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Jericho, city, West Bank

(Encyclopedia)Jericho jĕrˈĭkō [key] [Heb.,=fragrant, or city of the moon god], Arab. Ariha, town (2003 est. pop. 19,000), West Bank, in the Jordan valley N of the Dead Sea; nearby is the site of the ancient cit...

Bashir, Omar Hassan Ahmed al-

(Encyclopedia)Bashir, Omar Hassan Ahmed al- ōˈmär häˈsän äˈmĕd äl-bäshērˈ [key], 1944–, Sudanese military and political leader, president of Sudan (1994–2019). He graduated from the Sudanese milita...

Arish, Al

(Encyclopedia)Arish, Al äl ärēshˈ [key], town (1986 pop. 67,337), NE Egypt, in the Sinai peninsula, on the Mediterranean Sea. It is a fishing port and a military and administrative center; since the 1980s it ha...

Mahgoub, Muhammad Ahmad

(Encyclopedia)Mahgoub, Muhammad Ahmad mo͞ohämˈmäd äkhmädˈ mäˈgo͞o [key], 1908–76, Sudanese political leader. After twice serving as Sudan's minister of foreign affairs (1956–58, 1964–65), he was ele...

Mansur, al-, d. 775, 2d Abbasid caliph

(Encyclopedia)Mansur, al- äl-mänso͝orˈ [key] [Arab.,=the victorious], d. 775, 2d Abbasid caliph (754–75) and founder of the city of Baghdad. His name was in full Abu Jafar abd-Allah al-Mansur. He was brother ...

Masudi, Abd al-Hasan Ali ibn al-Husayn

(Encyclopedia)Masudi, Abd al-Hasan Ali ibn al-Husayn mäso͞oˈdē [key], d. 956, Arab historian, geographer, and philosopher, b. Baghdad. He traveled in Spain, Russia, India, Sri Lanka, and China and spent his las...

Abadan

(Encyclopedia)Abadan ăbədănˈ, äbädänˈ [key], city, Khuzestan prov., SW Iran, on Abadan Island, in the delta of the Shatt al Arab, at the head of the Persian Gulf. It is the term...

Sharett, Moshe

(Encyclopedia)Sharett, Moshe mōˈshə shərĕtˈ [key], 1894–1965, Israeli statesman, b. Russia, originally named Shertok. In 1906 he emigrated to Palestine where he was active in the labor movement. In 1933 he ...

Al-Battani

(Encyclopedia)Al-Battani ălˌbətēˈnēəs [key], b. before 858, d. 929, Arab astronomer and mathematician. He is best known in astronomy for his improvements and corrections of the Ptolemaic tradition. His Kitab...

alkali

(Encyclopedia)alkali ălˈkəlī [key] [Arab., al-gili=ashes of saltwort], hydroxide of an alkali metal. Alkalies are readily soluble in water and form strongly basic solutions with a characteristic acrid taste. Th...