Afro-Shirazi, also known as SHIRAZI, African tribe in Tanzania.
- Tanzanian tribal lineage 17:1030h
Afro-Shirazi Party, dominant political party (founded 1957) of the island of Zanzibar in Tanzania.
- Tanzanian political structures 17:1033a
AFSC: see American Friends Service Committee.
AFT, or AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS, U.S. trade union founded in 1916.
- teacher associations and competition with NEA 18:16a
Aftasids, Muslim Berber dynasty that ruled one of the party kingdoms (ta'ifahs) at Badajoz in western Spain (1022-94) in the period of disunity after the demise of the Umayyad caliphate of Córdoba. The Lower Frontier (modern central Portugal) had enjoyed a measure of autonomy after the death of the Umayyad caliph al-Hakam II (976), when it was ruled by his freed slave, Sābūr (976-1022). In 1022, at Sābūr's death, his minister 'Abd Allāh ibn Muhammad ibn Maslamah, who was known as Ibn al-Aftas, seized control of the kingdom and, assuming the title al-Mansūr (Made Victorious by God), ruled fairly peacefully until 1045. But trouble with the neighbouring 'Abbādids of Seville, which had begun at the end of al-Mansūr's rule, consumed the energies of his son Muhammad al-Muẓaffar (reigned 1045-60). Constant warfare weakened Badajoz sufficiently to allow the Christian King Ferdinand I of Castile and León to extort tribute from al-Muẓaffar and then to capture the frontier garrisons of Viseu and Lamego (1057). Ferdinand also took Coimbra and the surrounding area as far north as the Douro River (1063), in present Portugal. 'Umar al-Mutawakkil (reigned 1068-94), was also forced to pay tribute to Alfonso VI of Castile and León; and he made an unsuccessful attempt to annex Toledo, which was held by a rival Muslim dynasty (1080). When Toledo was eventually taken by Alfonso in 1085, al-Mutawakkil and several other Muslim kings appealed to the Almoravids of North Africa for assistance. Almoravids armies defeated Alfonso at az-Zallāqah near Badajoz (Oct. 23, 1086), establishing a foothold in Spain. Hence, al-Mutawakkil tried to bargain for Alfonso VI's support, but Badajoz fell to the Almoravids in 1094, and al-Mutawakkil and two of his sons were executed.
afterbrain, also called METENCEPHALON, the foresection of the third primary embryonic brain vesicle, or the set of structures derived from it.
- brain vesicle derivatives, table 2 12:1028
afterburner, device for injecting fuel into the tailpipe of a jet engine; combustion of this fuel produces additional forward thrust.
jet thrust acceleration process 10:157f
military aircraft design 18:775c
turbojet engine design 1:375f
afterdance, German NACHTANZ, in European late-medieval and Renaissance dance, the second and livelier of two dances customarily performed together (e.g., pavane and galliard; basse danse and saltarello). Its melody was often a variation in metre and tempo of the first dance melody.
after-image, visual illusion in which retinal impressions persist after the removal of stimulus. The original impression persists briefly, then gives way to a reversed, or negative, image in which the brightness and colour of the original are reversed (light becomes dark; red becomes green; etc.). A common after-image is the spot of light one sees after a flashbulb has been fired.
afterincrease, in physiology, the resumption of a reflex action following its interruption by an inhibitory stimulus; the renewed activity is more vigorous than that preceding the interruption.
afterlife, a new or continued or transformed existence after death, belief in which has been found in virtually all cultures and civilizations.
animal, plant, and human souls 1:915h
Australian agnostic position 1:312g
Baltic life-death threshold 2:666d passim to 667c
Buddhist doctrine of reincarnation 3:422f
Chinese concept of karman and purgatory 4:424d
sainthood and salvation in Mahāyāna 16:164e
Celtic religious beliefs 3:1070f
death rite provisions and beliefs 13:1051g
East African cosmology consequence 6:1013d
Egyptian expectations in 5th dynasty 6:467e
Egyptian myths, conceptions, and beliefs 6:504c passim to 506g
Elysium, Hades, Tartarus, and oblivion 8:409a
Etruscan nirvana concept 15:1061a
Finno-Ugric ancestor cult rituals 7:312d
Gnostic doctrine of marriage to angels 8:217d
Hindu doctrines of karman and liberation 8:889e
Hindu mythic account in Upaniṣads 8:929f
Hindu upaniṣadic beliefs 8:936h
human nature and death customs 5:533b
Inca realms of the dead 9:261e
Indo-European notions among Hittites 1:830d
Iranian doctrine of soul's reward 9:871e
James's study and conclusion 10:28f
Judaeo-Christian beliefs
Christian eschatological concepts 4:507f
Egyptian-Judaic conceptual parallelism 12:919h
eschatological neglect in Judaism 6:961g
Jewish doctrines and speculation 10:289d
Jewish soteriological development 16:203e
Pharisee and Sadducee beliefs 10:310h
Universalist thought in early Church 18:860c
kamihood and sainthood in Shinto 16:164c
Mesopotamian myth of man's divinity 11:1004f
monastic liberation of self 12:337b
Near Eastern comparative beliefs 12:917g
Norse concepts of Valhalla and Niflheim 8:39d
philosophical arguments and problems 15:602c
prehistoric death rites and cults 14:985c
primitive religion's relation to dead 14:1042d
sacramental death rite beliefs 16:115f
Scythian and Sarmatian beliefs 9:869d passim to 870a
Slavic beliefs about grave reopening 16:876a
Southeast American Indian beliefs 17:221f
spiritualists' universalist conceptions 17:512e
Zoroastrian echoes of Indian beliefs 19:1174b
Afternoon Men (1931), a novel by Anthony Powell.
- literary style and theme 10:1222d
Afternoon of a Faun, The, translation of L'APRÈS-MIDI D'UN FAUNE, one-act ballet to Debussy's symphonic poem Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune first performed in 1912 with choreography and book by V. Nijinsky, who also danced the role of the Faun. It is also the title of a one-act ballet by Jerome Robbins, also to Debussy's music, first performed in New York City in 1953.
L'Après-midi d'un faune was the title of a masterly poem by the French symbolist poet Stéphane Mallarme, evoking the ideal essence of fleeting phenomena. It inspired Debussy to write his Prélude.
- Debussy's Prélude theme inspiration 11:387g
afterripening, OR DORMANCY, a suspension of growth of the embryo during ripening of the seed. It results at least in part from rapid and extensive water loss because of the conversion of soluble nutrients to their stored forms. This interruption of growth, or the lack of it in the seeds of many tropical plants, may be an adaptation to seasonal and climatic changes. Afterripening provides for germination at the most favourable time, when conditions of moisture, temperature, and day length are most conducive to plant growth. See also germination.
seed and fruit development 16:486c
seed dormancy and germination 16:486h
survival value 5:960e
aftershock, one of a series of small shocks immediately following a large earthquake; these may continue for days or even months. Aftershocks may occur at some distance from the epicentre (point on the surface just above the earthquake's focus, or seat) of the major shock and are usually directly related to the size or force of that shock. They may represent elastic recovery and readjustment to new conditions of stress after the main movement on a fault.
After Strange Gods, in full AFTER STRANGE GODS—A PRIMER OF MODERN HERESY (1934), a book by T.S. Eliot.
- essay use in societal redefinition 10:1078e
Aftonbladet, Swedish newspaper, founded in 1830.
- newspaper publishing history 15:240b
Aftonian Interglacial Stage, major division of Pleistocene deposits and time in North America (the Pleistocene Epoch began about 2,500,000 years ago and ended about 10,000 years ago). The Aftonian Interglacial, a time of relatively moderate climatic conditions, followed the Nebraskan Glacial Stage and preceded the Kansan Glacial Stage, both times of widespread continental glaciation and relative cold. The Aftonian was named for deposits studied in the region of Afton Junction, Iowa. The Aftonian deposits consist of ancient soil profiles that may also include peat and windblown deposits. Elsewhere, Aftonian deposits consist of sand and gravel.
Study of fossil invertebrates in some regions indicates that the Aftonian climate was warmer and drier than that of today. The end of the Aftonian was apparently a time of great difficulty for many mammalian forms; numerous genera became extinct. It is difficult to pinpoint the causes, but deteriorating climatic conditions as well as the introduction of new, competing forms may have been responsible. The Aftonian is thought to be equivalent to the Günz-Mindel Interglacial Stage of the European Pleistocene chronology.
aftosa: see foot and mouth disease.
'Afula, largest city of the Plain of Esdraelon or Valley of Jezreel (Hebrew 'Emeq Yizre'el), northern Israel. Named for the Arab village of Fulah, formerly at that site, it is sometimes called 'Ir Yizre'el (City of Jezreel). Founded in 1925 on lands acquired by the American Zion Commonwealth, a land-development organization, it was the first planned urban settlement of Jewish Palestine. The city is situated at the junction of two main roads leading to Galilee and the north. One is the coastal road from Tel Aviv-Yafo; the other is the hill road from Jerusalem via Nābulus and Janin. The latter route is largely in Israeli-occupied Jordanian territory. 'Afula was also a station on the former narrow-gauge branch of the Hejaz Railway, which ran through the plain; it has been inactive and largely dismantled since World War II.
At its foundation, most of the city's natural hinterland was occupied by collective or cooperative settlements. These were independent of 'Afula economically and socially, and most of them rejected urban society ideologically. As a result, the development of 'Afula as a quasi-metropolitan centre was hindered. Only after 1948 did the population begin to grow, due to the settlement of large numbers of Jewish immigrants. A new section, 'Afula 'Illit (Upper 'Afula), has been built on the slopes of Giv'at ha-More, about 5 mi (8 km) from the old central business district.
'Afula has a large sugar-refining plant, textile mills, and a nylon-stocking factory. The Plain of Esdraelon's large regional hospital, with nursing school, is there, as are a teacher's college and numerous government offices. Pop. (1970 est.) 16,900.
32°36' N, 35°17' E