1.
National Library of Poland
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The National Library of Poland is the central Polish library, subject directly to the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland. The library collects books, journals, electronic and audiovisual publications published in the territory of Poland and it is the most important humanities research library, the main archive of Polish writing and the state centre of bibliographic information about books. It also plays a significant role as a facility and is an important methodological center for other Polish libraries. The National Library receives a copy of every book published in Poland as legal deposit, the Jagiellonian Library is the only other library in Poland to have a national library status. Parts of the collection were damaged or destroyed as they were mishandled while being removed from the library and transported to Russia, according to the historian Joachim Lelewel, the Zaluskis books, could be bought at Grodno by the basket. Because of that, when Poland regained her independence in 1918, on 24 February 1928, by the decree of president Ignacy Mościcki, the National Library was created in its modern form. It was opened in 1930 and initially had 200 thousand volumes and its first Director General was Stefan Demby, succeeded in 1934 by Stefan Vrtel-Wierczyński. The collections of the library were rapidly extended, initially the National Library lacked a seat of its own. Because of that, the collections had to be accommodated in several places, the main reading room was located in the newly built library building of the Warsaw School of Economics. In 1935 the Potocki Palace in Warsaw became home for the special collections, a new, purpose-built building for the library was planned in what is now the Pole Mokotowskie, in a planned monumental Government District. However, its construction was hampered by the outbreak of World War II, before World War II, the library collections consisted of,6. It is estimated that out of over 6 million volumes in Warsaws major libraries in 1939,3.6 million volumes were lost during World War II, today the collections of the National Library are one of the largest in the country. Among 7,900,000 volumes held in the library are 160,000 objects printed before 1801, over 26,000 manuscripts, in 2012 the library signed an agreement to add 1.3 million Polish library records to WorldCat. Załuski Library National Library List of libraries damaged during the World War II National Library website Polona - National Digital Library A Commonwealth of Diverse Cultures
2.
Greek language
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Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece and other parts of the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the longest documented history of any living language, spanning 34 centuries of written records and its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the major part of its history, other systems, such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary, were used previously. The alphabet arose from the Phoenician script and was in turn the basis of the Latin, Cyrillic, Armenian, Coptic, Gothic and many other writing systems. Together with the Latin texts and traditions of the Roman world, during antiquity, Greek was a widely spoken lingua franca in the Mediterranean world and many places beyond. It would eventually become the official parlance of the Byzantine Empire, the language is spoken by at least 13.2 million people today in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Albania, Turkey, and the Greek diaspora. Greek roots are used to coin new words for other languages, Greek. Greek has been spoken in the Balkan peninsula since around the 3rd millennium BC, the earliest written evidence is a Linear B clay tablet found in Messenia that dates to between 1450 and 1350 BC, making Greek the worlds oldest recorded living language. Among the Indo-European languages, its date of earliest written attestation is matched only by the now extinct Anatolian languages, the Greek language is conventionally divided into the following periods, Proto-Greek, the unrecorded but assumed last ancestor of all known varieties of Greek. The unity of Proto-Greek would have ended as Hellenic migrants entered the Greek peninsula sometime in the Neolithic era or the Bronze Age, Mycenaean Greek, the language of the Mycenaean civilisation. It is recorded in the Linear B script on tablets dating from the 15th century BC onwards, Ancient Greek, in its various dialects, the language of the Archaic and Classical periods of the ancient Greek civilisation. It was widely known throughout the Roman Empire, after the Roman conquest of Greece, an unofficial bilingualism of Greek and Latin was established in the city of Rome and Koine Greek became a first or second language in the Roman Empire. The origin of Christianity can also be traced through Koine Greek, Medieval Greek, also known as Byzantine Greek, the continuation of Koine Greek in Byzantine Greece, up to the demise of the Byzantine Empire in the 15th century. Much of the written Greek that was used as the language of the Byzantine Empire was an eclectic middle-ground variety based on the tradition of written Koine. Modern Greek, Stemming from Medieval Greek, Modern Greek usages can be traced in the Byzantine period and it is the language used by the modern Greeks, and, apart from Standard Modern Greek, there are several dialects of it. In the modern era, the Greek language entered a state of diglossia, the historical unity and continuing identity between the various stages of the Greek language is often emphasised. Greek speakers today still tend to regard literary works of ancient Greek as part of their own rather than a foreign language and it is also often stated that the historical changes have been relatively slight compared with some other languages. According to one estimation, Homeric Greek is probably closer to demotic than 12-century Middle English is to modern spoken English, Greek is spoken by about 13 million people, mainly in Greece, Albania and Cyprus, but also worldwide by the large Greek diaspora. Greek is the language of Greece, where it is spoken by almost the entire population
3.
Josephus
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Josephus claimed the Jewish Messianic prophecies that initiated the First Roman-Jewish War made reference to Vespasian becoming Emperor of Rome. In response Vespasian decided to keep Josephus as a slave and interpreter, after Vespasian became Emperor in 69 CE, he granted Josephus his freedom, at which time Josephus assumed the emperors family name of Flavius. Flavius Josephus fully defected to the Roman side and was granted Roman citizenship and he became an advisor and friend of Vespasians son Titus, serving as his translator when Titus led the Siege of Jerusalem. Since the siege proved ineffective at stopping the Jewish revolt, the citys destruction, Josephus recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the first century CE and the First Jewish–Roman War, including the Siege of Masada. His most important works were The Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews, the Jewish War recounts the Jewish revolt against Roman occupation. Antiquities of the Jews recounts the history of the world from a Jewish perspective for an ostensibly Roman audience and these works provide valuable insight into first century Judaism and the background of Early Christianity. Josephus introduces himself in Greek as Iōsēpos, son of Matthias and he was the second-born son of Matthias. His older full-blooded brother was also called Matthias and their mother was an aristocratic woman who descended from the royal and formerly ruling Hasmonean dynasty. Josephuss paternal grandparents were Josephus and his wife—an unnamed Hebrew noblewoman, distant relatives of each other and he descended through his father from the priestly order of the Jehoiarib, which was the first of the 24 orders of priests in the Temple in Jerusalem. Josephus was a descendant of the high priest Jonathon, born and raised in Jerusalem, Josephus was educated alongside his brother. In his early twenties, he traveled to negotiate with Emperor Nero for the release of 12 Jewish priests, Josephus successfully fought the Roman army in Galilee, until he was captured by the Romans during the height of the war. After the Jewish garrison of Yodfat fell under siege, the Romans invaded, killing thousands, according to Josephus, he was trapped in a cave with 40 of his companions in July 67 CE. The Romans asked the group to surrender, but they refused, Josephus suggested a method of collective suicide, they drew lots and killed each other, one by one, counting to every third person. Two men were left, who surrendered to the Roman forces, in 69 CE, Josephus was released. According to his account, he acted as a negotiator with the defenders during the Siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE, in which his parents and first wife died. While being confined at Yodfat, Josephus claimed to have experienced a divine revelation, after the prediction came true, he was released by Vespasian, who considered his gift of prophecy to be divine. In 71 CE, he went to Rome in the entourage of Titus, becoming a Roman citizen, in addition to Roman citizenship, he was granted accommodation in conquered Judaea and a decent, if not extravagant, pension. While in Rome and under Flavian patronage, Josephus wrote all of his known works, although he uses Josephus, he appears to have taken the Roman praenomen Titus and nomen Flavius from his patrons
4.
Domitian
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Domitian was the Emperor of Rome from 81 to 96. He was the brother of Titus and son of Vespasian. During his reign, his authoritarian rule put him at odds with the senate. After the death of his brother, Domitian was declared emperor by the Praetorian Guard and his 15-year reign was the longest since that of Tiberius. As emperor, Domitian strengthened the economy by revaluing the Roman coinage, expanded the defenses of the empire. Significant wars were fought in Britain, where his general Agricola attempted to conquer Caledonia, and in Dacia, Domitians government exhibited totalitarian characteristics, he saw himself as the new Augustus, an enlightened despot destined to guide the Roman Empire into a new era of brilliance. Religious, military, and cultural propaganda fostered a cult of personality, as a consequence, Domitian was popular with the people and army, but considered a tyrant by members of the Roman Senate. Domitians reign came to an end in 96 when he was assassinated by court officials and he was succeeded the same day by his advisor Nerva. Modern revisionists instead have characterized Domitian as a ruthless but efficient autocrat whose cultural, economic, Domitian was born in Rome on 24 October 51, the youngest son of Titus Flavius Vespasianus—commonly known as Vespasian—and Flavia Domitilla Major. He had a sister, Domitilla the Younger, and brother. One such family, the Flavians, or gens Flavia, rose from obscurity to prominence in just four generations, acquiring wealth. Domitians great-grandfather, Titus Flavius Petro, had served as a centurion under Pompey during Caesars civil war and his military career ended in disgrace when he fled the battlefield at the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BC. Sabinus himself amassed further wealth and possible equestrian status through his services as tax collector in Asia, by marrying Vespasia Polla he allied the Flavian family to the more prestigious gens Vespasia, ensuring the elevation of his sons Titus Flavius Sabinus II and Vespasian to senatorial rank. The political career of Vespasian included the offices of quaestor, aedile, and praetor, and culminated with a consulship in 51, as a military commander, Vespasian gained early renown by participating in the Roman invasion of Britain in 43. Nevertheless, ancient sources allege poverty for the Flavian family at the time of Domitians upbringing, even claiming Vespasian had fallen into disrepute under the emperors Caligula, by all appearances, the Flavians enjoyed high imperial favour throughout the 40s and 60s. While Titus received an education in the company of Britannicus, Vespasian pursued a successful political. The same year the Jews of the Judaea province revolted against the Roman Empire in what is now known as the First Jewish-Roman War. Vespasian was assigned to lead the Roman army against the insurgents, of the three Flavian emperors, Domitian would rule the longest, despite the fact that his youth and early career were largely spent in the shadow of his older brother
5.
Jewish history
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Jewish history is the history of the Jews, and their religion and culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions and cultures. The Jewish diaspora began with the Assyrian conquest and continued on a larger scale with the Babylonian conquest. Jews were also widespread throughout the Roman Empire, and this carried on to an extent in the period of Byzantine rule in the central. In 638 CE the Byzantine Empire lost control of the Levant, the Arab Islamic Empire under Caliph Omar conquered Jerusalem and the lands of Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine and Egypt. The Golden Age of Jewish culture in Spain coincided with the Middle Ages in Europe, during that time, Jews were generally accepted in society and Jewish religious, cultural, and economic life blossomed. During the Classical Ottoman period, the Jews, together with most other communities of the empire, in the 17th century, there were many significant Jewish populations in Western Europe. During the period of the European Renaissance and Enlightenment, significant changes occurred within the Jewish community, Jews began in the 18th century to campaign for emancipation from restrictive laws and integration into the wider European society. During the 1870s and 1880s the Jewish population in Europe began to actively discuss immigration back to Israel. The Zionist movement was founded officially in 1884, meanwhile, the Jews of Europe and the United States gained success in the fields of science, culture and the economy. Among those generally considered the most famous were scientist Albert Einstein, a large number of Nobel Prize winners at this time were Jewish, as is still the case. In 1933, with the rise to power of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party in Germany, economic crises, racial anti-Semitic laws, and a fear of an upcoming war led many Jews to flee from Europe to Palestine, to the United States and to the Soviet Union. In 1939 World War II began and until 1941 Hitler occupied almost all of Europe and this genocide, in which approximately six million Jews were methodically exterminated, is known as The Holocaust or Shoah. In Poland, three million Jews were killed in gas chambers in all concentration camps combined, with one million at the Auschwitz concentration camp alone, in 1945 the Jewish resistance organizations in Palestine unified and established the Jewish Resistance Movement. The movement began attacking the British authority, David Ben-Gurion proclaimed on May 14,1948, the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel to be known as the State of Israel. Immediately afterwards all neighbouring Arab states attacked, yet the newly formed IDF resisted, in 1949 the war ended and the state of Israel started building the state and absorbing massive waves of hundreds of thousands of Jews from all over the world. Today, Israel is a democracy with a population of over 8 million people. The largest Jewish communities are in Israel and the United States, with communities in France, Argentina, Russia, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada. For statistics related to modern Jewish demographics see Jewish population, the history of the early Jews, and their neighbors, centers on the Fertile Crescent and east coast of the Mediterranean Sea
6.
Hebrew Bible
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They are composed mainly in Biblical Hebrew, with some passages in Biblical Aramaic. The term does not comment upon the naming, numbering or ordering of books, the term Hebrew Bible is an attempt to provide specificity with respect to contents but avoid allusion to any particular interpretative tradition or theological school of thought. Hebrew Bible refers to the Jewish biblical canon, in its Latin form, Biblia Hebraica, it traditionally serves as a title for printed editions of the Masoretic Text. Many biblical studies scholars advocate use of the term Hebrew Bible as a substitute to terms with religious connotations. Hebrew Bible Old Testament without prescribing the use of either, however, he accepts that there is no reason why non-Christians should feel obliged to refer to these books as the Old Testament, apart from custom of use. Modern Christian formulations of this tension include Supersessionism, Covenant Theology, New Covenant Theology, Dispensationalism, in terms of canon, Christian usage of Old Testament does not refer to a universally agreed upon set of books but, rather, varies depending on denomination. The Hebrew Bible includes small portions in Aramaic, written and printed in Aramaic square-script, the books that constitute the Hebrew Bible developed over roughly a millennium. The oldest texts seem to come from the 11th or 10th centuries BCE and they are edited works, being collections of various sources intricately and carefully woven together. Since the 19th century, most biblical scholars have agreed that the Pentateuch consists of four sources which have been woven together and these four sources are J, D, E and P sources. They were combined to form the Pentateuch sometime in the 6th century BCE and this theory is now known as the documentary hypothesis, and has been the dominant theory for the past two hundred years. The Deuteronomist credited with the Pentateuchs book of Deuteronomy is also said to be the source of the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, several editions, all titled Biblia Hebraica, have been produced by various German publishers since 1906. Between 1906 and 1955, Rudolf Kittel published nine editions of it,1966, the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft published the renamed Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia in six editions until 1997. Since 2004 the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft has published the Biblia Hebraica Quinta, other projects include, Hebrew University Bible Project Hebrew Bible, A Critical Edition Biblical canon Books of the Bible Non-canonical books referenced in the Bible Torah Brueggemann, Walter. An introduction to the Old Testament, the canon and Christian imagination, the People of Ancient Israel, an introduction to Old Testament Literature, History, and Thought, Harper and Row,1974. Sinai and Zion, An Entry into the Jewish Bible, archived from the original on 14 March 2012. The Ancient Near East, Volume I, Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton University Press. An abridgement of Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament Noth, how the Bible Became a Book. The Old Testament, A Literary History, hebrew-English Tanakh, the Jewish Bible Complete, fully vocalized, contilated, Masoretic text of the Hebrew Bible, together with the classic English translation by the Jewish Publication Society
7.
Adam and Eve
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Adam and Eve, according to the creation myth of the Abrahamic religions, were the first man and woman and the ancestors of all humans. It provides the basis for the belief that humanity is in essence a single family, with everyone descended from a single pair of original ancestors. It also provides much of the basis for the doctrines of the fall of man and original sin that are important beliefs in Christianity. In the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible, chapters one through five, in the first, Adam and Eve are not mentioned. Instead, God created humankind in Gods image and instructed them to multiply, in the second narrative, God fashions Adam from dust and places him in the Garden of Eden. Adam is told that he can till the ground and eat freely of all the trees in the garden, except for a tree of the knowledge of good, subsequently, Eve is created from one of Adams ribs to be Adams companion. They are innocent and unashamed about their nakedness, however, a serpent deceives Eve into eating fruit from the forbidden tree, and she gives some of the fruit to Adam. These acts give them additional knowledge, but it gives them the ability to conjure negative and destructive concepts such as shame, God later curses the serpent and the ground. God prophetically tells the woman and the man what will be the consequences of their sin of disobeying God, then he banishes them from the Garden of Eden. The story underwent extensive elaboration in later Abrahamic traditions, and it has been analyzed by modern biblical scholars. The story of Adam and Eve is often depicted in art, the story of the fall of Adam is often understood to be an allegory. There is no evidence that Adam and Eve ever literally existed. In the Book of Genesis, the Genesis creation narrative tells of the creation of the first humans, humankind, in Genesis 1, scholars recognize two separate accounts of the creation in the Old Testament. In the Priestly narrative, God creates the world in six days, culminating in the creation of humanity, here, in the Priestly narrative, the emphasis is on the entirety of the universe and its creation. Here, in the Jahwist narrative, the emphasis is on the Earth within the universe, and humankinds residence on the Earth. Contrast, for example, the order of terms in Genesis 1,1 where it says that God made the heavens and the Earth with Genesis 2,4 where it says God made the Earth and the heavens. In the Jahwist version of the story, God places the man in a garden in Eden where he is permitted to till the land and tend the garden and animals, Genesis 2, 8–15. But none of the animals are found to be a companion for the man, so God causes the man to sleep
8.
The Jewish War
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The Jewish War or Judean War, also referred to in English as The Wars of the Jews, is a book written by Josephus, a Roman-Jewish historian of the 1st century. The next five books detail the unfolding of the war, under Roman generals Vespasian and Titus, the book was written about 75 AD, originally in Josephuss paternal tongue - either Aramaic or Hebrew- though this version has not survived. It was later translated into Greek, probably under the supervision of Josephus himself, however, the current Greek edition does not appear to be a translation, but must be considered a new edition, a complete re-working of the first writing and likely a considerable expansion. The text also survives in an Old Slavonic version, as well as Hebrew which contains material not found in the Greek version, H. Leeming and K. Leeming, Josephus Jewish War and Its Slavonic Version, A Synoptic Comparison. Ancient Judaism & Early Christianity, Brill, notes on the Old Slavonic Josephus Hear a discussion and analysis of this monograph, on an episode of the radio series Invitation to Learning. Loeb Classical Library Josephus Volume 2 The Jewish War Books 1-3 Loeb Classical Library Josephus Volume 3 The Jewish War Books 4-7
The Antiquities of the Jews public domain audiobook at LibriVox