10 years. He prepared…

Bismarck, city, capital of North Dakota, U.S., and seat (1873) of Burleigh county. It lies in the south-central part of the state and is situated on the eastern bank of the Missouri River. The Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through the area in 1804–05. In 1872 Camp Greeley (later Camp Hancock;

Bismarck, German battleship of World War II that had a short but spectacular career. The Bismarck was laid down in 1936 and launched in 1939. It displaced 52,600 tons, mounted eight 15-inch (38-centimetre) guns, and had a speed of 30 knots. In May 1941 the battleship, which was commanded by Admiral

Bismarck Archipelago, island group of Papua New Guinea in the Bismarck Sea, southwestern Pacific Ocean, that lies northeast of the island of New Guinea. The largest components of the archipelago, which has a total land area of about 18,600 square miles (48,200 square km), are New Britain, New