Tanimbar Islands Uo-'nim-.bar, 'ta-nom-.barN Group of about 30 islands, southeastern Moluccas, Indonesia. It includes the large island of Jamdena, 70 mi (113 km) long by 28 mi (45 km) wide, and the nearby islands of Larat and Selaru. Though there is a lack of fresh water, the soil supports com, rice, coconut palms, and fruits. The Dutch claimed the group in 1639 but did not establish rule until 1900. After World War II, the islands became part of Indonesia.
Tanis Vta-n9s\ biblical Zoan Ancient city, Egypt. Its remains are located in the Nile River delta. Capital of a province of Lower Egypt and, under the 21st and 22nd dynasties (c. 1075-c. 700 bc), of the whole country, it was important as one of the ports nearest to the Asian seaboard. In 1939 several intact royal tombs containing silver coffins, gold masks, and gold and silver jewelry were excavated within the ancient main temple enclosure.
Tan it \'ta-nit\ Chief goddess of Carthage, the equivalent of Astarte. She first appeared around the 5th century bc. Though she seems to have had some connection with the heavens, she was also a mother goddess and symbol of fertility. She was the consort of Baal Hammon, chief god of Carthage, whose cult she eventually eclipsed. Archaeological evidence suggests that children, probably firstborn, were sacrificed both to her and to Baal Hammon. Outside Carthage, Tanit also enjoyed a following on Malta, on Sardinia, and in Spain.
Tanizaki Jun'ichiro X.ta-ne-'za-ke-'jim-e-.che-roV (b. July 24, 1886, Tokyo, Japan—d. July 30, 1965, Yugawara) Japanese novelist. Though his earliest short stories have affinities with those of Edgar Allan Poe and the French Decadents, Tanizaki later turned to exploring more traditional Japanese ideals of beauty. His novels include Some Prefer Nettles (1928— 29), which tells of marital unhappiness that is in fact a conflict between the new and the old, with the implication that the old will win; and his masterpiece, The Makioka Sisters (1943-48; film, 1983), which describes, in the leisurely style of classical Japanese literature, the inroads of the harsh modern world on traditional society. His writings are characterized by eroticism and ironic wit.
Tangerine (Citrus reticulata deliciosa)
GRANT HEILMAN—EB INC.
Tango danced by Rudolph Valentino and partner from the motion picture Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse,
1921
COURTESY OF METRO-GOLDWYN-MAYER INC., © 1921 ; PHOTOGRAPH, FROM THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART FILM STILLS ARCHIVE
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
tank ► Tanzania I 1871
tank Heavily armed and armoured combat vehicle that moves on two continuous metal chains called tracks. It is usually equipped with a can¬ non mounted in a revolving turret as well as lighter automatic weapons. The British developed tanks during World War I to fill the need for an armoured assault vehicle that could cross the muddy, uneven terrain of the trench battle zone. They first saw combat at the Battle of the Somme (1916). In World War II, Germany’s tank force was initially the most effective in Europe because it was organized into fast-moving massed formations with great striking power. After World War II, tanks became larger and more heavily armed. Most modern main battle tanks weigh more than 50 tons yet are capable of road speeds of 30-40 mph (50-70 kph). The standard main armament is a 120-mm gun, which fires armour- piercing projectiles; laser range-finders and infrared imaging devices aid in sighting.
Tannenberg Vta-non-.berkN, Battle of (July 15, 1410) Major Polish- Lithuanian victory over the Knights of the Teutonic Order. Fought near the villages of Griinfelde and Tannenberg in northeastern Poland (for¬ merly East Prussia), the battle marked the end of the order’s expansion along the southeastern coast of the Baltic Sea and the beginning of the decline of its power.
Tannenberg Vta-non-.berkV, Battle of (August 26-30, 1914) Battle in World War I between Germany and Russia in modem northeastern Poland. Two Russian armies invaded German East Prussia but became separated. German forces under Paul von Hindenburg attacked one of the isolated armies and forced its retreat, inflicting Russian casualties of over 30,000 and capturing over 90,000 men. German casualties were about 13,000. The battle was disastrous for Russia, but it forced Germany to divert troops from the attack on France.
Tanner, Henry Ossawa (b. June 21, 1859, Pittsburgh, Pa., U.S.—d. May 25, 1937, Paris, France) U.S. painter. He studied under Thomas Eakins at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, where he was the only black student. He moved to Paris in 1891, and by 1894 his work was being exhib¬ ited at the annual Salons, where he was awarded honourable mention in 1896 for Daniel in the Lions’ Den and won a medal in 1897 for his Raising of Lazarus. He gained international acclaim and many awards for his land¬ scapes and his treatments of biblical themes. He was made a chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 1923, and in 1927 he became the first African American granted full membership in the National Academy of Design.
Tannhauser Vtan-.hoi-zorX (b. c. 1200—d. c. 1270) German lyric poet and legendary hero. A professional minnesinger, Tannhauser served sev¬ eral noble patrons; a few of his works are extant. In the legend preserved in a popular ballad, “Danhauser,” he lives a life of pleasure but, torn by remorse, goes to Rome to seek remission of his sins. The pope tells him that, as his pilgrim’s staff would never put on leaf again, so his sins can never be forgiven. Shortly afterward his discarded staff puts forth green leaves. The pope sends messengers to search for him, but he is never seen again. The legend, popular among 19th-century Romantic writers, was retold in Richard Wagner’s opera Tannhauser (produced 1845).
tannin or tannic acid Any of a group of pale yellow to light brown amorphous substances widely distributed in plants and used chiefly in tanning leather, dyeing fabric, and making ink. Their solutions are acid and have an astringent taste. They are isolated from oak bark, sumac, myrobalan (an Asian tree), and galls. Tannins give tea astringency, colour, and some flavour. Tannins are used industrially to clarify wine and beer, reduce viscosity of oil-well drilling mud, and prevent scale in boiler water; they have also had medical uses.
tanning Chemical treatment of raw animal hides or skins to convert them into leather. Vegetable tanning (using bark, wood, roots, or berries) has been practiced since prehistoric times. After removal of hair, flesh, or fat, a tanning agent displaces water from the interstices between the pro¬ tein (mostly collagen) fibres in the skin and cements the fibres together. The agents most widely used are vegetable tannin, salts such as chromium sulfate, and fish or animal oil. The tanning of fair skin in humans by sun¬ light is completely different: ultraviolet light causes production and redis¬ tribution of the pigment melanin in epidermal cells.
tansy Vtan-ze\ Any of about 50 species of strong-smelling, poisonous herbs, especially common tansy ( Tanacetum vulgare, or Chrysanthemum vulgare), of the composite family, native to the northern temperate zone. T. vulgare has button-shaped yellow flower heads of disk flowers (no ray flowers) that are arranged in a flat-topped cluster, deeply cut leaves, and
many stems. It is sometimes cultivated in herb gardens and was formerly used in medicines and insecticides. See also chrysanthemum.
tantalum Vtan-t3-bm\ Metallic chemical element, one of the transition elements, chemical symbol Ta, atomic number 73. It is a dense, hard, unre¬ active, silvery gray metal with an extremely high melting point (5,425 °F [2,996 °C]). Relatively rare, it occurs native in a few places. It is difficult to separate from niobium, the element above it in the periodic table, with which it shares many properties. The most important uses are in electro¬ lytic capacitors, corrosion-resistant chemical equipment, dental and sur¬ gical instruments, tools, catalysts, components of electron tubes, rectifiers, and prostheses. Its compounds are relatively unimportant commercially; tantalum carbide is used in machine tools and dies.