Siva See Shiva Sivaji See Shivaji
Siwa \'se-wo\ Oasis ancient Ammonium Oasis (pop., latest est.: 7,000), western Egypt. Located near the modem border with Libya, it is
6 mi (10 km) long and 4-5 mi (6-8 km) wide, with about 200 springs. Extremely fertile, it supports thousands of date palms and olive trees. It was the seat of the oracle temple of Amon; its fragmentary remains sur¬ vive, with inscriptions dating from the 4th century bc, along with many Roman remains.
Six Vses\, Les French "The Six" Group of young French composers in the 1920s. Named by the critic Henri Collet (1885-1951), the group was made up of Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, Francis Poulenc, Georges Auric (1899-1983), Louis Durey (1888-1979), and Germaine Tailleferre (1892-1983). Their music represents a strong reaction against German Romanticism, as well as against the lush style sometimes termed Impressionism, exemplified by the work of Claude Debussy. Most of Les Six were inspired by the iconoclastic music of Erik Satie, and they ben¬ efited from the promotion of Jean Cocteau. They were only active as a group for a few years.
Six-Day War or Arab-lsraeli War of T 967 War between Israel and the Arab countries of Egypt, Syria, and Jordan. Palestinian guerrilla attacks on Israel from bases in Syria led to increased hostility between the two countries. A series of miscalculations by both sides followed. Syria feared that an invasion by Israel was forthcoming and appealed to Egypt for support. Egypt answered by ordering the withdrawal of UN peace¬ keeping forces from the Sinai Peninsula and by moving troops into the area. Amid increasingly belligerent language from both sides, Egypt signed a mutual defense treaty with Jordan. Israel, surrounded and fearing an Arab attack was imminent, launched what it felt was a preemptive strike against the three Arab states on June 5, 1967. Israeli forces captured the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, West Bank of the Jordan River, Old City of Jerus¬ alem, and the Golan Heights. The status of these occupied territories sub¬ sequently became a major point of contention between the two sides.
Six Dynasties (ad 220-589) In China, the period between the end of the Han dynasty and the foundation of the Sui. The name is derived from the six successive dynasties that had their capital at Nanjing: the Wu (222-280), the Eastern Jin (317-420), the Liusong (420-479), the South¬ ern Qi (479-502), the Southern Liang (502-557), and the Southern Chen (557-589). During this period northern China was ruled by a succession of kingdoms established by Central Asian invaders. Important among these were the Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Qi, and Northern Zhou. Despite the chaos of the age, great advances were made in medicine, astronomy, botany, and chemistry. Buddhism and Daoism became great popular religions, and the translation of Buddhist texts focused Chinese attention on literature and calligraphy. Architecture and the visual arts also bloomed during the period.
Sixtus IV orig. Francesco della Rovere (b. July 21, 1414, Celia Ligure, near Savona, Republic of Genoa—d. Aug. 12, 1484, Rome) Pope (1471-84). A Franciscan from Genoa, he enriched his family and the Papal States through simony and heavy taxation. The Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges caused strain with France, and Sixtus failed in his effort to unite the Russian and Roman churches. He endorsed the Pazzi conspiracy, though not the attempt to kill Lorenzo de'Medici. He also incited Venice to attack Ferrara; then, in a turnabout, he placed Venice under interdict (1483) as a rival to the Papal States. A patron of arts and letters, he built the Sistine Chapel, which takes its name from him.
Sixtus V orig. Felice Peretti (b. Dec. 13,1520, Grottammare, Ancona, Papal States—d. Aug. 27, 1590, Rome) Pope (1585-90). A dedicated Franciscan and two-time inquisitor general of Venice, Sixtus was elected pope at a time when the Papal States were in chaos. He suppressed brig¬ andage and restored order using harsh measures that won him many enemies. He raised vast sums through loans, taxes, and the sale of offices and carried out an extensive building program in Rome. He defined the Sacred College of Cardinals (1586), limiting the number of cardinals to 70, and his reforms of the Roman Curia (1588) lasted until the Second Vatican Council. An energetic supporter of the Council of Trent, whose decisions he implemented, Sixtus is recognized as one of the founders of the Counter-Reformation. His foreign policy was aimed at combatting Protestantism; he excommunicated the Protestant Henry of Navarre (later Henry IV of France) and promised subsidies in return for a Spanish inva¬ sion of England. He supported other Catholic rulers in Europe and mod¬ erated his position toward Henry when it became apparent the future king would convert to Catholicism.
Sjaelland \'she-,lan\ English Zealand Island, Denmark. Located between the Kattegat strait and the Baltic Sea, Sjaelland is the largest (2,715
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Sjahrir ► Skelton I 1761
sq mi [7,031 sq km]) and most populous island (pop., 1990 est.: 1,972,711) of Denmark. Copenhagen is its major city. Two fjords break the irregular coastline of the island, and fine beaches line its northern shore. It has many Stone Age and Viking relics, including the Viking for¬ tress of Traslleborg (c. 1000), as well as medieval churches, castles, and manor houses. Grain and livestock farming, fishing, and tourism are major industries.
Sjahrir Vsya-.rirV, Sutan (b. March 5, 1909, Padangpandjang, Sumatra, Dutch East Indies—d. April 9, 1966, Zurich, Switz.) Indonesian nation¬ alist and prime minister. He received a Dutch education and returned to Indonesia, where he helped found a nationalist party in the 1930s. His party, which favoured adopting Western constitutional democracy, opposed that of Sukarno. He became prime minister after World War II, stripping power from then-president Sukarno, whose collaboration with the Japanese he feared would hurt the republic’s image internationally. Sjahrir negotiated an agreement with the Dutch that established Indone¬ sia’s authority in Sumatra and Java. Twice forced to resign (1946, 1947), he then formed a socialist party (1948) that failed to win popular support. Sukarno banned it in 1960, and Sjahrir was arrested and imprisoned; He was allowed to travel to Switzerland shortly before his death.
Sjostrom Vshce-strcem\, Victor or Victor Seastrom (b. Sept. 20, 1879, Silbodal, Swed.—-d. Jan. 3,
1960, Stockholm) Swedish film actor and director. Trained as a stage actor, he directed and starred in his first movie. The Gardener, in 1912.
With notable films such as Ingeborg Holm (1913), The Outlaw and His Wife (1918), and The Phantom Car¬ riage (1921), he established the artis¬ tic excellence of the Swedish silent film in the post-World War I era. In 1923 he moved to Hollywood, where he directed movies such as The Scar¬ let Letter (1926) and The Wind (1928). He returned to Sweden in 1930 and acted in numerous films, notably Ingmar Bergman’s Wild Strawberries (1957). Sjostrom’s films are lyrically beautiful expressions of humanity’s relationship to nature and to society.
skaldic \'skol-dik\ poetry Oral court poetry originating in Norway but developed chiefly by Icelandic poets (skalds) from the 9th to the 13th century. Skaldic poetry was contemporary with Eddie poetry (see Edda) but differed from it in metre, diction, and style. Eddie poetry is anony¬ mous, simple, and terse, often taking the form of an objective dramatic dialogue. Skalds were identified by name. Their poems were descriptive, occasional, and subjective, their metres strictly syllabic instead of free and variable, and their language ornamented with similes and metaphors. For¬ mal subjects were the mythical stories engraved on shields, praise of kings, epitaphs, and genealogies.
Skanderbeg Vskan-dor-.begV orig. George Kastrioti (b. 1405, northern Albania—d. Jan. 17, 1468, Lezhe) Albanian leader. Son of the prince of Emathia, he was given early as a hostage to the Turkish sultan. He converted to Islam, served in the Turkish army, and was given the name Iskander and the rank of bey. In 1443 he abandoned the Turkish service, joining his Albanian countrymen in opposition to the Turks and returning to the Christian faith. He then organized a league of Albanian princes and was elected commander in chief. In 1444-66 he repulsed 13 Turkish invasions; his defeat of Murad II’s armies in 1450 made him a hero in the Western world. After his death, however, Albania soon became part of the Ottoman Empire. Skanderbeg is regarded as the national hero of Albania.