Japan, The Yamato polity

The pattern of administrative control established is called the uji-kabane system. Uji is usually translated as “clan” in English. The uji are thought to be extensions of original agricultural communities, perhaps what early Chinese records referred to as “states.” Essentially, farming communities were associated into lineal groups, united by the belief that harvests

Steer Wrestling

Also called  bulldogging  rodeo event in which a mounted cowboy chases a full-grown steer, dives from his horse on top of the animal, grasps its horns, digs his heels in the ground to bring the animal to a stop, and twists it to the ground. The event is timed from the moment a barrier in front of the cowboy is released to the moment the steer is judged down—i.e., flat on its side with all four legs and head in

Fujitsu Limited

Fujitsu was established in 1935 when it broke away from Fuji Electric Company, a joint venture started in 1923 by the Furukawa Mining Company and Germany's Siemens to develop electrical equipment. Fujitsu

Taliesin

One of five poets renowned among the Welsh in the latter part of the 6th century, according to the Historia Brittonum attributed to Nennius (flourished c. 796). The Book of Taliesin, the oldest surviving copy of his works (written about 700 years after his time), contains a variety of poems, some on religious themes, some arcane religious verses that belong to Celtic mythological

Kyd, Thomas

English dramatist who, with his The Spanish Tragedie (sometimes called Hieronimo, or Jeronimo, after its protagonist), initiated the revenge tragedy of his day. Kyd anticipated the structure of many later plays, including the development of middle and final climaxes. In addition, he revealed an instinctive sense of tragic situation,

Gaines's Mill, Battle Of

In the American Civil War, one of the Seven Days' Battles, which ended the Peninsular Campaign. See Cold Harbor, battles of.

Sangha

The sangha originated in the group of disciples who renounced the worldly life to wander with the Buddha and listen to his teachings. After the Buddha's

Forbes

Town, south central New South Wales, Australia, on the Lachlan River. Named after former New South Wales chief justice Sir Francis Forbes, it was proclaimed a town in 1861 during a gold rush and became a municipality in 1870. The bushranger (outlaw) Ben Hall was shot and killed there in 1865. Now a marketing centre in an irrigated wheat, fruit, vegetable, and livestock region, Forbes processes

Arnow, Harriette

Née  Harriette Louisa Simpson  American novelist, social historian, short-story writer, and essayist, known primarily for the novel The Dollmaker (1954), the story of a Kentucky hill family that moves north to Detroit during World War II. Arnow is an important writer who is often overlooked because of her regionalist approach to universal

New Iberia

City, seat (1868) of Iberia parish, southern Louisiana, U.S., on Bayou Teche (connected via canal with the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway), 23 miles (37 km) southeast of Lafayette. Founded in the late 18th century by French, Spanish, and Acadian settlers, it was laid out in 1835. It was first called Iberia, the ancient name for Spain, but the name was changed when the parish was created. The city was occupied

Braddock, Edward

Braddock, the son of Major General Edward Braddock (d. 1725), joined the Coldstream Guards in 1710 and served in the Netherlands during the siege of Bergen op Zoom in 1747. He was appointed major general in 1754 and arrived in Virginia the following

Domestic Service

In ancient Greece, Rome, and various other early civilizations, domestic

Simenon, Georges

Simenon began working on a local newspaper at age 16, and at 19 he went to Paris determined to be a successful writer. Typing some 80 pages each day, he wrote, between 1923 and 1933, more than