navaratra In Hinduism, a 9-day festival followed on the 10th day by the dasehra celebration. The festival includes feasting, visiting, public con¬ certs, plays, and fairs. Among the goddess Durga’s followers, who are especially numerous in Bengal and Assam, the Durga-puja is celebrated during this period; in other parts of India, dasehra is associated with the victory of Rama over Ravana, acted out in a pageant climaxed by the burning of effigies of demons.
Navarino X.na-va-'re-noV, Battle of (Oct. 20, 1827) Naval engage¬ ment in the War of Greek Independence against Turkey. A fleet of British, French, and Russian ships was sent to aid Greece by intercepting supplies for the Egyptian-Turkish fleet anchored in the Navarino Bay in the Peloponnese. Shortly after it entered the harbour, the superior guns of the European fleet sent three-fourths of the larger Egyptian-Turkish fleet to
Chambered nautilus (Nautilus)
DOUGLAS FAULKNER
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Navarra ► Nayarit I 1337
the bottom and forced others aground. The defeat marked the last sig¬ nificant battle between wooden sailing ships and led to Turkey’s evacu¬ ation from Greece.
Navarra English Navarre Autonomous community (pop., 2001: 555,829) and province, northern Spain. Established in 1982, it has an area of 4,012 sq mi (10,391 sq km) and is bordered by France. It is approxi¬ mately coextensive with the Spanish part of the historical kingdom of Navarra. The Pyrenees dominate the northern half of the province, and a Mediterranean climate prevails in the south. Manufacturing industries are clustered around the commercial centre and capital, Pamplona.
Navarra English Navarre \no-'var\ Ancient kingdom, northern Spain, bordered by France, Aragon, Castile, and the Basque Country. It encompassed the modern autonomous community of Navarra and part of the modern French department of Pyrenees-Atlantiques. It was conquered by the Romans, then the Visigoths, and Charlemagne. It became an inde¬ pendent kingdom in the 10th century. A succession of French dynasties ruled Navarra after 1234. Incorporated into Castile in 1515, it was united to the French crown when Henry of Navarre became King Henry IV of France in 1589.
Navarro \na-'va-ro. Fats orig. Theodore Navarro (b. Sept. 24, 1923, Key West, Fla., U.S.—d. July 7, 1950, New York, N.Y.) U.S. jazz trumpeter. Navarro replaced Dizzy Gillespie in the big band of Billy Eckstine in 1946, acquiring a reputation as a virtuoso player capable of executing complex phrases with rare grace. He participated in the burgeoning jazz milieu based around 52nd St. in New York City in the late 1940s, work¬ ing with bebop innovators such as Bud Powell, Charlie Parker, and Tadd Dameron (1917-65). Addiction to heroin curtailed his activity, and he died of tuberculosis.
Navas de Tolosa, Battle of Las See Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa
nave Main part of a Christian church, extending from the entrance (the narthex) to the transept or chancel (area around the altar). In a basilican church (see basilica), which has side aisles, nave refers only to the central section. Medieval naves were gener¬ ally divided into many bays, produc¬ ing the effect of great length. During the Renaissance, the nave format became more flexible, and the nave was divided into fewer compart¬ ments, giving a feeling of spacious¬ ness and balanced proportion among the height, length, and width, as in St. Paul's Cathedral.
navigation Science of directing a craft by determining its position, course, and distance traveled. Early mariners followed landmarks visible on shore and studied prevailing winds for clues to direction. The Phoenicians and Polynesians sailed out of sight of land and used the stars to set their course. The compass (first used by the Chinese c. 1100) was the first navigational aid that gave a constant reference point, though its accuracy was limited, especially in heavy seas. Modem compasses are stabilized by gyroscopes and housed in binnacles that compensate for the craft’s motion. Ship speed was first calculated by dropping overboard a log attached to a reel of line knotted at regular intervals; the number of knots exposed while the log drifted and a sandglass emptied gave the ves¬ sel’s speed in knots (nautical mph). Charts are another essential naviga¬ tional tool. Fixing a position requires charts detailing known locations, together with instruments that calculate a vessel’s bearing relative to them. The earliest instrument for determining latitude was the quadrant, which measured the altitude of the polestar or the noonday sun. Other early instruments included the sextant and the astrolabe. Longitude (used for navigation with increasing success in the 17th-18th century) was fixed using chronometers and tables showing positions of celestial bodies throughout the year. In the 20th century, radio beacons and satellite net¬ works allowed aircraft and ships to determine their position. Dead reck¬ oning uses an accurate history of a vessel’s headings and speeds drawn from gyroscopes and from computerized measurements of the craft’s acceleration. See also Global Positioning System.
Navigation Acts English laws in the 17th—18th centuries that required the use of English or colonial ships to carry English trade. The laws were designed to encourage English shipbuilding and restrict trade competition from England’s commercial rivals, especially the Dutch. The acts of the 18th century gradually restricted trade by the American colonies and con¬ tributed to growing colonial resentment with the imposition of additional duties on sugar, tobacco, and molasses.
Navistar International Corp. Leading U.S. truck manufacturer. It originated as International Harvester Co., which was incorporated in 1902, merging McCormick Harvesting Machine Co. (founded by Cyrus H. McCormick to market his mechanical reaper) with four smaller machin¬ ery makers. It became a pioneer in motorized trucks when it introduced its high-wheeled “auto wagons” for farmers. It began producing tractors in the 1930s and soon became a major manufacturer of earth-moving equipment. Facing economic difficulties in the early 1980s, it sold most of its U.S. construction-equipment business and disposed of its farm- equipment line to concentrate almost entirely on trucks, and in 1986 the company changed its name to Navistar International.
Navratilova \,nav-r3-ti- , lo-v3\ A Martina (b. Oct. 18, 1956, Prague, Czech.) Czech-born U.S. tennis player. She became the undisputed top- seeded player in the world in 1979 after winning the Wimbledon wom¬ en’s singles and doubles. In 1982 she won 90 of 93 matches, and in 1983 she won 86 of 87 matches. In 1984 she was honoured for winning the grand slam but later was denied the title on a technicality. By 1987 she had won 37 individual grand-slam championships, and by 1994 she had won 56, ranking second only to Margaret Smith Court. By 1992 she had accumulated more championships (158) than any other player, male or female, in tennis history, and she retired in 1994 with 167 titles. In 2000 she returned to professional play, competing in several doubles events. In 2003 she won the mixed doubles at Wimbledon, tying Billie Jean King for most Wimbledon titles (20). With the victory, Navratilova, who was 46, became the oldest player to win at Wimbledon.