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Syria

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Syria sērˈēə [key], officially Syrian Arab Republic, republic (2015 est. pop. 18,735,000), 71,467 sq mi (185,100 sq km), W Asia. It borders on Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea in the west,...

Jerusalem

(Encyclopedia)Jerusalem jəro͞oˈsələm, –zələm [key], Heb. Yerushalayim, Arab. Al Quds, city (1994 pop. 578,800), capital of Israel. East Jerusalem is also claimed by Palestinians as a future capital, and mo...

Djibouti, city, Republic of Djibouti

(Encyclopedia)Djibouti jēbo͞otēˈ [key], town (1995 est. pop. 383,000), capital of the Republic of Djibouti, a port on the Gulf of Tadjoura (an inlet of the Gulf of Aden). It is the nation's only sizable town an...

Allah

(Encyclopedia)Allah ălˈə, äˈlə [key], [Arab.,=the God]. Derived from an old Semitic root refering to the Divine and used in the Canaanite El, the Mesopotamian ilu, and the biblical Elohim, the word Allah is u...

Amalfi

(Encyclopedia)Amalfi ämälˈfē [key], town, in Campania, S Italy, a small fishing port on the Gulf of Sorrento. Built on a mountain slope, it is also a picturesque seaside resort. Acc...

Falluja, Al

(Encyclopedia)Falluja, Al äl fälo͞oˈjə [key], town, Anbar prov., central Iraq, on the Euphrates. A strategic city ...

Farouk

(Encyclopedia)Farouk färo͞okˈ [key], 1920–65, king of Egypt (1936–52), son and successor of Fuad I. After a short regency he acceded (1937) to the throne. A constitutional monarch, Farouk was frequently at o...

Ismailia

(Encyclopedia)Ismailia äl ĭsmăĭlēˈyə [key], city (1986 est. pop. 212,759), capital of Ismailia governorate, NE Egypt. It is the seat of the Suez Canal administration. Extensive irrigation is used for growing...

Ibn al-Haytham

(Encyclopedia)Ibn al-Haytham ălhəzĕnˈ [key], 965–c.1040, Arab mathematician. Ibn al-Haytham was born in Basra, but made his career in Cairo, where he supported himself copying scientific manuscripts. Among hi...

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...

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