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1549

1549

Events

- July - Kett's Rebellion
- Francis Xavier arrives in Japan.
- Salvador established, first capital of Brazil
- Petrus Canisius starts the Counter-Reformation in Bavaria

Births

- July 30 - Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (died 1609)
- November 5 - Philippe de Mornay, French writer (died 1623)
- Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas, Spanish historian (died 1625)
- Kutsuki Mototsuna, Japanese military commander (died 1632)
- Mikolaj Krzysztof Sierotka Radziwill, Polish nobleman (died 1616)
- John Rainolds, English scholar and Bible translator (died 1607)
- Juan de Salcedo, Spanish conquistador (died 1576)
- Henry Savile, English educator (died 1622)
- Marek Sobieski, Polish noble (died 1605)
- Ogawa Suketada, Japanese warlord (died 1601) See also :Category: 1549 births.

Deaths

- February 14 - Il Sodoma, Italian painter (born 1477)
- March 10 - Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley, English politician and diplomat (born 1508)
- April 15 - Henry Somerset, 2nd Earl of Worcester (born 1496)
- November 10 - Pope Paul III (born 1468)
- December 21 - Marguerite of Navarre, queen of Henry II of Navarre (born 1492)
- Daniel Bomberg, printer
- Andrew Boorde, English traveller
- Robert Ket, English rebel
- Elia Levita, Yiddish writer (born 1469) See also :Category: 1549 deaths. Category:1549 ko:1549년

July

July is the seventh month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. July begins (astrologically) with the sun in the sign of Cancer and ends in the sign of Leo. Astronomically speaking, the sun begins in the constellation of Gemini and ends in the constellation of Cancer. July was renamed for Julius Caesar; previously, it was called Quintilis in Latin, since it was the fifth month in the Roman calendar which started in March. It also was named because it was the month that Caesar was born. Because of its origin, until the 18th century this month's name was pronounced the same way as the name "Julie". In old Japanese calendar, the month is called fumi zuki (文月). In the pagan wheel of the year July ends at or near to Lughnasadh in the northern hemisphere and Imbolc in the southern hemisphere. Imbolc

Other names

- In the Irish Calendar the month is called Iúil and is the third and last month of the Summer season.
- In Finnish, the month is called heinäkuu, meaning "month of hay".

Trivia

- July begins on the same day of the week as April every year and also January in leap years.
- July's flower is the water lily.
- July's birthstone is the ruby.

Francis Xavier

:Not to be confused with St. Francis Borgia, another Spanish nobleman turned Jesuit. Francis Borgia, Nagasaki, Japan.]] Saint Francis Xavier (Chinese: 沙勿略) (April 7, 1506 - December 2, 1552) was a pioneering Christian missionary and co-founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesuit Order). The Xaverian Brothers are named after him. The Roman Catholic Church considers him to have converted more people to Christianity than anyone else since St. Paul.

Early life

Xavier was born Francisco de Jaso y Azpilcueta in the Castle of Xavier (modern Spanish Javier, Basque Xabier, Catalan Xavier) near Sangüesa and Pamplona, in Navarre, Spain. He sprang from an aristocratic Basque family of Navarre. In 1512, Castile invaded Navarre. Many fortresses were devastated, including the family castle, and land was confiscated. Francis' father died in 1515. At the age of 19, Francis Xavier went to study at the University of Paris, where he received a licence ès arts in 1530. He furthered his studies there in theology, and became acquainted with Ignatius Loyola. Along with Ignatius, Pierre Favre and four others, Xavier was one of those who on August 15, 1534 bound themselves by a vow at Montmartre and formed the Society of Jesus.

Missionary work

Society of Jesus Francis Xavier devoted much of his life to missions to remote countries. As King John III of Portugal desired Jesuit missionaries for the Portuguese East Indies, he was ordered there in 1540. He left Lisbon on April 7, 1541, together with two other Jesuits and the new viceroy Martin de Sousa, on board the Santiago. From August of that year until March 1542, he remained in Mozambique, and reached Goa, India, the capital of the then Portuguese colonies, on May 6. His official role in Goa was Apostolic Nuncio. He spent the following three years operating out of Goa. On September 20, 1542, he left for his first missionary activity among the Paravas, pearl-fishers along the east coast of southern India, north of Cape Comorin. He then exerted himself to convert the king of Travancore to Christianity, on the west coast, and also visited Ceylon. Dissatisfied with the results of his activity, he turned eastward in 1545, and planned a missionary journey to Macassar, on the island of Celebes, in today's Indonesia. After arriving in Malacca in October of that year and waiting there three months in vain for a ship to Macassar, he gave up the goal of his voyage. He left Malacca on January 1, 1546 and landed on Amboyna, where he stayed until mid-June. He then visited other Molucca Islands, including Ternate and More. Shortly after Easter 1546, he returned to Ambon Island, and then Malacca. During this time period, frustrated by the elites in Goa, St. Francis wrote to King D. João III for an Inquisition to be installed in Goa. However this Inquisition did not begin till eight years after his death. In December 1547, in Malacca, Francis Xavier met a Japanese nobleman from Kagoshima called Anjiro. Anjiro had heard from Francis in 1545 and had travelled from Kagoshima to Malacca with the purpose of meeting him. Having been charged with murder, Anjiro had fled Japan. He poured his heart out to Francis Xavier, telling him about his former life and the customs and culture of his beloved homeland. Anjiro was a samurai and as such provided Xavier with a skilled mediator and translator for the mission to Japan that was his inevitable future. “I asked [Anjiro] whether the Japanese would become Christians if I went with him to this country, and he replied that they would not do so immediately, but would first ask me many questions and see what I knew. Above all, they would want to see whether my life corresponded with my teaching…All the Portuguese merchants who have come from Japan assure me that by going there I could render God our Lord much service, and more than among the peoples of India, because the Japanese are a race greatly given to the exercise of reason.” Thus intrigued, Xavier baptized Anjiro—who was now called Paulo de Santa Fe—and began to plan for a mission to this recently discovered land. Anjiro helped Francis Xavier to translate a few paragraphs of Christian doctrine into phonetic Japanese which Xavier learned by heart. He returned to India in January 1548. The next 15 months were occupied with various journeys and administrative measures in India. Then due to displeasure at the unchristian life and manners of the Portuguese, which impeded proselyting work, he went forth once again into the unknown Far East. He left Goa on April 15, 1549, stopped at Malacca, and visited Canton. He was accompanied by Anjiro, two other Japanese men, the father Cosme de Torrès and Brother Juan Fernandez. He had taken with him presents for the "King of Japan", since he was intending to introduce himself as the Apostolic Nuncio. Xavier reached Japan on July 27, 1549, but it was not until August 15 that he went ashore at Kagoshima, the principal port of the province of Satsuma, on the island of Kyushu. He was received in a friendly manner and was hosted by Anjiro's family until October 1550. From October to December 1550, he resided in Yamaguchi. Shortly before Christmas, he left for Kyoto, but failed to meet with the Emperor. He returned to Yamaguchi in March 1551. There he was permitted to preach by the daimyo, but not knowing the Japanese language he had to limit himself to reading aloud the translation of a catechism. Ultimately his sojourn was fruitful, as attested by congregations established in Hirado, Yamaguchi, and Bungo. Xavier worked for more than two years in Japan and saw his successor-Jesuits established. He then decided to return to India. During his trip, a tempest forced him to stop on an island near Guangzhou, China. There he saw the rich merchant Diégo Pereira, an old friend from Cochin, who showed him a letter of Portuguese being held prisoners in Guangzhou asking for a Portuguese ambassador to talk to the Chinese Emperor in their favor. Later, he stopped at Malacca on December 27, 1551 and was back in Goa by January, 1552. On April 17 he set sail, with Diégo Pereira, leaving Goa on board the Santa Cruz for China. He introduced himself as Apostolic Nuncio, and Pereira as ambassador of the King of Portugal. Shortly thereafter, he realized that he had forgotten his testimonial letters as an Apostolic Nuncio. Back in Malacca, he was confronted by the capitan Alvaro de Ataide de Gama, who now had total control over the harbor. The capitan refused to recognize his title of Nuncio, asked Pereira to resign from his title of ambassador, named a new crew for the ship, and demanded that the gifts for the Emperor be left in Malacca. In early September 1552, the Santa Cruz reached the Chinese island of Shangchuan, 14 km away from the southern coast of mainland China, near Taishan, Guangdong, 200 km south-west of what later became Hong Kong. At this time, he was only accompanied by a Jesuit student, Alvaro Ferreira, a Chinese man called Antonio, and a Malabar servant called Christopher. Around mid-November he sent a letter saying that a man had agreed to take him to the mainland in exchange for a large sum of money. Having sent back Alvaro Ferreira, he remained alone with Antonio.

Death

Malabar On November 21, he fainted after celebrating Mass. He died on the island on December 2, 1552, at age 46, without having reached mainland China. He was first buried on a beach of Shangchuan island. His intact body was taken from the island in February 1553. It was temporarily buried in St. Paul's church in Malacca on March 22, 1553. An open grave in the church now marks the place of Xavier's burial. Pereira came back from Goa, removed the corpse shortly after April 15, 1553, and moved it to his house. On December 11, 1553, Xavier's body was shipped to Goa. The body, having resisted extensive decay, is now in the [http://www.dommartin.cc/Basilica%20ptgs/Basilica%20ptgs%20index.htm Basilica of Bom Jésus] in Goa, where it was placed into a silver casket on December 2, 1637. The silver casket is lowered for public viewing only during the [http://www.dommartin.cc/Exposition/Exposition.html public exposition] which occurs for a duration of 6 weeks every 10 years, the most recent of which took place in 2004. There is a debate as to how the body could have remained incorrupt for so long. Some say that Francis Xavier was mummified, while others argue that the incorruptible body is evidence of a miracle.

Legacy

Francis Xavier accomplished a great deal of missionary work, both as organizer and as pioneer. By his compromises in India with the Christians of St. Thomas he developed the Jesuit missionary methods along lines that subsequently became fateful for his order. The instruction he dispensed in connection with baptism was superficial. He combined missions with politics, and approved of the extension of Christianity force (cf. his letter to King John III. of Portugal, Cochin, Jan. 20, 1548). He had high qualifications as missionary: he was animated with glowing zeal; he was endowed with great linguistic gifts, and his activity was marked by restless pushing forward. His efforts left a significant impression upon the missionary history of India, and by pointing out the way to East India to the Jesuits, his work is of fundamental significance with regard to the history of the propagation of Christianity in China and Japan. He himself witnessed many of the results of his labor, but still greater were the tasks he proposed. Since the Roman Catholic Church responded to his call, the effects of his efforts reach far beyond the Jesuit order; the entire systematic and aggressive incorporation of great masses of people on broad lines of policy by the Roman Catholic Church in modern times dates back to Xavier.

Recognition

Francis Xavier is a Catholic saint. He was beatified by Paul V on October 25, 1619, and was canonized by Gregory XV on March 12, 1622, at the same time as Ignatius Loyola. The Japanese university Sophia University was initiated in his honour in Tokyo 1913. In the Philippines, there is a Xavier School, an elite private institution offering primary and secondary educational services. In 1839, Theodore James Ryken founded the Xaverian Brothers, or Congregation of St. Francis Xavier (CFX). Currently, over 20 colleges or high schools in the United States are Xaverian Brothers Sponsored Schools (XBSS). He is the patron saint of Navarre, Australia, Borneo, China, East Indies, Goa, Japan, New Zealand and of missionaries. Many churches all over the world have been named in honor of Xavier. One notable church is the Basilica of St. Francis Xavier in Dyersville, Iowa. It is one of only 52 minor basilicas in the United States, and the only one outside a metropolitan area. St. Xavier's College, Bombay, one of the best colleges in India, was named after St. Francis Xavier. St. Xavier's College, Palayamkottai, in the Tirunelveli city of South India, was named after St. Francis Xavier. St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia is named in his honour, it is traditionally one of the highest rated primarily undergraduate universities in Canada, as defined by MacLean's Magazine in their annual ranking of Canadian universities. Three American universities are named in his honor: Xavier University in Cincinnati, Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans, and Saint Xavier University in Chicago. Xavier College in Melbourne, Australia, was named after St. Francis Xavier. His feast day is December 3. The Javierada is an annual peregrination from Pamplona to Xavier instituted in the 1940s. Xavier is one of the few English names starting with X. The X-Men comic book character, Charles Francis Xavier is possibly named after him. The station Saint François Xavier, on Line 13 of the Paris Métro is named after St. Francis Xavier.

External links and references

- This article incorporates material from the Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religion
- [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06233b.htm Catholic Encyclopedia, 1909 on St. Francis Xavier]
- http://www.jesuites.com/xavier/index.html (in French)
- [http://www.goacom.com/culture/religion/sfx/francis.html The feast of St Francis Xavier in Goa]
- [http://www.geocities.com/francischinchoy/sfx/sfxarticle01.html St Francis Xavier and Malacca]
- [http://www.jesuites.com/xavier/images/sancian_maxi.jpg Picture of Shangchuan island. The chapel marks the location of his death]
- [http://www.tsinfo.com.cn/UploadFiles/2005/02/22/022211304125023.jpg Another picture of the church on Shangchuan island]
- Old map of Shangchuan island: [http://www.portsmouthbookshop.com/MapPage/MapPages542xx/54282maca.htm]
- [http://www.apol.net/dightonrock/inquisition_goa.htm Inquisition Goa]
- [http://members.tripod.com/~jcolaco/sfx.html St. Francisco Xavier]
- [http://www.navarra.es/home_es/Redireccion/La+Huella+Universal+de+Francisco+de+Javier.htm La huella universal de Francisco de Javier (Spanish)] Francis Xavier Francis Xavier Xavier, Francis Category:Saints Category:Christianity in Japan Category:Foreigners in Japan Category:History of Catholicism in Asia Xavier, Francis Xavier, Francis Category:Kanyakumari ja:フランシスコ・ザビエル

Salvador, Brazil

Salvador (in full, São Salvador da Baía de Todos os Santos, meaning "Holy Savior of the Bay of All Saints") is a city on the northeast coast of Brazil and the capital of the northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. The city was for a long time also known as Bahia, and appears under that name (or as Salvador da Bahia, "Salvador of Bahia", so as to differentiate it from other Brazilian cities of the same name) on many maps and books from before the mid 20th century, including in Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe (1719). Salvador is located on a peninsula on the Atlantic Ocean coast, next to the Baía de Todos os Santos. It is a major export port and the heart of the Recôncavo Baiano metropolitan region, the region surrounding Todos os Santos bay (which gets its name from the day it was discovered, All Saints day). Its population was 2.54 million people in 2002, making it today the third largest city in Brazil, a position long held by Belo Horizonte (now demoted to fourth largest).

History

Although the Bay of Todos os Santos was first encountered by Europeans and christened in 1502, the city of Salvador wasn't founded until 1549 by a fleet of Portuguese settlers headed by Thomé de Souza, the first governador-geral (governor general) of the entire colony of Brazil. It quickly became Brazil's main sea port and the first colonial capital of Portuguese Brazil, a center of the sugar industry and the slave trade. The city became the seat of the first Catholic bishop of Brazil in 1552, and is still an ecclesiastical power center of Brazilian Catholicism. Its cathedral, still standing today, was completed in 1572. By 1583, there were 1,600 people residing in the city, and it quickly grew into one of the largest cities in the New World, surpassing any colonial American city at the time of the American Revolution in 1776. Salvador was the capital city of the Portuguese viceroyalty of Grão-Pará and its province of Bahia de Todos os Santos. The Dutch captured and sacked the city in May of 1624, and held it along with other NE ports until it was re-taken by the Portuguese in April of the following year Salvador was the first capital of Brazil and remained so until 1763, when it was succeeded by Rio de Janeiro, the new economic power center of that era. The city became a base for the Brazilian independence movement and was attacked by Portuguese troops in 1812, before being officially liberated on July 2, 1823. It settled into graceful decline over the next 150 years, out of the mainstream of Brazilian industrialisation. It is though, a national cultural and tourist centre. By 1948 the city had some 340,000 people, and was already Brazil's fourth largest city. By 1991 the population was 2.08 million. In the 1990s, a major city project cleaned up and restored the old downtown area, the Pelourinho, or Centro Historico. Salvador has been the birthplace of many noted Brazilians, including musicians such as song-writer Dorival Caymmi, MPB star Gal Costa, and Grammy-winner Gilberto Gil. Gil later went on to be a city council member (vereador) and is currently the Brazilian Minister of Culture.

Salvador Today

Brazilian Minister of Culture The city is divided into cidade alta ("upper city") and cidade baixa ("lower city"), with the Cathedral and administrative buildings on higher ground. The city contains many colonial buildings, including the first cathedral in Brazil, and the nation's oldest medical college, but it has become famous for the strong presence of the African culture in the city. The majority of the population is of African ancestry. It is the center of Yoruba Candomblé and of the martial dance art of capoeira, and has so many churches (over 350, including the 16th century cathedral) that it has been dubbed the "Black Rome". The African influence extends beyond religion to include food, music (from the spiritually influenced afoxé and the community-based blocos afros to the more popular axé and samba) and a dynamic cultural life. The city's official literacy rate is 81%. As of the late 1990s, the average monthly income was R$ 1,108.00 (about 447 US dollars). Sanitation is a problem in the poorer neighborhoods. About 1/3 of the residents have neither sewage hookups nor septic tanks but the Bahia Government is working hard in projects like Bahia Azul and Viver Melhor. The city is one of open sewers which drain into the bay, which lead to many tourist guides advising tourists to not swim in the water on the bay side of the city such as Porto da Barra, and instead suggesting beaches on the Atlantic Ocean side of the peninsula such as Itapoan. The city has several universities:
- Universidade Federal da Bahia,
- State University of Bahia,
- Catholic University of Salvador.
- see also List of universities in Brazil Salvador is noted for its large Carnival celebrations. Esporte Clube Bahia and Esporte Clube Vitória are Salvador's main soccer teams. EC Bahia has won a national title twice: Brazil's Cup (equivalent to the championship of the Brazilian league prior to 1971) in 1959 and the championship of the Brazilian League in 1988. EC Vitoria, on the other side, has never won a national title and was only once the runner up in the Brazilian League in 1993. Salvador is an important tourism destination, especially the Pelourinho, or old town, and the beaches. Ford Motor Company has a plant in the Salvador Metropolitan Area, in the city of Camaçari, assembling the Ford Courier, Ford Ecosport and Ford Fiesta. Salvador has a Metro System Under Construction, the Metro will have 2 lines and will be integrated by bus and by the rail service. The 1st stage of the metro will be ready in 2006, at least in the begin of 2007. Salvador has an international airport named Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães International Airport which is connected with several International destinations, Lisbon, Madrid, Buenos Aires, Santiago, Miami, including Amsterdam (seasonal), Frankfurt (seasonal), Tel Aviv (seasonal), Luanda (seasonal), Zurich(seasonal), Paris (seasonal), Milan (Seasonal), and many other cities. Its IATA code is SSA and it is the 6th busiest airport in the country, the first in northeastern Brazil, behind CGH, GRU, BSB, SDU and GIG.

External links

- [http://www.salvadordabahia.ba.gov.br Salvador Official Tourism Website]
- [http://www.uoregon.edu/~sergiok/brasil/salvador.html Salvador Brazil by Sergio Koreisha]
- [http://www.bahia-online.net/ Bahia-online.net]
- [http://www.galenfrysinger.com/salvador,_bahia.htm Salvador, Bahia, Brazil] 2 pages with many photos, may be slow loading
- [http://www.guia-salvador.com Guia Salvador]
- [http://www.geographicguide.com/brazil.htm Brazil]
- [http://www.emtursa.com.br/ Brazil Turismo Salvador] Category:Cities in Brazil Category:World Heritage Sites in Brazil

Brazil

The Federative Republic of Brazil (República Federativa do Brasil in Brazilian Portuguese) is the largest and most populous country in Latin America, and fifth largest in the world. Spanning a vast area between central South America and the Atlantic Ocean, it is the easternmost country of the Americas and it borders Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and the French department of French Guiana — every South American nation except for Ecuador and Chile. Named after brazilwood, a tree highly valued by early colonists, Brazil is home to both extensive agricultural lands and rain forests. Exploiting vast natural resources and a large labor pool, it is today South America's leading economic power and a regional leader. As a former colony of Portugal, Portuguese is its official language.

History

Main article: History of Brazil Brazil is thought to have been inhabited for at least 10,000 years by semi-nomadic populations when the first Portuguese explorers, led by Pedro Álvares Cabral, disembarked in 1500. Over the next three centuries, it was resettled by the Portuguese and exploited mainly for brazilwood (Pau-Brasil) at first, and later for sugarcane(Cana-de-Açúcar) agriculture and gold mining. Work in the colony was based on slavery. In 1808, Queen Maria I of Portugal and her son and regent, the future João VI of Portugal, fleeing from Napoleon, relocated to Brazil with the royal family, nobles and government. Though they returned to Portugal in 1821, the interlude led to the opening of commercial ports to the United Kingdom — at the time isolated from most European ports by Napoleon — and to the elevation of Brazil to the status of a Kingdom united to Portugal's Crown. Then prince regent Dom Pedro I of Brazil and IV of Portugal declared independence on 7 September 1822, establishing the independent Empire of Brazil. As the crown remained in the hands of the house of Bragança, this was more the severance of the Portuguese empire in two, than an independence movement as seen elsewhere in the Americas. The Brazilian Empire was theoretically a democracy in the British style, although in practice, the emperor-premier-parliament balance of power more closely resembled the autocratic Austrian Empire. Slavery was abolished in 1888, and intensive European immigration created the basis for industrialization. Pedro I was succeeded by his son, Pedro II — who in old age was caught by a political dispute between the Army and the Cabinet, a crisis arising from the Paraguay War. In order to avoid a civil war between Army and Navy, Pedro II renounced the throne on 15 November 1889, when a federal republic was established by Field Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Brazil attracted over 5 million European and Japanese immigrants. That period also saw Brazil industrialise, further colonize, and develop its interior. Brazilian democracy was replaced by dictatorships three times — 1930–1934 and 1937–1945 under Getúlio Vargas, and 1964–1985, under a succession of generals appointed by the military. Today, Brazil is internationally considered a democracy since 1985, specifically a presidential democracy, which was kept after a plebiscite in 1993 where voters had to choose between a presidential or parliamentary systems, whilst also choosing if Brazil should reinstate its constitutional monarchy.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Brazil Politics of Brazil] The 1988 constitution grants broad powers to the federal government. The President has extensive executive powers: he appoints the Cabinet, and he is also both head of state and head of government. The President and Vice-President are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms. The Brazilian legislature, the bicameral National Congress or Congresso Nacional, includes the Federal Senate or Senado Federal of 81 seats, of which three members from each state or federal district are elected according to the principle of majority to serve eight-year terms; one-third elected after a four-year period, two-thirds elected after the next four-year period. Beside the Senate there is the Chamber of Deputies or Câmara dos Deputados of 513 seats, whose members are elected by proportional representation to serve four-year terms. See also:
- Cangaço (criminal hinterland bands in the first years of the 20th century)
- Café com leite (reference to Brazil's domination by the "coffee oligarchs" in the first years of the 20th century)
- Coronelismo (reference to machine politics in the first years of the 20th century, still present on a lesser scale in modern times)
- Integralismo (influential Brazilian fascist movement in the 1930s)

States

Main article: States of Brazil Brazil consists of 26 states (estados, singular estado) and 1 federal district (distrito federal): Brazil and its 26 states and Federal District are divided by IBGE into 5 distinctive regions: North, Northeast, Center-West, Southeast and South (Division by Regions). See also:
- List of cities in Brazil (all cities and municipalities)
- List of major cities in Brazil (metropolitan areas and major regional cities)

Geography

List of major cities in Brazil Main article: Geography of Brazil Brazil is characterized by the extensive low-lying Amazon Rainforest in the north, and a more open terrain of hills and low mountains to the south — home to most of Brazil's population and its agricultural base. Along the Atlantic seacoast are also found several mountain ranges, reaching roughly 2,900 m high. The highest peak is the Pico da Neblina at 3,014 m, in Guiana's highlands. Major rivers include the Amazon, the largest river in the world by volume, and often considered the world's longest; the Paraná and its major tributary, the Iguaçu River, where the impressive Iguaçu falls are located; the Rio Negro, São Francisco, Xingu, Madeira and the Tapajós rivers. Situated on the equator, Brazil's climate is predominantly tropical, with little seasonal variation, although the subtropical south is more temperate, and occasionally experiences frost and snow. Precipitation is abundant in the humid Amazon Basin, but more arid landscapes are found as well, particularly in the northeast. A number of islands in the Atlantic Ocean are part of Brazil:
- Saint Peter and Paul Rocks
- Rocas Atoll
- Fernando de Noronha
- Trindade and Martim Vaz See also:
- Protected areas of Brazil
- National parks (Brazil)
- List of Brazilian National Forests
- List of mountains in Brazil

Economy

Main article: Economy of Brazil Economy of Brazil in the world [http://www.citymayors.com/features/largest_cities1.html 1] ]] Possessing large and well-developed agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and service sectors, as well as a large labor pool, Brazil's GDP (PPP) outweighs that of any other Latin American country, and the country is expanding its presence in world markets. Major export products include airplanes, coffee, vehicles, soybean, iron ore, orange juice, steel, textiles, footwear and electrical equipment. After crafting a fiscal adjustment program, and pledging progress on structural reform, Brazil received a US$41.5 billion IMF-led international support program in November 1998. [http://www.canadianliberty.bc.ca/relatedinfo/BRAZIL'S_IMF_DISASTER.html] During the summer of 1998, investors expressed concerns that a downturn in economic growth was imminent. However, in January 1999, the Brazilian Central Bank announced that the Real would no longer be pegged to the US dollar. This devaluation helped moderate the downturn, and the country posted moderate GDP growth. Economic growth slowed considerably in 2001 — to less than 2% — because of a slowdown in major markets, the hiking of interest rates by the Central Bank to reduce inflationary pressures, and fears over the economic policies of the new government to be elected. Investor confidence was strong at the end of 2001, in part because of the strong recovery in the balance of trade. Chronic poverty remains a pressing problem. After Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's inauguration on 1 January 2003, there was some fear that his party radicals might provoke an economic about-face, and that Brazil might experience a financial crisis. However, the Brazilian economy seems to have detached itself from politics, and after a GDP increase of 0.5% in 2003, Brazil has enjoyed a robust growth in 2004. It is estimated that there will be moderate growth in 2005 and 2006.

Brazil Socioeconomic Rankings
Indicator	World Rank	Value	Comparable countries
Total Nominal GDP	14th	604,855 million USD	Australia, Russia
Total PPP GDP	9th	1,461,564 million Int.Dollars	Italy, Russia
Per capita Nominal GDP	74th	3,325 USD	Romania, Dominica
Per capita PPP GDP	70th	8,049 Int.Dollars	Bulgaria, Thailand
Gini Coefficient	111th	59,3	Paraguay, Guatemala
Human Development Index	63th	0.792	Russia, Romania

But... FIFA soccer ranking for Brazil is number one (with 848 points for January 2005), above France, Spain, Netherlands, Argentina.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Brazil.
See also: Indigenous peoples in Brazil. Indigenous peoples in Brazil, Southern Brazil]] The main ethnic group in Brazil are the Portuguese, who colonized the country after 1500. Until independence in 1822, the Portuguese were the only European nation that successfully settled in Brazil, and most of Brazil's culture is based on that of Portugal. The Dutch and the French also colonized Brazil during the 17th century, but their presence lasted only a few decades. The Amerindian population of Brazil has in large part been exterminated or assimilated into the Portuguese population. Since the beginning of Brazil's colonization, intermarriage between the Portuguese and Native Brazilians has been common. Brazil has a large black population, descended from African slaves brought to the country from the 16th century until the 19th century. The African population in Brazil has mixed substantially with the Portuguese, causing a large mixed-race population. Beginning in the 19th century, the Brazilian government stimulated European immigration to substitute for the manpower of the former slaves. The first non-Portuguese immigrants to settle in Brazil were Germans, in 1824. However, significant European immigration to Brazil began only in the 1870s, when immigration from Italy increased. Brazil has the largest Italian population outside of Italy, with 25 million Italians and Italian-descended Brazilians, constituting 15% of Brazil's population. Another important influx of immigrants came from Spain. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Brazil received immigrants from several other European countries, such as Poland, Russia, Ukraine and Austria. Starting in the early 20th century, Brazil also received a large number of Asians: Korean, Chinese, Taiwanese, and Japanese immigrants. The Japanese are the largest Asian minority in Brazil, and Japanese-Brazilians are the largest Japanese population outside of Japan (1.5 million). Significant immigration from the Middle-East (Lebanon and Syria) has also occurred. Brazil's population is mostly concentrated along the coast, with a lower population density in the interior. The population of the southern states is mainly of European descent, while the majority of the inhabitants of the north and northeast are of mixed ancestry (Amerindians, Africans and Europeans).

Ethnicity and race

Syria] According to the 2000 IBGE census:
- white 53.7%
- mixed race 38.5%
- black 6.2%
- other (includes Japanese, Arab, Amerindian) 0.9%
- unspecified 0.7% Most white Brazilians are of Portuguese or Italian descent. There are also significant populations of German, Spanish, and Polish descent, and other European ethnic groups. Brazilians of Portuguese ancestry are found in the entire country, while those of Italian descent are predominantly in Southern and Southeastern Brazil. The other white ethnic groups, such as German and Polish, are mostly concentrated in the extreme South of Brazil. There are entire cities settled by Germans-Brazilians in Southern Brazil. Brazilians of mixed-race ancestry are found in the whole country, although most of them live in the Northern and Northeastern states. Mixed-race Brazilians include mulatto, caboclo (or mameluco) and cafuzo, however the majority are a mix of Amerindians, whites and blacks. Black Brazilians are concentrated mostly in the Northeastern states, although large black populations can be found throughout the country. Asian Brazilians (mainly of Japanese descent) and Arab Brazilians are concentrated in the Southeastern states (mainly in São Paulo). Amerindian Brazilians are concentrated in the Northern states, mostly in the Amazon area. Despite their diversity, most Brazilians consider themselves to be part of a single "Brazilian ethnic group", and all people born in Brazil, no matter their origin, are considerated totally Brazilians. The only exceptions are non-assimilated indigenous tribes. Racism in Brazil is an unbailable crime.

Languages

indigenous tribes] Portuguese is the official language, and is spoken by the entire population. Brazil is the only Portuguese-speaking nation in the Americas, giving it a national culture distinct from its Spanish-speaking neighbors. Portuguese is the only language with fully official status in Brazil, and there are few regional variances. It is virtually the only language used in schools, newspapers, radio and TV, and for all business and administrative purposes. The language spoken in Brazil is slightly different from that spoken in Portugal and other Portuguese-speaking countries. Brazilian Portuguese is more archaic than European Portuguese, and has some phonological and orthographic differences, although mutual comprehension is not affected. Spanish is understood in various degrees by most people, since it is very close to Portuguese. English is part of the official high school curriculum, but very few people achieve any usable degree of fluency. Many minority languages are spoken daily throughout the vast national territory of Brazil. Half of these languages are spoken by indigenous peoples, mostly in Northern Brazil. The main indigenous languages are: Guaraní, Kaingang, Nadëb, Carajá, Caribe, Tucano, Arára, Terêna, Borôro, Apalaí, Canela and many others. Still others are spoken by communities of descendants of 19th century immigrants, who are for the most part bilingual, in rural areas of Southern Brazil. These communities speak dialects of Italian, German, Polish or Japanese languages. The most dominant spoken Brazilian German dialect is Riograndenser Hunsrückisch, a Brazilian variation of the Hunsrückisch dialect of German. Talian is the main spoken Italian dialect in Brazil, and is based on the Venetian Language, which has its origin in Northern Italy. Italy]]

Religion

About 3 in 4 people, or 74% of the population in Brazil, are Roman Catholic. The Protestant population has been growing very fast, and is at 15.4%. Other Christian groups make up only 1.3%. African tribal religions are the next largest groups. The Jewish community numbers around 160,000, while Buddhism, Shinto, and other Asian religions are also sizeable. Adherents of Islam number around 28,000, or 0.01%. Brazil is the country with the largest Catholic population in the world, as well the country with the largest number of members of Asian religions in the Western world.

Poverty, illiteracy and income concentration

Western world]] Brazil currently has 25 million people living in conditions of poverty [http://www.pt.org.br/assessor/pobres.htm] [http://www.ibge.gov.br/home/presidencia/noticias/03122002relatorio_onu.shtm]. This is a chronic problem without easy solutions. Two phenomena very relevant to the discussion of poverty and income concentration in Brazil are directly related to each other: the mechanization of agricultural techniques and the focus of Brazilian agribusiness on exports. Poverty in Brazil can be seen in the large metropolitan areas (capitals) and in the "pockets of poverty" (upcountry regions with low rates of economic and social development). The Northeast has chronic problems as a result of its dry climate, with millions of people suffering hunger during the dry seasons. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has proposed a programme (Fome Zero) to mitigate this problem but its success is disputed. About 8% of the Brazilian population is technically considered illiterate (analfabetos in Portuguese), although a growing percentage show some writing and computing abilities.[http://www.ibge.gov.br/ibgeteen/datas/alfabetizacao/alfabetizacao.html]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Brazil
- Brazil Religions
- Brazil Skyscrapers
- Cuisine of Brazil
- List of Brazilians
- Literature of Brazil
- Music of Brazil

Sports

Main Article: Sports in Brazil
- Brazil national football team
- Brazilian Football League Teams Some fight sports with Brazilian origins have become popular around the world:
- Capoeira
- Vale tudo
- Brazilian jiu-jitsu

Miscellaneous topics

- Communications in Brazil
- Foreign relations of Brazil
- Military of Brazil
- Public holidays in Brazil
- Transportation in Brazil Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.

External links

- ; Government, administration, economy & politics
- [http://www.bcb.gov.br Banco Central do Brasil] - Central Bank of Brazil (in Portuguese/English)
- [http://www.brasil.gov.br Brasil.gov.br] - Official governmental portal (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.camara.gov.br Câmara dos Deputados] - Official Chamber of Deputies site (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.oecd.org/document/60/0,2340,en_2649_34571_34413308_1_1_1_1,00.html Economic Survey of Brazil 2005]
- [http://www.fomezero.gov.br Fome Zero] - Official site of Fome Zero (zero hunger) programme (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.mma.gov.br Ministério do Meio Ambiente] - Ministry of the Environment of Brazil (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.planalto.gov.br Presidência da República] - Official presidential site (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.senado.gov.br Senado Federal] - Official senatorial site (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.stf.gov.br Supremo Tribunal Federal] - Supreme Federal Court (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.stj.gov.br Superior Tribunal de Justiça] - Superior Court of Justice (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.mre.gov.br Ministério das Relações Exteriores] - Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Português/English/Español)
- [http://www.consul.cc/brazil Consular Corps of Brazil] - Official Website of CC Brazil (English) ; Information, statistics
- [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/brtoc.html Library of Congress: A Country Study: Brazil]
- [http://dmoz.org/Regional/South_America/Brazil Open Directory Project - Brazil] directory category
- [http://www.brazilink.org Brazilink] - Selected and updated sources by experts (in English)
- [http://www.ibge.gov.br/english/default.php IBGE] - Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (English, Español, Português)
- [http://www.mapafacil.com.br Mapa Fácil] - Online maps of more than 5000 Brazilian cities (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.bn.br/ National Library] (in Portuguese and English)
- [http://www.spcvb.com.br São Paulo Convention & Visitors Bureau] (in Portuguese and English) ; news media
- [http://www.brasilpost.com.br Brasil-Post] (in German)
- [http://jbonline.terra.com.br Jornal do Brasil] - Brazilian newspaper (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.oglobo.com.br O Globo]- Online version of a famous Brazilian newspaper (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.estadao.com.br O Estado de São Paulo]- Site of one the most important brazilian newspapers (in portuguese)
- [http://www.folhaonline.com.br Folha de São Paulo]- Another important Brazilian newspaper (in portuguese) ; Brazilian television
- [http://www.redeglobo.com Globo]- The first network in Brazil
- [http://www.sbt.com.br SBT]- The second network in Brazil
- [http://www.rederecord.com.br Record]- Important brazilian channel
- [http://www.band.com.br Band]- Important brazilian channel ; Society, social movements, etc.
- [http://www.mst.org.br Movimento dos trabalhadores rurais sem terra]
- [http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/01/13/brazil9845.htm Human Rights Watch]
- [http://web.amnesty.org/library/eng-bra/index Amnesty International]
- [http://www.oeco.com.br O Eco] - Journalistic website on the environmental issues of Brazil (in Portuguese) ; Art, cooking, culture, history, travel
- [http://www.roadjunky.com/brazil/guide_brazil.shtml Alternative Brazil Travel info] (in English)
- [http://www.destination360.com/south-america/brazil/brazil.php Brazil Travel Guide] (in English)
- [http://www.ceara.com.br Ceará and Fortaleza tourism information] (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.donabrasil.com Dona Brasil] on cooking, culture and travel (in English and Dutch)
- [http://www.colonialvoyage.com/ Dutch Portuguese Colonial History] Dutch Portuguese Colonial History: history of the Portuguese and the Dutch in Ceylon, India, Malacca, Bengal, Formosa, Africa, Brazil. Language Heritage, lists of remains, maps.
- [http://www.easyportuguese.com EasyPortuguese]-- Learn the Portuguese spoken in Brazil.
- [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=Brazil Ethnologue Languages of the World] - Languages of Brazil
- [http://www.maria-brazil.org Maria-Brazil] - The first Brazilian pop-culture web site produced in the USA. Note: The section Maria's Cookbook is widely praised (site in English)
- [http://www.pernambuco.com.br Recife and Porto de Galinhas tourism information] (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.travel-impressions.de/brazil/mix/baiana.htm Photos of People and Sights]
- [http://www.rioforpartiers.com/ Rio For Partiers] - Award winning travel guide to Rio de Janeiro and [http://www.salvadorforpartiers.com/ Salvador]
- [http://www.sonia-portuguese.com sonia-portuguese] Learning Portuguese
- [http://www.thebraziliansound.com The Brazilian Sound] Brazilian music & culture (in English)
- [http://www.thowra.com/brasil.html Travelling in Brazil] (in English)
- [http://www.portoseguro.tur.br Porto Seguro Bahia tourism information] (in Portuguese)
- [http://www.v-brazil.com Virtual Brazil] - Information about Brazilian culture, economy and tourism (in English)
- [http://www.zmaxmiez-jpn.net/untitled4.html Viva Brasil!] All about Brazilian Culture
- [http://www.brazilbrazil.com/braznam.html Hy-Brazil] Origins of the name Brazil Category:Former Portuguese colonies Category:South American countries Category:CPLP member states zh-min-nan:Pa-se ko:브라질 ms:Brazil ja:ブラジル simple:Brazil th:ประเทศบราซิล fiu-vro:Brasiilia

Petrus Canisius

Saint Petrus Canisius (May 8, 1521 – December 21, 1597) was an important Jesuit who fought against the spread of Protestantism in Germany, Austria, Bohemia, and Switzerland. St. Peter became canonized and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1925. His feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is April 27 or December 21. He was born Peter Kanis in Nijmegen in the Duchy of Guelders (until 1549 part of the Holy Roman Empire, now in the Netherlands). In the University of Cologne, he met Peter Faber, one of the founders of the Society of Jesus. Canisius became the first German to join the Jesuit order in 1543. Through his work in the order he became one of the most influential Catholics of his time. He supervised the founding and maintanance of the early German Jesuit Colleges, often with little resources at hand. Because of his frequent travels between the colleges, a tedious and dangerous occupation at the time, he became known as the Second Apostle of Germany. Canisius also executed a strong influence on Emperor Ferdinand I; he tirelessly reminded Ferdinand of the imminent danger to his soul should he cede more rights to Protestants in return for military support. And when Canisius perceived a strong danger of Ferdinand's son and heir, King Maximilian, openly declaring himself Protestant, he convinced Ferdinand to threaten with disinheritance should Maximilian desert the Catholic Faith. Canisius was an influential teacher and preacher, especially through his "German catechism", a book that defined the basic principles of Catholicism in the German language and found many readers in German-speaking countries. He was offered the post of bishop of Vienna, but declined in order to continue his travelling and teachings. However, he was administrator of the Diocese of Vienna from 1554 to 1555 and main pulpit spokesman in Augsburg Cathedral from 1559 to 1568 for which he held three to four seremonies per week. He is said to have been such a convincing preacher that he brought hundreds of Protestants back to the old faith. By the time he left Germany in 1580, the Jesuit order in Germany had evolved from virtual nonexistence to being a powerful tool of the Counter Reformation. Canisius spent the last 17 years of his life in Fribourg, Switzerland, where he founded a Jesuit College which was the foundation of today's University of Fribourg. In recognition of his early work in the establishment of Jesuit education, there are mulitple educational institutions named for Canisius. Among them: Canisius College is a Jesuit secondary school in his hometown of Nijmegen and the alma mater of Peter Hans Kolvenbach, the current Superior General of the Jesuit order. Another Canisius College (a post-secondary school) and a loosely-affiliated secondary school, Canisius High School, are located in Buffalo, New York.

Works

- (1555) Summa doctrinae christianae
- (1556) Catechismus minimus
- (1558) Parvus catechismus catholicorum

External links

- [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11756c.htm Catholic Encyclopedia]
- [http://www.kanisius.edu/ Canisius College Jakarta's official web site] Category: Saints Canisius, Petrus Canisius, Petrus Canisius, Petrus Canisius, Petrus

Bavaria

Culture

Bavaria has a culture very distinct from the rest of Germany. Noteworthy differences (especially in rural areas, less significant in the major cities) can be found with respect to: Religion: Bavarians are typically very conservative Catholics, contrasting markedly with the more casual attitude to religion in much of the rest of Germany. The current pope, Benedict XVI, is from Bavaria Appearance: Bavarians give great attention to their personal appearance, while much of the rest of Germany dresses very casually. Also in business context, wearing traditional-style clothing is not unusual at least in the south of the Free State. Bavarian cities and towns, whether rich or poor, are among the best looked after locations in Germany. Food and Drink: As in the case of dress, Bavarians resemble the latin countries more closely than the rest of Germany with respect to the high priority they give to good food and drink. Bavarians also consume many items of food and drink which are unusual elsewhere in Germany. Politics: The Christian Social Union, which has ruled in Bavaria uninteruptedly since 1957, doesn't seek election in any other state of Germany. The CSU, arguably the most inward looking of the major German political parties, combines socially conservative positions with advocacy for extensive involvement of the state in the economy.

Geography

Bavaria shares international borders with Austria and the Czech Republic. Neighbouring states within Germany are Baden-Württemberg, Hesse, Thuringia and Saxony. Two major rivers flow through the state, the Danube (Donau) and the Main. The major cities in Bavaria are Munich (München), Nuremberg (Nürnberg), Augsburg, Regensburg, Würzburg, Ingolstadt, Fürth and Erlangen. See also: List of places in Bavaria.

Politics

Bavaria has a unicameral Landtag, or state parliament, elected by universal suffrage. Until December 1999, there was also a Senat, or Senate, whose members were chosen by social and economic groups in Bavaria, but following a referendum in 1998, this institution was abolished. The head of government is the Minister-president. Bavaria has long been a bastion of conservative politics in Germany, with the Christian Social Union having almost a stranglehold on power since its inception in 1946. Every Minister-president since 1957 has been a member of this party. In the 2003 elections the CSU won more than two thirds of the seats in Landtag. No party in post-war German history had achieved this before (not counting the rigged wins of the SED in East Germany).

Administrative Divisions

Regierungsbezirke (administrative regions)

Bavaria is divided into 7 administrative regions called Regierungsbezirke (singular Regierungsbezirk). Image:Bavarian_Admin_Districts.jpg # Oberfranken (Upper Franconia) # Mittelfranken (Middle Franconia) # Unterfranken (Lower Franconia) # Schwaben (Swabia) # Oberpfalz (Upper Palatinate) # Oberbayern (Upper Bavaria) # Niederbayern (Lower Bavaria) These administrative regions consist of 71 administrative districts (called Landkreise, singular Landkreis) and 25 independent cities (kreisfreie Städte, singular kreisfreie Stadt).

Landkreise/kreisfreie Städte (administrative districs/independent cities)

Map of Bavaria Administrative districts: Independent cities:

Gemeinden (municipalities)

The 71 administrative districts are on the lowest level divided into 2031 municipalities (called Gemeinden, singular Gemeinde). Together with the 25 independent cities (which are in effect municipalities independent of Landkreis administrations), there are a total of 2056 municipalities in Bavaria. In 44 of the 71 administrative districts, there are a total of 215 unincorporated areas (as of January 1, 2005, called gemeindefreie Gebiete, singular gemeindefreies Gebiet), not belonging to any municipality, all uninhabited, mostly forested areas, but also four lakes (Chiemsee -without islands, Starnberger See -without island Roseninsel, Ammersee, which are the three largest lakes of Bavaria, and Waginger See).

Dialects

Waginger See]] Several German dialects are spoken in Bavaria. In the administrative regions to the north the Franconian dialect is prevalent, in Swabia the local dialect is Swabian, a thread of the Alemannic dialect family. In the Upper Palatinate people speak the Northern Bavarian dialect that can vary regionally. In Upper and Lower Bavaria (Middle) Austro-Bavarian is the predominant dialect.

History

Main article: History of Bavaria The first known mention of the Bavarian name was made by the Franks ca. 520. Saint Boniface completed the people's conversion to Christianity in the early 8th century. Bavaria resisted the Protestant Reformation, and remains strongly Roman Catholic. From about 550 to 788, the house of Agilolfing ruled the duchy of Bavaria, ending with Tassilo III who was deposed by Charlemagne. For the next 400 years numerous families held the duchy, rarely for more than three generations. The last, and one of the most important, of these dukes was Henry the Lion of the house of Welf, founder of Munich. When Henry the Lion was deposed as duke of Saxony and Bavaria by his cousin, Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, in 1180, Bavaria was awarded as fief to the Wittelsbach family, which ruled from 1180 to 1918. The first of several divisions of the duchy occurred in 1255 but in 1506 Bavaria was reunited and Munich became the sole capital. In 1623 the dukes acquired the electoral dignity. Bavaria became a kingdom in 1806, and in 1815 the Rhenish Palatinate was annexed to it. It managed to preserve its independence by playing off the rivalries of Prussia and Austria, but defeat in the 1866 Austro-Prussian War led to its incorporation into the German Empire. In the early 20th century Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Henrik Ibsen, and other notable artists were drawn to Bavaria, notably to the Schwabing district of Munich, but the region was devastated by World War I. World War I] Socialist premier Kurt Eisner, who deposed King Ludwig III, was assassinated in 1919 leading to a violently suppressed communist revolt. Extremist activity on the right also increased, notably the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch, and Munich and Nuremberg became Nazi strongholds under the Third Reich. As a manufacturing center, Munich was heavily bombed during World War II and occupied by U.S. troops. Since World War II, Bavaria has been rehabilitated into a prosperous industrial hub. A massive reconstruction effort restored much of Munich's historic core, and the city played host to the 1972 Summer Olympics. More recently, state minister-president Edmund Stoiber was the CDU/CSU candidate for chancellor in the 2002 federal election, and native son Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was elected Pope Benedict XVI in 2005.

Miscellaneous

The many famous Bavarians include:
- Pope Benedict XVI -- as of April 2005 he is the current Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. His baptismal name is Joseph Ratzinger.
- Painters such as Hans Holbein the Elder, Albrecht Dürer, Lucas Cranach and Franz Marc
- Musicians such as Richard Wagner, Richard Strauss and Theobald Boehm, the inventor of the modern flute.
- Modern musicians like Klaus Doldinger and Barbara Dennerlein
- Widely-read Bavarian writers like Bertolt Brecht, Lion Feuchtwanger
- Well-known scientists such as the Nobel prize winner Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen and Werner Heisenberg,also Rudolf Moessbauer and Robert Huber
- Well-known inventors such as Levi Strauss and Rudolf Diesel.
- Neurologist Alois Alzheimer, who first described Alzheimer's Disease The motorcycle and automobile makers BMW (Bayerische Motoren-Werke, or Bavarian Motor Works) and Audi, Grundig (consumer electronics) and Siemens (electricity, telephones, informatics, medical instruments) have (or had) a Bavarian industrial base. A famous annual festival is called Oktoberfest or October Festival. It was first celebrated in 1810 as a public feast when the Bavarian crown prince Ludwig married Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. The celebration originally was designed as a feast for all members of the Bavarian Nation, who should celebrate the country and the crown. It only turned to a pure matter of boozing in the 20th century and is nowadays attended rather by tourists than by Bavarians. Munich locals often despise it. It is celebrated during the two weeks leading up to the first Sunday in October. Bavaria has also given its name to a major Dutch brewery, Bavaria Brewery.

The meaning of the coat of arms

Modern coat of arms was designed by Eduard Ege, following heraldic traditions in 1946.
- The Golden Lion: The rampant lion Palatinate in its golden-and-red amour stands for the administrative region of Upper Palatinate.
- The "Franconian Rake": It represents the administrative regions of the Upper, Middle and Lower Franconia.
- The Blue Panther: At the bottom left of the third field there is a blue panther rampant, with gold talons, on a white (silver) ground. It rep-resents the regions of the Lower and Upper Bavaria.
- The Three Lions: In the fourth field three black lions with red talons stand on a golden ground one above the other, with heads askance. On the Bavarian coat of arms they symbolize Swabia.
- The White-And-Blue Heart-Shaped Shield: The heart-shaped shield of white and blue fusils askance was originally the coat of arms of the Counts of Bogen to be adopted in 1247 by the Wittelsbachs House. The white-and-blue fusils are indisputably the emblem of Bavaria and the heart-shaped shield today symbolizes Bavaria as a whole. Along with the People's Crown, it is officially used as the Minor Coat of Arms.
- The People's Crown: The four coat fields with the heart-shaped shield in the centre are crowned with a golden band with precious stones decorated with five ornamental leaves. This crown appeared for the first time in the coat of arms in 1923 to symbolize sovereignty of the people after the dropping out of the royal crown.

Bavarian "citizenship"

The fact that, different to the constitutions of all other German Länder, the Bavarian constitution provides for a Bavarian citizenship, is often mentioned as an indicator for Bavarian distinctiveness. Some Bavarians are keen to emphasize that - in accordance with the generous indication of the constitution - they regard everyone
- born in Bavaria,
- born to a Bavarian parent,
- adopted by a Bavarian as a child,
- married to a Bavarian, or
- naturalized in Bavaria, as a fellow-Bavarian; some of those falling under this untechnical definition express pride to being "Bavarian". However, state legislation regulating citizenship procedures has never been enacted, the consitution itself provides that all Germans enjoy the same rights as Bavarian citizens, and no office issues certificates concerning a "Bavarian" citizenship. Thus, the notion of citizenship rather bears a folkloristic, not really a political meaning.

Population and area

Admin. Region population(2003) area (km²) municipalities Lower Bavaria .... 1,162,972 9.6% 10,330 14.6% 258 12.5% Lower Franconia .. 1,329,399 11.0% 8,531 12.1% 308 15.0% Upper Franconia .. 1,113,790 9.2% 7,231 10.2% 214 10.4% Middle Franconia . 1,678,535 13.9% 7,246 10.3% 210 10.2% Upper Palatinate . 1,069,121 8.8% 9,690 13.7% 226 11.0% Swabia ........... 1,773,688 14.4% 9,992 14.2% 340 16.5% Upper Bavaria .... 3,996,043 33.1% 17,530 24.8% 500 24.3% ------------------ ---------- ------ ------ ------ ---- ------ BAVARIA .......... 12,086,548 100.0% 70,549 100.0% 2056 100.0%

External links

- [http://www.bayern.de/ Offical site] of the state of Bavaria
- [http://www.munich-to-vienna-via-salzburg.com/munich/bavaria.html Bavaria], Overview on Bavaria, its history and culture.
- [http://www.bayernviewer.de/ Bayern Viewer] aerial views and maps of Bavaria
- [http://www.bis.bayern.de/ Detailed map]
- [http://www.haus-bayern.com/ The Royal House of Bavaria]
- [http://www.vdiest.nl/Europa/Germany/bavaria.htm Bavaria information] Category:States of Germany Category:Bavaria als:Bayern ko:바이에른 주 ja:バイエルン州 simple:Bavaria

July 30

July 30 is the 211th day (212th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 154 days remaining.

Events

- 1419 - First Defenestration of Prague.
- 1608 - At Ticonderoga (now Crown Point, New York), Samuel de Champlain shoots and kills two Iroquois chiefs. This was to set the tone for French-Iroquois relations for the next one hundred years.
- 1619 - In Jamestown, Virginia, the first representative assembly in the Americas, the House of Burgesses, convenes for the first time.
- 1629 - An earthquake in Naples, Italy kills 10,000 people.
- 1729 - Baltimore, Maryland is founded.
- 1733 - First Freemasons lodge opened in what will become the United States.
- 1825 - Malden Island discovered.
- 1863 - Indian Wars: Chief Pocatello of the Shoshone tribe signs the Treaty of Box Elder, promising to stop harassing the emigrant trails in southern Idaho and northern Utah.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of the Crater - Union forces attempt to break Confederate lines by exploding a large bomb under their trenches.
- 1930 - In Montevideo, Uruguay win the first Football World Cup.
- 1932 - The 1932 Summer Olympics open in Los Angeles, California.
- 1945 - World War II: A Japanese submarine sinks the USS Indianapolis, killing 883 seamen in the worst single loss in the history of the United States Navy.
- 1953 - Rikidōzan holds a ceremony announcing the establishment of the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance.
- 1956 - A Joint Resolution of the U.S. Congress is signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, authorizing "In God We Trust" as the U.S. national motto.
- 1965 - US President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Social Security Act of 1965 into law, establishing Medicare and Medicaid.
- 1966 - At Wembley Stadium, host England wins the Football World Cup, beating Germany 4 to 2.
- 1969 - Vietnam War: US President Richard M. Nixon makes an unscheduled visit to South Vietnam and meets with President Nguyen Van Thieu and with US military commanders.
- 1970 - Powder Ridge Rock Festival
- 1971 - Apollo program: Apollo 15 lands on the Moon.
- 1971 - An All Nippon Airways Boeing 727 and a Japanese Air Force F-86 collide over Morioka, Japan killing 162
- 1974 - Watergate Scandal: US President Richard M. Nixon releases subpoenaed White House recordings after being ordered to do so by the United States Supreme Court.
- 1975 - Jimmy Hoffa disappears from the parking lot of the Machus Red Fox restaurant in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, at about 2:30 p.m..
- 1980 - Vanuatu gains independence.
- 1990 - The first Saturn automobile rolls off the assembly line.
- 1997 - A double suicide bombing kills 14 people in Jerusalem,Israel.
- 2002 - Los Angeles Sparks center Lisa Leslie is the first woman to dunk in a basketball game.
- 2002- The accounting law refered to as "The Sarbanes Oxley Act" was signed into law by United States President George W. Bush
- 2003 - In Mexico, the last 'old style' Volkswagen Beetle rolls off the assembly line.
- 2004 - A gas explosion kills 16 people in Belgium.

Births

- 1470 - Hongzhi, Emperor of China (d. 1505)
- 1549 - Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1609)
- 1641 - Regnier de Graaf, Dutch physician and anatomist (d. 1673)
- 1818 - Emily Brontë, English novelist (d. 1848)
- 1855 - Georg Wilhelm von Siemens, German industrialist (d. 1919)
- 1857 - Thorstein Veblen, American economist (d. 1929)
- 1863 - Henry Ford, American industrialist (d. 1947)
- 1889 - Franz Masereel, Belgian painter and graphic artist (d. 1972)
- 1889 - Vladimir Zworykin, Russian physicist and inventor (d. 1982)
- 1890 - Casey Stengel, baseball player and manager (d. 1975)
- 1898 - Henry Moore, English sculptor (d. 1986)
- 1904 - Salvador Novo, Mexican writer and poet (d. 1974)
- 1909 - C. Northcote Parkinson, British historian and writer (d. 1993)
- 1910 - Edgar de Evia, American mountain climber (d. 2003)
- 1914 - Lord Killanin, Irish International Olympic Committee president (d. 1999)
- 1916 - Dick Wilson, American actor
- 1919 - Berniece Baker Miracle, half-sister of Marilyn Monroe.
- 1921 - Grant Johannesen, American pianist (d. 2005)
- 1930 - Thomas Sowell, American economist
- 1934 - Bud Selig, baseball team owner and commissioner
- 1936 - Buddy Guy, American guitarist and singer
- 1939 - Peter Bogdanovich, American film director
- 1941 - Paul Anka, Canadian singer and composer
- 1945 - David Sanborn, American musician
- 1946 - Neil Bonnett, American race car driver (d. 1994)
- 1947 - Arnold Schwarzenegger, Austrian-born actor and Governor of California
- 1947 - William Atherton, American actor
- 1948 - Jean Reno, Moroccan-born French actor
- 1950 - Frank Stallone, American singer and actor
- 1956 - Delta Burke, American actress
- 1956 - Anita Hill, American author
- 1957 - Nery Pumpido, Argentine football goalkeeper
- 1958 - Kate Bush, British musician
- 1960 - Richard Linklater, American director
- 1961 - Laurence Fishburne, American actor
- 1962 - Alton Brown, American television host
- 1963 - Lisa Kudrow, American actress
- 1964 - Vivica A. Fox, American actress
- 1968 - Robert Korzeniowski, Polish athlete
- 1970 - Christopher Nolan, British film director
- 1971<