Muskogean \m3s-'ko-je-9n\ languages Family of about eight North American Indian languages spoken or formerly spoken across much of what is now the southeastern U.S. In the 16th century Koasati (Coush- atta) and Alabama were probably spoken in what is now northern Ala¬ bama, Creek (Muskogee) and Hitchiti in Alabama and Georgia, and Apalachee in the Florida Panhandle. To the west were Chickasaw in north¬ ern Mississippi and western Tennessee and Choctaw in central Missis¬ sippi. By the mid-19th century Apalachee was long extinct, and the forced removals of the 1830s (see Trail of Tears) had pushed most of the remain¬ ing Muskogean-speakers either west of the Mississippi or into Florida, where the Seminole continue to speak a dialect of Creek in central Florida and Mikasuki (Miccosukee) in the Everglades. The extant Muskogean languages continue to be spoken, at least by adults, with Choctaw (in Oklahoma and Mississippi) having the most speakers.
muskrat Either of two semiaquatic, brown rodent species (family Crice- tidae) native to marshes, shallow lakes, and streams of North America and introduced into Europe. The compact, heavy-bodied muskrat, or musquash ( Ondatra zibethica ), is about 12 in. (30 cm) long, not includ¬ ing the long, scaly, flat tail. The par¬ tially webbed hind feet have a stiff, bristly fringe. Anal sacs produce a musky secretion. The commercially valuable fur consists of long, stiff, glossy guard hairs overlying a dense, soft underfur. Muskrats live in either a burrow dug into the bank or a reed-and-rush mound built in the water. They eat sedges, reeds, roots, and an occasional aquatic animal. The round-tailed muskrat, or Florida water rat (Neofiber alleni ), is smaller.
Muslim Brotherhood Arabic Al-lkhwan al-Muslimun Religio- political organization founded in Egypt in 1928 by Hasan al-Banna (1906- 49) that promoted the Qur’an and HadIth as the proper basis for society. It quickly gained many followers throughout North Africa and the Middle East and influenced the development of Muslim groups in other regions. It became politicized after 1938, rejecting Westernization, modernization, and secularization. Suppressed in Egypt after a 1954 assassination attempt
Muskrat (Ondatra zibethica ).
JOHN H. GERARD
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Muslim calendar ► mutation I 1317
on Gamal Abdel Nasser, it operated clandestinely in the 1960s and ’70s. Beginning in the late 1980s, it experienced an upsurge; though its can¬ didates were often listed under other parties, Brotherhood candidates com¬ peted in legislative elections in Egypt and Jordan.
Muslim calendar See Muslim calendar
Muslim League orig. All India Muslim League Political group that led the movement calling for a separate Muslim country to be cre¬ ated out of the partition of British India (1947). The league was founded in 1906, and in 1913 it adopted self-government for India as its goal. For several decades it supported Hindu-Muslim unity in an independent India, but in 1940, fearing Hindu domination, the league called for a separate state for India’s Muslims. After the creation of Pakistan in 1947, the Mus¬ lim League (as the All Pakistan Muslim League) became Pakistan’s domi¬ nant political party, but it gradually declined in popularity and by the 1970s had disappeared altogether. See also Mohammed Ali Jinnah.
mussel Any of numerous bivalve species of either the marine family Mytilidae, found worldwide, or the freshwater superfamily Unionacea, called naiads, found mostly in the U.S. and Southeast Asia. Marine mussels are usually wedge-shaped or pear-shaped and 2-6 in. (5-15 cm) long. They may be smooth or ribbed and often have a hairy covering. The shells of many species are dark blue or greenish brown on the outside and pearly on the inside. Mussels attach themselves to solid objects or to one another, often forming dense clus¬ ters. Some burrow into soft mud or wood. They are eaten by birds and starfishes, and some species are raised commercially for food.
Musset XmiB-'saV (Louis-Charles-) Alfred de (b. Dec. 11, 1810, Paris, France—d. May 2, 1857, Paris) French poet and playwright. A member of a noble family, Musset came under the influence of Roman¬ ticism in adolescence and produced his first work, Stories of Spain and of Italy, in 1830. After an early play failed, he published historical trag¬ edies and comedies but refused to let them be performed. He is best remembered for his poetry, including light satirical pieces and poems of dazzling technical virtuosity, as well as passionate, eloquent lyrics such as “La Nuit d’octobre” (1837). A fitful love affair with George Sand inspired some of his finest work.
Mussolini, Benito (Amilcare Andrea) known as II Duce
\il-'du-cha\ (b. July 29, 1883, Pre- dappio, Italy—d. April 28, 1945, near Dongo) Italian dictator (1922- 43). An unruly but intelligent youth, he became an ardent socialist and served as editor of the party newspa¬ per, Avanti! (1912-14). When he reversed his opposition to World War I, he was ousted by the party. He founded the pro-war II Popolo d’Italia, served with the Italian army (1915-17), then returned to his edi¬ torship. Advocating government by dictatorship, he formed a political group in 1919 that marked the begin¬ ning of fascism. A dynamic and cap¬ tivating orator at rallies, he organized the March on Rome (1922) to prevent a socialist-led general strike. After the government fell, he was appointed prime minister, the youngest in Italian history. He obtained a law to establish the fascists as the majority party and became known as II Duce (“The Leader”). He restored order to the country and introduced social reforms and public works improvements that won widespread popular support. His dreams of empire led to the invasion of Abyssinia (later Ethiopia) in 1935. Supported in his fascist schemes by Adolf Hitler but wary of German power, Mussolini agreed to the Rome-Berlin Axis and declared war on the Allies in 1940. Italian military defeats in Greece and North Africa led to growing disillusionment with Mussolini. After the Allied invasion of Sicily (1943), the Fascist Grand Council dismissed him
from office. He was arrested and imprisoned but rescued by German com¬ mandos, then became head of the Hitler-installed puppet government at Salo in northern Italy. As German defenses in Italy collapsed in 1945, Mussolini tried to escape to Austria but was captured and executed by Italian partisans.
Mussorgsky \mu-'sorg-ske\, Modest (Petrovich) (b. March 21, 1839, Karevo, Russia—d. March 28, 1881, St. Petersburg) Russian com¬ poser. Composing without training in his teens, he met several of the composers with whom he later made up The Five, a group with the com¬ mon goal of creating a nationalist school of Russian music. He received his first composition lessons from Mily Balakirev in 1857; he soon resigned from his military regiment to devote himself to music. He held a series of government jobs, but his worsening alcoholism eventually made him unemployable. His personal decline was accompanied by maturity as a composer, and he wrote his major works, including the symphonic poem Night on Bald Mountain (1867), the great opera Boris Godunov (1868), and the famous piano cycle Pictures at an Exhibition (1874). His 65 songs describe vivid scenes of Russian life and realistically reproduce the inflec¬ tions of the spoken Russian language. After Mussorgsky’s death, his works were published in drastically edited form, purged of their distinc¬ tive starkness and unorthodox harmonies; the original versions were made available in 1928.
Mustafa Kemal See Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
Mustang See P-51
mustard family Family Brassicaceae (or Cruciferae), composed of 350 genera of mostly herbaceous plants with peppery-flavored leaves. The pun¬ gent seeds of some species lead the spice trade in volume traded. Mustard flowers take the form of a Greek cross, with four petals, usually white, yel¬ low, or lavender, and an equal number of sepals. The seeds are produced in podlike fruits. Members of the mustard family include many plants of eco¬ nomic importance that have been extensively altered and domesticated by humans. The most important genus is Brassica (see brassica); turnips, rad¬ ishes, rutabagas, and many ornamental plants are also members of the fam¬ ily. As a spice, mustard is sold in seed, powder, or paste form.