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Holstein, Friedrich von

(Encyclopedia)Holstein, Friedrich von frēˈdrĭkh fən hôlˈshtīn [key], 1837–1909, German diplomat. After the Congress of Berlin (1878) he became a powerful figure in shaping German foreign policy. His offici...

harem

(Encyclopedia)harem hârˈəm [key] [Arabic], term applied to women's apartments in a Muslim household. In the ancient Arab world women enjoyed a certain amount of freedom. However, with the advent of Islam, the ve...

Orkhan

(Encyclopedia)Orkhan ôr-khänˈ [key], 1288?–1362?, Ottoman sultan (1326–1362?), son and successor of Osman I as leader of the Ottoman Turks. He defeated Byzantine Emperor Andronicus III and conquered large pa...

imam

(Encyclopedia)imam ĭmämˈ [key] [Arab.,=leader], in Islam, a recognized leader or a religious teacher. Among the Sunni the term refers to the leader in the Friday prayer at the mosque; any pious Muslim may functi...

Charles XII, king of Sweden

(Encyclopedia)Charles XII, 1682–1718, king of Sweden (1697–1718), son and successor of Charles XI. The regency under which he succeeded was abolished in 1697 at the request of the Riksdag. At the coronation he ...

Almaty

(Encyclopedia)Almaty ălˌmə-ətäˈ [key], city (2020 pop. 1,896,000), SE Kazakhstan, in the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau, within but independent of Almaty prov. A terminus of th...

Brooke, Sir James

(Encyclopedia)Brooke, Sir James, 1803–68, rajah of Sarawak on Borneo, b. India, of English parents. After active service in Burma (1825–26), he retired (1830) from the army of the East India Company. He sailed ...

Pemba

(Encyclopedia)Pemba pāmˈbə [key], island (2012 pop. 223,033), c.380 sq mi (980 sq km), NE Tanzania, in the Indian Ocean just off the E African mainland. Pemba is part of the semiautonomous archipelago of Zanziba...

Ahmed II

(Encyclopedia)Ahmed II, 1642–95, Ottoman sultan (1691–95), brother and successor of Sulayman II to the throne of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). Soon after his reign began, the Turkish defeat at Slankamen, Serbia ...

Midhat Pasha

(Encyclopedia)Midhat Pasha mĭdhätˈ päshäˈ [key], 1822–83, Turkish politician. As governor of Bulgaria he succeeded within the few years of his tenure (1864–69) in raising the country from misery to relati...