Rigging comprises the system of ropes and chains, which support a sailing ship or sail boat's masts—standing rigging, including shrouds and stays—and which adjust the position of the vessel's sails and spars to which they are attached—the running rigging, including halyards, braces and vangs. According to the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition "rigging" derives from Anglo-Saxon wrigan or wringing, "to clothe"; the same source points out that "rigging" a sailing vessel refers to putting all the components in place to allow it to function, including the masts, spars and the rigging. Rigging is divided into two classes, which supports the mast, running, which controls the orientation of the sails and their degree of reefing. Configurations differ for each type of rigging, between fore-and-aft rigged vessels and square-rigged vessels. Standing rigging is cordage, fixed in position. Standing rigging is always between a mast and the deck, using tension to hold the mast in place. Due to its role, standing rigging is now most made of steel cable.

It was made of the same materials as running rigging, only coated in tar for added strength and protection from the elements. Most fore-and-aft rigged vessels have the following types of standing rigging: a forestay, a backstay, upper and lower shrouds. Less common rigging configurations are diamond jumpers. Both of these are used to keep a thin mast in column under the load of a large down wind sail or in strong wind. Rigging parts include swageless terminals, swage terminals, shackle toggle terminals and fail-safe wire rigging insulators. Whereas 20th-century square-rigged vessels were constructed of steel with steel standing rigging, prior vessels used wood masts with hemp-fiber standing rigging; as rigs became taller by the end of the 19th century, masts relied more on successive spars, stepped one atop the other to form the whole, from bottom to top: the lower mast, top mast, topgallant mast. This construction relied on support by a complex array of stays and shrouds; each stay in either the fore-and-aft or athwartships direction had a corresponding one in the opposite direction providing counter-tension.

Fore-and-aft the system of tensioning started with the stays that were anchored at in front each mast. Shrouds were tensioned by pairs deadeyes, circular blocks that had the large-diameter line run around them, whilst multiple holes allowed smaller line—lanyard—to pass multiple times between the two and thereby allow tensioning of the shroud. In addition to overlapping the mast below, the top mast and topgallant mast were supported laterally by shrouds that passed around either a platform, called a "top", or cross-wise beams, called "crosstrees"; each additional mast segment is supported aft by a series of stays that led forward. These lines were countered in tension by backstays, which were secured along the sides of the vessel behind the shrouds. Running rigging is the cordage used to control the shape and position of the sails. Materials have evolved from the use of Manilla rope to synthetic fibers, which include dacron and kevlar. Running rigging varies between fore-and-aft rigged vessels and square-rigged vessels.

They have common functions between them for supporting and orienting sails, which employ different mechanisms. For supporting sails, are used to raise sails and control luff tension. On gaff-rigged vessels, topping lifts hold the yards across the top of the sail aloft. Sail shape is controlled by lines that pull at the corners of the sail, including the outhaul at the clew and the downhaul at the tack on fore-and-aft rigs; the orientation of sails to the wind is controlled by sheets, but by braces, which position the yard arms with respect to the wind on square-rigged vessels. Full rigged ship John. Seamanship in the Age of Sail. Illus. by Mark Myers. Annapolis, Md: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-955-3. OCLC 11036800. Lees, James; the Masting and Rigging of English Ships of War, 1625–1860. Annapolis, Md: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-948-0. OCLC 11908132. Marchaj, C. A.. Aero-Hydrodynamics of Sailing. Saint Michaels, Md.: Tiller Publishing. ISBN 1-888671-18-1. OCLC 62546510. Marchaj, C. A.. Sail Performance: Theory and Practice.

Maidenhead, England: McGraw Hill. ISBN 0-07-141310-3. OCLC 51913243. Underhill, Harold A.. Masting and Rigging: The Clipper Ship and Ocean Carrier. Brill Academic Pub. ISBN 9780851741734. Photos of different types of ship rigging Sail Ship Rigging, at GlobalSecurity.org

Columbia known as Nuna and Hudsonland, was one of Earth's ancient supercontinents. It was first proposed by Rogers & Santosh 2002 and is thought to have existed 2,500 to 1,500 million years ago in the Paleoproterozoic Era. Zhao et al. 2002 proposed that the assembly of the supercontinent Columbia was completed by global-scale collisional events during 2.1–1.8 Ga. Columbia consisted of proto-cratons that made up the cores of the continents of Laurentia, Ukrainian Shield, Amazonian Shield and Siberia, North China, Kalaharia as well; the evidence of Columbia's existence is based upon paleomagnetic data. Columbia is estimated to have been 12,900 km from North to South at its broadest part; the eastern coast of India was attached to western North America, with southern Australia against western Canada. In this era most of South America was rotated such that the western edge of modern-day Brazil lined up with eastern North America, forming a continental margin that extended into the southern edge of Scandinavia.

Columbia was assembled along global-scale 2.1–1.8 Ga collisional orogens and contained all of Earth's continental blocks. As summarized by Zhao et al. 2002: The cratonic blocks in South America and West Africa were welded by the 2.1–2.0 Ga Transamazonian and Eburnean Orogens. Following its final assembly at c. 1.82 Ga, the supercontinent Columbia underwent long-lived, subduction-related growth via accretion at key continental margins, forming at 1.82–1.5 Ga a great magmatic accretionary belt along the present-day southern margin of North America and Baltica. It includes the 1.8–1.7 Ga Yavapai, Central Plains and Makkovikian Belts, 1.7–1.6 Ga Mazatzal and Labradorian Belts, 1.5–1.3 Ga St. Francois and Spavinaw Belts, 1.3–1.2 Ga Elzevirian Belt in North America. Other cratonic blocks underwent marginal outgrowth at about the same time. In South America, a 1.8–1.3 Ga accretionary zone occurs along the western margin of the Amazonia Craton, represented by the Rio Negro and Rondonian Belts. In Australia, 1.8–1.5 Ga accretionary magmatic belts, including the Arunta, Mount Isa, Georgetown and Broken Hill Belts, occur surrounding the southern and eastern margins of the North Australia Craton and the eastern margin of the Gawler Craton.

In China, a 1.8–1.4 Ga accretionary magmatic zone, called the Xiong’er belt, extends along the southern margin of the North China Craton. Columbia began to fragment about 1.5–1.35 Ga, associated with continental rifting along the western margin of Laurentia, eastern India, southern margin of Baltica, southeastern margin of Siberia, northwestern margin of South Africa, northern margin of the North China Block. The fragmentation corresponded with widespread anorogenic magmatic activity, forming anorthosite-mangerite-charnockite-granite suites in North America, Baltica and North China, continued until the final breakup of the supercontinent at about 1.3–1.2 Ga, marked by the emplacement of the 1.27 Ga Mackenzie and 1.24 Ga Sudbury mafic dyke swarms in North America. Other dyke swarms associated with extensional tectonics and the break-up of Columbia include the Satakunta-Ulvö dyke swarm in Fennoscandia and the Galiwinku dyke swarm in Australia. An area around Georgetown in northern Queensland, has been suggested to consist of rocks that formed part of Nuna 1.7 billion years ago in what is now Northern Canada.

In the initial configuration of Rogers and Santosh, South Africa, India and attached parts of Antarctica are placed adjacent to the western margin of North America, whereas Greenland and Siberia are positioned adjacent to the northern margin of North America, South America is placed against West Africa. In the same year, Zhao et al. proposed an alternative configuration of Columbia, in which the fits of Baltica and Siberia with Laurentia and the fit of South America with West Africa are similar to those of the Rogers and Santosh configuration, whereas the fits of India, East Antarctica, South Africa, Australia with Laurentia are similar to their corresponding fits in the configuration of Rodinia. This continental configuration is based on the available geological reconstructions of 2.1–1.8 Ga orogens and related Archean cratonic blocks on those reconstructions between South America vs West Africa, Western Australia vs South Africa, Laurentia vs Baltica, Siberia vs Laurentia, Laurentia vs Central Australia, East Antarctica vs Laurentia, North China vs India.

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Apas is the Avestan language term for "the waters", which, in its innumerable aggregate states, is represented by the Apas, the hypostases of the waters. Āb is the Middle Persian-language form. "To this day reverence for water is ingrained in Zoroastrians, in orthodox communities offerings are made to the household well or nearby stream." The ape zaothra ceremony—the culminating rite of the Yasna service —is for the "strengthening of the waters." Avestan apas is grammatically feminine, the Apas are female. The Middle Persian equivalents are ābān/Ābān; the Avestan common noun āpas corresponds to Vedic Sanskrit āpas, both derive from the same proto-Indo-Iranian word, stem *ap- "water", cognate with the British river Avon. In both Avestan and Vedic Sanskrit texts, the waters—whether as waves or drops, or collectively as streams, rivers or wells—are represented by the Apas, the group of divinities of the waters; the identification of divinity with element is complete in both cultures: in the RigVeda the divinities are wholesome to drink, in the Avesta the divinities are good to bathe in.

As in the Indian religious texts, the waters are considered a primordial element. In Zoroastrian cosmogony, the waters are the second creation, after that of the sky. Aside from Apas herself/themselves, no less than seven Zoroastrian divinities are identified with the waters: All three Ahuras, two Amesha Spentas and two lesser Yazatas. Abans, a crater on Ariel, one of the moons of Uranus, is named after aban. In the seven-chapter Yasna Haptanghaiti, which interrupts the sequential order of the Gathas and is linguistically as old as the Gathas themselves, the waters are revered as the Ahuranis, wives of the Ahura. Although not otherwise named, Boyce associates this Ahura with Apam Napat, another divinity of waters. In Yasna 38, dedicated "to the earth and the sacred waters", apas/Apas is not only necessary for nourishment, but is considered the source of life. In Yasna 2.5 and 6.11, apas/Apas is "Mazda-made and holy". In the Aban Yasht, nominally dedicated to the waters, veneration is directed at Aredvi Sura Anahita, another divinity identified with the waters, but representing the "world river" that encircled the earth.

The merger of the two concepts "probably" came about due to prominence given to Aredvi Sura during the reign of Artaxerxes II and subsequent Achaemenid emperors. Although Aredvi is of Indo-Iranian origin and cognate with Vedic Saraswati, during the 5th century BCE Aredvi was conflated with a Semitic divinity with similar attributes, from whom she inherited additional properties. In other Avesta texts, the waters are implicitly associated with Armaiti, the Amesha Spenta of the earth. In Yasna 3.1, the eminence of Aban is reinforced by additionally assigning guardianship to another Amesha Spenta Haurvatat. According to the Bundahishn, aban was the second of the seven creations of the material universe, the lower half of everything. In a development of a cosmogonical view alluded to in the Vendidad, aban is the essence of a "great gathering place of the waters" upon which the world rested; the great sea was fed by a mighty river. Two rivers, one to the east and one to the west, flowed out of it and encircled the earth where they were cleansed by Puitika, the tidal sea, before flowing back into the Vourukasha.

In the Zoroastrian calendar, the tenth day of the month is dedicated to the waters, under whose protection that day lies. Additionally, Aban is the name of the eighth month of the year of the Zoroastrian calendar, as well as that of the Iranian calendar of 1925, which follows Zoroastrian month-naming conventions, it might be the precursor of the holy month of Sha'aban in the Hijri calendar. Sha'aban meaning The Zoroastrian name-day feast of Abanagan known as the Aban Ardvisur Jashan by Indian Zoroastrians, is celebrated on the day that the day-of-month and month-of-year dedications intersect, that is, on the tenth day of the eighth month; the celebration is accompanied by a practice of offering sweets and flowers to the sea. From among the flowers associated with the yazatas, aban's is the water-lily. Temple of Anahita Qadamgah Minar Boyce, Mary. History of Zoroastrianism, Vol. I. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-10474-7. Boyce, Mary. History of Zoroastrianism, Vol. II. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-06506-2.

Boyce, Mary. "Aban". Encyclopaedia Iranica. I. New York: Mazda Pub. p. 58. Lommel, Herman. Die Yašts des Awesta. Göttingen–Leipzig: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht/JC Hinrichs. Lommel, Herman. "Anahita-Sarasvati". Asiatica: Festschrift Friedrich Weller Zum 65. Geburtstag. Leipzig: Otto Harrassowitz. Pp. 405–413. Girshman, Roman. Persian art and Sassanian dynasties. London: Golden Press. Aban Yasht, as translated by James Darmesteter in Müller, Friedrich Max. SBE, Vol. 2