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Alexander the Great

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Empire of Alexander the Great (including dependencies) Alexander the Great or Alexander III, 356–323 b.c., king of Macedon, conqueror of much of Asia. Whether or not Alexander had plans fo...

Aśoka

(Encyclopedia)Aśoka əshōˈkə, –sōˈk– [key] or Ashoka, d. c.232 b.c., Indian emperor (c.273–c.232 b.c.) of the Maurya dynasty; grandson of Chandragupta. One of the greatest rulers of ancient India, he br...

Antigonus I

(Encyclopedia)Antigonus I (Antigonus the One-Eyed or Antigonus Cyclops) ăntigˈənəs sīˈklo˘ps [key], 382?–301 b.c., general of Alexander the Great and ruler in Asia. He was made (333 b.c.) governor of Phryg...

Circassia

(Encyclopedia)Circassia sərkăshˈēə [key], historic region, encompassing roughly the area between the Black Sea, the Kuban River, and the Caucasus, now largely the Krasnodar Territory of SE European Russia. The...

Selim III

(Encyclopedia)Selim III, 1761–1808, Ottoman sultan (1789–1807), nephew and successor of Abd al-Hamid I to the throne of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey). He suffered severe defeats in the second of the Russo-Turkish...

Sèvres, Treaty of

(Encyclopedia)Sèvres, Treaty of, 1920, peace treaty concluded after World War I at Sèvres, France, between the Ottoman Empire (Turkey), on the one hand, and the Allies (excluding Russia and the United States) on ...

Safra

(Encyclopedia)Safra, family of Brazilian bankers with Sephardic Jewish roots. They began as merchant bankers in Syria and Lebanon, financing caravans throughout the Middle East. The Safras are also noted philanthro...

Tripoli , city, Lebanon

(Encyclopedia)Tripoli täräbˈo͝olo͝os [key], ancient Tripolis, city (1996 est. pop. 300,000), NW Lebanon, on the Mediterranean Sea. Citrus fruits, cotton, and other goods are exported from Tripoli. It has an oi...

Hasidim

(Encyclopedia)Hasidim or Chassidim both: häsēˈdĭm, khä– [key] [Heb.,=the pious], term used by the rabbis to describe those Jews who maintained the highest standard of religious observance and moral action. T...

Homs

(Encyclopedia)Homs hĭms [key], city (1995 est. pop. 455,000), capital of Homs governorate, W central Syria, on the Orontes River. A commercial center located in a fertile plain where wheat, grapes, fruit, and vege...