:: wikimiki.org ::

Jakarta

Jakarta

:This page is about the capital city of Indonesia. For The Apache Jakarta project, see Jakarta Project.

Jakarta

Jakarta Project

Motto: "Jaya Raya"
(Indonesian): "Prosper and Great"

Indonesian

Founded

22 June 1527

Governor

Sutiyoso

Area

661.52 km²

Population
- Total (2004):
- Density:

8,792,000
13,290/km²

Time zone

UTC+7

Jakarta (also Djakarta or DKI Jakarta, formerly known as Batavia) is the capital and the largest city of Indonesia, located on the northwest coast of the island of Java, at . It has an area of 661.52 km² and a population of 8,792,000 (2004).

History

2004 The first recorded settlement at what is now Jakarta was the port of Kalapa, near the mouth of the Ciliwung River. Its origin can be traced to a Hindu settlement as early as the 5th century. By the 12th century, it was a major port for the Hindu kingdom of Sunda. The Portuguese were reported to be the first Europeans to visit the port of Kalapa. A Hindu king granted Portuguese traders permission to build a fort at Kalapa in the early 16th century. Jakarta's port is still called Sunda Kelapa today, after this early settlement. In 1527, the city was conquered by Fatahillah (or Faletehan), a young leader from a nearby kingdom from the north. Fatahillah changed the name Kalapa into Jayakarta (meaning "victorious and prosperous" in Javanese) on 22 June, 1527. This particular date is regarded as the official birth date of Jakarta. The Dutch came to Jayakarta at the end of the 16th century. In 1619 the forces of the Dutch East India Company, led by Jan Pieterszoon Coen, conquered the city and renamed Jayakarta to Batavia, the Latin name for a tribe that lived in the Netherlands during Roman times. Batavia was the capital of the colonial Dutch East Indies. In the early 19th century, the city was expanded as the Dutch began moving to the south, to higher-elevation areas thought to be healthier. The British captured Java in 1811 and occupied the island for five years while the Netherlands were occupied with the Napoleonic Wars in Europe, before returning it to Dutch control. With formal, direct rule by the Netherlands expanding to more parts of the archipelago during the nineteenth and early twentieth century, the importance of the colonial Batavia (Jakarta) increased. Dutch tactics to maintain control and tax revenue at times required nearly all exports from anywhere in the region to be shipped through the city, establishing for the city an overwhelming political and economic dominance that it retains today. Japan took possession of the city in 1942 during World War II and renamed it Jakarta, to gain local favor. Following Japan's defeat in 1945, the Dutch reoccupied the city despite the declaration of independence by the Indonesians on August 17, 1945. Jakarta was the center of the Dutch effort to retain control over their former colony during the war of independence that ended with the establishment of Indonesia in 1949.

Administration

1949 Unlike other cities in Indonesia, Jakarta has a special provincial status. The city is headed by a governor instead of a mayor. Jakarta is divided into five districts called kota (formerly kotamadya), each headed by a mayor (walikota).
- Central Jakarta
- East Jakarta
- North Jakarta
- South Jakarta
- West Jakarta The Thousand Islands (Kepulauan Seribu) to the north of Jakarta is also part of Jakarta. It has the status of a regency.

Culture

Being the capital of Indonesia and the center of governance, politics, and economy, Jakarta attracts many foreign as well as domestic immigrants. As a result, Jakarta has a decidedly cosmopolitan flavor and a diverse culture. Many of the immigrants are from the other parts of Java, bringing along a mixture of dialects of Javanese and Sundanese language, and their traditional foods and customs. Orang Betawi ("people of Batavia") is a term used to describe the descendants of the people living around Batavia from around the 17th century. Orang Betawi are mostly descended from various Southeast Asian ethnic groups brought to or attracted to Batavia to meet labour needs, including people from various parts of Indonesia. They have a culture and language distinct from the Sundanese and Javanese. Jakarta also has a large Chinese community which has been here for centuries. It is estimated that about 10% of the population is of Chinese descent. Chinese Jakarta has several performance centers, such as the Senayan center. Traditional music is often found at high-class hotels, including wayang and gamelan performances. As the largest city Jakarta has attracted many regional talents to relocate in hopes of finding a better audience and more opportunities for their arts and crafts. The concentration of wealth and political influence in the city means that it has much more noticeable foreign influence on its landscape and culture; many major international fast-food chains have locations in the city, for example.

Transportation

gamelan There are railways throughout Jakarta; however, they are inadequate in providing transportation for the citizens of Jakarta. In peak hours, the number of passengers simply overloads the capacity provided. The railroad tracks connect Jakarta to its neighboring cities: Depok and Bogor to the south, Tangerang and Serpong to the west, and Bekasi, Karawang, and Cikampek to the east. The major rail stations are Gambir, Jatinegara, Manggarai, and Jakarta Kota. Buses and transport cars (local language: angkutan kota/angkot) are also popular. Like trains, they also become overloaded during peak hours. In 2003, the government formed a busway system named TransJakarta; it serves a route running from Jakarta Kota to Blok M. The busway takes less than half an hour to traverse a route which would normally take more than an hour during peak hours. The second phase of the busway will be constructed in 2005, serving the route from Pulogadung to Kalideres. Despite the presence of many large, wide boulevards, Jakarta suffers from congestion due to heavy traffic, especially in the central business district. To reduce traffic jams, some major roads in Jakarta have a three in one rule during rush hours, prohibiting vehicles carrying less than three passengers on certain roads. In 2005, this rule covers the areas of Sudirman and Gatot Subroto. Jakarta's road is notorious for behaviour of the traffic; the rules of the road are broken with impunity as a simple bribe of a few US dollars will simply make all ones legal problems disappear. Furthermore in recent years the number of motorcycles on the streets has being growing almost exponentially, ensuring many a problem due to ill-disciplined motorcyclists. Jakarta's transportation also depends on tollroads. The major tollroad is the inner ring road from Tanjung Priok-Cawang-Grogol-Tanjung Priok. The outer ring road is now being constructed and is partly operational from Cilincing-Cakung-Pasar Rebo-Pondok Pinang-Daan Mogot-Cengkareng. A tollroad connects Jakarta to the Soekarno-Hatta International airport in the north of Jakarta. Also connected via tollroad is the port of Merak and Tangerang to the west, Serpong to the southwest, Depok and Bogor to the south, and Bekasi, Cibitung and Karawang, Purwakarta and eventually to Bandung to the east. Two lines of the Jakarta Monorail are under construction: the green line serving Semanggi-Casablanca-Kuningan-Semanggi and the blue line serving Kampung Melayu-Casablanca-Tanah Abang-Roxy. In addition, there are plans for a two-line subway (MRT) system, with a north-south line between Kota and Fatmawati, with connections to both monorail lines; and an east-west line, which willl connect with the north-south line at the Sawah Besar station. The government is also considering waterbus ferries as a cheaper means of transportation along the canals in Jakarta. The primary airport for Jakarta is Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, which has daily flights from major airlines.

Education

Jakarta is the home of several universities:
- Universitas Indonesia (a big part of it is now relocated to Depok)
- [http://www.trisakti.ac.id Universitas Trisakti]
- [http://www.tarumanagara.ac.id Universitas Tarumanagara]
- [http://www.binus.ac.id Universitas Bina Nusantara]
- [http://www.ukrida.ac.id Universitas Kristen Krida Wacana]
- Universitas Kristen Indonesia
- Universitas Muhammadiyah Jakarta
- [http://www.atmajaya.ac.id Universitas Katolik Indonesia Atma Jaya]
- [http://www.uph.edu Universitas Pelita Harapan]
- Universitas Jayabaya
- Universitas Gunadarma
- Universitas Pembangunan Nasional
- [http://www.presuniv.com President University]

Recreational Places

- Monas
- Ragunan Zoo
- Taman Impian Jaya Ancol
- Taman Ismail Marzuki
- Taman Mini Indonesia Indah
- Thousand Islands

Shopping malls

Being the home of many of the country's political and economic elites, Jakarta boasts far more shopping venues than elsewhere in Indonesia. While these malls are too expensive to be accessible to many Jakarta residents, they dominate the high-end retail industry. Recent development of satellite cities in the surrounding areas, usually built around their own mega malls, parks, entertainment centers, and in some instances schools, has significantly expanded what is considered to be the practical border of Jakarta.

Sports

Jakarta is the home of popular football team Persija Jakarta, which regularly plays its matches in the stadium of Lebak Bulus. The biggest stadium is Bung Karno Stadium. With a capacity of more than 100,000 seats, it is one of the biggest stadiums in the world. The Senayan sports complex is comprised of several sport venues, which include: Gelora Bung Karno soccer stadium, Stadion Madya athletic stadium, Istora senayan, a shooting range, a tennis court and a golf driving range.

Problems

Istora Like many big cities in developing countries, Jakarta suffers from major urbanization problems. The population has sharply risen from 2.7 million in 1960 to 8.3 million in 2000. The rapid population growth has outgrown the government's ability to provide basic needs for its residents. As the biggest economy in Indonesia, Jakarta has attracted a large number of workers from its surrounding areas. The population during weekdays is almost double that of weeknights or weekends, due to the influx of workers residing in the surrounding areas. Because of government's inability to provide adequate transportation for its large population, Jakarta also suffers from severe traffic jams that occur almost every workday. During the wet season, Jakarta suffers from flooding due to clogged sewage pipes and waterways. Rainforest depletion due to rapid urbanization on the hill areas south of Jakarta near Bogor and Depok has also contributed to the floods.

External links

- [http://www.jakarta.go.id Official website]
-
- [http://www.indo.com/jakarta/ Jakarta Online at indo.com]
- [http://www.jsx.co.id Jakarta Stock Exchange]
- [http://www.emp.pdx.edu/htliono/jkt.html Travelling to Jakarta]
- [http://www.expat.or.id/ Living in Jakarta for expatriates]
- [http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-6.200409,106.851654&spn=0.330085,0.468361&t=k&hl=en Satellite picture by Google Maps]
- [http://www.hernan.ameijeiras.com/indonesie-indonesia.html Pictures from Jakarta]
- Category:Capitals in Asia Category:Cities in Indonesia Category:Coastal cities Category:Provinces of Indonesia zh-min-nan:Jakarta ms:Jakarta ja:ジャカルタ simple:Jakarta th:จาการ์ตา

Jakarta Project

The Jakarta Project creates and maintains open source software for the Java platform. It operates as an umbrella project under the auspices of the Apache Software Foundation, and all of Jakarta products are released under the Apache License.

Subprojects

Major contributions by the Jakarta Project include tools, libraries and frameworks such as:
- BCEL - a Java byte code manipulation library
- BSF - a scripting framework
- Cactus - a unit testing framework for server-side Java classes
- Commons - a collection of useful classes meant to be complement to Java's standard library.
- HiveMind - a services and configuration microkernel
- JMeter - a load- and stress-testing tool
- POI - a pure Java port of Microsoft's popular file formats.
- Slide - a content repository primarily using WebDAV
- Tapestry - A component object model based on JavaBeans properties and strong specifications.
- Tomcat - a JSP/Servlet container
- Turbine - a rapid development web application framework
- Velocity - a template engine Following projects were formerly part of Jakarta:
- Ant - a build tool
- Maven - a project build and management tool
- Struts - a web application development framework

Project History

A frequent question in discussions related to Jakarta regards the origin of the name. Jakarta is not named after the capital city of Indonesia, nor after the Jakarta blue butterfly species. Instead, it is named after the conference room at Sun Microsystems where the majority of discussions leading to the project's creation took place. For more of Jakarta's history, please see [http://www.javaworld.com/javaworld/jw-06-1999/jw-06-sunapache_p.html the JavaWorld article] from June 1999.

External links

- [http://jakarta.apache.org/ The Jakarta home page]
- [http://www.apache.org/ The Apache Software Foundation website] ja:Jakarta Category:Java platform Category:Apache Software Foundation projects

Motto

A motto is a phrase or a short list of words meant to formally describe the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. Many countries, cities, universities, and other institutions have mottos, as do families with coats of arms. Mottos are traditionally written in Latin or Romance languages, as well as in English or German. There are many exceptions, particularly in modern heraldry: for examples, the mottos of the State of Hawai‘i and the University of Hawai‘i are in Hawaiian, and the motto of Nunavut is in Inuktitut, while in England the motto of the County of Somerset is written in Anglo-Saxon. A canting motto is one that contains wordplay. For example, the motto of the Earl of Onslow is Festina lente, punningly interpreting on-slow. In heraldry, a motto is often depicted in a coat of arms, typically on a scroll under the arms, or else above it as in Scots heraldry. In musical usage, a motto is a melodic section larger than a motif and may appear at the beginning and often just before the end of a musical composition. Motto may also refer to a short quotation, joke, or an anecdotal message printed on a piece of paper inside a Christmas cracker. Ships and subs in the Royal Navy each have a crest and motto, as do units of the Royal Air Force.

Individual mottos

- Alea jacta est
- All for one, and one for all
- Annuit Cœptis
- Bhinneka Tunggal Ika
- E pluribus unum
- Eleutheria i thanatos
- Ex astris, scientia
- Fiat lux
- Je me souviens
- Liberté, égalité, fraternité
- Nemo me impune lacessit
- Only Unity Saves the Serbs
- Peace, order and good government
- Semper fidelis
- Unite or Die
- Who Dares Wins

Lists of mottos

- List of state mottos
- List of mottos
- List of U.S. state mottos
- List of Canadian provincial and territorial symbols
- Royal mottos of Swedish monarchs
- Unofficial national mottos of Poland

1527

Events

- January 5 - Felix Manz, co-founder of the Swiss Anabaptists, was drowned in the Limmat River in Zürich by the Zürich Reformed state church.
- May 6 - Spanish and German troops led by the Duke of Bourbon sack Rome (the infamous Sacco di Roma), forcing Pope Clement VII to make peace with Charles V.
- May 16 - Florentines drive out the Medici for a second time and Florence re-establishes a republic.
- Spanish conquest of Guatemala highlands completed; first Guatemala City founded (Ciudad Vieja).
- Spanish Conquistador Francisco de Montejo invades Yucatán.
- Battle of Tokay - Ferdinand of Austria defeats John Zapolya and takes over most of Hungary. John appeals to the Turks for help.
- Protestant Reformation begins in Sweden.
- Ahmed Gragn of Somalia defeats the Ethiopian army with his new firearms.
- People of the university of Wittenberg flee plague to Jena.
- Bishop Vesey's Grammar School in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, UK is founded by Bishop John Vesey.

Births

- March 21 - Hermann Finck, German composer and music theorist (died 1558)
- April 14 - Abraham Ortelius, Flemish cartographer and geographer (died 1598)
- July 13 - John Dee, English mathematician, astronomer, and geographer (died 1608)
- July 31 - Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor (died 1576)
- October 21 - Louis I, Cardinal of Guise, French cardinal (d. 1578)
- Giuseppe Arcimboldo, Italian artist (died 1593)
- Charles of Guise, French cardinal (died 1574)
- Lawrence Humphrey, English clergyman and educator (died 1590)
- Luis Ponce de León, Spanish lyric poet (died 1591)
- Sakuma Nobumori, Japanese retainer and samurai (died 1581)
- Annibale Padovano, Italian composer and organist (died 1575)

Deaths

- January 21 - Juan de Grijalva, Spanish conquistador (born 1489)
- June 21 - Niccolò Machiavelli, Italian writer and statesman (born 1469)
- July 28 - Rodrigo de Bastidas, Spanish conquistador and explorer
- November 28 - Jerome Emser, German theologian (b. 1477)
- Boabdil, last Moorish king of Granada
- Charles III, Duke of Bourbon, Count of Montpensier and Dauphin of Auvergne (born 1490)
- Francesco Colonna, Italian Dominican priest (born 1433)
- Thomas Docwra, Grand Prior of the Knights Hospitaller (born 1458)
- Felix Manz, Swiss Anabaptist
- Cristoforo Solari, Italian sculptor and architect
- Jan "Ciezki" Tarnowski, Polish nobleman Category:1527 ko:1527년 simple:1527

Governor

A governor is also a device that regulates the speed of a machine. See Governor (device). A governor is a governing official, usually in chief (at least nominally, to different degrees also politically and administratively) of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state; furthermore the title apllies to high ranking officials in private or similar governance such as commercial and non-profit management. Most countries in the world have some sort of official known or rendered as governor, though in some countries, the heads of the constitutive states, provinces, communities and regions may have a different title. This is particularly common in European nations and many of their former colonies, with titles such as President of the Regional Council in France and minister-president in Germany. Other countries using different titles for sub-national units include Spain, Italy, Switzerland. There can also be non-political governors: governors who simply govern an institution, such as a corporation or a bank. For example, in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries there are prison governors ("warden" in the United States), school governors and bank governors.

Etymology

The English word "governor" stems from the Latin gubernātor and the Greek kybernetes (helmsman or steersman), which in origin stem from the Latin gubernare and the Greek kybernan (to steer or govern). The recent English word "cybernetics" shares the same etymology. Strictly or etymologically speaking, the word "governor" is therefore supposed to be a metaphor derived from "steersman".

Pre-Roman empires

Although the legal and administrative framework of provinces, each administrated by a governor, was created by the Romans, the term governor has been a convenient term for historians to use in describing similar systems in antiquity. Indeed, many regions of the pre-roman antiquity were ultimately replaced by Roman 'standardized' provincial governments after their conquest by Rome.

Egypt

- In Pharaonic times, the governors of each of dozens of provinces in the kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt (called "nomes" by the Greeks, and whose names often alluded to local patterns of religious worship) are usually known by the Greek word Nomarch.
- The whole (or most) of Egypt was repeatedly reduced to the status of province of a larger empire under foreign conquerors, notably under an Achaemenid satrap (see below).

Mesopotamia and beyond

Assyria, a ruthless conqueror of a large empire, ...
- shaknu
- bel pihati

Pre- & hellenistic satraps

- Media and Achaemenid Persia introduced the satrapy, probably inspired by the Assyrian / Babylonian examples
- Alexander the Great and equally Greco-Macedonian diadoch kingdoms, mainly Seleucids (greater Syria) and Lagids ('Ptolemies' in hellenistic Egypt)
- in later Persia, again under Iranian dynasties :
- Parthia
- the Sassanid dynasty dispensed with the office after Shapur I (who had still 7 of them), replacing them with petty vassal rulers, known as shahdars

Roman empires and legacy

In ancient Rome

From the creation of the earliest Roman subject provinces a governor was appointed each year to administer each of them. The core function of a Roman governor was as a magistrate or judge, and the management of taxation and public spending in their area. Under the Republic and the early Empire, however, a governor also commanded military forces in his province. Republican governors were all men who had served in senior magistracies (the consulate or praetorship) in Rome in the previous year, and carried related titles as governor (proconsul or propraetor). The first Emperor, Augustus (who acquired or settled a number of new territories), divided the provinces into two categories; the traditionally prestigious governorships remained as before (in what have become known as "senatorial" provinces), while in a range of others he retained the formal governorships himself, delegating the actual task of administration to appointees (usually with the title legatus Augusti, although some small provinces received governors with other titles such as procurator). A special case was Egypt, a rich 'private' domain and vital granary, where the Emperor almost inherited the theocratic status of a Pharaoh. The Emperor was represented there by a governor sui generis styled Praefectus Augustalis (the very title evokes the religious cult of the Emperor). Diocletian and Constantine in the fourth century carried out a root and branch reorganisation of the administration. This had two main features:
- Provinces were divided up and became much more numerous; they were then grouped into dioceses, and the dioceses in turn into prefectures;
- Military responsibilities were removed from governors and given to new officials called comes or dux. In addition, Italy was brought into the system for the first time. The prestige governorships of Africa and Asia remained with the title proconsul, and the special right to refer matters directly to the Emperor; the Praefectus Augustalis in Alexandria and the Comes Orientis in Antioch also retained special titles. Otherwise the governors of provinces had various titles without obvious logic, some known as consularis, some as corrector, some as praeses. Apart from Egypt and the East (Oriens - viz greater Syria), each diocese was directed by a governor known as a vicarius. The prefectures were directed by praefecti praetorio (a role transformed from a very different one in the early Empire).

Byzantium

This system survived with few significant changes until the collapse of the empire in the West, and in the East the breakdown of order with the Persian and Arab invasions of the seventh century. At that stage a new kind governor emerged, the Strategos a role leading the themes which replaced provinces at this point, and involving a return to the amalgamation of civil and military office which had been the practice under the Republic and the early Empire.

Legacy

While the Roman administration in the West was largely destroyed in the barbarian invasions, its model was remembered, and would again be very influential through two particular vehicles: Roman law and the Christian Church.

Holy Roman/ Habsburg Empires and successor states

- Reichskommissar

British Empire and Commonwealth

In the British Empire a governor was originally an official appointed by the British monarch to oversee one of his colonies. Generally of the gubernatorial offices established under the British, the structure comprised three levels:—
- Governor-General (formerly in charge of a group of colonies, and now also with largely ceremonial functions in relation to independent, sovereign Commonwealth Realms);
- Governor (in charge of a colony); and
- Lieutenant-Governor (in charge of a sub-colonial unit, usually styled a "province").
- (Note: colony in this sense means any separate jurisdiction inside the British Empire) In the first two cases the Governor (or Governor-General) represents the authority of the Monarch. Lieutenant-Governors represent the authority of their superiors (a Governor or Governor-General). Administrators, Commissioners and High Commissioners exercise similar powers (Note: such High Commissioners are not to be confused with the High Commissioners who are the equivalent of Ambassadors between Commonwealth states). A Governor would usually have an Executive Council to help with the colony's administration. Governors could also, in addition, have Legislative Councils and/or Assemblies underneath them. Today crown colonies of the United Kingdom continue to be administered by a governor, who holds varying degrees of power. Worldwide, there are 15 Governors-General who represent the dignity of the Monarch in the (sovereign) Commonwealth Realms. Because of the different constitutional histories of the former colonies of the United Kingdom, the term "Governor" now refers to officials with differing amounts of power. Especially after colonies became independent of the United Kingdom, the presence of the word "Governor" does not guarantee that the said Governor is the "typical British-style" Governor; examples include:
- Sri Lanka, once a colony governed by a single British Governor before independence, now has many "governors" controlling sub-national units
- Nigeria, also a colony once governed by a single British Governor before independence, now has many "governors" controlling sub-national provinces Governors (of all ranks) are usually housed in a building called 'Government House'. Governors used also to have a standard flag pattern (a Union Flag with the colonial seal or coat of arms in the centre). Governors-General still have a standard pattern flag, a blue flag with the royal crest (lion and crown) with the name of the jurisdiction on a scroll underneath. Below, the Governors described for Australia, Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom overseas territories fit the traditional British framework as just described. The rest are not British-style governors.

Colonial style

United Kingdom overseas territories

In the United Kingdom's remaining overseas territories the governor is normally a direct appointee of the British Government and plays an active role in governing and lawmaking (though usually with the advice of elected local representatives). In some minor overseas territories there is instead of a Governor an Administrator or Commissioner, or the job is ex officio done by a High Commissioner.

Australia

Main article: Governors of the Australian states In Australia, each state has a Governor as its formal representative of the Queen as head of the state government. each State Governor is appointed by the Sovereign on the advice of the Premier (politically responsible head ofstate government) and play a largely ceremonial role. State Governors have emergency reserve powers but these are rarely used. The Territories of Australia have Administrators instead of governors, who are appointed formally by the Governor-General. The Governor-General is the representative of Australia's head of state (i.e. the -British and- Australian Sovereign) at a federal level appointed by the crown on the advice given by the Australian (federal) Prime Minister. When the office of the Governor-General is vacant, or the occupant is unable to discharge their duties (on holidays, or travelling overseas for example), frequently the most senior state governor acts in their position. If this is not practicable, a justice of the High Court is appointed as administrator for the Commonwealth, and exercises those powers of the Governor-General in their absence. The difference in terminology between the Australian state Governors and the Canadian provincial Lieutenant Governors is significant. In the Australian case, the Governor nominally derives power directly from the monarch and is in practice nominated by the Premier of a state. In the Canadian case, the Lieutenant Governor nominally is appointed by the Governor-General and in practice is named by the federal Prime Minister. See also:

- Governor of New South Wales
- Governor of Queensland
- Governor of South Australia
- Governor of Tasmania
- Governor of Victoria
- Governor of Western Australia

- List of Governors of New South Wales
- List of Governors of Queensland
- List of Governors of South Australia
- List of Governors of Tasmania
- List of Governors of Victoria
- List of Governors of Western Australia

Hong Kong

See Governor of Hong Kong.

Northern Ireland

There was a position of Governor of Northern Ireland from 1922 until the suspension of Stormont in 1973.

New style

India

In India each state has a ceremonial Governor appointed by the President of India. These Governors are different to the Governors which controlled the British-controlled portions of the Indian Empire (as opposed to the princely states) prior to 1949.

Malaysia

In Malaysia the four non-monarchical states -Penang, Malacca, and the two on Borneo : Sabah and Sarawak- each have a ceremonial Governor styled Yang di-Pertua Negeri, appointed by the federal King Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, with a seat but no vote in the federal majlis Raja-raja (council of rulers). These states have a separate head of government which is the Chief Minister or Menteri Besar. All other states have royalty as head of state, no governor : a raja in Perlis, a Yang di-pertuan besar (elected from local rulers) in Negeri Sembilan, or a Sultan in the states of Selangor, Pahang, Johore, Perak, Kelantan and Kedah.

Nigeria

In Nigeria, the leaders of the regions, which in 1967 were divided into states, have been known as governors since 1954. Following a military coup in November 1993, President Sani Abacha suspended all the governors, and appointed administrators. When democracy was restored in 1999, the office of governor was revived and new governors were elected. The president of Nigeria can suspend state governors in a state of emergency and replace them with administrators. They are elected by popular vote.

Papua New Guinea

In Papua New Guinea, the leaders of the provinces have been known as governors since August 1995. Previously they had been known as premiers.

Sri Lanka

The provinces of Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) are led by governors.

Russia and former Soviet Union

-Empress Catherine the Great -

Other modern Asian countries

People's Republic of China

In the People's Republic of China, the title "Governor" (省长) refers to the highest ranking executive of a Provincial Government. The Governor is usually placed second in the provincial power hierarchy, below the Provincial CPC Secretary (省委书记), who serves as the highest ranking Party official in the Province. A Governor can be also used when referring to a County Governor (县长).

Other modern countries in the Americas

United States

In the United States, the title governor refers to the chief executive of each state, not directly subordinate to the federal authorities, but the political and ceremonial head of the 'sovereign' state. The governor may also assume additional roles, such as the Commander-in-Chief of the State National Guard forces (when not federalized), and the ability to commute or pardon a criminal sentence. U.S. Governors serve four-year terms except those in New Hampshire and Vermont, who serve two-year terms. In all states, the governor is directly elected, and in most cases has considerable practical powers (notable exceptions with very weak governorships include Texas), though this is moderated by the state legislature and in some cases by other elected executive officials. They can veto state bills. In some cases legislatures can override a gubernatorial veto by a two-thirds vote, in others by three-fifths. In Tennessee the governor's veto can be overridden by an absolute majority vote making it virtually useless. The Governor of North Carolina had no veto power until a 1996 referendum. In most states, whenever there is a sudden vacancy of one of the state's Senate seats, that state's governor appoints someone to fill the vacancy until a special election is to be held, although the governors of Oregon, Massachusetts and Alaska no longer have this power. In colonial America, the governor was the representative of the monarch who exercised executive power, many colonies originally elected their governors, but in the years leading up to the American Revolutionary War, the king began to to appoint them directly. During the American Revolution, the royal governors were expelled, but the name was retained to denote the new elected official. See: List of United States Governors for past and present governors.
- Lieutenant Governor
- Governors of American Samoa
- Governors of Guam
- Governors of Northern Mariana Islands
- Governors of Puerto Rico
- Governors of U.S. Virgin Islands

Mexico

The elected heads of Mexico's 31 federal states are styled "governors" (gobernadores), closely following the U.S. model. See: List of Mexican state governors.

Brazil

Until the 1930 Revolution, the heads of the Brazilian Provinces then States where styled Presidents (presidentes), later governors and intervators (appointed by the federal goverment) and finally in 1945 only governors.

South America

Many of the South American republics (such as Chile and Argentina) have provinces or states run by elected governors, with offices similar in nature to U.S. state governors.

Other European countries and empires

Benelux monarchies

- In the Netherlands, the government-appointed heads of the provinces were known as Gouverneur from 1814 until 1850, when their title was changed to King's (or Queen's) Commissioner. In the Dutch crown's Caribbean Overseas territories, the style Governor is still used (alongside the political head of government) in the Netherlands Antilles as well as since 1986 on the neighbouring island of Aruba (separated from the former)
- In Belgium, the title of Gouverneur is used, in both the French and Dutch languages. There are presently 10 provinces, each with its own governor; the national capital, Brussels, does not belong to any, constituting a third 'capital' region (along with Flanders and Wallonia), with its own minister-president.

France & Napoleon

Italy

- The essentially maritime empire of the Venetian republic, comprising Terra Ferma, other Adriatic (mainly Istria and Dalmatia) and further Mediteranean (mainly Greek) possessions, used different gubernatorial styles, such as (castelleno e) provveditore (generale), baile

Papal & Vatican particularity

- In the various Italian provinces (former principalities and city-states) that became amalgamated as the Papal States, the Holy See exerced temporal power via its legates and delegates, including some cardinals
- Also in the southern French Comté Venaissin, the home of the popes during their 'babylonian exile', and retained centutries after, but never incorporated into the Papal States, Legates and Vice-legates were appointed
- The sovereign modern remnant of the formerly vast Papal States, the Vatican City State, is now a mere enclave in the capital of Italian Republic. It is too small to have further administrative territorial divisions, and so styles its equivalent of a Prime Minister, Governor and Mayor all roled in to one, as the Governor of Vatican City.

Turkish

In the Ottoman empire, various Pashas (generals) administered a province of the Great Sultan's vaste empire, with specific titles (such as Mutessaryf; Vali = Wali was often maintained or even revived in oriental successor states; cfr. Beilerbei (rendered as Governor-general, as he is appointed above several provinces under individual governors) and Dey)

Other modern African countries

Colonial entities

- Other countries then the UK with colonies in Asia, Africa and other areas, such as Germany, France, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands give some, but not always all, of the top representatives of (or rather in) their colonies the title of governor.
- Currently, the län (counties) of Sweden, the provinces of Finland, the states of Indonesia and some of the administrative divisions of Russia are among the areas which have leaders with the title of governor. See also:
- Governor of Macau
- Governor-General of Finland
- Governor-General of the Irish Free State
- Over-Governor of Stockholm
- Governor of the Straits Settlements
- Governors-General of Sweden
- List of County Governors of Sweden
- Governor of Hong Kong

Modern equivalents

As a GENERIC term, Governor is used for various 'equivalent' officers governing part of a state or empire, rendering other official titles such as :
- colonial High Commissioner (not the Ambassadors exchanged within the Commonwealth) And this also applies to non-western and/or antique cultures

Furthermore, the word has other meanings

- as an administrator and/or supervisor (individually or collectively, see Board of Governors) in the socio-economic spheres of life.
- Governor of the Bank of Canada
- List of governors of national banks of Serbia and Yugoslavia

Area

:This article explains the meaning of area as a physical quantity. The article area (geometry) is more mathematical. See also area (disambiguation). Area is a quantity expressing the size of a part of a surface. Surface area is the summation of the areas of the exposed sides of an object.

Units

Units for measuring surface area include: :square metre = SI derived unit :are = 100 square metres :hectare = 10,000 square metres :square kilometre = 1,000,000 square metres :square megametre = 10¹² square metres Imperial units, as currently defined from the metre: :square foot (plural square feet) = 0.09290304 square metres. :square yard = 9 square feet = 0.83612736 square metres :square perch = 30.25 square yards = 25.2928526 square metres :acre = 160 square perches or 43,560 square feet = 4046.8564224 square metres :square mile = 640 acres = 2.5899881103 square kilometres Old European area units, still in used in some private matters (e.g. land sale advertisements) :square fathom = 3.5967 square metres :cadastral moon(acre) = 1600� square fathoms = 5755 square metres The article Orders of magnitude links to lists of objects of comparable surface area.

Useful formulas

- Area of a rectangle (and, in particular, a square): length × width
- Area of a triangle: ½ × base × height
- Area of a disk: π × r²
- Area of an ellipse: π × a × b
- Area of a sphere: 4 × π × r² = π × d²
- Area of a trapezoid: If a and b are the two parallel sides and h is the distance (height) between the parallels, the area formula is as below: :

A=\frac(a+b)h

A=\frac

- Total surface area of a right circular cylinder: 2 × π × r × (h + r)
- Lateral surface area of a right circular cylinder: 2 × π × r × h
- Total surface area of a right circular cone: π × r × (l + r)
- Lateral surface area of a right circular cone: π × r × l

External links

- [http://www.unitconversion.org/unit_converter/area.html Online Area Converter - convert between various units of area, such as square meter, hectare, rood, and so on]
- [http://www.unitconversion.org/unit_converter/area-v.html Interactive Area Conversion table - convert selected unit to all other units of area]
- [http://calc.skyrocket.de/en/ Online Unit Converter - Conversion of many different units]
- als:Fläche ja:面積 ko:면적 simple:Area th:พื้นที่ zh-min-nan:Bīn-chek

Population

] :For the use of the word population in statistics, see statistical population. In sociology and biology, a population is the collection of people, or organisms of a particular species, living in a given geographic area. In biology, plant and animal populations are studied, in particular, in a branch of ecology known as population biology, and in population genetics. In population dynamics, size, age and sex structure, mortality, reproductive behaviour, and growth of a population are studied. In biology, an isolated population denotes a breeding group whose members breed mostly or solely among themselves, usually as a result of physical isolation, although biologically they could breed with any members of the species. Meta-population is a group of sub-populations in a given area, where the individuals of the various sub-populations are able to cross uninhabitable areas of the region. Biological dispersal is one of the key elements affecting in such populations. Demography is the study of human populations. Various aspects of human behavior in populations are studied in sociology, economics, and geography. Study of populations is almost always governed by the laws of probability, and the conclusions of the studies may thus not always be applicable to some individuals. This odd factor may be reduced by statistical means, but such a generalization may be too vague to imply anything. Demography is used extensively in marketing, which relates to economic units, such as retailers, to potential customers. For example, Starbucks, a coffee shop company that wants to sell to a younger audience, looks at the demographics of an area to be able to appeal to this younger audience.

Population density

coffee Population density is measured by dividing the number of individuals by the area of the region in which they live. Some observers of human societies believe that the concept of carrying capacity also applies to the human population of the Earth, and that unchecked population growth can result in a "Malthusian catastrophe." Others dispute this view. The graph to the right depicts logistic growth of population. Populate, as a verb, means the process of populating a geographic area, as by procreation or immigration. The countries with the highest population density are microstates: Monaco, Singapore, the Vatican City, and Malta. Among larger-sized countries, Japan has one of the highest population densities.

Population pyramid

Japan The age and gender distribution of a population within a given nation or region is commonly represented by means of a population pyramid. This is a triangular distribution with the portion of the population along the horizontal X-axis and the 5-year age grouping along the vertical Y-axis. Male population is shown to the left of the vertical axis and female to the right. This type of chart displays the development of a population over a period of time. Nations with low infant mortality and high longevity will display a more rectangular shape as a majority of the population living to old age. The converse will have a more pyramidal shape with a wide base, reflecting higher infant mortality and greater risk of early death.

Underpopulation

In biology, a rarely occurring situation in which a group of individuals of a species appear in a new, inhabitable area suitable for more individuals, and begin to populate it. This may also happen if individuals of a species have been transferred to new areas on purpose or by accident. Ecological niches are usually populated, but evolution of a species may enable it to overcome the difficulties encountered in an initially hostile environment.

Overpopulation

evolution The world's human population is currently growing by more than 75 million people per year. About half the world lives in nations with sub-replacement fertility, and population growth in those countries is due to immigration. Overpopulation can result from increases in births and survival rates, or from an unsustainable use and depletion of resources. Advances in technology can reduce the threat of overpopulation by making new resources available, or by increasing the productivity of existing resources. In biology, a classic example of an overpopulation are the lemmings in Lapland, which procreate over the years to such densities, that a great part of the population is forced to wander to inhospitable areas. Nowadays, this happens usually in less dramatic ways than in the past, one reason probably being that the food supply of lemmings is shared with an increased number of reindeer in Lapland.

Population control

Population control is the practice of curtailing population increase, usually by reducing the birth rate. Surviving records from Ancient Greece document the first known examples of population control. These include the colonization movement, which saw Greek outposts being built across the Mediterranean and Black Sea basins to accommodate the excess population of individual states. An important example of mandated population control is China's one-child policy, in which having more than one child is made extremely unattractive. This has led to allegations that practices like infanticide, forced abortions, and forced sterilization are used as a result of the policy. In ecology, population control is on occasions considered to be done solely by predators, diseases, parasites, and environmental factors, though at many times human effects on animal and plant populations are also considered. Migrations of animals may be seen as a natural way of population control, for the food on land is more abundant on some seasons. The area of the migrations' start is left to reproduce the food supply for large mass of animals next time around. See also immigration.

Population decline

Population decline is a fall in a region's population. It can be caused by sub-replacement fertility or heavy emigration, or more dramatically disease, famine, or war. Or most often by a combination of the factors. In the past population decline was mostly observed due to disease. In recent years, the population of Russia and seventeen other ex-Communist countries has begun to decline (1995-2005). The Black Death in Europe, the arrival of Old World diseases to the Americas, or the Irish Potato Famine (1845-1849), all caused massive population declines. In biology, population decline of a species is usually described as a result of gradually worsening environmental factors, such as prolonged drought or loss of inhabitable areas for the studied species.

Population ageing

Population ageing occurs when the fertility rate declines. This means that, for a period of time, the ratio of old to young will be higher than average. It also occurs due to increasing life expectancy. Japan and Western Europe are the two regions which are most confronted by severe population ageing in the near future. The second largest expenditure of most governments is education and these expenses will fall with an ageing population. However older people tend to be the section of the population most concerned about crime and most insistent on more (and more expensive) law and order.

Population transfer

biological aspects, see introduced species Population transfer is a term referring to a policy by which a state forces the movement of a large group of people out of a region, most frequently on the basis of their ethnicity or religion. This has occured in India and Pakistan, between Turkey and Greece, and in Eastern Europe after the Second World War. Other movements in population are caused by immigration, such as the immigration from Europe to European colonies in the Americas, Africa, Australia and other places.

Population bomb

A best-selling work, The Population Bomb (1968) by Paul R. Ehrlich predicted disaster for humanity due to overpopulation and the "population explosion". A "population bomb," as defined in the book, requires three things: a rapid rate of change; a limit of some sort; and delays in perceiving the limit. The book's specific prediction that "in the 1970s and 1980s hundreds of millions of people will starve to death" did not come to pass, however, due for the most part to the efforts of Norman Borlaug's "Green Revolution" of the 1960s. It was later shown by Keith Greiner (1994) that Ehrlich's projections could not possibly have held the scrutiny of time, because Ehrlich applied the financial compound interest formula to population growth. Using two sets of assumptions based on Ehrlich's hypothesis, it was shown that the theorized wild growth in population and subsequent scarcity of resources could not have occurred on Ehrlich's time schedule.

World population

According to estimates published by the United States Census Bureau, the world population at the beginning of December 2005 was about 6,483,600,000. The United Nations Population Fund designated October 12, 1999 as the approximate day on which world population reached six billion. This was about 12 years after world population reached five billion, in 1987.

Countries by population

About 4 billion of the world's nearly 6.5 billion people live in Asia. Seven of the world's ten largest countries by population are in Asia(although Russia is also located in Europe). However, a large population is not the same thing as economic size, and the United States, which has a much smaller population than India or China, has a much larger economy.

External links

- Phishare.org (2005). [http://www.phishare.org Population and Health InfoShare]. Retrieved February 13, 2005.
- [http://www.prb.org Population Reference Bureau] (2005). Retrieved February 13, 2005.
- Populationworld.com (2005). [http://www.populationworld.com/ Population World: Population of World]. Retrieved February 13, 2004.
- United Nations (2004). [http://www.un.org/esa/population/ Population Division], Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Retrieved February 13, 2004.
- United States Census Bureau (2005). [http://www.census.gov/cgi-bin/ipc/idbrank.pl Census Bureau - Countries Ranked by Population]. Retrieved February 13, 2005.
- PopulationData.net (2005). [http://www.populationdata.net PopulationData.net - Informations and maps about populations around the world]. Retrieved March 4, 2005.
- World Population Clock (French) [http://www.worldpopclock.com WorldPopClock.com - World population clock].
- [http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/popclockworld.html World Population Clock (English) - US Census] Category:Ecology Category:Sociology Category:Population zh-min-nan:Jîn-kháu ko:인구 ja:人口 simple:Population th:ประชากร

2004

2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. It was designated the:
- International Year of Rice (by the United Nations)
- International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO)
- 2004 World Health Day topic was Road Safety (by World Health Organization)
- Year of the Monkey (by the Chinese calendar) See the world in 2004 for a description of the state of the world in this year. See also Wikipedia's almanac of events for this year.
Events

January

- January 1 - Pervez Musharraf gets a vote of confidence from an electoral college consisting of Parliament and the provincial assemblies, confirming him as President of Pakistan until 2007.
- January 3 - Flash Airlines Flight 604 crashes into the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt, killing all 148 aboard.
- January 4 - Mikhail Saakashvili wins the presidential elections in Georgia.
- January 4 -NASA's MER-A (Spirit) lands on Mars.
- January 8 - Queen Elizabeth II christens the RMS Queen Mary 2 cruise liner, currently the largest ocean liner in the world.
- January 13 - An Uzbekistan Airways plane crashes in Uzbekistan's capital of Tashkent, killing 37.
- January 22 - The European Union bans the import of poultry from Thailand, as bird flu spreads throughout Southeast Asia.
- January 24 - NASA's MER-B (Opportunity) lands on Mars.
- January 27 - The British government narrowly wins a House of Commons vote on the proposed introduction of tuition top-up fees in British universities.
- January 28 - The findings of the Hutton Inquiry are published in London. The British Government is found not to have falsified information in the "sexed up dossier". The report criticises the BBC's role in the death of David Kelly, a weapons expert on Iraq.
- January 28 - At a hearing of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, it is revealed that the September 11, 2001, terrorists used Mace (a brand of tear gas) or pepper spray in overpowering the flight crew of American Airlines Flight 11.
February

- February 1 - A hajj stampede in Mina, Saudi Arabia, kills 251 pilgrims.
- February 3 - The CIA admits that there was no imminent threat from weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
- February 6 - A suicide bomber kills 41 people on a metro car in Moscow.
- February 7 - Several leaders of Abnaa el-Balad arrested in Israel.
- February 10 - At least 50 people killed in a car bomb attack on a police recruitment centre south of Baghdad.
- February 10 - The French National Assembly votes to pass a law banning religious items and clothing from schools.
- February 12 - Same sex marriage in the United States: The City and County of San Francisco begins issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples as an act of civil disobedience.
- February 13 - Scientists in South Korea announce the cloning of 30 human embryos.
- February 14 - Riots break out between New South Wales Police and Aboriginal residents of Redfern, a suburb of Sydney, Australia.
- February 18 - A train carrying a convoy of petrol, fertiliser, and sulfur derails and explodes in Iran, killing 320 people.
- February 20 - Conservatives win a majority in the Iranian parliament election.
- February 24 - 6.5 Richter scale earthquake in Northern Morocco hits in the Rif mountains near the city of Al Hoceima - over 400 dead. Ait Kamara is destroyed. 517 dead.
- February 25- Ash Wednesday. Also, the religious docudrama, The Passion of the Christ was released.
- February 26 - The United States lifts a ban on travel to Libya, ending travel restrictions to the nation that had lasted for 23 years.
- February 26 - Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski is killed in a plane crash near Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- February 29 - 2004 Haiti rebellion: Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigns as president of Haiti. The chief justice of the Haitian Supreme Court, Boniface Alexandre, is sworn in as interim president.
- February 29 - The film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King directed by Peter Jackson wins 11 Academy Awards in every category it was nominated.
March

- March 2 - John Kerry effectively clinches the 2004 U.S. Democratic Party presidential nomination by winning nine out of 10 "Super Tuesday" primaries and caucuses.
- March 2 - NASA announces that the Mars rover MER-B (Opportunity), has confirmed that the area of Mars they landed in was once drenched in water.
- March 10 - Five British men released from detention at Camp Delta, Guantanamo Bay land at RAF Brize Norton. Four are immediately arrested for questioning.
- March 11 - Simultaneous explosions on rush hour trains in Madrid kill 190 people.
- March 12 - Following the terrorist attacks in Madrid on March 11, millions of protesters take to the streets of Spanish cities against terrorism.
- March 14 - Two suicide bombers kill eleven Israeli civilians in Ashdod, Israel.
- March 14 - The Spanish parliamentary elections of 2004 take place. The incumbent government led by José María Aznar is defeated by the Socialist José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.
- March 14 - Presidential elections in Russia are held. Vladimir Putin easily wins a second term.
- March 15 - A trio of astronomers announce they have discovered a large trans-Neptunian object, the largest object found in the solar system since Pluto was discovered in 1930. Initially designated 2003 VB₁₂, it was named 90377 Sedna in late September.
- March 15 - The new Spanish government announces that it will withdraw Spain's 1,300 troops in Iraq.
- March 17 - Organized violence breaks out over two days in Kosovo. Nineteen people are killed, 139 Serbian homes are burned, schools and businesses are vandalized, and over 30 orthodox monasteries and churches are burned and destroyed.
- March 19 - The UN launches a corruption investigation due to the scandal over its Iraqi Oil for Food program.
- March 20 - President Chen Shui-bian wins the Taiwanese presidential election by 0.2% of the vote. The day before, he and Vice President Annette Lu were 'shot'. Lien Chan refuses to concede and demands a recount. A controversial 'peace referendum' opposed by the People's Republic of China is invalidated.
- March 21 - The 2004 Malaysian general election takes place. The incumbent Barisan Nasional party wins 198 out of 219 seats in the Malaysian Parliament.
- March 21 - Tony Saca is elected President of El Salvador (inauguration June 1).
- March 22 - Palestinians protest in the streets after an Israeli helicopter gunship fires a missile at the entourage of Ahmed Yassin in Gaza City, killing Yassin and 7 others.
- March 25 - British Prime Minister Tony Blair visits Libyan leader Colonel Muammar al-Qaddafi, in return for the dismantling of Libya's WMD programme in December 2003 - the first time a major western leader has visited the nation in several decades.
- March 28 - In France, the government of Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin suffers a stunning and unprecedented defeat in regional elections. The first ever South Atlantic Hurricane makes landfall in South Brazil on the state of Santa Catarina, the Hurricane is dubbed Hurricane Catarina.
- March 29 - The Republic of Ireland bans smoking in all enclosed work places including: restaurants, pubs and bars.
- March 29 - Largest expansion of NATO to date, allowing Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia into the organization.
- March 31 - Four American private military contractors working for Blackwater USA, are killed and their bodies mutilated after being ambushed in Fallujah, Iraq.
April

- April 1 - Faroese Prime Minister's Office announces that from then on the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister's Office would use a new version of the Faroese Coat of Arms. The colours were inspired from the Merkið (flag) and yellow/gold was added. The new Coat of Arms depicts a Ram on a blue shield ready to defend. It can be used by the Government Ministries and by Faroese embassies, but some still use older versions of the Coat of Arms. Coat of Arms
- April 3 - A bomb explosion in a Madrid flat kills a Spanish policeman and five terrorists suspected of responsibility for the Madrid train bombings on March 11.
- April 4 - Serious fighting breaks out in Najaf, Sadr City, and Basra in Iraq as Shia insurgents supporting Muqtada al-Sadr rise against coalition forces.
- April 5 - Queen Elizabeth II begins a state visit to France to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale.
- April 8 - Darfur conflict: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement is signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups.
- April 8 - Three Japanese citizens are taken hostage in Iraq.
- April 8 - Former Japanese famous economist, professor at Waseda University graduate school Kazuhide Uekusa was arrested on the escalator of JR Shinagawa Station because of trying to peep under high school girl's skirt with his hand mirror.
- April 16 - India defeats Pakistan in their first cricket tour in 14 years.
- April 17 - Israeli helicopters fire missiles at a convoy of vehicles in the Gaza Strip, killing the Gaza leader of Hamas, Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi.
- April 20 - In Iraq, 12 mortars were fired on Abu Ghraib Prison by insurgents. Twenty two detainees were killed and 92 wounded. [http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-04-20-iraq_x.htm]
- April 21 - Mordechai Vanunu, who revealed an Israeli nuclear weapons programme in the 1980s, is released from prison in Israel after an 18 year term for treason.
- April 22 - Two trains carrying explosives and fuel collide in the North Korean town of Ryongchon, killing 161 people, injuring 1,300 and destroying thousands of homes.
- April 22 - The last coal mine in France closes, ending nearly 300 years of coal mining.
- April 25 - Referenda on a United Nations plan, which proposes to re-unite the island of Cyprus, take place in both the Greek and Turkish parts. Although the Turks vote in favour, the Greeks reject the proposal.
- April 28 - Abuse of prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq is revealed on the television show 60 Minutes II.
May

- May 1 - the largest expansion to date of the European Union takes place, extending the Union by 10 member-states: Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Malta and Cyprus.
- May 6 - The final episode of Friends airs on NBC, drawing an estimated 52 million viewers in North America.
- May 8 - Would-be "Saudi Princess" "Antoinette Millard" surfaces in New York City and claims that muggers had stolen jewels worth of $262.000 from her (she later proves to be an impostor).
- May 9 - Chechen president Akhmad Kadyrov is killed by landmine placed under a VIP stage during a World War II memorial parade in Grozny.
- May 9 - Team of Canada won the World Ice Hockey Championship in Prague.
- May 10 - The 2004 Philippine presidential and legislative elections take place. Incumbent president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo wins the presidency.
- May 11 - An explosion destroys a plastics factory in Glasgow, UK, killing nine people and injuring over a hundred.
- May 12 - An American civilian contractor in Iraq, Nick Berg, is shown being decapitated by a group allegedly linked to al-Qaida on a web-distributed video.
- May 13 - In India, the Congress Party wins a surprise victory in the elections to the Lok Sabha.
- May 14 - Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark, marries Australian Mary Donaldson in Copenhagen.
- May 17 - Ezzedine Salim, holder of the rotating leadership of the Iraqi Governing Council, is killed in a bomb blast in Baghdad.
- May 17 - Massachusetts legalizes same-sex marriage in compliance with a ruling from the state's Supreme Judicial Court (Goodridge v. Department of Public Health).
- May 19 - Tony Blair is hit with a purple flour bomb in the chamber of the House of Commons during a session of Prime Minister's Questions.
- May 19 - Jeremy Sivits pleads guilty in a court-martial in connection with alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad.
- May 23 - A section of the ceiling in Terminal 2E at Paris's Charles de Gaulle International Airport collapses, claiming at least six lives.
- May 23 - Japanese prime