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Achaeans

(Encyclopedia)Achaeans, people of ancient Greece, of unknown origin. In Homer, the Achaeans are specifically a Greek-speaking people of S Thessaly. Historically, they seem to have appeared in the Peloponnesus durin...

Lampsacus

(Encyclopedia)Lampsacus lămpˈsəkəs [key], ancient Greek city of NW Asia Minor, on the Hellespont (now Dardanelles) opposite Callipolis (now Gallipoli). It was colonized in the 7th cent. b.c. by Greeks from Phoc...

Tarsus

(Encyclopedia)Tarsus tärˈsəs, Turk. tärso͝osˈ [key], city (1990 pop. 191,333), S Turkey, in Cilicia, on the Tarsus (anc. Cydnus) River, near the Mediterranean Sea. It is an agricultural trade center; copper, ...

gilding

(Encyclopedia)gilding, process of applying a thin layer of real or imitation gold to a surface. The process is employed on wood, metal, ivory, leather, paper, glass, porcelain, and fabrics and is used to embellish ...

publican

(Encyclopedia)publican [Lat.,=state employee], in ancient Rome, man who was employed by the state government under contract. As early as c.200 b.c. there was a class of men in Rome accustomed to undertaking contrac...

Heraclea Pontica

(Encyclopedia)Heraclea Pontica pŏnˈtĭkə [key], ancient Greek city, a port on the southern shore of the Black Sea. Founded in the 6th cent. b.c. by colonists from Megara and Boeotia, it rose to a position of gre...

Cappadocia

(Encyclopedia)Cappadocia kăpədōˈshə [key], ancient region of Asia Minor, watered by the Halys River (the modern Kizil Irmak), in present E central Turkey. The name was applied at different times to territories...

Maan

(Encyclopedia)Maan məänˈ [key], town (1996 est. pop. 18,000), S Jordan. It is the terminus of the country's main rail line (which extends to Damascus, Syria) and carries on trade in agricultural produce. Importa...

Galatia

(Encyclopedia)Galatia gəlāˈshə [key] [Gr.,=Gaul], ancient territory of central Asia Minor, in present Turkey (around modern Ankara). It was so called from its inhabitants, the Gauls, who invaded from the west a...

jackal

(Encyclopedia)jackal, name for several Old World carnivorous mammals of the genus Canis, which also includes the dog and the wolf. Jackals are found in Africa and S Asia, where they inhabit deserts, grasslands, and...