Arabic language Ancient Semitic language whose dialects are spoken throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Though Arabic words and proper names are found in Aramaic inscriptions, abundant documentation of the language begins only with the rise of Islam, whose main texts are written in Arabic. Grammarians from the 8th century on codified it into the form known as Classical Arabic, a literary and scribal argot that dif¬ fered markedly from the spoken vernacular. In the 19th-20th centuries, expansion of Classical Arabic’s stylistic range and vocabulary led to the creation of Modern Standard Arabic, which serves as a lingua franca among contemporary Arabs. However, Arabic speakers, who number roughly 200 million, use an enormous range of dialects, which at their furthest extremes are mutually unintelligible. Classical Arabic remains an important cultural and religious artifact among the non-Arab Islamic com¬ munity. See also Arabic alphabet.
Arabic literary renaissance (19th-century) Movement to develop a modern Arabic literature. Inspired by contacts with the West and a renewed interest in classical Arabic literature, it began in Egypt with Syr¬ ian and Lebanese writers who sought the freer environment there, and it spread to other Arab countries as a result of the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire after World War I and the coming of independence after World War II. Its success in altering the direction of Arabic literature is related to the spread and modernization of education and the emergence of an Arabic press.
Arabic philosophy or Islamic philosophy Doctrines of the Ara¬ bic philosophers of the 9th-12th century who influenced medieval Scho¬ lasticism in Europe. The Arabic tradition combines Aristotelianism and Neoplatonism with other ideas introduced through Islam. Influential think¬ ers include the Persians al-KiNDi, al-FARABi, and Avicenna, as well as the
Arabesque decoration on the dome of the Madar-i-Shah madrasah ("school") built by Husayn I, early 18th century, at Esfahan, Iran
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94 I Arachne ► Aramaic
Spaniard Averroes, whose interpretations of Aristotle were taken up by both Jewish and Christian thinkers. Muslims, Christians, and Jews par¬ ticipated in the Arabic tradition and separated themselves according to philosophic rather than religious doctrines. When the Arabs dominated Spain, the Arabic philosophic literature was translated into Hebrew and Latin; this contributed to the development of modern European philoso¬ phy. In Egypt around the same time, the Arabic tradition was developed by Moses Maimonides and Ibn Khaldun.
Arachne \o-'rak-ne\ In Greek mythology, the daughter of the dyer Idmon of Colophon. She was a weaver who acquired such skill that she ventured to challenge Athena to a contest. Athena wove a tapestry showing the gods in majesty, while Arachne depicted them in their amorous adventures. Enraged at the perfection of her rival’s work, Athena tore it to shreds, whereupon Arachne hanged herself. Out of pity Athena loosened the rope, which became a cobweb, and Arachne was changed into a spider.
arachnid \o-'rak-nid\ Any member of the class Arachnida, primarily carnivorous arthropods having a well-developed head, a hard external skeleton, and four pairs of walking legs. Spiders and scorpions have a seg¬ mented body, but daddy longlegs, ticks, and mites do not. Arachnids range in size from tiny mites (0.003 in. [0.08 mm] long) to the 8-in. (21-cm) black scorpion of Africa. As arachnids grow, they molt several times (see molting). Most are unable to digest food internally; instead, they inject their prey with digestive fluids and suck the liquefied remains. Arachnids are found worldwide in nearly every habitat. Most groups are free-living, but some mites and ticks are parasitic and can carry serious diseases of animals and humans. Venomous spiders and scorpions also may pose a danger to humans. However, most arachnids are harmless and prey on insect pests.
Arachosia X.ar-o-'ko-zhoV Ancient province, eastern Persian empire. The province encompassed much of what is now southern Afghanistan in the area of the city of Kandahar. It was conquered by Alexander the Great c. 330 bc.
‘Arafat \,ar-9-'fat\, Yasir orig. Muhammad ‘Abd al-Ra’uf al-Qudwah al-Husaynl (b. August 1*929—d. Nov. 11, 2004, Paris, France) Palestinian leader. The date and place of his birth are disputed. A birth certificate registered in Cairo, Egypt, gives Aug. 24, 1929, but some sources support his claim to have been born in Jerusalem on Aug. 4, 1929. He graduated from the University of Cairo as a civil engineer and served in the Egyptian army during the 1956 Suez Crisis. That year, working as an engineer in Kuwait, he cofounded the guerrilla organiza¬ tion Fatah, which became the leading military component of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), which he led from 1969. In 1974 the PLO was formally recognized by the UN, and 'Arafat became the first leader of a nongovernmental organization to address the UN. In 1988 he acknowledged Israel’s right to exist, and in 1993 he formally recognized Israel during direct talks regarding land controlled by Israel since the Six- Day War. In 1994 he shared the Nobel Prize for Peace with Israelis Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres. In 1996 he became president of the new Pales¬ tinian Authority.
Aragon Var-9-,gan\ Spanish Aragon Autonomous community (pop., 2001: 1,204,215), northeastern Spain. Roughly coextensive with the his¬ torical kingdom of Aragon, it occupies an area of 18,425 sq mi (47,720 sq km). Its capital is Zaragoza (Saragossa). Mountains, including the Pyrenees, dominate the relief north and south of the Ebro River, which bisects Aragon. Established in 1035 by Ramiro I, the historical kingdom grew as land was retaken from the Moors: Zaragoza, the capital of the Almoravid kingdom, fell to Alfonso I of Aragon in 1118, and the recon¬ quest of present-day Aragon was completed by the late 12th century. In the 13th—15th centuries it came to rule Sicily, Sardinia, Naples, and Navarra. In the 15th century Ferdinand married Isabella of Castile, uniting the kingdoms of Aragon and Castile and forming the nucleus of modern Spain. The old kingdom of Aragon survived as an administrative unit until 1833, when it was divided into provinces. Agriculture, mining, and indus¬ try, the latter concentrated at Zaragoza, are economically important.
Aragon \a-ra-'go n \, Louis orig. Louis Andrieux (b. Oct. 3, 1897, Paris, Fr.—d. Dec. 24, 1982, Paris) French poet, novelist, and essayist. He was introduced by Andre Breton into avant-garde circles, and the two cofounded the Surrealist review Litterature in 1919. From 1927 he was increasingly a political activist and spokesman for communism, which resulted in a break with the Surrealists. Among his works are the novel tetralogy Le Monde reel, 4 vol. (1933-44), describing the class struggle
of the proletariat; the huge novel Les Communistes, 6 vol. (1949-51); novels of veiled autobiography; and volumes of poems expressing patrio¬ tism and love for his wife. He was editor of the communist weekly of arts and literature, Les Lettres frangaises, 1953-72.
aragonite Vs-'rag-o-.nlA A carbonate mineral, the stable form of calcium carbonate (CaC0 3 ) at high pressures. It is somewhat harder and has a slightly higher specific gravity than calcite. Aragonite is found in recent deposits formed at low temperatures near the surface of the earth, as in caves as stalactites, with ore minerals, in serpentine and other basic (see acid and basic rocks) rocks, and in sediments. Aragonite is the mineral nor¬ mally found in pearls, and it occurs in some animal shells. It is polymor¬ phous (same chemical formula but different crystal structure) with calcite and vaterite, and, with geologic time, changes to calcite even under nor¬ mal conditions.
Araguaia \,ar-9-'gwI-9\ River River, central Brazil. Rising in the Bra¬ zilian highlands, it flows north some 1,600 mi (2,600 km) to join the Tocantins River at Sao Joao do Araguaia. In midcourse it divides into channels on either side of Bananal Island, which is about 200 mi (320 km) long and the site of the National Park of Araguaia. Though the river drains a vast area of interior Brazil, it offers poor transportation because of its many falls.