The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a political and economic grouping of the capitalist nations of South East Asia, formed in 1967 and comprising: Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, and Brunei. The countries are very diverse. For example the per capita income of Singapore in 1986 was some 12 times that of Indonesia; interests often diverge accordingly. While committed to strengthening economic ties, progress has been limited. There has also been political co-operation, for example over policy towards Indochina. There are regular consultations between ASEAN and the major industrialised countries. Research Association of South East Asian Nations
The Children of God is a religious movement, or more properly cult, founded by the late David Berg in 1969 after supposedly receiving a revelation from God that California was about to be devastated by an earth quake. The cult uses David Berg's own interpretation of the bible and insists that all new members sever all ties with their families and surrender their worldly belongings to the group and become full time evangelists. Berg introduced free consensual sexual activity among the membership encouraging fornication, adultery, lesbianism and incest with children as young as 18-months being sexually abused, with the approval of the cult.
In 1985, David Berg's daughter Deborah Davis published the book 'The Children of God: The Inside Story' in which she described how she and her sister had been sexually abused by their Father, and revealed some home truths about the cult. Cult members are forbidden to read the book, but many have and subsequently left the cult. Other strange ideas among the cult are that children are raised in groups by foster parents, the man being referred to as the 'shepherd', and the female children being encouraged to regularly perform oral sex on him. Women in the cult are forbidden to shave any part of their body, and all members are limited to three minutes shower time. Members are severely restricted in the possession of money, and denied access to newspapers, and television with occasional video rentals limited to 'approved' films. Members failing to speak in tongues are punished, leading many to learn gobbledegook and pretend to speak in tongues. Research Children Of God
Kinship is human relations based on biological descent and marriage. Kinship is founded on social differences and cultural creations. In all societies, the links between blood relatives and relatives by marriage are assigned certain legal, political, and economic significance that does not depend on biology. At the basis of kinship is the primary mother-child bond to which diverse cultures have added different familial relations. Additional kin are recruited to this basic unit by the principle of descent, which connects one generation to the other in a systematic way and which determines certain rights and obligations across generations. Descent groups can be traced through both sexes (that is, ambilaterally) or through only the male or the female link (unilaterally). In unilaterally traced groups the descent is known as patrilineal if the connection is through the male line or matrilineal if it is through the female line.
Less frequent forms for tracing descent are the parallel system, in which males and females each trace their ancestry through their own sex; and the cognatic method, in which the relatives of both sexes are considered, with little formal distinction between them. The study of kinship has directed much attention to the terms people use to classify and identify their relatives. Kin are everywhere categorised into distinct groups with specific roles and behaviour. The way in which people classify their kin has many practical applications. Thus, the familial relationships peculiar to a society will largely determine the allocation of rights and their transmission from one generation to the next. The succession of office and titles and the inheritance of property are implicit in the kinship system. Property can pass across generations in several ways, as, for example, from the mother's brother to the sister's son (in matrilineal societies); from the father to the father's younger brother (in some patrilineal cultures); or from the father to his son (in many patrilineal societies).
In some societies, kinship terms may also indicate how the family is split over the inheritance of goods and property. The Iatmul of New Guinea, for instance, assign five different terms to designate the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth child. In any quarrels over patrimony, the first and third children are expected to join forces against the second and the fourth. The evolution of kinship and its terminology has interested anthropologists since the mid- 1800s, when the American anthropologist Lewis Henry Morgan developed his theory of kinship. He held that kinship terminology used in non-literate societies reflected a low level of culture and that the terminology common in civilised societies indicated an advanced stage of development. This theory was abandoned when the discovery was made that the limited number of kinship systems in use are found among both technologically simple and advanced peoples.
Some non-evolutionary theories see kinship terms as a result of culture borrowings and modifications, as a means of understanding aspects of the history of a particular society, or even as a linguistic phenomenon. The most common anthropological view, however, is a functional one that relates kinship terms to contemporary behaviour. In this theory, the terms are considered tools for understanding the ties between-and values of- people in any given society. Kinship is important in anthropological study because it is universal. It connotes certain basic human attachments made by all people, and it reflects the way in which people give meaning and ascribe importance to human interactions. Research Kinship
Anglo-Saxons is the name commonly given to the nation or people formed by the amalgamation of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes, who settled in Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries, the Anglo-Saxons being simply the English people of the earlier period of English history. The tribes who were thus the ancestors of the bulk of the English-speaking nationalities came from north Germany, where they inhabited the parts about the mouths of the Elbe and Weser, and the first body of them who gained a footing in Britain are said to have landed in 449, and to have been led by Hengist and Horsa. From the preponderance of the Angles the whole country came to be called Engla-land, that is, the land of the Angles or English.
The whole Anglo-Saxon community was frequently spoken of as consisting of the eorls and the ceorls, or the nobles and common freemen. The former were the men of property and position, the latter were the small landholders, handicraftsmen, etc, who generally placed themselves under the protection of some nobleman, who was hence termed their hlaford or lord. Besides these there was the class of the serfs or slaves (theowas), who might be either born slaves or freemen who had forfeited their liberty by their crimes, or whom poverty or the fortune of war had brought into this position. They served as agricultural labourers on their masters' estates, and were merechattels, as absolutely the property of their master as his cattle.
The king (cyning, cyng) was at the head of the state; he was the highest of the nobles and the chief magistrate. He was not looked upon as ruling by any divine right, but by the will of the people, as represented by the witan (wise men) or great council of the nation. The new king was not always the direct and nearest heir of the late king, but one of the royal family whose abilities and character recommended him for the office. He had the right of maintaining a standing army of household troops, the duty of calling together the witan, and of laying before them public measures, with certain distinctions of dress, dwelling, etc, all his privileges being possessed and exercised by the advice and consent of the witenagemot or parliament (literally meaning meeting of the wise). Next in rank and dignity to the king were the ealdormen, who were the chief witan or counsellors, and without whose assent laws could not be made, altered, or abrogated. They were at the head of the administration of justice in the shires, possessing both judicial and executive authority, and had as their officers the scir-gerefan or sheriffs. The ealdormen led the fyrd or armed force of the county, and the ealdorman, as such, held possession of certain lands attached to the office, and was entitled to a share of fines and other moneys levied for the king's use and passing through his hands. The whole executive government may be considered as a great aristocratical association, of which the ealdormen were the members, and the king little more than the president. The ealdorman and the king were both surrounded by a number of followers called thegnas or thanes, who were bound by close ties to their superior. The king's thanes were the higher in rank, they possessed a certain quantity of land, smaller in amount than that of an ealdorman, and they filled offices connected with the personal service of the king or with the administration of justice. The scir-gerefa (shire-reeve or sheriff) was also
important functionary. He presided at the county-court along with the ealdorman and bishop, or alone in their absence; and he had to carry out the decisions of the court, levy fines, collect taxes, etc. The shires were divided into hundreds and tithings, the latter consisting of ten heads of families, who were jointly responsible to the state for the good conduct of any member of their body. Eor the trial and settlement of minor causes there was a hundred court held once a month. The place of the modern parliament was held by the witena-gemot. Its members, who were not elected, comprised the gethelings or princes of the blood royal, the bishops and abbots, the ealdormen, the thanes, the sheriffs, etc.
One of the peculiar features of Anglo-Saxon society was the wergyld, which was established for the settling of feuds. A sum, paid either in kind or in money, was placed upon the life of every freeman, according to his rank in the state, his birth, or his office. A corresponding sum was settled for every wound that could be inflicted upon his person; for nearly every injury that could be done to his civil rights, his honour, or his domestic peace, etc. From the operation of this principle no one from king to peasant was exempt.
Agriculture, including especially the raising of cattle, sheep, and swine, was the chief occupation of the Anglo-Saxons. Gardens and orchards are frequently mentioned, and vineyards were common in the southern counties. The forests were extensive, and valuable both from the mast they produced for the swine, and from the beasts of the chase which they harboured. Hunting was a favourite recreation among the higher ranks, both lay and clerical. Fishing was largely carried on, herrings and salmon being the principal fish caught; and the Anglo-Saxon whaling vessels used to go as far as Iceland. The manufactures were naturally of small moment. Iron was made to some extent, and some cloth, and salt works were numerous. In embroidery and working in gold the English were famous over Europe. There was a considerable trade at London, which was frequented by Normans, French, Flemings, and the merchants of the Hanse towns. Our Anglo-Saxon forefathers were notorious for their excess in eating and drinking, and in this respect formed a strong contrast to the Norman conquerors. Ale, mead, and cider were the common beverages, wine being limited to the higher classes. Pork and eels were favourite articles of food. The houses were rude structures, but were often richly furnished and hung with fine tapestry. The dress of the people was loose and flowing, composed chiefly of linen, and often adorned with embroidery. The men wore their hair long and flowing over their shoulders. Christianity was introduced among the Anglo-Saxons in the end of the sixth century by St Augustine, who was sent by Pope Gregory the Great, and became the first Archbishop of Canterbury. Kent, then under King Ethelred, was the first place where it took root, and thence it soon spread over the rest of the country. The Anglo-Saxon Church long remained independent of Rome, notwithstanding the continual efforts of the popes to bring it under their power. It was not until the tenth century that this result was
t about by Dunstan. Many Anglo-Saxon ecclesiastics were distinguished for learning and ability, but the VenerableBede holds the first place.
The Anglo-Saxon language, which is simply the earliest form of English, claims kinship with Dutch, Icelandic, Danish, Swedish, and German, especially with the Low German dialects (spoken in North Germany). It was not called Anglo-Saxon by those who spoke it, but Englisc (English), and many condemn the former name as a misnomer. The existing remains of Anglo-Saxon literature show different dialects, of which the northern and the southern were the principal. The former was the first to be cultivated as a literary language, but afterwards it was supplanted in this respect by the southern or that of Wessex. It is in the latter that the principal Anglo-Saxon works are written. The Anglo-Saxon alphabet was substantially the same as that which we still use, except that some of the letters were different in form, while it had two characters either of which represented the sounds of th in thy and in thing. Nouns and adjectives are declined much as in German or in Latin. The pronouns of the first and second person had a dual number, 'we tw' or 'us two' and 'you two', besides the plural for more than two. The infinitive of the verb is in -am, the participle in -ende, and there is a gerund somewhat similar in its usage to the Latingerund. The verb had four moods - indicative, subjunctive, imperative, and infinitive, but only two tenses, the present (often used as a future) and the past. Other tenses and the passive voice were formed by auxiliary verbs. Anglo-Saxon words terminated in a vowel much more frequently than the modern English, and altogether the language is so different that it has to be learned quite like a foreign tongue. Yet notwithstanding the large number of words of Latin or French origin that our language now contains, and the changes it has undergone, its framework, so to speak, is still Anglo-Saxon. Many chapters of the New Testament do not contain more than four per cent of non-Teutonic words, and as a whole it averages perhaps six or seven.
The existing remains of Anglo-Saxon literature include compositions in prose and poetry, some of which must be referred to a very early period, one or two perhaps to a time before the Angles and Saxons emigrated to England. The most important Anglo-Saxon poem is that called Beowulf, after its hero, extending to more than 6000 lines. Beowulf is a Scandinavian prince, who slays a fiendish cannibal, after encountering supernatural perils, and is at last slain in a contest with a frightful dragon. Its scene appears to be laid entirely in Scandinavia. Its date is uncertain; parts of it may have been brought over at the emigration from Germany, though in its present form it is much later than this. The poetical remains include a number of religious poems, or poems on sacred themes; ecclesiastical narratives, as lives of saints and versified chronicles; psalms and hymns; secular lyrics; allegories, gnomes, riddles, etc. The religious class of poems was the largest, and of these Caedmon's (about 660) are the most remarkable. His poems consist of loose versions of considerable portions of the Biblehistory, and treat of the creation, the temptation, the fall, the exodus of the Israelites, the story of Daniel, the incarnation, and the harrowing of hell, or release of the ransomed souls by Christ. Other most interesting poems are those ascribed to Cynewulf, the Christ, Elene, and Juliana, the subjects respectively being Christ, the finding of the cross by the EmpressHelena, and the life of Juliana. Rhyme was little used in Anglo-Saxon poetry, alliteration being employed instead, as in the older northern poetry generally. The style of the poetry is highly elliptical, and it is full of harsh inversions and obscure metaphors.
The Anglo-Saxon prose remains consist of translations of portions of the Bible, homilies, philosophical writings, history, biography, laws, leases, charters, popular treatises on science and medicine, grammars, etc. Many of these were translations from the Latin. The Anglo-Saxon versions of the Gospels, next to the Moeso-Gothic, are the earliest scriptural translations in any modern language. The Psalms are said to have been translated by Bishop Aldhelm (who died in 709), and also under Alfred's direction; and the Gospel of St John by Bede; but it is not known who were the authors of the extant versions. A translation of the first seven books of the Bible is believed to have been the work of Aelfric, who was Abbot of Ensham and lived in the beginning of the eleventh century. We have also eighty homilies from his pen, several theological treatises, a Latingrammar, etc. King Alfred was a diligent author, besides being a translator of Latin works. We have under his name translations of Boethius De Consolatione Philosophise, the Universal History of Orosius, Bede's Ecclesiastical History, the Pastoral Care of Gregory the Great, etc. The most valuable to us of the Anglo-Saxon prose writings is the Saxon Chronicle, as it is called, a collection of annals recording important events in the history of the country, and compiled in different religious houses. The latest text comes down to 1154. A considerable body of laws remains, as well as a large number of charters. Research Anglo-Saxons
Apostolics, Apostolici or Apostolic Bretheren were names given to certain sects who professed to imitate the manners and practice of the apostles. The last and most important of these sects was founded about 1260 by Gerhard Segarelli of Parma. They went barefooted, begging, preaching, and singing throughout Italy, Switzerland, and France; announced the coming of the kingdom of heaven and of purer times; denounced the papacy, and its corrupt and worldly church; and inculcated the complete renunciation of all worldly ties, of property, settled abode, marriage, etc. This society was formally abolished in 1286, by Honorius IV. In 1300 Segarelli was burned as a heretic, but another chief apostle appeared - Dolcino, a learned man of Milan. In self-defence they stationed themselves in fortified places whence they might resist attacks. After having devastated a large tract of country belonging to Milan they were subdued in 1307, by the troops of Bishop Raynerius, in their fortress Zebello, in Vercelli, and almost all destroyed. Dolcino was burned. The survivors afterwards appeared in Lombardy and in the south of France as late as 1368. Research Apostolics
Christian Karl Josias Chevalier Bunsen was a German diplomatist and scholar. He was born in 1791 at Korbach, in the principality of Waldeck, 1791 and died in 1860. In 1815 he made the acquaintance of Niebuhr, who shortly after procured for him the post of secretary to the Prussianembassy at Rome. In 1824 he was appointed charge d'affaires, and afterwards minister. After a stay of twelve years in Rome he was sent, as Prussian minister, first to Switzerland, and then to England, where he remained until the breaking out of the Eastern difficulty in 1854. In his official capacity he won the esteem of all, and with Britain especially he was connected by many ties. His later years were spent at Heidelberg and at Bonn exclusively in literary pursuits. Among his best-known works are Die Verfassung der Kirche der Zukunft (The Constitution of the Church of the Future), Hamburg, 1845;
Aegyptens Stelle in der Weltgeschichte (Egypt's Place in the World's History), Hamburg, 1845; Hippolytus und seine Zeit (Hippolytus and his Time), London, 1851; and lastly, his greatest work, Bibelwerk furdie Gemeinde (Bible Commentary for the Community), the publication of which was unfinished at his death. His Memoirs, by his widow, were published in 1868. Research Christian Bunsen
In 2003 a 'coalition' of American led forces invaded Iraq without United Nations approval on the pretext that Iraq possessed, and refused to relinquish, weapons of mass destruction which were a threat to the security of other countries, including the USA. Within weeks the ruling Ba'ath regime was overthrown in a conflict in which coalition forces, including British troops, were condemned by the International Red Cross for breaking the terms of the Geneva Convention, routinely abusing prisoners and in 2005 it emerged the US troops had used white phosphorus as an anti-personnel incendiary weapon - chemical weapon - contrary to international law. No weapons of mass destruction found and the justification changed to 'the liberation of the Iraqi people', which a year later became all the more ironic as reports and photographs were leaked of the torture of Iraqis captured by American troops, including a report by the International Red Cross. The reality, according to opponents of the war, was that the invasion was part of the corporate plan for world globalisation - the corporate takeover of water, oil and electric production and distribution for profit, and Iraq, led by Sadaam Hussein, was not cooperative to the idea of the theft of the country's resources by Anglo-American corporations. President Bush of the USA and Prime Minister Tony Blair of the UK both with major financial ties to the relevant globalisation corporations used their countries armies to further their own financial gain. The illegality of the war, which was still raging more than a year later, proved the United Nations to be ineffective in policing aggressive nations.
Following attacks upon Iraq, a one-man anti-war protest by Brian Haw outside England's Houses of Parliament, all day and all night everyday since 2001 led to the Home Secretary, Charles Clarke, passing a law banning spontaneous protests outside the Parliament after failing to have Brian Haw evicted under existing legislation.
After the Invasion of Iraq, and the securing of its plentiful oil supplies by western oil companies, western oil companies reported record-breaking profits, and in February 2006 the Dutch Shell oil company reported the largest annual profit ever made by any company in Britain. Research Invasion of Iraq
A babushka is a head-scarf made from a square of fabric, folded and wrapped around the head, that ties under the chin and is widely worn by Russian peasant women. Research Babushka
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Association of South East Asian Nations
