The second largest continent in the world, comprising more than 20 percent of the world's land, Africa is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south, the Indian Ocean to the east and south, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north. It is connected to Asia by the Sinai peninsula. Ec[000000]f[16]LFThe Nile, Congo, and Zambezi Rivers, the Sahara Desert, Lake Victoria, and Mount Kilimanjaro are all found in Africa. Africa contains less than 10 percent of the world's population.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBAllah
BThe Arabic name for the God of Islam (Arabic people of faiths other than Islam also use this word to identify God). In Islam, Allah is the creator of the universe; the one and only God. Muslims believe that Allah is also the god of Abraham, the same god worshiped by the Jewish and Christian people.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBArabian Peninsula
BA peninsula is a body of land that is surrounded on three sides by water. The Arabian Peninsula is a body of land surrounded by the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the Persian Gulf. Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, and Qatar are all countries located on the Arabian Peninsula.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBArabs
BPeople from the Arabian Peninsula or parts of North Africa. Arabs and other people who live in these regions are sometimes called Semites. Although Arabs form one of the most important ethnic groups in the Islamic world, it should be remembered that not all Arabs are Muslims and not all Muslims are Arabs.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBAryans
BThe Aryans are a people who invaded India about 3,500 years ago, in approximately 1500 B.C. The Aryans traveled south from Iran or central Asia. In India, the Aryans conquered the advanced Dravidian civilization. Hinduism combines beliefs from both the Aryans and the Dravidians.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBAshkenazim
BWith the Sephardim, one of two major Jewish groups. The Ashkenazim are Jewish people originating from northern European countries such as Germany, France, Great Britain, and Poland. The Ashkenazim are the largest and most influential Jewish group. Many Ec[000000]f[16]LFAshkenazim have left Europe for America or Israel.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBAsiaB
The largest continent, comprising nearly 30 percent of the world's land, Asia also is the most populous, containing nearly 60 percent of the world's people. Asia is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Indian Ocean to the south, and the Arctic Ocean to the north. Asia and Ec[000000]f[16]LFEurope are part of the same landmass, but Asia's western limit is considered to be the Ural Mountains, although the countries of the Middle East jut further to the west. Asia is home to the world's highest mountain range: the Himalayas.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBBangkok
B
The capital and largest city of Thailand, Bangkok is a center of Hinayana Buddhism, the state religion of that country. Bangkok has a population of about 6 million and has several hundred Buddhist temples.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBBar Mitzvah
BA religious ceremony for young Jewish men. The Bar Mitzvah, held at the age of thirteen, is considered a rite of passage into manhood. With the completion of the Bar Mitzvah (or Bat Mitzvah for women), young Jewish adults are expected to take on religious and moral responsibilities.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBBat Mitzvah
BA religious ceremony for young Jewish women. The Bat Mitzvah, held at the age of thirteen, is considered a rite of passage into adulthood. With the completion of the Bat Mitzvah (or Bar Mitzvah for men), young Jewish adults are expected to take on religious and moral responsibilities.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBBenares
BNow known as Varanasi, Benares is a Hindu holy city in India, and one of that country's most ancient cities. Located in the southeastern region of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, Benares, on the Ganges River, is the destination of constant Hindu pilgrimages. The city has a population of Ec[000000]f[16]LFmore than a million and is also sacred to Buddhists and Sikhs.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBBhagavad Gita
BFrom the Sanskrit, meaning "Song of the Blessed." This epic poem, which dates from the sixth century B.C., was originally passed on orally--told aloud, not written down. The poem recounts a conversation between the god Krishna and the warrior Arjuna. In the poem, Krishna describes Ec[000000]f[16]LFthe paths of knowledge, which are the way to salvation.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBBrahma
BAn important Hindu god. IBrahmaI and IBrahmanI may refer to an essence of reality, or a universal divine spirit. The highest goal of Hinduism is the achievement of oneness with this Brahma. This goal of oneness with a higher being is similar to the Buddhist concept of Nirvana Ec[000000]f[16]LFand the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic goal of heaven.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBBrahmans
BBrahmans are Hindus of the highest caste and social class. Members of the Hindu priesthood are drawn from this caste, as are many individuals in important positions.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcanals
BArtificial channels connecting rivers, lakes, or even oceans. Canals greatly facilitate travel, as they allow ships to move from one body of water to another. Important world canals include the Suez Canal and the Panama Canal.B Ec[000000]f[16]BLcantor
BA Jewish official who leads the congregation in songs and chants.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcaste
BA system of social divisions within Indian society. Before the Indian constitution of 1950, caste determined the position one would hold in society. The four main castes--there were many smaller
divisions--were priests and scholars, soldiers, merchants, and farmers.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBceramics
B
Earthenware or porcelain articles, such as vases, usually fashioned from clay, baked at high temperatures, and then decorated.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcompassionate
BTo be compassionate is to care for and identify with those who are less fortunate. The Buddha is known as the Compassionate One because he left a life of comfort and luxury and tried to find a way to relieve the suffering of others.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBconcentration camps
BPlaces where large numbers of people are forced to live in small areas. During World War II, millions of European Jews were forced into concentration camps by the forces of Nazi Germany. More than 6 million Jews and 3 million other people were killed by the Nazis during World War II.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcongregation
BMembers of a religious community.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBconvert
BTo give up one set of beliefs for a new religion.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcovenant
BAn agreement with a higher power. When the Jewish people were led out of Egypt by Moses, they made a covenant with God. The most important parts of this covenant are listed in the Ten Commandments, the rules of behavior that were to be followed by the Jewish people.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcremation
BThe burning of a body to ashes after death. Many Hindus arrange to be cremated after death, and then to have their ashes placed in the Ganges river.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBCrusades
BThe Crusades were a series of wars during which European Christians tried to retake the holy city of Jerusalem in the years after 1097. The European crusaders made several attempts at retaking Jerusalem. Although they were not able to hold onto this holy city for a Ec[000000]f[16]LFlong period of time, the arts, spices, fabrics and other examples of Islamic culture which they took back to Europe had a major impact on European history and culture. The Crusades stimulated European civilization.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBDalai Lama
BThe Dalai Lama was at one time both the religious leader of Lamaism--the Tibetan form of Buddhism--and the head of government in Tibet. In the 1950s, the People's Republic of China invaded Tibet and made the country part of China. Since this time, the Dalai Lama has campaigned for the freedom of his people.
