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melon

(Encyclopedia)melon, fruit of Cucumis melo, a plant of the family Curcurbitaceae (gourd family) native to Asia and now cultivated extensively in warm regions. There are many varieties, differing in taste, color, an...

Kanishka

(Encyclopedia)Kanishka kənĭshˈkə [key], fl. c.a.d. 120, king of Gandhara. He was the most powerful and renowned ruler of the Kushan dynasty, one of the five tribes of the Yüeh-chih who had divided (1st cent. b...

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...

Roerich, Nicholas Konstantin

(Encyclopedia)Roerich, Nicholas Konstantin nēˈkōlous kənstəntyēnˈ rörˈĭkh [key], 1874–1947, Russian artist, scene designer, and archaeologist. He was connected with the Moscow Art Theatre and the Diaghi...

Yacine, Kateb

(Encyclopedia)Yacine, Kateb käˈtāb yäˈsēn [key], 1929–89, Algerian author. In 1945 he moved to Paris and afterward traveled in Europe and Asia. His most famous work is the novel Nedjma (1957, tr. 1961, new ...

birthwort

(Encyclopedia)birthwort bûrthˈwûrt, –wôrt [key], common name for the Aristolochiaceae, a family of shrubs and woody climbing vines found in the tropics and other warm regions. The largest genus, Aristolochia,...

snakehead

(Encyclopedia)snakehead, common name for members of the family Channidae, hardy freshwater fish native to S and E Asia and tropical Africa, where they are a popular food fish. Snakeheads are elongated fishes with l...

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, ...

Thanom Kittikachorn

(Encyclopedia)Thanom Kittikachorn täˈno͝om kĭtˌəkəchôrnˈ [key], 1911–2004, Thai political and military leader. He entered the army in 1929, rising to command of a division by 1950. After supporting a cou...

Vambery, Arminius

(Encyclopedia)Vambery, Arminius or Hermann ärˈmĭn [key], 1832–1913, Hungarian philologist and traveler. In Constantinople (1857–63) he learned several languages and dialects of Asia Minor and then traveled t...