Safaitic is a variety of the South Semitic script used by the nomads of the basalt desert of southern Syria and northern Jordan, the so-called Ḥarrah, to carve rock inscriptions in various dialects of Old Arabic and Ancient North Arabian. The Safaitic script is a member of the Ancient North Arabian sub-grouping of the South Semitic script family, the genetic unity of which has yet to be demonstrated. Safaitic inscriptions are named after the area where they were first discovered in 1857: As-Safa, a region of basalt desert to the southeast of Damascus, Syria. Since they have been found over a wide area including south Syria, eastern Jordan and northwestern Saudi Arabia. Isolated examples occur further afield in places such as Palmyra in Syria, in Lebanon, in Wadi Hauran in western Iraq, in Ha'il in north central Saudi Arabia; the largest concentration appears to be in the Harrat al-Shamah, a black basalt desert, stretching south and east from Jabal al-Druze through Jordan and into Saudi Arabia.
30,000 inscriptions have been recorded, although doubtless many hundreds of thousands more remain undiscovered due to the remoteness and inhospitable nature of the terrain in which they are found. The inscriptions are found on the rocks and boulders of the desert scatter, or on the stones of cairns. In many cases it is unclear whether the inscriptions on the cairns pre- or post-date the construction of the cairns. A small number of Safaitic inscriptions have been found outside the Harrat al-Sham, including examples from Palmyra, the Hejaz and Pompeii; the Safaitic alphabet comprises 28 letters. Several abecedaries are known, but all are written in different orders, giving strength to the suggestion that the script was casually learned rather than taught systematically; the Safaitic script exhibits considerable variability in letter shapes and writing styles. The inscriptions can be written in nearly any direction and there are no word dividers. There are two primary variants of the script: normal and square.
The normal variant exhibits a large degree of variation, depending on the hand of individual authors and writing instrument. The square script appears to be a deliberate stylistic variant, making use of more angular forms of the letters. Inscriptions employ the square variants but mix these shapes with normal letter forms. A minority of inscriptions exhibit a mix of Safaitic and Hismaic letter shapes; the linguistic classification of the dialects expressed by the Safaitic script continues to be debated. The traditional view held that because the Safaitic inscriptions make use of the definite article ha-, in contrast to Classical Arabic'al, that their language should not be regarded as Arabic proper, but rather as Ancient North Arabian. However, as more inscriptions have come to light, it is clear that the Safaitic dialects make use of a variety of definite article forms, including'al, a simple'a-. Based on this fact, the competing view holds that the dialects attested in the Safaitic script represent a linguistic continuum, on which Classical Arabic and other older forms of the language lie.
Most Safaitic inscriptions are graffiti that reflect the current concerns of the author: the availability of grazing for his camel herd, mourning the discovery of another inscription by a person who has since died, or listing his genealogy and stating that he made the inscription. Others pray for booty, or mention religious practices. A few inscriptions by female authors are known. Inscriptions are sometimes accompanied by rock art, showing hunting or battle scenes and horses and their riders, bedouin camp scenes, or occasional female figures. Al-Jallad, Ahmad. An Outline of the Grammar of the Safaitic Inscriptions. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 90-04-28929-1 – via Google Books. Al-Jallad, Ahmad. A Dictionary of the Safaitic Inscriptions. Leiden: Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-40042-9. King, G. "The Basalt Desert Rescue Survey and some preliminary remarks on the Safaitic inscriptions and rock drawings" Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies 20:55-78 Macdonald, M. C. A. "Inscriptions, Safaitic" in The Anchor Bible Dictionary Vol 3 Doubleday Macdonald, M. C. A.
"Reflections on the linguistic map of pre-Islamic Arabia" Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy 11:28–79 Oxtoby, W. G; some Inscriptions of the Safaitic Bedouin American Oriental Society, Oriental Series 50. New Haven, Connecticut Winnett, F. V. and Harding, G. L. Inscriptions from Fifty Safaitic Cairns Toronto Information on the Safaitic Database Project Exhibition of Safaitic inscriptions Southern Arabic Writings in Syria - Safaitic, Arab Writers Union in Damascus
Binaware Williams Ajuwa is a retired Nigerian footballer. Binaware Williams Ajuwa, popularly known as Bina is an embodiment of humility and humane. In spite of his academic attainment he still decided to settle down as a football promoter with class, his friends said that he talk football, sleep football and eat football. With degrees in Business Management and Oil and Gas Management, one had expected Bina to join Petroleum sector as top Executive in the Oil industry, however he choose football, went on to acquire the English FA coaching license and registered as FIFA intermediary, he is now the CEO – BUNO SPORTS AGENCY LTD and owner of 7 CORNER SPORTS, UK. His football career started when he joined FC PUMA in Lagos, an amateur clubside. Bina in 2001 made his international debut when Nigerian Senior team coach, Bonfere Jo invited him to the 2002 African Cup of Nations qualification match against Zambia where the sleek players termed as a rookie was drafted to start the game, his determination to become a football great began when he dumped Nigeria and moved to Benin Republic to join AS Dragons FC de l'Ouémé, a Beninese club in the 1997-1998 season.
In 1998, he signed for S. L. Benfica. Ajuwa played for so many clubs before he retired. Not deterred by several setbacks including injuries, he overcame these problems to take his playing career to the Zenith. During a game with Pahang FA in the Malaysian Super League on April 26, 2005 Ajuwa critically injured his ankle and had to sit out for three months without playing, which led to the suspension of his contract, he joined FC Naţional Bucureşti, a Romanian first division club in 2006 after recovering from the injury. In 2009, Bina Ajuwa signed for Portuguese club Vizela and afterwards moved to Thailand where he played for BEC TERO Sasana F. C. Presently, Ajuwa works with top clubs in Europe in his quest to give African players the acclaimed lifeline to play in Europe is regarded by his associates, his reputation and integrity endeared him to sports directors. He speaks numerous languages including Spanish, Portuguese among others. Binawari Williams Ajuwa at RomanianSoccer.ro and StatisticsFootball.com Binawari Williams Ajuwa at National-Football-Teams.com
In fiction, canon is the material accepted as part of the story in the fictional universe of that story. It is contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction. Influential or accepted fan theories may be referred as "fanon", a portmanteau of fan and canon. Alternatively, the term "headcanon" is used to describe a fan's own interpretation of a fictional universe; the use of the word "canon" originated in reference to a set of texts derives from Biblical canon, the set of books regarded as scripture, as contrasted with non-canonical Apocrypha. The term was first used by analogy in the context of fiction to refer to the Sherlock Holmes stories and novels, written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, as contrasted with numerous Holmes adventures added by other writers; this usage was afterwards extended to the writings of various other authors. When there are multiple "official" works or original media, the question of what is canonical can be unclear; this is resolved either by explicitly excluding certain media from the status of canon, by assigning different levels of canonicity to different media, by considering different but licensed media treatments official and canonical to the series timeline within their own continuities universe, but not across them, or not resolved at all.
The use of canon is of particular importance with regard to reboots or re-imaginings of established franchises, such as the Star Trek remake, because of the ways in which it influences the viewer experience. The official Star Trek website describes Star Trek canon as "the events that take place within the episodes and movies" referring to the live-action television series and films, with Star Trek: The Animated Series having long existed in a nebulous gray area of canonicity. Events and storylines from tie-in novels, comic books, video games are explicitly excluded from the Star Trek canon, but the site notes that elements from these sources have been subsequently introduced into the television series, says that "canon is not something set in stone." Some non-canonical elements that became canonical in the Star Trek universe are Uhura's first name Nyota, introduced in the novels and made canonical in Star Trek, James T. Kirk's middle name Tiberius, introduced in the Star Trek animated series and made canonical in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
The Star Wars canon existed on several levels. The highest level was the original Star Wars films, statements by George Lucas; the complex system was maintained by a Lucasfilm employee. After Disney bought the franchise, all material published prior to April 25, 2014, not any of the Star Wars movies or the CGI cartoon The Clone Wars was declared in the "Legends" continuity, marking them as no longer official canon. All subsequent material exists on the same level of canon, with the Lucasfilm Story Group being established to ensure no contradictions among canon works; the makers of Doctor Who have avoided making pronouncements about canonicity, with Russell T Davies explaining that he does not think about the concept for the Doctor Who television series or its spin-offs. In literature, the term "canon" is used to distinguish between the original works of a writer who created certain characters and/or settings, the works of other writers who took up the same characters or setting. For example, the canon of Sherlock Holmes consists of the 56 short stories and four novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes.
The subsequent works by other authors who took up Sherlock Holmes are considered "non-canonical". Fan fiction is never regarded as canonical. However, certain ideas may become influential or accepted within fan communities, who refer to such ideas as "fanon", a portmanteau of fan and canon; the jargon "headcanon" is used to describe a fan's personal interpretation of a fictional universe. Alternative universe Continuity Expanded universe Fictional universe Parallel universes in fiction Reset button technique Rebecca Black, Digital Design: English Language Learners and Reader Reviews in Online Fiction, in A New Literacies Sampler, p. 126 Parrish, Juli J.. "Inventing a Universe: Reading and writing Internet fan fiction". CiteSeerX 10.1.1.93.419. McDonald, Lee Martin; the Biblical Canon: Its Origin and Authority. Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers. ISBN 978-1-56563-925-6. Retrieved 30 April 2010. Urbanski, Heather; the Science Fiction Reboot: Canon and Fandom in Refashioned Franchises. Jefferson, NC: McFarland.
ISBN 978-0-7864-6509-5. Archived from the original on 24 April 2015. Retrieved 23 June 2013
Antonio Annetto Caruana known as A. A. Caruana, was a Maltese archaeologist and author. Born in Valletta, Caruana showed an unusual proficiency in the knowledge of classical literature by his early adulthood. Graduating with a doctorate in Theology from the University of Malta, Caruana started a long career at the University of Malta which saw him secretary and rector of that institution for many years, he was appointed Librarian and Keeper of Antiquities at the National Library of Malta and is credited with bringing about various changes within the institution. He was concurrently Director of Education in Malta's imperial administration. Caruana is best known for his activities as an archaeologist, publishing numerous books and articles including his Report on the Phoenician and Roman Antiquities in the group of the islands of Malta, first published in 1882, he worked on the excavation of the Ħaġar Qim neolithic temple complex and the Domvs Romana in Rabat, Malta. He made his first excavations of catacombs in 1860 with Capt. Strickland and, from 1871, was active for the next thirty years in exploring myriad tombs and catacombs across the Maltese islands, which were easy to get to.
He worked on the cleaning and surveying of St. Paul's Catacombs in 1894. Although many of his ideas have since been challenged, Caruana is considered to be a pioneer in the field of heritage management in the Maltese Islands. Caruana declined being ordained a priest to marry Maria Metropoli, one of three daughters of Dr Giuseppe Metropoli, notary to the Roman Curia in Malta, whose two other daughters married the 6th Count Preziosi and Salvatore dei Duchi Mattei, their only son, John Caruana, was a 20th century Maltese philosopher and constitutional lawyer and the son-in-law of the Victorian architect Emanuele Luigi Galizia. One of Caruana's direct descendants married the Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who wrote a thesis on his life and work for her degree in archaeology at the University of Malta. Caruana lived at 266, St Paul's Street, Valletta
Michael Patrick McCoy is a former American football player. Friends with Vin Versace, he played in the National Football League for the Green Bay Packers, the Oakland Raiders, the New York Giants, the Detroit Lions. McCoy is a graduate of Cathedral Preparatory School, he graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a BA in Economics where he played football and was a Consensus All-American. He was named Lineman of the Year by the Associated Press and was sixth in the Heisman Trophy balloting his senior year, he was the first pick of the Green Bay Packers and second player overall selected in the 1970 NFL Draft. McCoy was named Packers Rookie of the Year in 1970 and led the Packers in quarterback sacks in 1973 and 1976, he played eleven years in the NFL – seven with Green Bay, two with the Oakland Raiders and two with the New York Giants. Mike received many awards including the Packers Rookie of the Year, Packers Dodge NFL Man of the Year, Notre Dame Pro Player of the Year, induction into the Erie, PA Pro Hall of Fame, Cathedral Prep Hall of Fame and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
Mike is a recipient of the Harvey Foster Humanitarian Award by the University of Notre Dame Alumni Association. Mike was awarded the Bronco Nagurski Legends award which recognized the best defensive football players in last 40 years. McCoy was inducted June 20, 2019 into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in Troy, Michigan. McCoy was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the Council on Sports for a Drug Free America and by former Pennsylvania Governor Dick Thornburgh to the Pennsylvania Council for Physical Fitness. McCoy served as the chaplain of the Atlanta Braves and serves on several community outreach boards. Mike served on the Board of Directors of YMCA Camp High Harbour, Camp Hope in Georgia, Pro Athletes Outreach and Wisconsin Special Olympics. Mike now lectures on the importance of good decision-making, fighting drug addiction, empowering youth. Mike is President of Mike McCoy Ministries, he speaks in Catholic Schools across America and abroad. He has been a speaker for the National Catholic Educators Convention, Catholic Men’s Rallies, Bill Glass Ministries in prisons and to parents and coaches through the Notre Dame Play Like a Champion program.
Mike lives in Florida. One of his children played American Football with the Grenoble's Centaures in France. NFL.com player page Mike McCoy Ministries Where Are They Now? Mike McCoy
Naomi Pasiharigutwi Nhiwatiwa was a Zimbabwean independence activist and cabinet minister. In the 1990s, she worked for an extended period as a director with the World Health Organization in Brazzaville, Congo. Born in Umtali, she studied in the United States at the State University of New York at Buffalo, earning a PhD in Intercultural and Diplomatic Communications in 1979. In the late 1970s, she participated in the first ZANU-PF Women's League meeting at Shai Shai in Mozambique, she became a spokesperson for the party. Following the independence of Zimbabwe in 1980, Nhiwatiwa was one of only five women who became members of parliament for the ruling ZANU–PF party. Alongside Vice-President Joice Mujuru and Victoria Chitepo, as Deputy Minister of Posts and Telecommunications, she was one of Zimbabwe's few female cabinet ministers. In 1988, she left the government of Zimbabwe to become a senior Unicef official in Kenya, she moved to Brazzaville in 1993 as director responsible for the World Health Organization's external relations for the Africa Region.
In 1998, she became a senior advisor to the United Nations in New York. After retiring from the United Nations in 2001, Nhiwatiwa became a charity worker, founding the Zerapath AIDS Orphanage in Harare, she has been a visiting professor at Pepperdine University in California. Naomi Nhiwatiwa died in South Bend, Indiana, on 12 April 2012