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Gandhi, Indira

(Encyclopedia)Gandhi, Indira ĭndēˈrə gänˈdē [key], 1917–84, Indian political leader; daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru. She served as an aide to her father, who was prime minister (1947–64), and as minister o...

Mousavi, Mir Hossein

(Encyclopedia)Mousavi, Mir Hossein mēr hōsānˈ mo͞osävēˈ [key], 1941–, Iranian political leader and architect. Active in Islamic groups and in the opposition to the Shah's rule, he was (1979) a founder of ...

madrasa

(Encyclopedia)madrasa or madrassah, in Islamic countries, a school, historically usually one devoted to higher education in religious studies, but the term may refer to any school. Privately endowed, often by royal...

Mamluk

(Encyclopedia)Mamluk or Mameluke mămˈəlo͞ok [key] [Arab.,=slaves], a warrior caste dominant in Egypt and influential in the Middle East for over 700 years. Islamic rulers created this warrior caste by collectin...

Sufism

(Encyclopedia)Sufism so͞oˈfĭzəm [key], an umbrella term for the ascetic and mystical movements within Islam. While Sufism is said to have incorporated elements of Christian monasticism, gnosticism, and Indian m...

Akko

(Encyclopedia)Akko āˈkər, äˈ– [key], Fr. Saint-Jean d'Acre, Arab. Acca, city, NW Israel, a port on the Bay of Haifa (an arm of the Mediterranean Sea). Its manufactures include ir...

Fassbinder, Rainer Werner

(Encyclopedia)Fassbinder, Rainer Werner rīˈnər vĕrˈnər fäsˈbĭnˌdər [key], 1946–82, German filmmaker, b. Bad Wörishofen, Bavaria. One of the most highly regarded and prolific directors of the post–Wo...

National Dialogue Quartet

(Encyclopedia)National Dialogue Quartet, informal grouping of four Tunisian civil society organizations formed in mid-2013 to facilitate political dialogue in Tunisia that would lead to consensus on the adoption of...

Mujibur Rahman

(Encyclopedia)Mujibur Rahman mo͞ojēbo͝orˈ rämänˈ [key], 1921–75, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) political leader, prime minister of Bangladesh (1972–75), popularly known as Sheikh Mujib. Concerned that E...

Nubia

(Encyclopedia)Nubia no͞oˈbēə [key], ancient state of NE Africa. At the height of its political power Nubia extended, from north to south, from the First Cataract of the Nile (near Aswan, Egypt) to Khartoum, in ...