Based on research completed in 1997. Originally published by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress as part of the Country Studies/Area Handbook Series sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army between 1986 and 1998. Each study offers a comprehensive description and analysis of the country or region's historical setting, geography, society, economy, political system, and foreign policy.

According to Wikipedia: "Anicius Manlius Severinus Bo?thius,commonly called Boethius (ca. 480–524 or 525 AD) was a philosopher of the early 6th century. He was born in Rome to an ancient and prominent family which included emperors Petronius Maximus and Olybrius and many consuls... Boethius was imprisoned and eventually executed by King Theodoric the Great, who suspected him of conspiring with the Eastern Roman Empire. While jailed, Boethius composed his Consolation of Philosophy, a philosophical treatise on fortune, death, and other issues. The Consolation became one of the most popular and influential works of the Middle Ages."

According to Wikipedia: "The Dharmasutras are Sanskrit texts dealing with custom, rituals and law. They include the four surviving written works of the ancient Indian tradition on the subject of dharma, or the rules of behavior recognized by a community. Unlike the later Dharmashastra, the dharmasutras are composed in prose. The oldest Dharmasutra is generally believed to have been that of Apastamba, followed by the dharmasutras of Gautama, Baudhayana, and an early version of Vasishtha. It is difficult to determine exact dates for these texts, but the dates between 500–300 BCE have been suggested for the oldest Dharmasutras."

First published in 1903. Biographies of Balfour, Lord Salisbury, Lord Rosebery, Chamberlain, Labourchere, Morley, Burns, Hicks-Beach, Redmond,Harcourt, Bryce, Campbell-Bannerman, and the Earl of Aberdeen.

First published in 1880. According to Wikipedia: "The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following Lord Carnarvon's successful introduction of federation in Canada, it was thought that similar political effort, coupled with military campaigns, might succeed with the African kingdoms, tribal areas and Boer republics in South Africa. In 1874, Sir Henry Bartle Frere was sent to South Africa as High Commissioner for the British Empire to bring such plans into being. Among the obstacles were the presence of the independent states of the South African Republic and the Kingdom of Zululand and its army.[6] Frere, on his own initiative, without the approval of the British government[7][8] and with the intent of instigating a war with the Zulu, had presented an ultimatum on 11 December 1878, to the Zulu king Cetshwayo with which the Zulu king could not comply.[9] Cetshwayo did not comply and Bartle Frere sent Lord Chelmsford to invade Zululand.[10] The war is notable for several particularly bloody battles, including a stunning opening victory by the Zulu at Isandlwana, as well as for being a landmark in the timeline of imperialism in the region. The war eventually resulted in a British victory and the end of the Zulu nation's independence."

Originally published by the CIA, as an unclassified public document. Douglas MacEachin served as CIA's Deputy Director for Intelligence from 1993 to 1995 during his thirty-two year career at CIA. Mr. MacEachin was an officer-in-residence at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, from 1995 to 1997, subsequently becoming a senior at the Kennedy School.

THE TALE OF A TROOPER is a first-hand account in novel form of World War I by soldier, author, and distinguished New Zealand activist for the blind, Clutha N. Mackenzie. ? Blinded in action in 1915, while serving with the Wellington Mounted Rifles in Egypt and Gallipoli, Mackenzie presents a profound chronicle of the global warfare as seen from the eyes of an ordinary soldier -- by an author who will never see again.

The Path of the King is a travel through historic events that traces a band of gold as it is passed from a young Viking to Abraham Lincoln. The following is a quotation from its original publication (AL BURT COMPANY PUBLISHERS, 1921): "We wonder that so great a man as Abraham Lincoln should spring from humble people but who knows what his more distant ancestry might have been In a series of dramatic chapters Mr Buchan tells what he imagines to have been the ancestry of Lincoln The worthy son of a northern chieftain who had come down with his people into Normandy, a Norman knight who fought under Duke William and settled in England, a French knight emissary of Saint Louis to Kubla Khan, a proud demoiselle friend to Jeanne d Arc, a French gentleman who went with Columbus on his second voyage, an avenger of Saint Bartholomew's Day, a friend to Sir Walter Raleigh, a supporter of Cromwell, a soldier of fortune under Marlborough, a mighty hunter in Virginia, all these says Mr Buchan were Lincoln's forebears Their blood ran in his veins and made him in James Russell Lowell's phrase the last of the kings." According to Wikipedia, "John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir (26 August 1875 – 11 February 1940) was a Scottish novelist and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada. Buchan's 100 works include nearly thirty novels, seven collections of short stories and biographies of Sir Walter Scott, Caesar Augustus, and Oliver Cromwell. Buchan's most famous of his books were the spy thrillers (including) The 39 Steps (which was converted to a play as well as an Alfred Hitchcock movie starring Robert Donat as Richard Hannay, though with Buchan's story much altered.) The "last Buchan" (as Graham Greene entitled his appreciative review) was the 1941 novel Sick Heart River (American title: Mountain Meadow), in which a dying protagonist confronts in the Canadian wilderness the questions of the meaning of life. The insightful quotation "It's a great life, if you don't weaken" is famously attributed to Buchan, as is "No great cause is ever lost or won, The battle must always be renewed, And the creed must always be restated."

According to Wikipedia: "Jacob Abbott (November 14, 1803 – October 31, 1879) was an American writer of children's books. Abbott was born at Hallowell, Maine to Jacob and Betsey Abbott. He graduated from Bowdoin College in 1820; studied at Andover Theological Seminary in 1821, 1822, and 1824; was tutor in 1824-1825, and from 1825 to 1829 was professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at Amherst College; was licensed to preach by the Hampshire Association in 1826; founded the Mount Vernon School for Young Ladies in Boston in 1829, and was principal of it in 1829-1833; was pastor of Eliot Congregational Church (which he founded), at Roxbury, Massachusetts in 1834-1835; and was, with his brothers, a founder, and in 1843-1851 a principal of Abbott's Institute, and in 1845-1848 of the Mount Vernon School for Boys, in New York City. He was a prolific author, writing juvenile fiction, brief histories, biographies, religious books for the general reader, and a few works in popular science. He died in Farmington, Maine, where he had spent part of his time after 1839, and where his brother, Samuel Phillips Abbott, founded the Abbott School."

According to Wikipedia: "Procopius of Caesarea (Latin: Procopius Caesarensis, c. AD 500 – c. AD 565) was a prominent Byzantine scholar from Palestine. Accompanying the general Belisarius in the wars of the Emperor Justinian I, he became the principal historian of the 6th century, writing the Wars of Justinian, the Buildings of Justinian and the celebrated Secret History. He is commonly held to be the last major historian of the ancient world."

According to Wikipedia: "Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (AD 56 – AD 117) was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors. These two works span the history of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus in AD 14 to (presumably) the death of emperor Domitian in AD 96. There are enormous lacunae in the surviving texts, including one four books long in the Annals. Other works by Tacitus discuss oratory (in dialogue format, see Dialogus de oratoribus), Germania (in De origine et situ Germanorum), and biographical notes about his father-in-law Agricola, primarily during his campaign in Britannia (see De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae)."

History of witchcraft in the Middle Ages. According to Wikipedia: "Jules Michelet (21 August 1798 – 9 February 1874) was a French historian. He was born in Paris to a family with Huguenot traditions." The Preface begins: "In this translation of a work rich in the raciest beauties and defects of an author long since made known to the British public, the present writer has striven to recast the trenchant humour, the scornful eloquence, the epigrammatic dash of Mr. Michelet, in language not all unworthy of such a word-master. How far he has succeeded others may be left to judge. In one point only is he aware of having been less true to his original than in theory he was bound to be."

Since Maidan in Kyiv and Russian presence in the Crimea, Ukraine has never been the same. In 2014, the country is deeply divided by the conflict imposed on the Ukrainians. But since nobody actually asked the nation, author Oleksandr Shyshko decided to take matters into his own hands and look for the answer to the ultimate question – who are the Ukrainians and what do they want. Shyshko spent his time researching the national identity of native Ukrainians, and as he went he stumbled on a discovery that led to yet another question – where is Ukraine going, the so-called Quo vadis? of the Ukrainian people. His findings and critical comments gave birth to this new book that is now for the first time being published in English. To Get Ukraine.

Uncle Tom's Cabin is a hugely influential story written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, a Connecticut-born teacher at the Hartford Female Academy and an active abolitionist. Stowe featured the character of Uncle Tom, a long-suffering black slave around whom the stories of other characters revolve. The sentimental novel depicts the reality of slavery while also asserting that Christian love can overcome something as destructive as enslavement of fellow human beings.

This series of nonfiction readers will grab a student's interest from the very first page! Designed with struggling readers in mind, these riveting 92-page books offer short chapters on significant disasters. Each chapter is its own mini-book, which includes a timeline, key terms, and interesting facts. Fascinating black and white photographs keep the pages turning. A bibliography encourages further topical reading. Disasters are inherently frightening, riveting, and involving. Grabbed straight from the headlines, these disasters leave tragedy, destruction, and years of anguish: Cyclones, Hurricanes, Tornadoes, The Perfect Storm, Hurricane Katrina, and more.

This series of nonfiction readers will grab a student's interest from the very first page! Designed with struggling readers in mind, these riveting 92-page books offer short chapters on significant disasters. Each chapter is its own mini-book, which includes a timeline, key terms, and interesting facts. Fascinating black and white photographs keep the pages turning. A bibliography encourages further topical reading. Disasters are inherently frightening, riveting, and involving. Grabbed straight from the headlines, these disasters leave tragedy, destruction, and years of anguish: The Munich Massacre, Sara Jane Olson, The Achille Lauro, The Unabomber, Oklahoma City, 9/11, The London Underground, and more.

A profoundly influential figure in American psychology, William James (1842–1910) was also a philosopher of note, who used Charles S. Peirce's theories of pragmatism as a basis for his own conception of that influential philosophy. For James, this meant an emphasis on "radical empiricism" and the concept that the meaning of any idea — philosophical, political, social, or otherwise — has validity only in terms of its experiential and practical consequences. James propounded his theories of pragmatism in this book, one of the most important in American philosophy. In a sense, he wished to test competing systems of thought in the "marketplace of actual experience" to determine their validity, i.e. whether adopting a particular philosophical theory or way of looking at the world makes an actual difference in individual conduct or in how we perceive and react to the varieties of experience. In these pages, James not only makes a strong case for his own ideas, but mounts a powerful attack against the transcendental and rationalist tradition. For anyone interested in William James or the history of American philosophical thought, Pragmatism is an essential and thought provoking reference. In this handy, inexpensive edition, it will challenge and stimulate any thinking person.

Aminah binti Wahab adalah ibu yang melahirkan Muhammad, Nabi umat Islam. Siti Aminah menikah dengan Abdullah Ayahanda Nabi. Tidak terdapat keterangan mengenai lahirnya beliau, dan menurut sejarah ia meninggal pada tahun 577 ketika dalam perjalanan menuju Yatsrib untuk mengajak Nabi Muhammad SAW mengunjungi pamannya dan melihat kuburan ayahnya.Aminah dilahirkan di Mekkah. Ayah Aminah adalah pemimpin Bani Zuhrah, yang bernama Wahab bin Abdul Manaf bin Zuhrah bin Kilab. Sedangkan ibu Aminah adalah Barrah binti Abdul Uzza bin Utsman bin Abduddar bin Qushay.Bunda Aminah adalah pemimpin para ibu, karena ia ibu Nabi Muhammad SAW yang dipilih Allah SWT sebagai Rasul pembawa risalah untuk umat manusia hingga akhir zaman. Baginda Muhammadlah penyeru kebenaran dan keadilan serta kebaikan berupa agama Islam.“Dan barangsiapa memilih agama selain Islam, maka tiadalah diterima (agama itu) darinya. Dan di akhirat termasuk orang-orang yang rugi.” (QS. Ali Imran: 85)Tak banyak sejarawan yang mengupas masa hidupnya, namun nama ini senantiasa semerbak bersama hembusan angin keindahan. Perjalanannya yang indah nan suci telah mengukir perubahan besar perputaran zaman. Siapa yang tak kenal Bani Hasyim; karena dari kabilah inilah Nabi SAW dilahirkan. Siapa pula yang tak kenal Bani Zuhrah; sebuah kabilah yang pernah menyimpan wanita suci dan mulia, karena dari rahimnya lahir sebuah cahaya agung yang membawa pembaharuan besar di dunia ini, Aminah binti Wahab Ibunda Rasululllah SAW.

Nabi Adam AS adalah tokoh dari Kitab Kejadian, Perjanjian Baru ＆amp; Kitab Suci Al-Quran. Menurut mitos penciptaan dari agama-agama Abrahamik dia adalah seorang Nabi ＆amp; manusia pertama. Dan menurut agama samawi pula merekalah leluhur dari semua manusia yang ada di bumi.Rincian kisah mengenai kehidupan Nabi Adam AS dan Siti Hawa (Eve) berbeda-beda antara agama Islam, Judaism, Nasrani maupun agama lain yang berkembang dari ketiga agama Abrahamik ini.Nabi Adam AS hidup selama 930 tahun, sedangkan Siti Hawa (Eve) diciptakan ketika Adam berusia 130 tahun. Al-Quran memuat kisah Adam dalam beberapa surat, di antaranya Surat Al-Baqarah (2):30-38 dan Surat Al-A＆rsquo;raaf (7):11-25.Menurut ajaran agama Abrahamik, anak-anak Nabi Adam AS dan Siti Hawa dilahirkan secara kembar, yaitu, setiap bayi lelaki dilahirkan bersamaan dengan seorang bayi perempuan. Adam menikahkan anak lelakinya dengan anak gadisnya yang tidak sekembar dengannya.Menurut hadits Nabi Muhammad SAW yang diriwayatkan oleh Imam Bukhari, Nabi Adam AS memiliki postur badan dengan ketinggian 60 hasta. Hadits mengenai ini pula ditemukan dalam riwayat Imam Muslim dan Imam Ahmad, namun dalam sanad yang berbeda.Sosok Nabi Adam AS digambarkan sangat beradab sekali, seorang Nabi yang cerdas, jujur, saleh, memiliki ilmu yang tinggi dan ia bukan makhluk purba. Ia berasal dari surga (jannah) yang berperadaban maju. Turun ke muka bumi bisa sebagai makhluk asing dari sebuah peradaban yang jauh lebih maju dan cerdas, dari peradaban di bumi sampai kapanpun, oleh karena itulah Allah SWT menunjuknya sebagai khalifah (pemimpin) di muka bumi ini.Dalam gambarannya ia adalah makhluk yang teramat cerdas, sangat dimuliakan oleh Allah SWT, memiliki kelebihan yang sempurna dibandingkan makhluk yang lain sebelumnya dan diciptakan dalam bentuk yang terbaik dan sempurna. Sesuai dengan Surah Al Israa＆#39; 70, yang berbunyi:＆quot;...dan sesungguhnya telah Kami muliakan anak-anak Adam, Kami angkat mereka di daratan dan di lautan, Kami beri mereka rezeki dari yang baik-baik dan Kami lebihkan mereka dengan kelebihan yang sempurna atas kebanyakan makhluk yang telah Kami ciptakan.＆quot;

What is the meaning and purpose of life?’ ?This is, perhaps, the most important question that has ever been asked.? Throughout the ages, philosophers have considered it to be the most fundamental question.? Scientists, historians, philosophers, writers, psychologists and the common man all wrestle with the question at some point in their lives.? ‘Why do we eat?’ ?‘Why do we sleep?’ ?‘Why do we work?’ ?The answers we would get to these questions would be similar.? ‘I eat to live.’ ?‘I sleep to rest.’ ?‘I work to support myself and my family.’ ?But when it comes to what the purpose of life is, people are confused.? We see their confusion by the type of answers we receive.? Youths may say, "I live for booze and bikinis."? The middle aged professional might say, "I live to save enough for a comfortable retirement."? The old man would probably say, "I’ve been asking why I’m here most of my life.? If there’s a purpose, I don’t care anymore." ?And perhaps the most common answer will be, "I really don’t know!" How, then, do you discover the purpose of life? ?We basically have two options.? The first is to let ‘human reason’ - the celebrated achievement of the Enlightenment - guide us.? After all, the Enlightenment gave us modern science based on careful observation of the natural world.? But have post-Enlightenment philosophers figured it out? ?Camus described life as "absurd"; Sartre spoke of "anguish, abandonment and despair." ?To these Existentialists, life has no meaning. Islam is the response to humanity’s search for meaning.? The purpose of creation for all men and women for all times has been one: to know and worship God. The Quran teaches us that every human being is born conscious of God, "(Remember) when your Lord extracted from the loins of Adam’s children their descendants and made them testify [saying]: ‘Am I not your Lord?’ ?They said: ‘Yes, we testify to it.’ ?(This was) in case you say on the Day of Judgment: ‘We were unaware of this.’ ?Or you say: ‘It was our ancestors who worshipped others besides God and we are only their descendants.? Will you then destroy us for what those liars did?’"(Quran 7:172-173) The Prophet of Islam teaches us that God created this primordial need in human nature at the time Adam was made.? God took a covenant from Adam when He created him.? God extracted all of Adam’s descendants who were yet to be born, generation after generation, spread them out, and took a covenant from them.? He addressed their souls directly, making them bear witness that He was their Lord.? Since God made all human beings swear to His Lordship when He created Adam, this oath is imprinted on the human soul even before it enters the fetus, and so a child is born with a natural belief in the Oneness of God.? This natural belief is called fitra in Arabic.

Discover the astonishing true stories--that will make readers laugh, cry, and gasp--behind the headlines: The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, A Sticky Mess, The Iron Curtain, The Kursk, The Quecreek Mine Flood, The Chilean Miners, and more. This series of nonfiction readers will grab a student's interest from the very first page! Designed with struggling readers in mind, these riveting books offer short chapters on high-interest headlines. Each chapter is its own mini-book, which includes a timeline, key terms, and interesting facts. Fascinating black and white photographs keep the pages turning. A bibliography encourages further topical reading.