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European Council

(Encyclopedia)European Council, institution of the European Union (EU) responsible for defining the EU's general political direction and priorities. It is composed of an elected president (who serves a two-and-a-ha...

fiat money

(Encyclopedia)fiat money fīˈət, fīˈăt [key], inconvertible money that is made legal tender by the decree, or fiat, of the government but that is not covered by a specie reserve. It is commonly understood to b...

Waitangi, Treaty of

(Encyclopedia)Waitangi, Treaty of (Feb. 6, 1840), a pact between some Maori tribes of New Zealand and the British Gov. William Hobson. The treaty protected Maori land interests in exchange for recognition of Britis...

greenmail

(Encyclopedia)greenmail, payment, by a corporation that is a takeover target, of a premium price for the shares of its stock that have been accumulated by the potential buyer. In exchange, the potential buyer stops...

Ramée, Joseph Jacques

(Encyclopedia)Ramée, Joseph Jacques zhôzĕfˈ zhäk rämāˈ [key], 1764–1842, French architect. He left France in 1792 and was active in Germany (where he built the Hamburg Exchange) and in Denmark. He lived i...

Central European Initiative

(Encyclopedia)Central European Initiative, organization founded in 1991 to promote economic and political cooperation in the region between the Adriatic and Baltic seas. Members include Austria, Bosnia and Herzegov...

Rowell, Newton Wesley

(Encyclopedia)Rowell, Newton Wesley rouˈəl [key], 1867–1941, Canadian jurist and statesman, b. Ontario. He was elected (1911) to the Ontario legislature and then served in the Canadian House of Commons (1917–...

Vásquez, Horacio

(Encyclopedia)Vásquez, Horacio ōräˈsyō väˈskās [key], 1860–1936, president of the Dominican Republic (1899–1903, 1903–7, 1924–30). A dominating figure in the nation, even when out of office, Vásque...

Kim Il Sung

(Encyclopedia)Kim Il Sung kĭm jông ĭl [key], 1941?–2011, was groomed as his successor. Active in the Korean Workers' party leadership from 1964, Kim Jong Il became secretary of its central committee in 1973. I...

virtual currency

(Encyclopedia)virtual currency, a means of payment that is electronically created and stored, more specifically an unregulated electronic medium of exchange that operates like a currency but is created and controll...