Naivasha \m-'va-sha. Lake Lake, southwest-central Kenya. It is located in the Great Rift Valley, at 6,180 ft (1,884 m) above sea level. The lake’s area fluctuates, ranging between about 44 and 383 sq mi (114 and 991 sq km). It has no known outlet. It serves as a weekend resort for resi¬ dents of Nairobi, to the southeast.
naive art also called outsider art Work of artists in sophisticated societies who lack or reject formal training. Naive artists, not to be con¬ fused with hobbyists, create with the same passion as trained artists but without formal knowledge of methods. Naive works are often extremely detailed, with a tendency toward the use of brilliant, saturated colours and a characteristic absence of perspective, which creates the illusion of fig¬ ures floating in space. Well-known naive artists include Henri Rousseau and Grandma Moses.
Najd See Nejd
Nakae Toju Vna-ka-.e-'to-jiA orig. Gen or Mokken (b. April 21, 1608, Omi province, Japan—d. Oct. 11, 1648, Omi province) Japanese Neo-Confucian scholar. A feudal retainer, he left his post in 1634 and returned to his native village to carry out his obligations to his widowed mother. There he taught and studied the works of Zhu Xi, but eventually he abandoned Zhu’s philosophy for the idealist thought of Wang Yang- ming. Like Wang, he believed truth was to be discovered through intu¬ ition and reflection rather than empirical investigation and that the universe’s unifying principle exists in the human mind, not in the exter¬ nal world. He believed that a concept could be fully understood only when acted upon; this emphasis on action made him popular with 19th- and 20th-century Japanese nationalists.
Nakhon Ratchasima \ l na- l kon- l ra-ch3- , se-ma\ City (pop., 1999 est.: 181,400), northeastern Thailand. It is the area’s transportation, commer¬ cial, financial, and governmental centre. It grew rapidly during the 1960s and ’70s with the buildup of its Royal Thai Air Force Base, from which U.S. warplanes operated during the Vietnam War. Nearby are restored 11th-century Khmer temples, a major tourist attraction.
Nakhon Si Thammarat \ l na- 1 kon- l se- l ta-m9- , rat\ Town (pop., 1999 est.: 105,176), southern Thailand, on the eastern coast of the Malay Pen¬ insula. The walled town, one of Thailand’s oldest, was founded more than 1,000 years ago. It was the capital of a powerful state that controlled the midsection of the peninsula and was often called Ligor until the early 20th
Nairobi National Park National park, Kenya. Located about 5 mi (8 km) south of Nairobi, it was established in 1946. It has an area of 45 sq mi (117 sq km). It is noted for wildlife, including lions, gazelles, black rhinoceroses, giraffes, antelopes, zebras, numerous reptiles, and hundreds of bird species.
Naismith Vna-.smith, 'naz-msthV James A. (b. Nov. 6, 1861, Almonte, Ont., Can.—d. Nov. 28,
1939, Lawrence, Kan., U.S.)
Canadian-born U.S. physical educa¬ tion instructor, inventor of basketball.
He studied theology but excelled in sports. At the YMCA Training School in Springfield, Mass. (1890- 95), he was asked to devise a new indoor winter sport. His version of basketball called for nine players (later reduced to five) per team and the use of peach baskets (later netted hoops) as goals. He was coach of the basketball team at the University of
Kansas (1898-1937). He is also —-
credited with inventing the protec¬ tive helmet for gridiron football players. The Naismith Memorial Bas¬ ketball Hall of Fame was incorporated in Springfield in 1959.
James A. Naismith holding a ball and a peach basket, the first basketball equipment.
L_
M
N
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
1324 I Nalanda ► Nanchang
L_
N
century. It is the area’s commercial centre and site of the Wat Mahathudu temple complex. The town is noted for its niello work in silver.
Nalanda \na-'l3n-d9\ Buddhist monastic centre, often spoken of as a university, in northern Bihar state, India. Though it is traditionally dated to the time of the Buddha (6th-5th centuries bc), archaeological excava¬ tions date its foundations to the 5th century ad. It housed a population of several thousand teachers and students. Topics studied included logic, grammar, astronomy, and medicine. The Chinese pilgrims Xuanzang and Yijing provided vivid accounts of Nalanda in the late 7th century. Nalanda continued to flourish through the 12th century and became a centre of religious sculpture. It was probably sacked during Muslim raids c. 1200 and never recovered.
Nalchik \'nal y -chik\ City (pop., 1999 est.: 234,700), southwestern Rus¬ sia. It lies along the Nalchik River where the river leaves the Caucasian foothills. Founded as a Russian fortress in 1818, it gained importance after the Russian Revolution of 1917. It is a popular holiday, climbing, and health resort, and it has a university and research institute. It contains considerable industry, including engineering and hydrometallurgy.
Namath Vna-mothX, Joe in full Joseph William Namath (b. May
31, 1943, Beaver Falls, Pa., U.S.) U.S. football quarterback. He devel¬ oped his quarterback skills at the University of Alabama. An exceptional passer, in his third season with the New York Jets (1965-77) he threw for a record 4,007 yards. Though long hampered by knee injuries, by the time of his retirement he had set seasonal and career records for most games with 300 yards or more gained in passing. The nickname “Broadway Joe” reflected his fondness for New York nightlife.
Namatjira, Albert (b. July 28, 1902, Hermannsburg, near Alice Springs, N.Terr., Austl.—d. Aug. 8, 1959, Alice Springs) Australian Aboriginal painter. A member of the Aranda tribe, Namatjira learned European watercolour painting techniques at a Lutheran mission school. In 1936 he sold his first painting, and, in 1938, he sold all 41 waterco¬ lours on display in his first major solo exhibition in Melbourne. He exhib¬ ited his work—generally depictions of the desertlike landscape of central Australia—frequently in the next two decades and became well known in Australia and overseas. One of his paintings was presented to Queen Elizabeth II in 1954.
Nambudiri \n3m-'bu-dre\ Dominant caste of the Indian state of Ker¬ ala. Rigidly orthodox, its members regard themselves as the representa¬ tives of the ancient Vedic religion and of the traditional Hindu code. They place great emphasis on their priestly status and do not normally engage in business. The chief landowners of Kerala, they derive their wealth from their landholdings.
name One or more words designating an individual entity. The names of certain specific people, places, and things, called proper nouns, are capitalized. Types of names include personal names (Sheila, Raul), place- names (London, Nairobi), titles of works of art (Mona Lisa , Paradise Lost), brand names (Sanka, Vaseline), names of historical events or eras (War of the Roses, Renaissance), and political, artistic, or philosophical movements (Progressivism, Cubism). Personal names may pass from one culture to another, often changing form—Jochanan (Hebrew), Johann (German), John (English), Ian (Scottish), etc. Family names (surnames) are of more recent origin; the conventions that govern them have existed only since the 11th century. Many hereditary family names came from given names—for example, Alfred, the son of John, might be called Alfred Johnson. Others came from place-names or occupations—Henri from the town of Avignon might become Henri d’Avignon, and Robert, a black¬ smith, might become Robert Smith.