1.
Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
2.
Regions of Italy
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The regions of Italy are the first-level administrative divisions of Italy, constituting its second NUTS administrative level. There are 20 regions, of five are constitutionally given a broader amount of autonomy granted by special statutes. Each region, except for the Aosta Valley, is divided into provinces, regions are autonomous entities with powers defined in the Constitution. As the administrative districts of the state during the Kingdom of Italy. The original draft list comprised the Salento region, friuli and Venezia Giulia were separate regions, and Basilicata was named Lucania. Abruzzo and Molise were identified as regions in the first draft. They were later merged into Abruzzo e Molise in the constitution of 1948. Implementation of regional autonomy was postponed until the first Regional Elections of 1970, the ruling Christian Democracy party did not want the opposition Italian Communist Party to gain power in the regions, where it was historically rooted. Regions acquired a significant level of autonomy following a reform in 2001. In June 2006 the proposals, which had been associated with Lega Nord. The results varied considerably among the regions, ranging from 55. 3% in favour in Veneto to 82% against in Calabria, number of regions controlled by each coalition since 1995, Macroregions are the first-level NUTS of the European Union. These regions, whose statutes are approved by their councils, were created in 1970. Since the constitutional reform of 2001 they have had residual legislative powers, the regions have exclusive legislative power with respect to any matters not expressly reserved to state law. Yet their financial autonomy is quite modest, they just keep 20% of all levied taxes, Article 116 of the Italian Constitution grants to five regions home rule, acknowledging their powers in relation to legislation, administration and finance. These regions became autonomous in order to take into account cultural differences, moreover, the government wanted to prevent their secession from Italy after the Second World War. Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol constitutes a special case, the region is nearly powerless, and the powers granted by the regions statute are mostly exercised by the two autonomous provinces within the region, Trentino and South Tyrol. In this case, the regional institution plays a coordinating role, the latter is directly elected by the citizens of each region, with the exceptions of Aosta Valley and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, where he is chosen by the regional council. Under the 1995 electoral law, the winning coalition receives a majority of seats on the council
3.
Sicily
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Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is an autonomous Region of Italy, along with surrounding minor islands, Sicily is located in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula, from which it is separated by the narrow Strait of Messina. Its most prominent landmark is Mount Etna, the tallest active volcano in Europe, the island has a typical Mediterranean climate. The earliest archaeological evidence of activity on the island dates from as early as 12,000 BC. It became part of Italy in 1860 following the Expedition of the Thousand, a revolt led by Giuseppe Garibaldi during the Italian unification, Sicily was given special status as an autonomous region after the Italian constitutional referendum of 1946. Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially regard to the arts, music, literature, cuisine. It is also home to important archaeological and ancient sites, such as the Necropolis of Pantalica, the Valley of the Temples, Sicily has a roughly triangular shape, earning it the name Trinacria. To the east, it is separated from the Italian mainland by the Strait of Messina, about 3 km wide in the north, and about 16 km wide in the southern part. The northern and southern coasts are each about 280 km long measured as a line, while the eastern coast measures around 180 km. The total area of the island is 25,711 km2, the terrain of inland Sicily is mostly hilly and is intensively cultivated wherever possible. Along the northern coast, the ranges of Madonie,2,000 m, Nebrodi,1,800 m. The cone of Mount Etna dominates the eastern coast, in the southeast lie the lower Hyblaean Mountains,1,000 m. The mines of the Enna and Caltanissetta districts were part of a leading sulphur-producing area throughout the 19th century, Sicily and its surrounding small islands have some highly active volcanoes. Mount Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe and still casts black ash over the island with its ever-present eruptions and it currently stands 3,329 metres high, though this varies with summit eruptions, the mountain is 21 m lower now than it was in 1981. It is the highest mountain in Italy south of the Alps, Etna covers an area of 1,190 km2 with a basal circumference of 140 km. This makes it by far the largest of the three volcanoes in Italy, being about two and a half times the height of the next largest, Mount Vesuvius. In Greek Mythology, the deadly monster Typhon was trapped under the mountain by Zeus, Mount Etna is widely regarded as a cultural symbol and icon of Sicily. The Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea, to the northeast of mainland Sicily form a volcanic complex, the three volcanoes of Vulcano, Vulcanello and Lipari are also currently active, although the latter is usually dormant
4.
Metropolitan cities of Italy
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The metropolitan city is an administrative division of Italy, operative since 2015. In 2009, amendments added Reggio Calabria to the list, the metropolitan areas individuated by the autonomous regions were, Trieste in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Cagliari in Sardinia, Catania, Messina and Palermo in Sicily. On 3 April 2014 the Italian Parliament approved a law that establishes 10 metropolitan cities in Italy, the new metropolitan cities have been operative since 1 January 2015. The metropolitan city is composed by the municipalities that before had been members of the same province, each metropolitan city is headed by a metropolitan mayor assisted by a legislative body, the Metropolitan council, and by a non-legislative assembly, the metropolitan conference. Members of the Metropolitan council are elected and chosen by mayors and city councilors of each municipality in the metropolitan city, the metropolitan conference is composed by the mayors of the municipalities closest to the capital. The main functions devolved to the new cities are, local planning and zoning, provision of local police services, transport. Regions of Italy Provinces of Italy Municipalities of Italy Media related to Metropolitan cities of Italy at Wikimedia Commons
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Metropolitan City of Palermo
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The Metropolitan City of Palermo is a metropolitan city in Sicily, Italy. Its capital is the city of Palermo and it replaced the Province of Palermo and comprises the city of Palermo and other 82 municipalities. It was first created by the reform of local authorities and then established by the regional law 15 August 2015. and it is part of the Metropolitan City also the island of Ustica. There are, finally, various road routes linking all the countries of the hinterland to the capital, Metropolitan City of Palermo official website
6.
Demonym
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A demonym is a word that identifies residents or natives of a particular place, which is derived from the name of that particular place. It is a neologism, previously gentilic was recorded in English dictionaries, e. g. the Oxford English Dictionary, thus a Thai may be any resident or citizen of Thailand, of any ethnic group, or more narrowly a member of the Thai people. Conversely, some groups of people may be associated with multiple demonyms, for example, a native of the United Kingdom may be called a British person, a Brit, or a Briton. In some languages, when a parallel demonym does not exist, in English, demonyms are capitalized and are often the same as the adjectival form of the place, e. g. Egyptian, Japanese, or Greek. Significant exceptions exist, for instance the adjectival form of Spain is Spanish, English widely includes country-level demonyms such as Ethiopian or Guatemalan and more local demonyms such as Seoulite, Wisconsinite, Chicagoan, Michigander, Fluminense, and Paulista. Some places lack a commonly used and accepted demonym and this poses a particular challenge to those toponymists who research demonyms. The word gentilic comes from the Latin gentilis and the English suffix -ic, the word demonym was derived from the Greek word meaning populace with the suffix for name. National Geographic attributes the term demonym to Merriam-Webster editor Paul Dickson in a recent work from 1990 and it was subsequently popularized in this sense in 1997 by Dickson in his book Labels for Locals. However, in What Do You Call a Person From, a Dictionary of Resident Names attributed the term to George H. Scheetz, in his Names Names, A Descriptive and Prescriptive Onymicon, which is apparently where the term first appears. Several linguistic elements are used to create demonyms in the English language, the most common is to add a suffix to the end of the location name, slightly modified in some instances. Cairo → Cairene Cyrenaica → Cyrene Damascus → Damascene Greece → Greek Nazareth → Nazarene Slovenia → Slovene Often used for Middle Eastern locations and European locations. Kingston-upon-Hull → Hullensian Leeds → Leodensian Spain → Spaniard Savoy → Savoyard -ese is usually considered proper only as an adjective, thus, a Chinese person is used rather than a Chinese. Monaco → Monégasque Menton → Mentonasque Basque Country → Basque Often used for French locations, mostly they are from Africa and the Pacific, and are not generally known or used outside the country concerned. In much of East Africa, a person of an ethnic group will be denoted by a prefix. For example, a person of the Luba people would be a Muluba, the plural form Baluba, similar patterns with minor variations in the prefixes exist throughout on a tribal level. And Fijians who are indigenous Fijians are known as Kaiviti and these demonyms are usually more informal and colloquial. In the United States such informal demonyms frequently become associated with mascots of the sports teams of the state university system. In other countries the origins are often disputed and these will typically be formed using the standard models above
7.
Daylight saving time
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Daylight saving time is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that evening daylight lasts an hour longer, while sacrificing normal sunrise times. Typically, regions that use Daylight Savings Time adjust clocks forward one hour close to the start of spring, American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin proposed a form of daylight time in 1784. New Zealander George Hudson proposed the idea of saving in 1895. The German Empire and Austria-Hungary organized the first nationwide implementation, starting on April 30,1916, many countries have used it at various times since then, particularly since the energy crisis of the 1970s. The practice has both advocates and critics, DST clock shifts sometimes complicate timekeeping and can disrupt travel, billing, record keeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Computer software often adjusts clocks automatically, but policy changes by various jurisdictions of DST dates, industrialized societies generally follow a clock-based schedule for daily activities that do not change throughout the course of the year. The time of day that individuals begin and end work or school, North and south of the tropics daylight lasts longer in summer and shorter in winter, with the effect becoming greater as one moves away from the tropics. However, they will have one hour of daylight at the start of each day. Supporters have also argued that DST decreases energy consumption by reducing the need for lighting and heating, DST is also of little use for locations near the equator, because these regions see only a small variation in daylight in the course of the year. After ancient times, equal-length civil hours eventually supplanted unequal, so civil time no longer varies by season, unequal hours are still used in a few traditional settings, such as some monasteries of Mount Athos and all Jewish ceremonies. This 1784 satire proposed taxing window shutters, rationing candles, and waking the public by ringing church bells, despite common misconception, Franklin did not actually propose DST, 18th-century Europe did not even keep precise schedules. However, this changed as rail transport and communication networks came to require a standardization of time unknown in Franklins day. Modern DST was first proposed by the New Zealand entomologist George Hudson, whose shift work job gave him time to collect insects. An avid golfer, he also disliked cutting short his round at dusk and his solution was to advance the clock during the summer months, a proposal he published two years later. The proposal was taken up by the Liberal Member of Parliament Robert Pearce, a select committee was set up to examine the issue, but Pearces bill did not become law, and several other bills failed in the following years. Willett lobbied for the proposal in the UK until his death in 1915, william Sword Frost, mayor of Orillia, Ontario, introduced daylight saving time in the municipality during his tenure from 1911 to 1912. Starting on April 30,1916, the German Empire and its World War I ally Austria-Hungary were the first to use DST as a way to conserve coal during wartime, Britain, most of its allies, and many European neutrals soon followed suit. Russia and a few other countries waited until the year
8.
Central European Summer Time
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It corresponds to UTC + two hours. Other names which have been applied to Central European Summer Time are Middle European Summer Time, Central European Daylight Saving Time, and Bravo Time. Since 1996 European Summer Time has been observed between 1,00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and 1,00 on the last Sunday of October, the following countries and territories use Central European Summer Time. In addition, Libya used CEST during the years 1951–1959, 1982–1989, 1996–1997, European Summer Time Other countries and territories in UTC+2 time zone Other names of UTC+2 time zone
9.
Sicilian language
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Sicilian is a Romance language spoken on the island of Sicily and its satellite islands. It is also spoken in southern and central Calabria, in the parts of Apulia, Salento, and Campania, on the Italian peninsula. The Ethnologue describes Sicilian as being distinct enough from Standard Italian to be considered a language and is recognized as a minority language by UNESCO. Some assert that Sicilian represents the oldest Romance language derived from Vulgar Latin, Sicilian has the oldest literary tradition of the Italic languages. Sicilian is currently spoken by the majority of the inhabitants of Sicily, the latter are found in the countries which attracted large numbers of Sicilian immigrants during the course of the past century or so, especially the United States, Canada, Australia and Argentina. In the past two or three decades, large numbers of Sicilians were also attracted to the zones of northern Italy and indeed the rest of the European Union. It is not used as an official language anywhere, even within Sicily, there is currently no central body, in Sicily or elsewhere, that regulates the language in any way. However, since its inception in 1951, the Centro di studi filologici e linguistici siciliani in Palermo has been researching and publishing information on the Sicilian language. The autonomous regional parliament of Sicily has legislated to encourage the teaching of Sicilian at all schools, further, the Sicilian language would be protected and promoted under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. However, Italy has signed this treaty, but the Italian Parliament has not ratified it, the term Calabro-Sicilian refers to the fact that a form of Sicilian, or a dialect closely related to Sicilian, is spoken in central and southern Calabria. Sicilianu is the name of the language in Sicily itself, the term Siculu describes one of the larger prehistoric groups living in Sicily before the arrival of Greeks in the 8th century BC. It can also be used as an adjective to qualify, or further elaborate on, the very earliest influences, visible in Sicilian to this day, exhibit both prehistoric Mediterranean elements and prehistoric Indo-European elements, and occasionally a blending of both. Ruffino 2001 Before the Roman conquest, Sicily was occupied by populations considered indigenous, including Sicels, Sicani, Elymians, the Greek language influence remains strongly visible, while the influences from the other groups are less obvious. What can be stated with certainty is that there remain pre-Indo-European words in Sicilian of an ancient Mediterranean origin, of the three main prehistoric groups, only the Sicels were Indo-European, and their speech is likely to have been closely related to that of the Romans. The following table, listing words for twins, illustrates the difficulty linguists face in tackling the various sub-strata of the Sicilian language, a similar qualifier can be applied to many of the words that appear in this article. For instance, by the time the Romans had occupied Sicily during the 3rd century BC, the words with a prehistoric Mediterranean derivation often refer to plants native to the Mediterranean region or to other natural features. g. of a fruit timpa crag, cliff. The Sicels are a source of such words, but there is also the possibility of a cross-over between ancient Mediterranean words and introduced Indo-European forms. Some examples of Sicilian words with an ancient Indo-European origin, dudda mulberry, the latter would bring with them the Vulgar Latin from that region, a language not too different from that to be found in central Italy at the time
10.
Province of Palermo
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The Province of Palermo was a province in the autonomous region of Sicily, a major island in Southern Italy. Its capital was the city of Palermo, on August 4,2015, it was replaced by the Metropolitan City of Palermo. Its name is derived from Latin word Panormus, from 1072 to 1194 Palermo was the capital of the Kingdom of Sicily before Naples became the new capital under the rule of the French Angevin dynasty. It has also ruled by the Romans, Byzantines, Normans, Arabs, Spanish Empire. Historical accounts recording the existence of the date back to the 8th and 6th century B. C. The province is surrounded by Tyrrhenian Sea in the north, Province of Trapani in the west and it is popular for its beaches, namely Mondello. The land is mountainous and includes Pollina and Imera Valleys, Madonie Range is located in the province. The Province of Palermo has 82 comuni,1,249,533 inhabitants, some major towns of the province are Palermo, Alia, Alimena, Sclafani Bagni and Petralia Soprana. In 1840, for the purpose of administration the province was divided into four districts – Palermo, Corleone, Termini, tourism is also an important industry. A few major tourist destinations include Arab-Norman Palatine Chapel, Church of St. John of the Hermits, Palazzo Abatellis, Gothic Palazzo Chiaramonte, the seat of the Sicilian parliament is located in the province. A cathedral containing the tombs of Frederick II and other rulers is also a known tourist attraction. The Madonie Regional Park is also located in the province and it has an airport called Falcone-Borsellino Airport, which serves about a million passengers every year, while the local port serves about half a million passengers every year. During the months from July to September the province is visited by a number of tourists. Metropolitan City of Palermo Media related to Province of Palermo at Wikimedia Commons
11.
Palermo
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Palermo is a city of Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence, Palermo is located in the northwest of the island of Sicily, right by the Gulf of Palermo in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The city was founded in 734 BC by the Phoenicians as Ziz, Palermo then became a possession of Carthage, before becoming part of the Roman Republic, the Roman Empire and eventually part of the Byzantine Empire, for over a thousand years. The Greeks named the city Panormus meaning complete port, from 831 to 1072 the city was under Arab rule during the Emirate of Sicily when the city first became a capital. The Arabs shifted the Greek name into Balarme, the root for Palermos present-day name, eventually Sicily would be united with the Kingdom of Naples to form the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies until the Italian unification of 1860. The population of Palermo urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 855,285, in the central area, the city has a population of around 676,000 people. The inhabitants are known as Palermitani or, poetically, panormiti, the languages spoken by its inhabitants are the Italian language, Sicilian language and the Palermitano dialect. Palermo is Sicilys cultural, economic and touristic capital and it is a city rich in history, culture, art, music and food. Palermo is the main Sicilian industrial and commercial center, the industrial sectors include tourism, services, commerce. Palermo currently has an airport, and a significant underground economy. In fact, for cultural, artistic and economic reasons, Palermo was one of the largest cities in the Mediterranean and is now among the top tourist destinations in both Italy and Europe. It is the seat of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Arab-Norman Palermo. The city is going through careful redevelopment, preparing to become one of the major cities of the Euro-Mediterranean area. Roman Catholicism is highly important in Palermitano culture, the Patron Saint of Palermo is Santa Rosalia whose Feast Day is celebrated on 15 July. The area attracts significant numbers of each year and is widely known for its colourful fruit, vegetable and fish markets at the heart of Palermo, known as Vucciria, Ballarò. Palermo lies in a basin, formed by the Papireto, Kemonia, the basin was named the Conca dOro by the Arabs in the 9th century. The city is surrounded by a range which is named after the city itself. These mountains face the Tyrrhenian Sea, Palermo is home to a natural port and offers excellent views to the sea, especially from Monte Pellegrino
12.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Monreale
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The Italian Catholic Archdiocese of Monreale is in Sicily. As of 2000 it is no longer a metropolitan see, and is now a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Palermo, in 1174 the abbey of Monreale was declared a prælatura nullius, two years later its abbot was vested with the title and jurisdiction of a bishop. In 1182 Monreale became the see for the diocese of Catania. At first the archbishops were elected by the monks, but were not always Benedictines, in time the diocese of Girgenti and diocese of Caltagirone also became suffragan to Monreale, but Siracusa, in 1844, and Catania, in 1860, became archiepiscopal sees. The former having become the Metropolitan of Caltagirone, Monreale received the new diocese of Caltanisetta, from 1775 to 1802 Monreale and Palermo were united. F. M. J. Troiano Acquaviva dAragona Giacomo Bonanno, C. R. Francesco Maria Testa Francesco Ferdinando Sanseverino, filippo López y Rojo, C. R. Mercurio Maria Teresi Domenico Benedetto Balsamo, O. S. B. Giuseppe Maria Papardo del Pacco, C. R. Domenico Gaspare Lancia di Brolo, series episcoporum ecclesiæ catholicæ, quotquot innotuerunt a beato Petro apostolo. Ratisbon, typis et sumtibus Georgii Josephi Manz. pp. 950–951, mongitore, Antonino, ed. Sicilia sacra disquisitionibus et nototoos illustrata. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Herbermann, Charles
13.
History of Palermo
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Palermo is one of the major cities of Italy, and the historical and administrative capital of Sicily. Human settlement in the Palermo area goes back to prehistoric times and it has one of the most ancient sites in Sicily, Interesting graffiti and prehistoric paintings were discovered in the Addaura grottoes in 1953 by archaeologist Jole Bovio Marconi. They portray dancing figures performing a rite, perhaps shamans. In 734 BC Phoenicians from Tyre established a merchant colony in the Palermo area. The relationship of the new city with the Siculi, the living in the Eastern part of the Island involved both commerce and war. The first building in which became a great city was called Mabbonath. It was the most important of the three forming the “Phoenician triangle” cited by Thucydides. The others were the Motya and Soluntum, only traces of the necropolis remain from the Phoenician age in Palermo. Between the 8th and the 7th centuries BC, the Greeks colonized Sicily and they called the city Panormus and traded with the Carthaginians, Phoenician descendants who were creating an empire from the coast of what is today’s Tunisia. The two civilizations lived together in Sicily until the Roman conquest, the Greek colony of Panormus had two nuclei, the Palepolis, between the two rivers Kemonia and Papirethos, and the Neapolis. Curiously, early Naples was divided in two parts with the same name and its current name stems from the latter. In the course of the Punic Wars Palermo was fought over by the Carthaginians and the Romans until, in 254 BC and it eventually surrendered and the population had to pay a war tribute to save their liberty. Hasdrubal tried to take it back, but the Roman consul Quintus Caecilius Metellus defeated him, in 247, Hamilcar camped with the Carthaginian army on Monte Pellegrino, then called Ercta. However this was in vain, as Palermo remained loyal to Rome and it therefore gained the titles of Praetura, the Golden Eagle, and the right to mint a coin of its own, as one of only five free cities in Sicily. Panormus was a flourishing and beautiful city during the Golden Age of the Roman Republic, in Piazza Vittoria notable palaces and mosaics have been discovered and a large theatre still existed in the Norman age. According to geographer Strabo, during the Roman Empire it provided large amounts of wheat for the capital, however, after the reign of Vespasian, it decayed, and in 445 was sacked by the King of Vandal Africa, Gaiseric. Later it was part of the territory of Odoacer and Theoderics Ostrogoths, in 535, the Byzantine general Belisarius stormed the port, during Justinian Is program of reconquering Italy, which soon turned into the fierce and disastrous Gothic War. The Byzantine rule lasted until 831, when the Aghlabid Arabs, the Arabs captured Palermo after a year-long siege and made it the capital city of their Sicilian emirate
14.
History of Sicily
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The history of Sicily has been influenced by numerous ethnic groups. The Kingdom was founded in 1130 by Roger II, belonging to the Siculo-Norman family of Hauteville, during this period, Sicily was prosperous and politically powerful, becoming one of the wealthiest states in all of Europe. As a result of the succession, then, the Kingdom passed into the hands of the Hohenstaufen. At the end of the 13th century, with the War of the Sicilian Vespers between the crowns of Anjou and Aragon, the passed to the latter. In the following centuries the Kingdom entered into the union with the Spaniard and Bourbon crowns. Although today part of the Republic of Italy, it has its own distinct culture, Sicily is both the largest region of the modern state of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Its central location and natural resources ensured that it has considered a crucial strategic location due in large part to its importance for Mediterranean trade routes. For example, with Cicero and al-Idrisi describing respectively Syracuse and Palermo as the greatest and most beautiful cities of the Hellenic World, at times, the island has been at the heart of great civilizations, at other times it has been nothing more than a colonial backwater. Its fortunes have often waxed and waned depending on events out of its control, in earlier times a magnet for immigrants, in later times a land of emigrants. See also, Prehistory of Sicily The indigenous peoples of Sicily, long absorbed into the population, were known to ancient Greek writers as the Elymians, the Sicani. It is possible, however, that the Sicani were originally an Iberian tribe, the Elymi, too, may have distant origins from outside Italy, in the Aegean Sea area. The recent discoveries of dolmens dating to the half of the third millennium BC. It is a fact that this region went through quite an intricate prehistory. Complex urban settlements become increasingly evident from around 1300 BC, from the 11th century BC, Phoenicians begin to settle in western Sicily, having already started colonies on the nearby parts of North Africa. Within a century, we find major Phoenician settlements at Soloeis, present day Palermo, as Phoenician Carthage grew in power, these settlements came under its direct control. See also, History of Greek Sicily Sicily was colonized by Greeks in the 8th century BC, initially, this was restricted to the eastern and southern parts of the island. The most important colony was established at Syracuse in 734 BC, other important Greek colonies were Gela, Akragas, Selinunte, Himera, Kamarina and Zancle or Messene. These city states were an important part of classical Greek civilization, the more famous include, Gelon, Hiero I, Dionysius the Elder and Dionysius the Younger
15.
Emirate of Sicily
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The Emirate of Sicily was an Islamic state on the island of Sicily which existed from 831 to 1072. Muslims, who first invaded in 652, seized control of the island from the Byzantine Empire in a prolonged series of conflicts from 827 to 902. An Arab-Byzantine culture developed, producing a multiconfessional and multilingual state, the Emirate was conquered by Christian Norman mercenaries under Roger I of Sicily, who founded the County of Sicily in 1071. Sicilian Muslims remained citizens of the multi-ethnic County and subsequent Kingdom of Sicily, until the late 12th century, and probably as late as the 1220s, Muslims formed the majority of the islands population. Their influence remains in some elements of the Sicilian language, as well as surnames, in 535, Emperor Justinian I returned Sicily to the Roman Empire, now ruled from Constantinople exclusively. As the power of what is now known as the Byzantine Empire waned in the West, however, this first invasion was short-lived, and the Arabs left soon after. Around 700, the island of Pantelleria was captured by Arabs, instead, trading agreements were arranged with the Byzantines, and Arab merchants were allowed to trade goods at the Sicilian ports. Attacks from Muslim fleets were repeated in 703,728,729,730,731,733 and 734, the first true conquest expedition was launched in 740, in that year the Muslim prince Habib, who had participated on the 728 attack, successfully captured Syracuse. Ready to conquer the island, they were however forced to return to Tunisia by a Berber revolt. A second attack in 752 aimed only to sack the same city, in 826 Euphemius, the commander of the Byzantine fleet of Sicily, forced a nun to marry him. Emperor Michael II caught wind of the matter and ordered that General Constantine end the marriage, Euphemius rose up, killed Constantine and then occupied Syracuse, he in turn was defeated and driven out to North Africa. He offered rule of Sicily over to Ziyadat Allah the Aghlabid Emir of Tunisia in return for a place as a general and safety, an Arab army was sent. The latter agreed to conquer Sicily, promising to give it to Euphemius in exchange for a yearly tribute, the Muslim force counted 10,000 infantry,700 cavalry and 100 ships, reinforced by Euphemius ships and, after the landing at Mazara del Vallo. A first battle against the loyal Byzantine troops occurred on July 15,827, near Mazara, Asad subsequently conquered the southern shore of the island and laid siege to Syracuse. After a year of siege, and a mutiny, his troops were however able to defeat a large army sent from Palermo. But when a plague killed many of the Muslim troops, as well as Asad himself, later they returned to the offensive, but failed to conquer Castrogiovanni and retreated back to Mazara. In 830 they received a reinforcement of 30,000 Ifriqiyan and Andalusian troops. The Iberian Muslims defeated the Byzantine commander Teodotus in July–August of that year, the Ifriqiyan units sent to besiege Palermo managed to capture it after a year long siege in September 831
16.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Palermo
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The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Palermo was founded as the Diocese of Palermo in the first century and raised to the status of archdiocese in the 11th century. The Archbishop of Palermo is Corrado Lorefice, the events of 1693,1726 and 1823 were particularly destructive. Pope Gregory I personally founded six monasteries in Sicily, including the monstery of S. Hermes at Palermo and he also founded the monastery of S. Hadrian and the Praetoritanum. Ugo Benigni attributes this interest to the numbers of bishops and monks who emigrated from Africa as a result of the policy of the Arian Vandals to the Orthodox Christians. In 718 the Emperor Leo III the Isaurian suppressed a revolt in Sicily, in the ninth century, the Patriarch of Constantinople raised the See of Palermo to the rank of Metropolitan of all of Sicily. A protest against these actions was entered by Pope Nicholas I, Benigni states, Concerning the state of the Sicilian Church during the Saracen domination we have no information, not the name of a single bishop is known. There were bishops, but they were part of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, not that of Rome, and Constantinople was in communion with Rome until the Great Schism of 1054. In 883, Pope Marinus I paid a ransom to the Emir of Palermo for the Archbishop of Syracuse and the bishop of Malta, in 897, the Archbishop of Palermo was Sofronios. In 957 an Archbishop named Arimattea was already occupying the See, in 964, Archbishop Arimattea was abused and imprisoned by the Grand Mufti of Palermo, in 965, the Archbishop of Palermo was Andreas, who had been Vicar of Archbishop Arimattea. In 976, according to Arabic sources, the Archbishop of Palermo died, and the priests and monks elected a new Archbishop named Ananiah, the Emperor did not approve of these patriarchal pretensions, and the Patriarch renounced them. The priests and monks told the Emir of Sicily that the custom had been for the bishops of Sicily to consecrate the Archbishop and they asked permission to write to the Pope, which was refused. Arab invasions of Sicily had begun at the beginning of the century with the capture of the island of Cossura. Raids were launched in 730–731, 734–735,740 and 752–753, Palermo was temporarily captured in 820, but the Arabs were driven out by pirates. The serious conquest of the began in 827, from the Tunisian port of Susa. Palermo fell in 831, Messina in 843, Leontini in 847, taormina was captured in 902, completing the conquest of the entire island. From then until 1061, when the Norman conquests, began Sicily was an Arab land, after the famine of 940, the Arabs deliberately drove Christians out of the western part of the island. On Christmas Day,1130, Count Roger II was crowned King of Sicily in the Cathedral in Palermo and it is uncertain who crowned the king. One source names Count Roger of Capua, another Archbishop Peter of Palermo, the Cathedral was rebuilt by Archbishop Walter between 1170 and 1190
17.
Norman conquest of southern Italy
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The Norman conquest of southern Italy spanned most of the 11th and 12th centuries, involving many battles and independent conquerors. Itinerant Norman knights arrived in the Mezzogiorno as mercenaries in the service of Lombard and Byzantine factions and these groups gathered in several places, establishing fiefdoms and states of their own, uniting and elevating their status to de facto independence within fifty years of their arrival. Unlike the Norman conquest of England, which took a few years after one battle, the conquest of southern Italy was the product of decades. Many territories were conquered independently, and only later were unified into a single state, compared to the conquest of England it was unplanned and disorganised, but equally complete. The earliest reported date of the arrival of Norman knights in southern Italy is 999, in that year, according to several sources, Norman pilgrims returning from the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem via Apulia stayed with Prince Guaimar III in Salerno. The city and its environs were attacked by Saracens from Africa demanding payment of an annual tribute. While Guaimar began to collect the tribute the Normans ridiculed him and his Lombard subjects for cowardice, the Saracens fled, booty was confiscated and a grateful Guaimar asked the Normans to stay. They refused, but promised to bring his rich gifts to their compatriots in Normandy, some sources have Guaimar sending emissaries to Normandy to bring back knights, and this account of the arrival of the Normans is sometimes known as the Salerno tradition. The Salerno tradition was first recorded by Amatus of Montecassino in his Ystoire de li Normant between 1071 and 1086. Much of this information was borrowed from Amatus by Peter the Deacon for his continuation of the Chronicon Monasterii Casinensis of Leo of Ostia, beginning with the Annales Ecclesiastici of Baronius in the 17th century, the Salernitan story became the accepted history. Although its factual accuracy was questioned periodically during the following centuries, another historical account of the arrival of the first Normans in Italy, the Gargano tradition, appears in primary chronicles without reference to any previous Norman presence. Some scholars have combined the Salerno and Gargano tales, and John Julius Norwich suggested that the meeting between Melus and the Normans had been arranged by Guaimar, Melus had been in Salerno just before his visit to Monte Gargano. Another story involves the exile of a group of brothers from the Drengot family, one of the brothers, Osmund or Gilbert, murdered William Repostel in the presence of Robert I, Duke of Normandy after Repostel allegedly boasted about dishonouring his murderers daughter. Threatened with death, the Drengot brother fled with his siblings to Rome, Amatus dates the story to after 1027, and does not mention the pope. According to him, Gilberts brothers were Osmund, Ranulf, Asclettin, repostels murder is dated by all the chronicles to the reign of Robert the Magnificent and after 1027, although some scholars believe Robert was a scribal error for Richard. The earlier date is necessary if the emigration of the first Normans was connected to the Drengots, in the Histories of Ralph Glaber, Rodulfus leaves Normandy after displeasing Count Richard. The sources disagree about which brother was the leader on the southern trip, orderic and William of Jumièges, in the latters Gesta Normannorum Ducum, name Osmund, Glaber names Rudolph, and Leo, Amatus and Adhemar of Chabannes name Gilbert. According to most southern-Italian sources, the leader of the Norman contingent at the Battle of Cannae in 1018 was Gilbert, if Rudolf is identified with the Rudolf of Amatus history as a Drengot brother, he may have been the leader at Cannae
18.
Palermo Cathedral
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Palermo Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Palermo, located in Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy. It is dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, as an architectural complex, it is characterized by the presence of different styles, due to a long history of additions, alterations and restorations, the last of which occurred in the 18th century. The church was erected in 1185 by Walter Ophamil, the Anglo-Norman archbishop of Palermo and King William IIs minister, on the area of an earlier Byzantine basilica. By all accounts this earlier church was founded by Pope Gregory I and was turned into a mosque by the Saracens after their conquest of the city in the 9th century. Ophamil is buried in a sarcophagus in the churchs crypt, the medieval edifice had a basilica plan with three apses, of which only some minor architectural elements survive today. The upper orders of the towers were built between the 14th and the 15th centuries, while in the early Renaissance period the southern porch was added. The present neoclassical appearance dates from the carried out over the two decades 1781 to 1801, and supervised by Ferdinando Fuga. During this period the great retable by Gagini, decorated with statues, friezes and reliefs, was destroyed, also by Fuga are the great dome emerging from the main body of the building, and the smaller domes covering the aisles ceilings. The main façade is on the Western side, on the current Via Bonello and it is flanked by two towers and has a Gothic portal surmounted by a niche with a precious 15th-century Madonna. Two lintelled ogival arcades, stepping over the street, connect the façade to the tower in the front. This has a squared appearance adorned in the part by a fine crown of smaller belfries. The right side has outstretching turrets and a portico in Gothic-Catalan style. The first column on the left belonged to the original basilica, the carved portal of this entrance was executed in the period 1426 to 1430 by Antonio Gambara, while the magnificent wooden leaves are by Francesco Miranda. The South-Western façade, looking at the Archbishop Palace, dates from the 14th to 15th centuries, the interior has a Latin cross plan, with a nave and two aisles divided by pilasters. In the first two chapels of the aisle are the tomb of emperors and royal figures moved here in the 18th century from their original sites. Here are the remains of Emperor Henry VI, his son Frederick II, a Roman sarcophagus is the tomb of Constance of Aragon, Fredericks wife. Under the mosaic baldachins are the tombs of Roger II, the first King of Sicily, the last two were once located in the transept of the Cathedral of Cefalù. The Sacrament chapel, at the end of the aisles, is decorated with precious stones
19.
William II of Sicily
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William II, called the Good, was king of Sicily from 1166 to 1189. Lacking in military enterprise, secluded and pleasure-loving, he emerged from his palace life at Palermo. Yet his reign is marked by a foreign policy and a vigorous diplomacy. Champion of the papacy and in league with the Lombard cities he was able to defy the common enemy. In the Divine Comedy, Dante places William II in Paradise and he is also referred to in Boccaccios Decameron. William was nicknamed the Good only in the following his death. It is due less to his character than to the cessation of the troubles that plagued his fathers reign. Under the Staufer dynasty his reign was characterised as an age of peace and justice. His numeral is contemporary and he used it. William was only eleven years old at the death of his father William I and this was not his first attempted marriage, an earlier effort by Bertrand II, archbishop of Trani, to negotiate the hand of a Byzantine princess yielded no fruit. In July 1177, William sent a delegation of Archbishop Romuald of Salerno, to secure the peace, he married off his aunt Constance to the Emperors son, the future Emperor Henry VI, causing a general oath to be taken to her as his heir presumptive. This step, of great consequence to the Norman realm, was taken that William might devote himself to foreign conquests. Unable to revive the African dominion, William directed his attack on Ayyubid Egypt, in July 1174,30,000 men were landed before Alexandria, but Saladins arrival forced the Sicilians to re-embark in disorder. A better prospect opened in the confusion in Byzantine affairs which followed the death of Manuel Comnenus, afterwards while the army marched upon Thessalonica, the fleet sailed towards the same target capturing on their way the Ionian islands of Corfu, Cephalonia, Ithaca and Zakynthos. In August Thessalonica fell to the joint attack of the Sicilian fleet, the troops then marched upon the capital, but the army of the emperor Isaac Angelus defeated the invaders on the banks of the Strymon. Thessalonica was at once abandoned and in 1189 William made peace with Isaac and he was now planning to induce the crusading armies of the West to pass through his territories, and seemed about to play a leading part in the Third Crusade. In November 1189 William died at Palermo, leaving no children, though Robert of Torigni records a short-lived son in 1181, Bohemond, who was named Duke of Apulia. After his death Norman nobles led by Matthew of Ajello supported Tancred, Count of Lecce and this article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. William II. of Sicily
20.
Italo-Norman
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Normans first arrived in Italy as pilgrims probably either on their way or returning from Rome or Jerusalem also visiting the shrine at Monte Gargano in the late tenth and early eleventh century. In 1017, the Lombard lords in Apulia recruited their assistance against the power of the Byzantine Catapanate of Italy. They began the conquest of Sicily in 1061 and it was complete by 1091, indeed, Italo-Normans were the primary Norman mercenaries in the employ of the Byzantine emperors. Many found service in Rome, under the pope, and some went to Spain to join the Reconquista, in 1096, the Normans of Bohemond of Taranto joined the First Crusade and set up the principality of Antioch in the Levant. In 1130, under Roger II, they created the Kingdom of Sicily, encompassing the whole of their conquests in the peninsula, from 1135 to 1155 Roger II even created the Italo-Norman Kingdom of Africa in coastal Tunisia and Tripolitania. He planned to unite this African kingdom to his Kingdom of Sicily and this Italo-Norman kingdom in southern Italy, when founded in 1130, united the whole of southern Italy under the same rule for the first time since the Roman Empire fell. The Roger II dynasty continued with William I and William II, hauteville family Drengot family Filangieri Pellegrino - baroni di San Demetrio]] Parisi or Parisio - conti di Aderno]] Loud, Graham A. The Age of Robert Guiscard, Southern Italy and the Norman Conquest Essex, Norman conquest of southern Italy Anglo-Norman, the Normans in England Cambro-Norman, the Normans in Wales Hiberno-Norman, the Normans in Ireland Scoto-Norman, the Normans in Scotland
21.
Kings of Sicily
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See Emirate of Sicily Sicily was granted, pending its Christian reconquest, to Robert Guiscard as duke in 1059 by Pope Nicholas II. The Guiscard granted it as a county to his brother Roger, Roger II received royal investiture from Antipope Anacletus II in 1130 and recognition from Pope Innocent II in 1139. Constance was married to the Emperor Henry VI and he pressed his claim to the kingdom from William IIs death, there is evidence that, during the baronial revolt of 1197, there was an attempt to make Count Jordan Lupin of Bovino king in opposition to Henry VI. He may even have been crowned and seems to have had the support of Constance, in the end he was captured and executed. He is accepted as a pretender to the throne by modern historians Evelyn Jamison, Manfred was regent of Sicily for his nephew, the child Conrad II, but took the crown in 1258, and continued to fight to keep the kingdom under the Hohenstaufen. In 1254 the pope, having declared the kingdom a papal possession, offered the crown to the King of Englands son, Edmund Crouchback, but the English never succeeded in taking the kingdom. In 1262 the pope reversed his previous decision and granted the kingdom to the King of Frances brother, Charles of Anjou, conradin continued his claim to the throne until his death by decapitation perpetrated by Charles of Anjou in 1268. Edmund Crouchback, son of King Henry III of England, claimed the Crown of Sicily between 1254 and 1263, the claim was taken seriously by both him and his father, but was completely ineffectual. Peter III of Aragon, Manfreds son in law, of the House of Barcelona, thereafter the old Kingdom of Sicily was centred on the mainland, with capital at Naples, and although informally called Kingdom of Naples it was still known formally as Kingdom of Sicily. Thus, there were two Sicilies — the island kingdom, however, was often called Sicily beyond the Lighthouse or Trinacria, the Duke of Savoy ceded it to Austria in 1720 by the Treaty of The Hague. Charles I, Duke of Parma conquered the kingdom during the War of the Polish Succession, at the end of the war Sicily was ceded to the new Charles V of Sicily. In 1816 the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of Sicily were merged as the new Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, List of viceroys of Sicily List of Counts of Apulia and Calabria List of monarchs of Naples List of monarchs of the Two Sicilies
22.
Order of Saint Benedict
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Each community within the order maintains its own autonomy, while the order itself represents their mutual interests. Internationally, the order is governed by the Benedictine Confederation, a body, established in 1883 by Pope Leo XIIIs Brief Summum semper, individuals whose communities are members of the order generally add the initials OSB after their names. The monastery at Subiaco in Italy, established by Saint Benedict of Nursia circa 529, was the first of the monasteries he founded. He later founded the Abbey of Monte Cassino, there is no evidence, however, that he intended to found an order and the Rule of Saint Benedict presupposes the autonomy of each community. It was from the monastery of St. Andrew in Rome that Augustine, the prior, at various stopping places during the journey, the monks left behind them traditions concerning their rule and form of life, and probably also some copies of the Rule. Lérins Abbey, for instance, founded by Honoratus in 375, probably received its first knowledge of the Benedictine Rule from the visit of St. Augustine, in Gaul and Switzerland, it supplemented the much stricter Irish or Celtic Rule introduced by Columbanus and others. In many monasteries it eventually displaced the earlier codes. Largely through the work of Benedict of Aniane, it became the rule of choice for monasteries throughout the Carolingian empire, Monastic scriptoria flourished from the ninth through the twelfth centuries. Sacred Scripture was always at the heart of every monastic scriptorium, as a general rule those of the monks who possessed skill as writers made this their chief, if not their sole active work. In the Middle Ages monasteries were founded by the nobility. Cluny Abbey was founded by William I, Duke of Aquitaine in 910, the abbey was noted for its strict adherence to the Rule of St. Benedict. The abbot of Cluny was the superior of all the daughter houses, one of the earliest reforms of Benedictine practice was that initiated in 980 by Romuald, who founded the Camaldolese community. The English Benedictine Congregation is the oldest of the nineteen Benedictine congregations, Augustine of Canterbury and his monks established the first English Benedictine monastery at Canterbury soon after their arrival in 597. Many of the sees of England were founded and governed by the Benedictines. Monasteries served as hospitals and places of refuge for the weak, the monks studied the healing properties of plants and minerals to alleviate the sufferings of the sick. Germany was evangelized by English Benedictines, willibrord and Boniface preached there in the seventh and eighth centuries and founded several abbeys. In the English Reformation, all monasteries were dissolved and their lands confiscated by the Crown, during the 19th century they were able to return to England, including to Selby Abbey in Yorkshire, one of the few great monastic churches to survive the Dissolution. St. Mildreds Priory, on the Isle of Thanet, Kent, was built in 1027 on the site of an abbey founded in 670 by the daughter of the first Christian King of Kent, currently the priory is home to a community of Benedictine nuns
23.
Cava de' Tirreni
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Cava de’ Tirreni is a city and comune in the region of Campania, Italy, in the province of Salerno,10 kilometres northwest of the town of Salerno. It lies in a richly cultivated valley surrounded by wooded hills, Cava de Tirreni lies among the hills close to the Tyrrhenian Sea,5 km north of the Amalfi Coast and serving in practice as its northern gateway. The inhabited area is 198 m above sea level, in a valley situated between two groups, the Lattari Mountains to the west and the Picentini Mountains to the east. Many of Cavas citizens reside in the surrounding the town. The town is a link between the area of Agro Nocerino Sarnese and the Sorrento Peninsula. The appellation de Tirreni given to Cava is due to its identification, still unconfirmed, with the ancient Etruscan town of Marcina, the valley was certainly inhabited during the Roman Age, the discovery of several archeological relics dating back to that period stands as evidence. At the beginning of the 11th century, a nucleus of hermit monks gathered at the foot of Monte Finestra, about 2 km southwest of Cava, where the village of Corpo di Cava is now located. They were attracted by the famed saintliness of the Lombard noble, Alferio Pappacarbone, thus was the Benedictine abbey of La Trinità della Cava created in 1011. It became one of the most active religious and cultural centres in Southern Italy, the church and the greater part of the abbey buildings were entirely modernized in 1796. The old Gothic cloisters are preserved, the church contains a fine organ and several ancient sarcophagi. The archives, now property, include fine incunabula, documents and manuscripts of great value. The prestige of the men leading the abbey, together with the need for protection. In time, thanks to donations, the possessions of the abbey increased, while the relative tranquillity of the valley brought growth in handicrafts. Progress to autonomy and freedom from domination by the abbey was slow, but the Cavesi, who objected to their feudal dependence on the abbey, attacked and devastated it several times between 1335 and 1508, claiming their right to autonomy. It was only in 1513 that Pope Leo X agreed to their claim, Cava became a prosperous town thanks to the commercial acuity and industry of its inhabitants, who excelled in weaving and in building. Architects and engineers from Cava worked on the public and private projects in Southern Italy. Gradually, the centre of the town moved from Corpo di Cava, the pillars that can still be seen there date back to the early 15th century and are called portici. They are still considered the centre of Cava de Tirreni, a large part of the population lived in the surrounding hamlets, some of them hard to reach, thus extending the territory as far as Cetara
24.
Metropolitan bishop
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Before the establishment of patriarchs, metropolitan was the highest episcopal rank in the Eastern rites of the Church. They presided over synods of bishops, and were granted privileges by canon law. The Early Church structure generally followed the Roman imperial practice, with one bishop ruling each city, the bishop of the provincial capital, the metropolitan, enjoyed certain rights over other bishops in the province, later called suffragans. The other bishops are known as suffragan bishops, the metropolitan is obliged to request the pallium, a symbol of the power that, in communion with the Church of Rome, he possesses over his ecclesiastical province. This holds even if he had the pallium in another metropolitan see and it is the responsibility of the metropolitan, with the consent of the majority of the suffragan bishops to call a provincial council, decide where to convene it, and determine the agenda. It is his prerogative to preside over the provincial council, no provincial council can be called if the metropolitan see is vacant. As of April 2006,508 archdioceses were headed by metropolitan archbishops,27 archbishops lead an extant archdiocese, but were not metropolitans, see also Catholic Church hierarchy for the distinctions. In those Eastern Catholic Churches that are headed by a patriarch, similarly, a metropolitan has the right to ordain and enthrone the bishops of his province. The metropolitan is to be commemorated in the liturgies celebrated within his province, a major archbishop is defined as the metropolitan of a certain see who heads an autonomous Eastern Church not of patriarchal rank. The canon law of such a Church differs only slightly from that regarding a patriarchal Church, there are also autonomous Eastern Catholic Churches consisting of a single province and headed by a metropolitan. In his autonomous Church it is for him to ordain and enthrone bishops, in the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the title of metropolitan is used variously, in terms of rank and jurisdiction. In terms of rank, in some Eastern Orthodox Churches metropolitans are ranked above archbishops in precedence, primates of autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Churches below patriarchal rank are generally designated as archbishops. In the Greek Orthodox Churches, archbishops are ranked above metropolitans in precedence, some Eastern Orthodox Churches have functioning metropolitans on the middle level of church administration. In Romanian Orthodox Church there are six regional metropolitans who are the chairmen of their respective synods of bishops, for example, Metropolitan of Oltenia has regional jurisdiction over four dioceses. On the other hand, in some Eastern Orthodox Churches title of metropolitan is only honorary, in Serbian Orthodox Church, honorary title of metropolitan is given to diocesan bishops of some important historical sees. For example, diocesan bishop of the Eparchy of Montenegro and the Littoral is given the title of metropolitan. Diocesan bishop of the Eparchy of Dabar-Bosnia is also given the title of metropolitan. Non-canonical Eastern Orthodox Churches generally use metropolitan title according to traditions of usage in Churches from which they were split
25.
Archbishop
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In Christianity, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In some cases, like the Lutheran Church of Sweden, it is the denomination leader title, an archbishop may be granted the title, or ordained as chief pastor of a metropolitan see or another episcopal see to which the title of archbishop is attached. Episcopal sees are generally arranged in groups in which the bishop who is the ordinary of one of them has certain powers and he is known as the metropolitan archbishop of that see. As well as the more numerous metropolitan sees, there are 77 Roman Catholic sees that have archiepiscopal rank. In some cases, such a see is the one in a country, such as Luxembourg or Monaco. In others, the title of archdiocese is for reasons attributed to a see that was once of greater importance. Some of these archdioceses are suffragans of a metropolitan archdiocese, an example is the Archdiocese of Avignon, which is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Marseille, Another such example is the Archdiocese of Trnava, Slovakia. Others are immediately subject to the Holy See and not to any metropolitan archdiocese and these are usually aggregated to an ecclesiastical province. An example is the Archdiocese of Hobart in Australia, associated with the Metropolitan ecclesiastical province of Melbourne, the ordinary of such an archdiocese is an archbishop, however, especially in the Anglican Communion, not all archbishops dioceses are called archdioceses. Since then, the title of Coadjutor Archbishop of the see is considered sufficient, the rank of archbishop is conferred on some bishops who are not ordinaries of an archdiocese. They hold the rank not because of the see that they head, the bishop transferred is then known as the Archbishop-Bishop of his new see. An example is Gianfranco Gardin, appointed Archbishop-Bishop of Treviso on 21 December 2009, the title borne by the successor of such an archbishop-bishop is merely that of Bishop of the see, unless he also is granted the personal title of Archbishop. The distinction between metropolitan sees and non-metropolitan archiepiscopal sees exists for titular sees as well as for residential ones, the Annuario Pontificio marks titular sees of the former class with the abbreviation Metr. and the others with Arciv. Many of the sees to which nuncios and heads of departments of the Roman Curia who are not cardinals are assigned are not of archiepiscopal rank. In that case the person who is appointed to such a position is given the title of archbishop. They are usually referred to as Archbishop of the see, not as its Archbishop-Bishop, until 1970, such archbishops were transferred to a titular see. There can be several Archbishops Emeriti of the see, the 2008 Annuario Pontificio listed three living Archbishops Emeriti of Taipei. There is no Archbishop Emeritus of a see, an archbishop who holds a titular see keeps it until death or until transferred to another see
26.
Eliza Lynn Linton
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Eliza Lynn Linton was the first female salaried journalist in Britain, and the author of over 20 novels. Despite her path breaking role as an independent woman, many of her essays took a strong anti-feminist slant. Eliza Lynn Linton was born in Keswick, Cumbria, England, the daughter of the Rev. J. Lynn, vicar of Crosthwaite, and granddaughter of a bishop of Carlisle. The death of her mother when Eliza was five months old led to a chaotic upbringing, in which she was largely self-educated, but in 1845 she left home to earn her living as a writer in London. After moving to Paris, she married W. J. Linton in 1858, an eminent wood-engraver, who was also a poet of note, a writer upon his craft. She moved into his house, Brantwood, in the Lakes, with his seven children from his earlier marriage. In 1867 the couple separated in a way, the husband going to America. She returned briefly to Cumbria and to her home in 1889. It is Keswick and yet not Keswick, as I am Eliza Lynn and she usually lived in London, but about three years before her death retired to Brougham House, Malvern. She died at Queen Annes Mansions, London, on 14 July 1898, Linton arrived in London in 1845 as the protégée of poet Walter Savage Landor. In the following year she produced her first novel, Azeth, the Egyptian, which was succeeded by Amymone, none of these had any great success, and she became a journalist, joining the staff of the Morning Chronicle, and Household Words. After separating from her husband, Linton returned to writing novels and her most successful works were The True History of Joshua Davidson, Patricia Kemball, and The Autobiography of Christopher Kirkland, the latter being in fact a thinly disguised autobiography. Mrs Linton was a critic of early feminism. Her most famous essay on this subject, The Girl of the Period, was published in Saturday Review in 1868 and was a vehement attack on feminism. In 1891, she wrote Wild Women as Politicians which explained her opinion that politics was naturally the sphere of men, Mrs Linton is a leading example of the fact that the fight against votes for women was not only organised by men, see Anti-suffragism. Her contribution to a symposium on English fiction in 1890 saw her take an aggressive stance towards Grundyism than her fellow-contributor Thomas Hardy. Amymone, A Romance in the Days of Pericles, Vol.2, Vol.3, Realities, A Tale, Saunders and Otley,1851. Witch Stories, Chapman & Hall,1861, the Lake Country, Smith, Elder and Company,1864
27.
Gretna Green
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Gretna Green is a village in the south of Scotland famous for runaway weddings. It is in Dumfries and Galloway, near the mouth of the River Esk and was historically the first village in Scotland, Gretna Green railway station serves both Gretna Green and Gretna. The Quintinshill rail crash, the worst rail crash in British history, Gretna Green sits alongside the main town of Gretna. Both are accessed from the A74 motorway and are near the border of Scotland with England and it has usually been assumed that Gretnas famous runaway marriages began in 1754 when Lord Hardwickes Marriage Act came into force in England. Under the Act, if a parent of a minor objected to the minors marriage, the parent could legally veto the union. The Act tightened the requirements for marrying in England and Wales but did not apply in Scotland, Scottish law allowed for irregular marriages, meaning that if a declaration was made before two witnesses, almost anybody had the authority to conduct the marriage ceremony. The blacksmiths in Gretna became known as anvil priests, culminating with Richard Rennison, the local blacksmith and his anvil became lasting symbols of Gretna Green weddings. Two in particular, The Old Blacksmiths Shop, built around 1712, and Gretna Hall Blacksmiths Shop became, in folklore at least. The Old Blacksmiths Shop opened to the public as an attraction as early as 1887. It is a place whose name is typical of brightening prospects. The poet sings of the greenest spot on memorys waste, then the legend of the blacksmith who forged the links of love, added interest to the place, and invested the whole with fairy feature. How much better, brighter, more promising, in short, and yet they are equally efficacious. Gretna Green indeed, is as superior in reality as it is in name and it looks as if it were the capital of the God of Love, while the others exhibit the bustling, trading, money-making pursuits of matter-of-fact life. Though we dare say Gretna Green is as unlike what most people fancy and it is a pretty south country-looking village, much such as used to exist in the old days of posting and coaching. A hall house converted into an hotel, and the located in the neighbouring cottages. There is an air of quiet retirement about it that eminently qualifies it for its holy, since 1929, both parties in Scotland have had to be at least 16 years old, but they still may marry without parental consent. In England and Wales, the age for marriage is now 16 with parental consent and 18 without, of the three forms of irregular marriage that had existed under Scottish law, the last was abolished by the Marriage Act 1939, which came in force from 1 July 1940. Prior to this act, any citizen was able to witness a public promise, Gretnas two blacksmiths shops and countless inns and smallholding became the backdrops for tens of thousands of weddings
28.
Inlay
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A great range of materials have been used both for the base or matrix and for the inlays inserted into it. In a wood matrix, inlays commonly use wood veneers, but other materials like shells, mother-of-pearl, pietre dure, or coloured stones inlaid in white or black marbles, and inlays of precious metals in a base metal matrix are other forms of inlay. Inlay is commonly used in production of furniture, where pieces of coloured wood or metal are inserted into the surface of the carcass. Lutherie inlays are used as decoration and marking on musical instruments. The similar private study made for him at Gubbio is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the history of inlay is very old. After learning the skill of smithing from the Navaho in 1872, the French cabinet maker Andre-Charles Boulle specialized in furniture using inlays or metal and either wood or tortoiseshell together, the latter acting as the background. Pietra dura is the term in Europe for detailed inlays in contrasting colours of stones, including many semi-precious types. Pietra dura developed from the Roman Opus sectile, which was used on a larger scale. Cosmatesque work on walls and floors, and smaller objects, was an intermediate stage
29.
Monreale
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Monreale is a town and comune in the province of Palermo, in Sicily, Italy. It sits on the slope of Monte Caputo, overlooking the fertile valley called La Conca doro, famed for its orange, olive and almond trees. The town, which has a population of approximately 30,000, is about 15 kilometres inland of Palermo, after the occupation of Palermo by the Arabs, the Bishop of Palermo was forced to move his seat outside the capital. The role of the new cathedral was assigned to a modest little church, Aghia Kiriaki, after the Norman conquest in 1072, Christians got back the old city cathedral. Probably the villages role as temporary ecclesiastical centre played a part in King William IIs decision to build his famous cathedral. Monreale was for a time a mere village, and started its expansion when the Norman Kings of Sicily chose the area as their hunting resort. Under King William II, the monastery of Benedictines coming from Cava de Tirreni. It is noteworthy that the new construction had also an important defensive function, Monreale was the seat of the metropolitan archbishop of Sicily, which from then on exerted a significant influence over Sicily. In the nineteenth century, underage marriages, or those performed without the blessing of the parents, were known as the marriages of Monreale. The cathedral of Monreale is one of the greatest extant examples of Norman architecture anywhere. It was begun in 1174 by William II, and in 1182 the church, dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, was, by a bull of Pope Lucius III, the church is a national monument of Italy and one of the most important attractions of Sicily. This has been rebuilt, and but little now remains except ruins of some of the towers, a great part of the monks dormitory and frater. The latter is preserved, and is one of the finest Italian cloisters both for size and beauty of detail now extant. The marble capitals are carved with foliage, biblical scenes and allegories. At one angle, a square pillared projection contains the fountain or monks lavatorium. The churchs plan is a mixture of Eastern Rite and Roman Catholic arrangement and it is, in fact, like two quite different churches put together endwise. The basilican nave is wide, with narrow aisles, monolithic columns of grey oriental granite on each side support eight pointed arches much stilted. The capitals of these are also of the classical period, there is no triforium, but a high clerestory with wide two-light windows, with simple tracery like those in the nave-aisles and throughout the church, which give sufficient light
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Mary, mother of Jesus
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Mary, also known by various titles, styles and honorifics, was a 1st-century Galilean Jewish woman of Nazareth and the mother of Jesus, according to the New Testament and the Quran. The gospels of Matthew and Luke in the New Testament and the Quran describe Mary as a virgin, the miraculous birth took place when she was already betrothed to Joseph and was awaiting the concluding rite of marriage, the formal home-taking ceremony. She married Joseph and accompanied him to Bethlehem, where Jesus was born, the Gospel of Luke begins its account of Marys life with the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel appeared to her and announced her divine selection to be the mother of Jesus. According to canonical gospel accounts, Mary was present at the crucifixion and is depicted as a member of the early Christian community in Jerusalem. According to the Catholic and Orthodox teaching, at the end of her life her body was assumed directly into Heaven. Mary has been venerated since Early Christianity, and is considered by millions to be the most meritorious saint of the religion and she is claimed to have miraculously appeared to believers many times over the centuries. The Eastern and Oriental Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches believe that Mary, there is significant diversity in the Marian beliefs and devotional practices of major Christian traditions. The Roman Catholic Church holds distinctive Marian dogmas, namely her status as the Mother of God, her Immaculate Conception, her perpetual virginity, many Protestants minimize Marys role within Christianity, based on the argued brevity of biblical references. Mary also has a position in Islam, where one of the longer chapters of the Quran is devoted to her. Marys name in the manuscripts of the New Testament was based on her original Aramaic name ܡܪܝܡ. The English name Mary comes from the Greek Μαρία, which is a form of Μαριάμ. Both Μαρία and Μαριάμ appear in the New Testament, in Christianity, Mary is commonly referred to as the Virgin Mary, in accordance with the belief that she conceived Jesus miraculously through the Holy Spirit without her husbands involvement. The three main titles for Mary used by the Orthodox are Theotokos, Aeiparthenos as confirmed in the Second Council of Constantinople in 553, Catholics use a wide variety of titles for Mary, and these titles have in turn given rise to many artistic depictions. For example, the title Our Lady of Sorrows has inspired such masterpieces as Michelangelos Pietà, the title Theotokos was recognized at the Council of Ephesus in 431. However, this phrase in Greek, in the abbreviated form ΜΡ ΘΥ, is an indication commonly attached to her image in Byzantine icons. The Council stated that the Church Fathers did not hesitate to speak of the holy Virgin as the Mother of God, some Marian titles have a direct scriptural basis. For instance, the title Queen Mother has been given to Mary since she was the mother of Jesus, the scriptural basis for the term Queen can be seen in Luke 1,32 and the Isaiah 9,6. Queen Mother can be found in 1 Kings 2, 19-20 and Jeremiah 13, other titles have arisen from reported miracles, special appeals or occasions for calling on Mary
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Palazzo dei Normanni
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The Palazzo dei Normanni or Royal Palace of Palermo is a palace in Palermo, Italy. It was the seat of the Kings of Sicily during the Norman domination, seat of the Sicilian Parliament, today it is the seat of the Sicilian Regional Assembly. The building is the oldest royal residence in Europe, the home of the rulers of the Kingdom of Sicily and imperial seat with Frederick II and Conrad IV. The palace stands in what is the highest point of the ancient centre of the city, just above the first Punic settlements, the first building, the al-Qasr is believed to have been started in the 9th century by the Emir of Palermo. Parts of this building are still visible in the foundations and in the basements. After the Normans conquered Sicily in 1072 and established Palermo as the capital of the new Kingdom of Sicily, the Norman kings transformed the former Arabian palace into a multifunctional complex with both administrative and residential aims. All the buildings were linked to each other via arcades and enclosed by gardens, in 1132 King Roger II added the famous Cappella Palatina to the complex, making it the focus of the palace. The Angevin and Aragonese kings preferred other seats, the Bourbons built additional reception rooms and reconstructed the Sala dErcole, named for its frescos depicted the mythological hero, Hercules. From 1946, the palace was the seat of the Sicilian Regional Assembly, the west wing was assigned to the Italian Army and is the seat of the Southern Military Region. During the sixties, it received comprehensive restorations under the direction of Rosario La Duca, the palace is also the seat of the Astronomical Observatory of Palermo. The palace contains the Cappella Palatina, by far the best example of the so-called Arab-Norman-Byzantine style that prevailed in the 12th-century Sicily. The wonderful mosaics, the roof, elaborately fretted and painted, and the marble incrustation of the lower part of the walls. Of the palace itself the part was rebuilt and added in Aragonese times
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Norman architecture
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The term Norman architecture is used to categorise styles of Romanesque architecture developed by the Normans in the various lands under their dominion or influence in the 11th and 12th centuries. In particular the term is used for English Romanesque architecture. Ancient Romes invention of the arch is the basis of all Norman architecture, the more inclusive term romanesque was used of the Romance languages in English by 1715, and was applied to architecture of the eleventh and twelfth centuries from 1819. The Norman arch is a point of Norman architecture. Grand archways are designed to evoke feelings of awe and are commonly seen as the entrance to large religious buildings such as cathedrals. Viking invaders arrived at the mouth of the river Seine in 911, at a time when Franks were fighting on horseback and Frankish lords were building castles. Over the next century the population of the territory ceded to the Vikings, now called Normans, adopted these customs as well as Christianity and the langue doïl. Norman Barons built timber castles on earthen mounds, beginning the development of motte-and-bailey castles, by 950 they were building stone keeps. The Normans were among the most travelled peoples of Europe, exposed to a variety of cultural influences including the Near East, some of which became incorporated in their art. In England, Norman nobles and bishops had influence before the Norman Conquest of 1066, edward the Confessor was brought up in Normandy, and in 1042 brought masons to work on Westminster Abbey, the first Romanesque building in England. In 1051 he brought in Norman knights who built castles as a defence against the Welsh. The Norman arch is the round arch, Norman mouldings are carved or incised with geometric ornament, such as chevron patterns, frequently termed zig-zag mouldings, around arches. The cruciform churches often had deep chancels and a crossing tower which has remained a feature of English ecclesiastical architecture. Hundreds of parish churches were built and the great English cathedrals were founded from 1083, after a fire damaged Canterbury Cathedral in 1174 Norman masons introduced the new Gothic architecture. Around 1191 Wells Cathedral and Lincoln Cathedral brought in the English Gothic style, nicholas Church, Pyrford, Surrey Southwell Minster St. Mary the Virgin, Iffley, Oxfordshire St. Swithuns in Nately Scures, Hampshire, an example of a Norman single-cell apsidal church. His successor Máel Coluim III overthrew him with English and Norman assistance, the Benedictine order founded a monastery at Dunfermline. Her sixth and youngest son who became King David built St. Margarets Chapel at the start of the 12th century, Dunfermline Abbey, Dunfermline grid reference NT089872 St Andrew Cathedral grid reference NO516166 St. With rare examples of late 12th century Norman Transitional architecture[3 The Normans first landed in Ireland in 1169, within five years earthwork castles were springing up, and in a further five, work was beginning on some of the earliest of the great stone castles
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1170s in architecture
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About 1170 - Airavatesvara Temple completed in Darasuram, India. About 1170 - Galilee Chapel added to Durham Cathedral, about 1170–1180 - Construction of St. Faiths Church, Sélestat, Alsace. 1170 - San Nicola Bell Tower, Pisa, Italy,1171 - Romanesque building of the Tournai Cathedral, Hainaut consecrated. 1171 - Rebuilding of Canterbury Cathedral began under William of Sens.1171 - Pont dAvignon begun, about 1171 - Castle of Almourol in the Tagus, Portugal, built. 1172 - Nur Al-Din Mosque completed in Hama, Syria,1172 - Newcastle Castle in Northern England is rebuilt in stone. 1172 - Ikorta church built in Georgia,1173 - Bell Tower of the Basilica di San Zeno completed in Verona, Italy. 1173–1178 - First stage of work on campanile of Pisa cathedral in Italy,1175 - Sainte-Trinité Abbey Church in Lessay begun. 1177 - The Piazza San Marco in Venice assumes its current shape,1177 - Maria Laach Abbey in the Holy Roman Empire completed
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Nativity of Mary
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The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Nativity of Mary, or the Birth of the Virgin Mary, refers to a Christian feast day celebrating the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The modern canon of scripture does not record Marys birth, the earliest known account of Marys birth is found in the Protoevangelium of James, an apocryphal text from the late second century, with her parents known as Saint Anne and Saint Joachim. In the case of saints, the Church commemorates their date of death, with Saint John the Baptist, the reason for this is found in the singular mission each had in salvation history, but traditionally also because these alone were holy in their very birth. Devotion to the innocence of Mary under this Marian title is celebrated in many cultures across the globe. The Protoevangelium of James, which was put into its final written form in the early second century. He and his wife Anne were deeply grieved by their childlessness, pious accounts place the birthplace of the Virgin Mary in Tzippori, Israel where a 5th-century basilica is excavated at the site. Some accounts speak of Nazareth and others say it was in a house near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem and it is possible that a wealthy man such as Joachim had a home in both Judea and Galilee. The Greek Orthodox likewise celebrate the Nativity of the Theotokos on 8 September, the feast is also celebrated by Syrian Christians on 8 September. For churches using the old Julian Calendar for liturgical purposes September 8 falls on September 21 of the Gregorian Calendar, the Coptic Orthodox and Ethiopian Orthodox Christians on 9 May. The feast is also included in the Tridentine Calendar for 8 September, the earliest document commemorating this feast comes from a hymn written in the sixth century. The first liturgical commemoration is connected with the sixth century dedication of the Basilica Sanctae Mariae ubi nata est, now called the Church of St. Anne in Jerusalem. The original church built, in the century, was a Marian basilica erected on the spot known as the shepherds pool. In the seventh century, the feast was celebrated by the Byzantines as the feast of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary, since the story of Marys Nativity is known only from apocryphal sources, the Latin Church was slower in adopting this festival. At Rome the Feast began to be kept toward the end of the 7th century, the church of Angers in France claims that St. Maurilius instituted this feast at Angers in consequence of a revelation about 430. The winegrowers in France called this feast Our Lady of the Grape Harvest, the best grapes are brought to the local church to be blessed and then some bunches are attached to the hands of the statue of Mary. A festive meal that includes the new grapes is part of this day, in Mangalore it is the feast of Marys Nativity, called the Monthi Fest, on this day every Mangaloreans eat pulses and vegetables. The priest bless a branch of grain which is added to food. Before the feast on 8 September there is 9 days of novena followed by throwing of flowers on baby Marys statue The scene was depicted in art
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Pope Lucius III
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Pope Lucius III, born Ubaldo Allucingoli, reigned from 1 September 1181 to his death in 1185. A native of the independent republic of Lucca, he was born c.1100 as Ubaldo and he is commonly referred to as a member of the aristocratic family of Allucingoli, but this is not proven. He had close ties to the Cistercians, but it seems that he never joined the order and he was named cardinal by Pope Innocent II in December 1138, initially as cardinal-deacon of San Adriano, then as cardinal-priest of Santa Prassede. Pope Adrian IV promoted him to the rank of Cardinal Bishop of Ostia and he was dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals and one of the most influential cardinals under his predecessor Pope Alexander III. He disputed with the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I over the disposal of the territories of the late Countess Matilda of Tuscany, during the conflict between Frederick I and the papacy, the problem of heresy required a political solution. In November 1184 Lucius held a synod at Verona which condemned the Cathars, Paterines, Waldensians and Arnoldists, contrary to what is often said, he did not institute the Inquisition, which was not created until the reign of Pope Gregory IX in 1234. In 1185 preparations began for the Third Crusade in answer to the appeals of King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, before they were completed, Lucius III died in Verona. Philippe Levillain, John W. OMalley, The Papacy, an Encyclopedia,2002 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Lucius. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Jackson, Samuel Macauley. New Schaff–Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, london and New York, Funk and Wagnalls
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Dormitory
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A dormitory or hall of residence, is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people, often boarding school, college or university students. In the United States dorm is the most common term, which comes originally from the Latin word dormitorium, on the other hand, in the United Kingdom the term hall is more usual, especially in a university context. A dormitory can also be a room containing several beds – see Sleeping dormitories. Most colleges and universities provide single or multiple rooms for their students. These buildings consist of such rooms, like an apartment building. The largest dormitory building is Bancroft Hall at the United States Naval Academy, many colleges and universities no longer use the word dormitory and staff are now using the term residence hall or simply hall instead. Outside academia however, the dorm or dormitory is commonly used without negative connotations. Indeed, the words are used regularly in the marketplace as well as routinely in advertising, College and university residential rooms vary in size, shape, facilities and number of occupants. Typically, a United States residence hall holds two students with no toilet. This is usually referred to as a double, often, residence halls have communal bathroom facilities. In the United States, residence halls are segregated by sex, with men living in one group of rooms. Some dormitory complexes are single-sex with varying limits on visits by persons of each sex, for example, the University of Notre Dame in Indiana has a long history of Parietals, or mixed visiting hours. In the early 2000s, dorms that allowed people of opposite sexes to share a room available in some public universities. Some colleges and university coeducational dormitories also feature coeducational bathrooms, most residence halls are much closer to campus than comparable private housing such as apartment buildings. Universities may therefore provide priority to students when allocating this accommodation. Halls located away from university facilities sometimes have extra amenities such as a room or bar. Catered halls may charge for food by the meal or through a termly subscription and they may also contain basic kitchen facilities for student use outside catering hours. Most halls contain a laundry room, as of 2015 there was an expanding market for private luxury off-campus student residences which offered substantial amenities in both the United States and Britain, particularly in London
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Refectory
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A refectory is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools, and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries and it derives from the Latin reficere to remake or restore, via Late Latin refectorium, which means a place one goes to be restored. Communal meals are the times when all monks of an institution are together, diet and eating habits differ somewhat by monastic order, and more widely by schedule. The Rule of St Benedict orders two meals, dinner is provided for year-round, supper is also served from late spring to early fall, except for Wednesdays and Fridays. The diet originally consisted of simple fare, two dishes, with fruit as a course if available. The food was simple, with the meat of mammals forbidden to all, moderation in all aspects of diet is the spirit of Benedicts law. Meals are eaten in silence, facilitated sometimes by hand signals, a single monk might read from the Scriptures or writings of the saints aloud during the meals. Refectories vary in size and dimension, based primarily on wealth and size of the monastery, monks eat at long benches, important officials sit at raised benches at one end of the hall. A lavabo, or large basin for hand-washing usually stands outside the refectory, in England, the refectory is generally built on an undercroft on the side of the cloister opposite the church. Benedictine models are generally laid out on an east–west axis. Norman refectories could be as large as 160 feet long by 35 feet wide, even relatively early refectories might have windows, but these became larger and more elaborate in the high medieval period. The refectory at Cluny Abbey was lit through thirty-six large glazed windows, the twelfth-century abbey at Mont Saint-Michel had six windows, five feet wide by twenty feet high. In Eastern Orthodox monasteries, the Trapeza is considered a sacred place, some services are intended to be performed specifically in the Trapeza. There is always at least one Icon with a lampada kept burning in front of it, the service of the Lifting of the Panagia is performed at the end of meals. During Bright Week, this service is replaced with the Lifting of the Artos, in some monasteries, the Ceremony of Forgiveness at the beginning of Great Lent is performed in the Trapeza. All food served in the Trapeza should be blessed, and for that purpose and this usage is particularly prevalent in Church of England buildings, which use the takings to supplement their income. Many universities in the UK also call their student cafeteria or dining facilities the refectory, the term is rare at American colleges, although Brown University calls its main dining hall the Sharpe Refectory. Refectory table Adams, Henry, Mont Saint-Michel and Chartres, living and Dying in England, 1100-1450
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Diapering
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Diaper is any of a wide range of decorative patterns used in a variety of works of art, such as stained glass, heraldic shields, architecture, and silverwork. Its chief use is in the enlivening of plain surfaces, for the etymology see diaper, meaning childrens nappy. Oxford dictionary gives us the Greek dia for cross as in diamond or diagonal, a white diamond or white cloth is used on the diagonal, hence the diagonal lattice or reticulation in patterning. In architecture and other arts, diaper is applied as a decorative treatment of a surface with a repeat pattern of squares, rectangles. Diaper was particularly used in stained glass to increase the vividness of a coloured pane. In English flushwork, limestone and dark knapped flint are used, windows may be set in a diamond-shaped lattice. In heraldry, diapering is a technique in which those who emblazon, draw, paint, there is no standard, and each artist is allowed individual idiosyncrasies. With very rare exceptions, diapering is not a part of the blazon, thus a shield with diapering is considered the same as a shield of the same design but without diapering. For this reason diapering must not be so obtrusive or so heavily drawn that it could be mistaken for a charge or for a variation of the field. This is especially the case with diaper of simple cross-hatching which might be mistaken for a field of lozengy, a boars head erased of the field (Public Register vol 1
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Marble
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Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Geologists use the marble to refer to metamorphosed limestone, however. Marble is commonly used for sculpture and as a building material and this stem is also the basis for the English word marmoreal, meaning marble-like. In Hungarian it is called márvány, Marble is a rock resulting from metamorphism of sedimentary carbonate rocks, most commonly limestone or dolomite rock. Metamorphism causes variable recrystallization of the carbonate mineral grains. The resulting marble rock is composed of an interlocking mosaic of carbonate crystals. Primary sedimentary textures and structures of the carbonate rock have typically been modified or destroyed. Pure white marble is the result of metamorphism of a very pure limestone or dolomite protolith, green coloration is often due to serpentine resulting from originally magnesium-rich limestone or dolostone with silica impurities. These various impurities have been mobilized and recrystallized by the intense pressure, examples of historically notable marble varieties and locations, White marble has been prized for its use in sculptures since classical times. This preference has to do with its softness, which made it easier to carve, relative isotropy and homogeneity, construction marble is a stone which is composed of calcite, dolomite or serpentine which is capable of taking a polish. More generally in construction, specifically the dimension stone trade, the marble is used for any crystalline calcitic rock useful as building stone. For example, Tennessee marble is really a dense granular fossiliferous gray to pink to maroon Ordovician limestone that geologists call the Holston Formation. Ashgabat, the city of Turkmenistan, was recorded in the 2013 Guinness Book of Records as having the worlds highest concentration of white marble buildings. According to the United States Geological Survey, U. S. domestic marble production in 2006 was 46,400 tons valued at about $18.1 million, compared to 72,300 tons valued at $18.9 million in 2005. Crushed marble production in 2006 was 11.8 million tons valued at $116 million, of which 6.5 million tons was finely ground calcium carbonate and the rest was construction aggregate. For comparison,2005 crushed marble production was 7.76 million tons valued at $58.7 million, of which 4.8 million tons was finely ground calcium carbonate, U. S. dimension marble demand is about 1.3 million tons. The DSAN World Demand for Marble Index has shown a growth of 12% annually for the 2000–2006 period, the largest dimension marble application is tile. In 1998, marble production was dominated by 4 countries that accounted for almost half of production of marble
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Monreale". Encyclopædia Britannica. 18 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 736.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the 
