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  • Urophycis (fish genus)
    In eastern North America, the name hake is also applied to several marine food fishes related to Merluccius but placed in the genus Urophycis. These fishes resemble Merluccius but are distinguished by long, slim pelvic fins and by a small barbel at the tip of the chin. Economically important members of this genus include the white hake (U. tenuis) and the red hake......
  • Urophycis chuss (fish)
    ...but are distinguished by long, slim pelvic fins and by a small barbel at the tip of the chin. Economically important members of this genus include the white hake (U. tenuis) and the red hake (U. chuss)....
  • Urophycis tenuis (fish)
    ...These fishes resemble Merluccius but are distinguished by long, slim pelvic fins and by a small barbel at the tip of the chin. Economically important members of this genus include the white hake (U. tenuis) and the red hake (U. chuss)....
  • urophysis (anatomy)
    The urohypophysis, an organ found only in elasmobranch and bony fishes, probably developed independently in each group. The neurosecretory cells comprising the urohypophysis are concentrated at the hind end of the spinal cord, where they are associated with a vascular plexus to form a neurohemal organ. The urohypophysis resembles the neurosecretory system of the hypothalamus and the neural lobe......
  • uropod (appendage)
    ...crabs and crayfish the first two pairs in the male are modified to help in sperm transfer during mating. The last pair of abdominal limbs is frequently different from the others and is called the uropods. In shrimps and lobsters the uropods together with the telson form a tail fan....
  • uroporphyrinogen I synthetase (enzyme)
    Eight different porphyrias have been identified. One common form is acute intermittent porphyria, which is caused by a deficiency of the enzyme porphobilinogen deaminase. Symptoms usually arise during adolescence, and hormonal changes (e.g., menstruation), alcohol ingestion, certain foods, and some drugs may exacerbate the condition. Diagnosis is made by detecting porphyrins in the urine.......
  • Uropsalis lyra (bird)
    The lyre-tailed nightjar (Uropsalis lyra) inhabits northwestern South America. Its outermost tail feathers may measure 60 cm (24 inches) or more, accounting for 80 to 90 percent of the bird’s total length....
  • Uropsilus (mammal genus)
    Asian, Japanese, and American shrew moles (genera Uropsilus, Urotrichus, and Neurotrichus, respectively) differ from typical moles in that they resemble shrews and are much less specialized for burrowing. Their tails are nearly as long as the body. The external ears are large and either extend beyond the fur (Uropsilus) or are hidden......
  • Uropygi (Uropygi)
    any of approximately 105 species of the arthropod class Arachnida that are similar in appearance to true scorpions except that the larger species have a whiplike telson, or tail, that serves as an organ of touch and has no stinger. The second pair of appendages, the pedipalps, are spiny pincers, and the third pair are long feelers. Whip scorpions secrete an irritating mist, which has a vinegarlike...
  • uropygial gland (bird anatomy)
    in birds, an organ located on the back near the base of the tail. Paired or in two united halves, it is found in most birds. Absent in ostrich, emu, cassowary, bustard, frogmouth, and a few other birds, the oil gland is best-developed in aquatic species, notably petrels and pelicans, and in the osprey and oilbird....
  • Uroš, Symeon (despot of Epirus and Acarnania)
    ...Orsini of Epirus. In 1335 Thessaly was retaken by the Byzantine Empire, and from 1348 it acknowledged the overlordship of the Serbian ruler Stefan IV. After his death (1355) the self-styled emperor Symeon Uroš, despotēs of Epirus and Akarnania, was able to seize control of both Epirus and Thessaly and rule independently following the death of Nikephoros II of Epirus in......
  • Urosalpinx cinenea (snail)
    Oysters, in turn, are eaten by birds, starfishes, and snails, as well as by fishes, including skates. The oyster drill (Urosalpinx cinenea), a widely occurring snail, drills a tiny hole through the oyster shell with its tongue, then sucks out the living tissue....
  • uroscopy (medicine)
    From the Middle Ages to the 18th century, uroscopy (examination of the urine) was a common method for diagnosing illness. The colour of the urine, as well as cloudiness, precipitates, and particles in the urine, was believed to indicate the cause of the disorder....
  • urostomy (surgery)
    the surgical formation of a new channel for urine and liquid wastes following the removal of the bladder or ureters. See ostomy....
  • Ŭroteppa (Tajikistan)
    city, Khudzhand oblast (province), Tajikistan, in the northern foothills of the Turkistan Range. One of the most ancient cities of the republic, it may date from the 6th century ad, but it has borne its present name only since the 17th century. Famous in the past for its handicrafts, particularly carving, glazed pottery, embroidery, and gold and silver ornaments, it now has an...
  • Urotrichus (genus of mammals)
    Asian, Japanese, and American shrew moles (genera Uropsilus, Urotrichus, and Neurotrichus, respectively) differ from typical moles in that they resemble shrews and are much less specialized for burrowing. Their tails are nearly as long as the body. The external ears are large and either extend beyond the fur (Uropsilus) or are hidden......
  • URP
    ...He strove to regain his former powers and ensured that in the new Fundamental Laws (May 1906) he was still designated an autocrat. He furthermore patronized an extremist right-wing organization, the Union of the Russian People, which sanctioned terrorist methods and disseminated anti-Semitic propaganda. Witte, whom he blamed for the October Manifesto, was soon dismissed, and the first two Dumas...
  • Urquhart, Jane (Canadian author)
    ...Charm (1995), mock-epics that both feature larger-than-life, eccentric characters and tell a colourful history of Vancouver Island. Fascinated by the imprint of the past on present lives, Jane Urquhart uses the symbol of the whirlpool to weave together stories of Canadians in 19th-century Ontario in The Whirlpool (1986); Away (1993), a lyrical saga, recoun...
  • Urquhart, Sir Thomas (Scottish writer)
    Scottish author best known for his translation of the works of François Rabelais, one of the most original and vivid translations from any foreign language into English....
  • Urquijo, Mariano de (prime minister of Spain)
    ...shut off from the outside world, they offered enormous possibilities to a scientific explorer. Humboldt’s social standing assured him of access to official circles, and in the Spanish prime minister Mariano de Urquijo he found an enlightened man who supported his application to the king for a royal permit. In the summer of 1799 he set sail from Marseille accompanied by the French botanis...
  • Urquiza, Justo José de (president of Argentina)
    soldier and statesman who overthrew the powerful Argentine dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas and laid the constitutional foundations of modern Argentina....
  • urraca (bird)
    ...most Central American countries. Rodents, reptiles, and insects of many kinds, however, are common. There is a wide variety of birdlife, which includes wild duck, the white and the royal heron, the urraca (which has a blue breast and a gray head and is known for its call, resembling a scoffing laugh), the blue jay, and many more, some of which have fine plumage. A wide variety of fish, as well....
  • Urraca (queen of Castile and Leon)
    queen of Leon and Castile from 1109 to 1126, daughter of Alfonso VI....
  • Urre, Philipp von (German administrator)
    last German captain general of Venezuela....
  • Urrunen (hypothetical German script)
    The origin of the runes offers many difficult problems and has been hotly argued by scholars and others. The theory of the Urrunen (forerunners of the runes), a supposed prehistoric north Germanic alphabetic script, holds that it is the parent not only of the runes but also of all the Mediterranean alphabets, including the Phoenician. This belief, based on racial and political grounds,......
  • Urrutia y Montoya, Ignacio José de (Cuban jurist)
    ...in pro-independence movements.) He is best known for his 1785 essay Idea del valor de la Isla Española (“An Idea of Hispaniola’s Value”). The Cuban Ignacio José de Urrutia y Montoya, a distinguished jurist who had studied in Mexico City, left unfinished his Teatro histórico, jurídico, y político....
  • ʿurs (Islam)
    ...of the Muslim year) to mark the day of the martyrdom of Ḥusayn. The Muslim masses also celebrate the death anniversaries of various saints in a ceremony called ʿurs (literally, “nuptial ceremony”). The saints, far from dying, are believed to reach the zenith of their spiritual life on this occasion....
  • Ursa Major (constellation)
    in astronomy, a constellation of the Northern Hemisphere, at about 10 hours 40 minutes right ascension (the coordinate on the celestial sphere analogous to longitude on the Earth) and 56° north declination (angular distance north of the celestial equator). It was referred to in the Old Testament (Job 9:9; 38:32) and mentioned by Homer in the Iliad (xviii, 487). The Greeks identified this co...
  • Ursa Major cluster (astronomy)
    ...bright stars. Colour-magnitude diagrams, fitted to a standard plot of the main sequence, provide a common and reliable tool for determining distance. The nearest open cluster is the nucleus of the Ursa Major group at a distance of 65 light-years; the farthest clusters are thousands of light-years away....
  • Ursa Minor (constellation)
    in astronomy, a constellation of the northern sky, seven of whose stars outline the Little Dipper. Polaris (Alpha Ursae Minoris), at the end of the Little Dipper’s handle, marks (roughly) the position of the north celestial pole. The constellation lies at about 15 hours right ascension and 80° north declination....
  • “Ursache, Die” (work by Frank)
    ...the main theme of his writings—the humorous exposure and realistic portrayal of the narrowness of the middle classes. While in Switzerland he also published Die Ursache (1915; The Cause of the Crime), an attack on repressive educational systems, and Der Mensch ist gut (1917; “Man Is Good”), a revolutionary denunciation of war....
  • Ursaka (Bactrian noble)
    ...in Kharoshti and a small gold casket containing some bone relics of the Buddha were found in one of the chapels. The inscription refers to the enshrinement of the relics by a Bactrian named Ursaka from the town of Noacha in the year 136 bc for the bestowal of health on “the great King, Supreme King of Kings, the Son of Heaven, the Kushana” (probably Vima Kadphises, s...
  • Urschrift und Übersetzungen der Bibel in ihrer Abhängigkeit von der innern Entwicklung des Judentums (work by Geiger)
    ...most important works, including a translation into German of the works of Judah ben Samuel ha-Levi (1851), considered the greatest Hebrew poet of 12th-century Spain, and Geiger’s own magnum opus, Urschrift und Übersetzungen der Bibel in ihrer Abhängigkeit von der innern Entwicklung des Judentums (1857; “The Original Text and the Translations of the Bible: Thei...
  • Urseren valley (valley, Switzerland)
    ...[4,478 metres]), long a symbol of Switzerland. The northern and southern Swiss Alps are separated by the trough formed by the Rhône and upper Rhine valleys, the narrowest portion being the Urseren valley, which lies between two crystalline central massifs, the Gotthard and the Aare....
  • Urshu (ancient city, Turkey)
    ...The priority given to this town would suggest an approach to Syria through Cilicia and by the Belen Pass over the Nur Mountains. Two other cities, Igakalis and Taskhiniya, remain unidentified, but Urshu, which Hattusilis besieged (probably unsuccessfully) on his return journey, is known to have been located on the Euphrates above Carchemish. Rather curious in this account is the absence of any....
  • Ursidae (mammal)
    any of nine species of large, short-tailed carnivores found in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) is the smallest, often weighing less than 50 kg (110 pounds), and the largest is a subspecies of Alaskan brown bear called the Kodiak bear (Ursus arctos midde...
  • Ursino Castle (castle, Catania, Italy)
    ...the centre of the city has a distinctly 18th-century appearance. Ancient remains include the ruins of Greek and Roman theatres, and a Roman amphitheatre, basilica, baths, and aqueducts. The Ursino Castle with its four angular towers, constructed (1239–50) for Frederick II, long served as a model of military architecture. It now houses the civic museum with rich collections of art......
  • Ursins, Marie-Anne de la Trémoille, princesse des (French noble)
    French noblewoman who exercised great influence in the government of Spain between 1701 and 1714, during the period of the War of the Spanish Succession....
  • Ursinus (antipope)
    antipope from 366 to 367....
  • Ursinus, Fulvius (Italian scholar)
    ...manuscripts available, in a reaction against the excessive emendation of earlier scholars. Francesco Robortello (1516–67) also did important work on Aeschylus and Aristotle’s Poetics. Fulvius Ursinus (1529–1600) built up the Farnese library in Rome, edited the Greek lyric poets, and made important contributions to numismatics and iconography. Carolus Sigonius (1523...
  • Ursinus, Zacharias (German theologian)
    Reformed confession of faith that is used by many of the Reformed churches. It was written in 1562 primarily by Caspar Olevianus, the superintendent of the Palatinate church, and Zacharias Ursinus, a professor of the theological faculty of the University of Heidelberg. It was accepted at the annual synod of the Palatinate church in 1563....
  • Urso (Spain)
    town, Sevilla provincia (province), in the comunidad autónoma (autonomous community) of Andalusia, southern Spain. Osuna lies at the foot of a hill at the edge of an extensive plain, east-southeast of Sevilla city. Of Iberian origin, the town became the Ro...
  • Urso, Camilla (American musician)
    American musician who was recognized as one of the finest violinists of the latter half of the 19th century....
  • Ursona (Spain)
    town, Sevilla provincia (province), in the comunidad autónoma (autonomous community) of Andalusia, southern Spain. Osuna lies at the foot of a hill at the edge of an extensive plain, east-southeast of Sevilla city. Of Iberian origin, the town became the Ro...
  • Ursprache (linguistics)
    ...it was quite generally accepted and had become the cornerstone of the comparative method. Using the principle of regular sound change, scholars were able to reconstruct “ancestral” common forms from which the later forms found in particular languages could be derived. By convention, such reconstructed forms are marked in the literature with an asterisk. Thus, from the......
  • Ursprung der Gottesidee, Der (work by Schmidt)
    ...apply Graebner’s cultural-diffusion principle on a worldwide basis. He published extensively, addressing many of his writings on the family and social ethics to general readers. His major work is Der Ursprung der Gottesidee, 12 vol. (1912–55; “The Origin of the Idea of God”). In this and in his Ursprung und Werden der Religion (1930; The Origin and G...
  • Ursprung der musicalisch-Bachiscen Familie (work by Bach)
    He was a member of a remarkable family of musicians who were proud of their achievements, and about 1735 he drafted a genealogy, Ursprung der musicalisch-Bachischen Familie (“Origin of the Musical Bach Family”), in which he traced his ancestry back to his great-great-grandfather Veit Bach, a Lutheran baker (or miller) who late in the 16th century was driven from Hungary....
  • Ursprung und Beginn der Revolu-tionskriege 1791 und 1792 (work by Ranke)
    His books on the late 18th and early 19th centuries (Die deutschen Mächte und der Fürstenbund, 1871–72; Ursprung und Beginn der Revolutionskriege 1791 und 1792, 1875; Hardenberg und die Geschichte des preussischen Staates von 1793 bis 1813, 1877) are subtle accounts of complex political events but address themselves only indirectly to the central problems ...
  • Ursprung und Werden der Religion (work by Schmidt)
    ...on the family and social ethics to general readers. His major work is Der Ursprung der Gottesidee, 12 vol. (1912–55; “The Origin of the Idea of God”). In this and in his Ursprung und Werden der Religion (1930; The Origin and Growth of Religion), Schmidt maintained that most people around the world believe in a supreme being and that many religions outsi...
  • Ursúa, Pedro de (Spanish explorer)
    ...in Peru and took part in the Spanish suppression of Indian rebellions and in the wars that continually broke out between the Spanish conquerors. On Sept. 26, 1560, he joined an expedition led by Pedro de Ursúa to find the legendary kingdom of Eldorado, which was thought to be located at the headwaters of the Amazon River. Upon reaching the headwaters, Aguirre incited a rebellion in......
  • Ursula, Order of Saint (religious order)
    a Roman Catholic religious order of women founded at Brescia, Italy, in 1535, by St. Angela Merici, as the first institute for women dedicated exclusively to the education of girls. Angela and her 28 companions placed themselves under the protection of St. Ursula, a legendary 4th-century martyr whose cult was popular in medieval Europe. The original Ursulines ...
  • Ursula, Saint (Christian martyr)
    legendary leader of 11 or 11,000 virgins reputedly martyred at Cologne, now in Germany, by the Huns, 4th-century nomadic invaders of southeastern Europe. The story is based on a 4th- or 5th-century inscription from St. Ursula’s Church, Cologne, stating that an ancient basilica had been restored on the site where some holy virgins were killed. Mentioned again in an 8th- or 9th-century sermon...
  • Ursulines (religious order)
    a Roman Catholic religious order of women founded at Brescia, Italy, in 1535, by St. Angela Merici, as the first institute for women dedicated exclusively to the education of girls. Angela and her 28 companions placed themselves under the protection of St. Ursula, a legendary 4th-century martyr whose cult was popular in medieval Europe. The original Ursulines ...
  • Ursus americanus (mammal)
    the most common bear (family Ursidae), found in the forests of North America, including parts of Mexico. The American black bear consists of only one species, but its colour varies, even among members of the same litter. White markings may occur on the chest, sometimes in the shape of a V. Depending on their colour variations, black bears are often referred to as cinnamon bears,...
  • Ursus arctos (mammal)
    shaggy-haired bear (family Ursidae) native to Europe, Asia, and northwestern North America. More than 80 forms of brown bear have been described; they are treated as several subspecies of Ursus arctos. North American brown bears are traditionally called grizzlies (see grizzly bear)....
  • Ursus arctos beringianus (mammal)
    ...generally solitary animals that are able to run and swim well. They are usually 120–210 cm (48–84 inches) long and weigh 135–250 kg (300–550 pounds); the exceptionally large Siberian brown bear (Ursus arctos beringianus), weighing as much as 360 kg (800 pounds), approximates the size of the North American grizzly. Eurasian brown bears fee...
  • Ursus arctos middendorffi (mammal)
    (Ursus arctos middendorffi), variety of grizzly bear found on Kodiak Island, off the coast of Alaska. It is the largest of living land carnivores. See grizzly bear....
  • Ursus gyas (mammal)
    (Ursus arctos middendorffi), variety of grizzly bear found on Kodiak Island, off the coast of Alaska. It is the largest of living land carnivores. See grizzly bear....
  • Ursus horribilis (mammal)
    traditional name given to brown bears (Ursus arctos) of North America. Grizzly bears of the northern Rocky Mountains (U. arctos horribilis) are classified as a subspecies, as are the huge Kodiak bears (U. arctos middendorffi) of Alaska....
  • Ursus malayanus (mammal)
    smallest member of the family Ursidae, found in Southeast Asian forests. The bear (Helarctos, or Ursus, malayanus) is often tamed as a pet when young but becomes bad-tempered and dangerous as an adult. It weighs only 27–65 kg (59–143 pounds) and grows 1–1.2 m (3.3–4 feet) long with a 5-centimetre (2-inch) tail. Its large forepaws bear long,...
  • Ursus maritimus (mammal)
    great white northern bear (family Ursidae) found throughout the Arctic region. The polar bear travels long distances over vast desolate expanses, generally on drifting oceanic ice floes, searching for seals, its primary prey. Except for one subspecies of grizzly bear, the polar bear is the largest and most powerful carnivore...
  • Ursus middendorffi (mammal)
    (Ursus arctos middendorffi), variety of grizzly bear found on Kodiak Island, off the coast of Alaska. It is the largest of living land carnivores. See grizzly bear....
  • Ursus spelaeus (paleontology)
    extinct species of bear, notable for its habit of inhabiting caves, where its remains are frequently preserved; in European cave deposits, the remains of more than 100,000 cave bears have been found. The cave bear is best known from late Pleistocene cave deposits, although it can be traced back to Late Pliocene times (the Pliocene Epoch ended about 1.8 million...
  • Ursus thibetanus (mammal)
    member of the bear family (Ursidae) found in the Himalayas, Southeast Asia, and part of eastern Asia, including Japan. The Asiatic black bear is omnivorous, eating insects, fruit, nuts, beehives, small mammals, and birds, as well as carrion. It will occasionally attack domestic animals. It has a glossy black (sometimes brownish) coat, with a whitish mark shaped like a crescent m...
  • Urtaku (king of Elam)
    ...only as governor of Babylonia and through his policies obtained the support of the cities of Babylonia. At the beginning of his reign the Aramaean tribes were still allied with Elam against him, but Urtaku of Elam (675–664) signed a peace treaty and freed him for campaigning elsewhere. In 679 he stationed a garrison at the Egyptian border, because Egypt, under the Ethiopian king Taharqa,...
  • “Urteil, Das” (work by Kafka)
    ...or verbal device, as when the delusions of a pathological state are given the status of reality or when the metaphor of a common figure of speech is taken literally. Thus in The Judgment a son unquestioningly commits suicide at the behest of his aged father. In The Metamorphosis the son wakes up to find himself transformed into a monstrous......
  • Urtica (plant)
    the nettle family comprising about 45 genera of herbs, shrubs, small trees, and a few vines, distributed primarily in tropical regions. The family is typical of the nettle order (Urticales). Many species, especially the nettles (Urtica; see photograph) and Australian nettle trees (Laportea), have stinging hairs on the stems and leaves. The leaves are varied and the sap is usually......
  • Urtica dioica (plant)
    ...prevent a toxic internal accumulation of salt. In other cases, trichomes help prevent predation by insects, and many plants produce secretory (glandular) or stinging hairs (e.g., stinging nettle, Urtica dioica; Urticaceae) for chemical defense against herbivores. In insectivorous plants, trichomes have a part in trapping and digesting insects. Prickles, such as those found in roses, are....
  • Urticaceae (plant family)
    the nettle family comprising about 45 genera of herbs, shrubs, small trees, and a few vines, distributed primarily in tropical regions. The family is typical of the nettle order (Urticales). Many species, especially the nettles (Urtica; see ) and Australian nettle trees (Laportea), have stinging hairs on the stems and leaves. The leaves are varied and the sap is usually watery. The s...
  • urticaria (dermatology)
    a hypersensitive skin reaction characterized by the sudden appearance of very itchy, slightly raised, smooth, flat-topped wheals and plaques that are usually redder or paler than the surrounding skin. In the acute form, the skin lesions generally subside in 6 to 24 hours, but they may come and go and persist much longer in the chronic form....
  • urticaria bullosa (dermatology)
    Several specific causes of hives, as well as variant forms of its typical skin lesions, are denoted by qualifying the term urticaria with a descriptive word. Examples include urticaria bullosa, a rare type of allergic reaction characterized by the appearance of bullae or vesicles (large or small blisters); solar urticaria, produced by exposure to sunlight; and urticaria......
  • urticaria subcutanea (dermatology)
    ...include urticaria bullosa, a rare type of allergic reaction characterized by the appearance of bullae or vesicles (large or small blisters); solar urticaria, produced by exposure to sunlight; and urticaria subcutanea, caused by swelling of the tissues underlying the skin....
  • urtite (rock)
    ...U.S. The ijolites of Magnet Cove, Ark., U.S.; Ice River, B.C., Can.; and Sekukuniland, Transvaal, S. Afr., are among the better-known representatives found in rock collections. The rocks known as urtite (Kola Peninsula) and melteigite (near Fen, Nor.) are essentially similar assemblages; in the former, nepheline largely predominates, whereas the latter is a variant with an excessive......
  • Uru (people)
    The remnants of an ancient people, the Uru, still live on floating mats of dried totora (a reedlike papyrus that grows in dense brakes in the marshy shallows). From the totora, the Uru and other lake dwellers make their famed balsas—boats fashioned of bundles of dried reeds lashed together that resemble the crescent-shaped papyrus craft pictured on ancient Egyptian monuments....
  • Uruapan (Mexico)
    city, west-central Michoacán estado (state), west-central Mexico. Founded in 1533, Uruapan (from a Tarascan Indian term meaning “where the flowers abound”) is famous for its Spanish-colonial atmosphere and colourful lacquerware and Indian handicrafts (see ). It is a rail terminus and agricultural marketing and processing centre in an area that pro...
  • Uruapan del Progreso (Mexico)
    city, west-central Michoacán estado (state), west-central Mexico. Founded in 1533, Uruapan (from a Tarascan Indian term meaning “where the flowers abound”) is famous for its Spanish-colonial atmosphere and colourful lacquerware and Indian handicrafts (see ). It is a rail terminus and agricultural marketing and processing centre in an area that pro...
  • Urubamba River (river, Peru)
    river in the Amazon drainage system, rising in the Andes of southern Peru. It flows for about 450 miles (725 km) to its junction with the Apurímac, where it forms the Ucayali. The upper part of the Urubamba, there called the Vilcanota, flows past the towns of Sicuani, Urcos, and Urubamba and is densely settled by Indian farmers. Below Urubamba, in the Gorge of Torontoy, the river plunges fr...
  • Urucuia (river, Brazil)
    ...and Bahia, through the extensive Sobradinho Reservoir, to the twin cities of Juàzeiro and Petrolina. In this stretch the river receives its main left-bank tributaries—the Paracatu, Urucuia, Corrente, and Grande rivers—and its main right-bank tributaries—the Verde Grande, Paramirim, and Jacaré....
  • Uruguaiana (Brazil)
    city, western Rio Grande do Sul estado (state), southern Brazil. It lies along the Uruguay River, across the bridge from the town of Paso de los Libres, Argentina. Founded in 1839 as Sant’ Ana do Uruguai, Uruguaiana was made a town and renamed in 1846; city status was accorded in 1874. Uruguaiana is a livestock (sheep and cattle)...
  • Uruguay
    country located on the southeastern coast of South America. The second smallest nation on the continent, Uruguay has long been overshadowed politically and economically by the adjacent republics of Brazil and Argentina, with both of which it shares many cultural and historical similarities. “On the map, surrounded by its large neighbors, Uruguay seems tiny,” writes...
  • Uruguay, flag of
    ...
  • Uruguay, history of
    Before the arrival of Europeans, the territory that is now Uruguay supported a small population estimated at no more than 5,000 to 10,000. The principal groups were the seminomadic Charrúa, Chaná (Chanáes), and Guaraní Indians. The Guaraní, who were concentrated in the subtropical forests of eastern Paraguay, established some settlements in northern Uruguay.......
  • Uruguay River (river, South America)
    river in southern South America that rises in the coastal range of southern Brazil. Its chief headstream, the Pelotas River, rises just 40 miles (64 km) from the Atlantic coast at Alto do Bispo in Santa Catarina state, Brazil, and takes the name Uruguay after it is joined by the Canoas River near Piratuba. Flowing west through the coastal range of Brazil (separating Santa Catarina and Rio Grande d...
  • Uruguay Round (international treaty, 1986-94)
    The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (commonly known as TRIPS) has contributed greatly to the expansion of intellectual-property law. Negotiated as part of the Uruguay Round (1986–94) of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), the TRIPS Agreement obligates members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) to establish and enforce minimum levels of......
  • Uruguayana (Brazil)
    city, western Rio Grande do Sul estado (state), southern Brazil. It lies along the Uruguay River, across the bridge from the town of Paso de los Libres, Argentina. Founded in 1839 as Sant’ Ana do Uruguai, Uruguaiana was made a town and renamed in 1846; city status was accorded in 1874. Uruguaiana is a livestock (sheep and cattle)...
  • Uruk (ancient city, Iraq)
    ancient Mesopotamian city located northwest of Ur (Tall Al-Muqayyar) in southeastern Iraq. The site has been excavated from 1928 onward by the German Oriental Society and the German Archeological Institute. Erech was one of the greatest cities of Sumer and was enclosed by brickwork walls about 6 miles (10 km) in circumference, which according to legend were built by the mythical hero Gilg...
  • Uruk Vase (Mesopotamian art)
    ...all major sites—e.g., Eridu, Ur, Nippur, Babylon, Ashur, Kalakh (biblical Calah), Nineveh—as well as numerous works of art from various periods, are important sources of information. The Uruk Vase, with its representation of the rite of the sacred marriage, the Naram-Sin stela (inscribed commemorative pillar), the Ur-Nammu stela, and the stela with the Code of Hammurabi (Babylonia...
  • Uruk-Jamdat Nasr Period (Mesopotamian history)
    ...considered to have been contemporary with the founding of the Sumerian cities and the invention of writing, in about 3100 bc. Conscious attempts at architectural design during this so-called Protoliterate period (c. 3400–c. 2900 bc) are recognizable in the construction of religious buildings. There is, however, one temple, at Abū Shahrayn (ancient Eridu...
  • UruKAgina (king of Lagash)
    ...On the other hand, there is the archive of some 1,200 tablets—insofar as these have been published—from the temple of Baba, the city goddess of Girsu, from the period of Lugalanda and UruKAgina (first half of the 24th century). For generations, Lagash and Umma contested the possession and agricultural usufruct of the fertile region of Gu’edena. To begin with, some two gener...
  • Urukug (ancient city, Iraq)
    in Mesopotamian religion, city goddess of Urukug in the Lagash region of Sumer and, under the name Nininsina, the Queen of Isin, city goddess of Isin, south of Nippur. In Nippur she was called Ninnibru, Queen of Nippur....
  • Ürümchi (China)
    city and capital of the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, northwestern China. The city (whose name in Uighur means “Fine Pasture”) is situated in a fertile belt of oases along the northern slope of the eastern Tien (Tian) Shan range. Ürümqi commands the northern end of a gap leading from the Tarim Basin into the Junggar ...
  • Urumchi (China)
    city and capital of the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, northwestern China. The city (whose name in Uighur means “Fine Pasture”) is situated in a fertile belt of oases along the northern slope of the eastern Tien (Tian) Shan range. Ürümqi commands the northern end of a gap leading from the Tarim Basin into the Junggar ...
  • Urūmiyeh (Iran)
    city, extreme northwestern Iran. It lies just west of Lake Urmia on a large fertile plain that yields grains, fruits, tobacco, and other crops. The population is mainly Azeri Turkish, with Kurdish, Assyrian Christian, and Armenian minorities. The remains of ancient settlements are scattered over the plain, as are traces of the ancient kingdom of Urartu....
  • Urumqi (China)
    city and capital of the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, northwestern China. The city (whose name in Uighur means “Fine Pasture”) is situated in a fertile belt of oases along the northern slope of the eastern Tien (Tian) Shan range. Ürümqi commands the northern end of a gap leading from the Tarim Basin into the Junggar ...
  • Ürümqi (China)
    city and capital of the Uygur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang, northwestern China. The city (whose name in Uighur means “Fine Pasture”) is situated in a fertile belt of oases along the northern slope of the eastern Tien (Tian) Shan range. Ürümqi commands the northern end of a gap leading from the Tarim Basin into the Junggar ...
  • Urundi (historical territory, Africa)
    twin territory in central East Africa that was administered by Belgium from 1922 to 1962 and which thereafter became the independent states of Rwanda and Burundi. After World War I, in 1922, with an adjustment of frontiers, a slice of what had been formerly German East Africa came under Belgian control and, in 1924, became the mandate of Ruanda-Urundi, under ...
  • Urupês (work by Monteiro Lobato)
    ...in the character of Jeca Tatu. The plight of the neglected, malnourished backwoods populations was described with sarcasm and compassion in Lobato’s short stories, collected in Urupês (1918; “Urupês”). Faced with the paucity of Brazilian books for young readers, Lobato also wrote 17 volumes of children’s stories and is considere...
  • Urusalim (Israel)
    ancient city of the Middle East that since 1967 has been wholly under the rule of the State of Israel....
  • urushiol (oil)
    ...examples of a plant that can provoke a contact hypersensitivity reaction is poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans), found throughout North America. It secretes an oil called urushiol, which is also produced by poison oak (T. diversilobum), the poison primrose (Primula obconica), and the lacquer tree (......
  • “Urvaśī Won by Valour” (drama by Kālidāsa)
    ...of which is the Mālavikāgnimitra (“Agnimitra and Mālavikā”), a harem play of amorous intrigue at a royal court. The other two are based on old themes. Vikramorvaśī (“Urvaśī Won by Valour”) is based on a story as old as the Rigveda, that of the nymph Urvaśī, who is loved by King Pur...
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