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Gaul

Gaul (Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of 494,000 km2. According to Julius Caesar, who took control of the region on behalf of the Roman Republic, Gaul was divided into three parts: Gallia Celtica, Belgica, and Aquitania.

Archaeologically, the Gauls were bearers of the La Tène culture during the 5th to 1st centuries BC. This material culture was found not only in all of Gaul but also as far east as modern-day southern Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary.

Gallia Cisalpina was conquered by the Romans in 204 BC and Gallia Narbonensis in 123 BC. Gaul was invaded after 120 BC by the Cimbri and the Teutons, who were in turn defeated by the Romans by 103 BC. Julius Caesar finally subdued the largest part of Gaul in his campaigns of 58 to 51 BC. Roman control of Gaul lasted for five centuries, until the last Roman rump state, the Domain of Soissons, fell to the Franks in AD 486.

While the Celtic Gauls lost their original identities and language during Late Antiquity, becoming amalgamated into a Gallo-Roman culture, Gallia remained the conventional name of the territory throughout the Early Middle Ages, until it acquired a new identity as the Capetian Kingdom of France in the high medieval period. Gallia remains a name of France in modern Greek (Γαλλία) and modern Latin (besides the alternatives Francia and Francogallia).

Name
The Greek and Latin names Galatia (first attested by Timaeus of Tauromenium in the 4th century BC) and Gallia are ultimately derived from a Celtic ethnic term or clan Gal(a)-to-. The Galli of Gallia Celtica were reported to refer to themselves as Celtae by Caesar. Hellenistic etymology connected the name of the Galatians (Γαλάται, Galátai) to the supposedly "milk-white" skin (γάλα, gála "milk") of the Gauls. Modern researchers say it is related to Welsh gallu, galloes, "capacity, power", thus meaning "powerful people".

Despite its superficial similarity, the normal English translation of Gallia since the Middle Ages, Gaul, has a different origin than the Latin term. It stems from the French Gaule, itself deriving from the Old Frankish *Walholant (via a Latinized form *Walula), literally the "Land of the Foreigners/Romans". *Walho- is a reflex of the Proto-Germanic *walhaz, "foreigner, Romanized person", an exonym applied by Germanic speakers to Celts and Latin-speaking people indiscriminately. It is cognate with the names Wales, Cornwall, Wallonia, and Wallachia. The Germanic w- is regularly rendered as gu- / g- in French (cf. guerre "war", garder "ward", Guillaume "William"), and the historic diphthong au is the regular outcome of al before a following consonant (cf. cheval ~ chevaux). French Gaule or Gaulle cannot be derived from Latin Gallia, since g would become j before a (cf. gamba > jambe), and the diphthong au would be unexplained; the regular outcome of Latin Gallia is Jaille in French, which is found in several western place names, such as, La Jaille-Yvon and Saint-Mars-la-Jaille. Proto-Germanic *walha is derived ultimately from the name of the Volcae.

Also unrelated, in spite of superficial similarity, is the name Gael. The Irish word gall did originally mean "a Gaul", i.e. an inhabitant of Gaul, but its meaning was later widened to "foreigner", to describe the Vikings, and later still the Normans. The dichotomic words gael and gall are sometimes used together for contrast, for instance in the 12th-century book Cogad Gáedel re Gallaib.

As adjectives, English has the two variants: Gaulish and Gallic. The two adjectives are used synonymously, as "pertaining to Gaul or the Gauls", although the Celtic language group once spoken in Gaul is predominantly known as Gaulish.

Pre-Roman Gaul

There is little written information concerning the peoples that inhabited the regions of Gaul, save what can be gleaned from coins. Therefore, the early history of the Gauls is predominantly a matter of archaeology, and the relationships between their material culture, genetic relationships (the study of which has been aided, in recent years, through the field of archaeogenetics) and linguistic divisions rarely coincide.

Before the rapid spread of the La Tène culture in the 5th to 4th centuries BC, the territory of eastern and southern France already participated in the Late Bronze Age Urnfield culture (c. 12th to 8th centuries BC) out of which the early iron-working Hallstatt culture (7th to 6th centuries BC) would develop. By 500 BC, there is strong Hallstatt influence throughout most of France (except for the Alps and the extreme north-west).

Out of this Hallstatt background, the La Tène culture arose during the 7th and 6th century BC, presumably representing an early form of Continental Celtic culture and likely under Mediterranean influence from the Greek, Phoenician, and Etruscan civilizations. This culture spread out in a number of early centers along the Seine, the Middle Rhine and the upper Elbe. By the late 5th century BC, La Tène influence spread rapidly across the entire territory of Gaul.

The La Tène culture developed and flourished during the late Iron Age (from 450 BC to the Roman conquest in the 1st century BC) in France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, southwest Germany, Bohemia, Moravia, Slovakia and Hungary. Farther north extended the contemporary pre-Roman Iron Age culture of northern Germany and Scandinavia.

A major archaeogenetics study uncovered a migration into southern Britain in the Bronze Age, during the 500-year period from 1300 to 800 BC. The newcomers were genetically most closely related to ancient individuals from Gaul. The authors describe this as a "plausible vector for the spread of early Celtic languages into Britain".

The major source of materials on the Celts of Gaul was Poseidonios of Apamea, whose writings were quoted by Timagenes, Julius Caesar, the Sicilian Greek Diodorus Siculus, and the Greek geographer Strabo.

In the 4th and early 3rd century BC, Gallic clan confederations expanded far beyond the territory of what would become Roman Gaul (which defines usage of the term "Gaul" today), into Pannonia, Illyria, northern Italy, Transylvania and even Asia Minor. By the 2nd century BC, the Romans described Gallia Transalpina as distinct from Gallia Cisalpina. In his Gallic Wars, Julius Caesar distinguishes among three ethnic groups in Gaul: the Belgae in the north (roughly between the Rhine and the Seine), the Celtae in the center and in Armorica, and the Aquitani in the southwest, the southeast being already colonized by the Romans. While some scholars believe the Belgae south of the Somme were a mixture of Celtic and Germanic elements, their ethnic affiliations have not been definitively resolved. One of the reasons is political interference upon the French historical interpretation during the 19th century.

In addition to the Gauls, there were other peoples living in Gaul, such as the Greeks and Phoenicians who had established outposts such as Massilia (present-day Marseille) along the Mediterranean coast. Also, along the southeastern French Mediterranean coast, the Ligures had merged with the Celts to form a Celto-Ligurian culture.

Initial contact with Rome
In the 2nd century BC Mediterranean Gaul had an extensive urban fabric and was prosperous. Archeologists know of cities in northern Gaul including the Biturigian capital of Avaricum (Bourges), Cenabum (Orléans), Autricum (Chartres) and the excavated site of Bibracte near Autun in Saône-et-Loire, along with a number of hill forts (or oppida) used in times of war. The prosperity of Mediterranean Gaul encouraged Rome to respond to pleas for assistance from the inhabitants of Massilia, who found themselves under attack by a coalition of Ligures and Gauls. The Romans intervened in Gaul in 154 BC and again in 125 BC. Whereas on the first occasion they came and went, on the second they stayed. In 122 BC Domitius Ahenobarbus managed to defeat the Allobroges (allies of the Salluvii), while in the ensuing year Quintus Fabius Maximus "destroyed" an army of the Arverni led by their king Bituitus, who had come to the aid of the Allobroges. Rome allowed Massilia to keep its lands, but added to its own territories the lands of the conquered tribes. As a direct result of these conquests, Rome now controlled an area extending from the Pyrenees to the lower Rhône river, and in the east up the Rhône valley to Lake Geneva. By 121 BC Romans had conquered the Mediterranean region called Provincia (later named Gallia Narbonensis). This conquest upset the ascendancy of the Gaulish Arverni peoples.

Conquest by Rome

The Roman proconsul and general Julius Caesar led his army into Gaul in 58 BC, ostensibly to assist Rome's Gaullish allies against the migrating Helvetii. With the help of various Gallic clans (e.g., the Aedui) he managed to conquer nearly all of Gaul. While their military was just as strong as the Romans', the internal division between the Gallic tribes guaranteed an easy victory for Caesar, and Vercingetorix's attempt to unite the Gauls against Roman invasion came too late. Julius Caesar was checked by Vercingetorix at a siege of Gergovia, a fortified town in the center of Gaul. Caesar's alliances with many Gallic clans broke. Even the Aedui, their most faithful supporters, threw in their lot with the Arverni but the ever-loyal Remi (best known for its cavalry) and Lingones sent troops to support Caesar. The Germani of the Ubii also sent cavalry, which Caesar equipped with Remi horses. Caesar captured Vercingetorix in the Battle of Alesia, which ended the majority of Gallic resistance to Rome.

As many as a million people (probably 1 in 5 of the Gauls) died, another million were enslaved, 300 clans were subjugated and 800 cities were destroyed during the Gallic Wars. The entire population of the city of Avaricum (Bourges) (40,000 in all) were slaughtered. Before Julius Caesar's campaign against the Helvetii (Switzerland), the Helvetians had numbered 263,000, but afterwards only 100,000 remained, most of whom Caesar took as slaves.

Roman Gaul
After Gaul was absorbed as Gallia, a set of Roman provinces, its inhabitants gradually adopted aspects of Roman culture and assimilated, resulting in the distinct Gallo-Roman culture. Citizenship was granted to all in 212 by the Constitutio Antoniniana. From the third to 5th centuries, Gaul was exposed to raids by the Franks. The Gallic Empire, consisting of the provinces of Gaul, Britannia, and Hispania, including the peaceful Baetica in the south, broke away from Rome from 260 to 273. In addition to the large number of natives, Gallia also became home to some Roman citizens from elsewhere and also in-migrating Germanic and Scythian tribes such as the Alans.

The religious practices of inhabitants became a combination of Roman and Celtic practice, with Celtic deities such as Cobannus and Epona subjected to interpretatio romana. The imperial cult and Eastern mystery religions also gained a following. Eventually, after it became the official religion of the Empire and paganism became suppressed, Christianity won out in the twilight days of the Western Roman Empire (while the Christianized Eastern Roman Empire lasted another thousand years, until the invasion of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453); a small but notable Jewish presence also became established.

The Gaulish language is thought to have survived into the 6th century in France, despite considerable Romanization of the local material culture. The last record of spoken Gaulish deemed to be plausibly credible concerned the destruction by Christians of a pagan shrine in Auvergne "called Vasso Galatae in the Gallic tongue". Coexisting with Latin, Gaulish helped shape the Vulgar Latin dialects that developed into French.

The Vulgar Latin in the region of Gallia took on a distinctly local character, some of which is attested in graffiti, which evolved into the Gallo-Romance dialects which include French and its closest relatives. The influence of substrate languages may be seen in graffiti showing sound changes that matched changes that had earlier occurred in the indigenous languages, especially Gaulish. The Vulgar Latin in the north of Gaul evolved into the langues d'oïl and Franco-Provencal, while the dialects in the south evolved into the modern Occitan and Catalan tongues. Other languages held to be "Gallo-Romance" include the Gallo-Italic languages and the Rhaeto-Romance languages.

Frankish Gaul
Following Frankish victories at Soissons (AD 486), Vouillé (AD 507) and Autun (AD 532), Gaul (except for Brittany and Septimania) came under the rule of the Merovingians, the first kings of France. Gallo-Roman culture, the Romanized culture of Gaul under the rule of the Roman Empire, persisted particularly in the areas of Gallia Narbonensis that developed into Occitania, Gallia Cisalpina and to a lesser degree, Aquitania. The formerly Romanized north of Gaul, once it had been occupied by the Franks, developed into Merovingian culture instead. Roman life, centered on the public events and cultural responsibilities of urban life in the res publica and the sometimes luxurious life of the self-sufficient rural villa system, took longer to collapse in the Gallo-Roman regions, where the Visigoths largely inherited the status quo in the early 5th century. Gallo-Roman language persisted in the northeast into the Silva Carbonaria that formed an effective cultural barrier, with the Franks to the north and east, and in the northwest to the lower valley of the Loire, where Gallo-Roman culture interfaced with Frankish culture in a city like Tours and in the person of that Gallo-Roman bishop confronted with Merovingian royals, Gregory of Tours.

Social structure, indigenous nation and clans
The Druids were not the only political force in Gaul, however, and the early political system was complex, if ultimately fatal to the society as a whole. The fundamental unit of Gallic politics was the clan, which itself consisted of one or more of what Caesar called pagi. Each clan had a council of elders, and initially a king. Later, the executive was an annually-elected magistrate. Among the Aedui, a clan of Gaul, the executive held the title of Vergobret, a position much like a king, but his powers were held in check by rules laid down by the council.

The regional ethnic groups, or pagi as the Romans called them (singular: pagus; the French word pays, "region" [a more accurate translation is 'country'], comes from this term), were organized into larger multi-clan groups, which the Romans called civitates. These administrative groupings would be taken over by the Romans in their system of local control, and these civitates would also be the basis of France's eventual division into ecclesiastical bishoprics and dioceses, which would remain in place—with slight changes—until the French Revolution.

Although the clans were moderately stable political entities, Gaul as a whole tended to be politically divided, there being virtually no unity among the various clans. Only during particularly trying times, such as the invasion of Caesar, could the Gauls unite under a single leader like Vercingetorix. Even then, however, the faction lines were clear.

The Romans divided Gaul broadly into Provincia (the conquered area around the Mediterranean), and the northern Gallia Comata ("free Gaul" or "long-haired Gaul"). Caesar divided the people of Gallia Comata into three broad groups: the Aquitani; Galli (who in their own language were called Celtae); and Belgae. In the modern sense, Gaulish peoples are defined linguistically, as speakers of dialects of the Gaulish language. While the Aquitani were probably Vascons, the Belgae would thus probably be a mixture of Celtic and Germanic elements.

Julius Caesar, in his book, The Gallic Wars wrote,

"All Gaul is divided into three parts, one of which the Belgae inhabit, the Aquitani another, those who in their own language are called Celts, in our Gauls, the third. All these differ from each other in language, customs and laws. The river Garonne separates the Gauls from the Aquitani; the Marne and the Seine separate them from the Belgae. Of all these, the Belgae are the bravest, because they are furthest from the civilization and refinement of [our] Province, and merchants least frequently resort to them, and import those things which tend to effeminate the mind; and they are the nearest to the Germans, who dwell beyond the Rhine, with whom they are continually waging war; for which reason the Helvetii also surpass the rest of the Gauls in valor, as they contend with the Germans in almost daily battles, when they either repel them from their own territories, or themselves wage war on their frontiers. One part of these, which it has been said that the Gauls occupy, takes its beginning at the river Rhone; it is bounded by the river Garonne, the ocean, and the territories of the Belgae; it borders, too, on the side of the Sequani and the Helvetii, upon the river Rhine, and stretches toward the north. The Belgae rises from the extreme frontier of Gaul, extend to the lower part of the river Rhine; and look toward the north and the rising sun. Aquitania extends from the river Garonne to the Pyrenaean mountains and to that part of the ocean which is near Spain: it looks between the setting of the sun, and the north star."

Religion
The Gauls practiced a form of animism, ascribing human characteristics to lakes, streams, mountains, and other natural features and granting them a quasi-divine status. Also, worship of animals was not uncommon; the animal most sacred to the Gauls was the boar which can be found on many Gallic military standards, much like the Roman eagle.

Their system of gods and goddesses was loose, there being certain deities which virtually every Gallic person worshipped, as well as clan and household gods. Many of the major gods were related to Greek gods; the primary god worshipped at the time of the arrival of Caesar was Teutates, the Gallic equivalent of Mercury. The "ancestor god" of the Gauls was identified by Julius Caesar in his Commentarii de Bello Gallico with the Roman god Dis Pater.

Perhaps the most intriguing facet of Gallic religion is the practice of the Druids. The druids presided over human or animal sacrifices that were made in wooded groves or crude temples. They also appear to have held the responsibility for preserving the annual agricultural calendar and instigating seasonal festivals which corresponded to key points of the lunar-solar calendar. The religious practices of druids were syncretic and borrowed from earlier pagan traditions, with probably indo-European roots. Julius Caesar mentions in his Gallic Wars that those Celts who wanted to make a close study of druidism went to Britain to do so. In a little over a century later, Gnaeus Julius Agricola mentions Roman armies attacking a large druid sanctuary in Anglesey in Wales. There is no certainty concerning the origin of the druids, but it is clear that they vehemently guarded the secrets of their order and held sway over the people of Gaul. Indeed, they claimed the right to determine questions of war and peace, and thereby held an "international" status. In addition, the Druids monitored the religion of ordinary Gauls and were in charge of educating the aristocracy. They also practiced a form of excommunication from the assembly of worshippers, which in ancient Gaul meant a separation from secular society as well. Thus the Druids were an important part of Gallic society. The nearly complete and mysterious disappearance of the Celtic language from most of the territorial lands of ancient Gaul, with the exception of Brittany, can be attributed to the fact that Celtic druids refused to allow the Celtic oral literature or traditional wisdom to be committed to the written letter.

title: Gaul


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Congress

A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of adversaries) during battle, from the Latin congressus.

International relations
The following congresses were formal meetings of representatives of different nations:
 * The Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668), which ended the War of Devolution
 * The Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), which ended the War of the Austrian Succession
 * The Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle (1818)
 * The Congress of Berlin (1878), which settled the Eastern Question after the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)
 * The Congress of Gniezno (1000)
 * The Congress of Laibach (1821)
 * The Congress of Panama, an 1826 meeting organized by Simón Bolívar
 * The Congress of Paris (1856), which ended the Crimean War
 * The Congress of Troppau (1820)
 * The Congress of Tucumán (1816)
 * The Congress of Utrecht (1712–1713)
 * The Congress of Verona (1822)
 * The Congress of Vienna (1814–15), which settled the shape of Europe after the Napoleonic Wars
 * The Congress of the Council of Europe.

Presidential and semi-presidential systems
In the mid-1770s, to emphasize each one's status as a state in its own right, the term was chosen by the British colonies that became the United States of America. The term has since been adopted by many nations to refer to their legislatures.
 * The United States Congress is the bicameral legislative branch of the United States federal government.
 * The Continental Congress (1774–1781) was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that became the Congress of the Confederation (1781–1789), legislature of the United States under the Articles of Confederation.
 * The Confederate States Congress of 1861–1865, during the American Civil War.
 * The Congress of Guatemala (Spanish: Congreso de la República) is the unicameral legislature of Guatemala.
 * The National Congress of Honduras (Spanish: Congreso nacional) is the legislative branch of the government of Honduras.
 * The Congress of Mexico (Congreso de la Unión) is the legislative branch of Mexican government.
 * The Congress of Paraguay is the bicameral legislature of Paraguay.
 * The Congress of the Argentine Nation (Spanish: Congreso de la Nación Argentina) is the legislative branch of the government of Argentina.
 * The Congress of the Dominican Republic is the bicameral legislature of the Dominican Republic.
 * The Palau National Congress (Palauan: Olbiil era Kelulau) is the bicameral legislative branch of the Republic of Palau.
 * The Congress of the Federated States of Micronesia is the unicameral legislature of the Federated States of Micronesia.
 * The Congress of the Philippines (Filipino: Kongreso ng Pilipinas) is the legislative branch of the Philippine government.
 * The Congress of the Republic of Peru (Spanish: Congreso de la República) is the unicameral legislature of Peru.
 * The Congress of Colombia (Spanish: Congreso de la República) is the bicameral legislature of Colombia.
 * The National Congress of Bolivia was the national legislature of Bolivia before being replaced by the Plurinational Legislative Assembly.
 * The National Congress of Brazil (Congresso Nacional) is the bicameral legislature of Brazil.
 * The National Congress of Chile (Spanish: Congreso Nacional) is the legislative branch of the government of Chile.
 * The National Congress of Ecuador was the unicameral legislature of Ecuador before being replaced by the National Assembly.
 * France:
 * The Congress of the French Parliament refers specifically when both houses of France's legislature sit together as a single body, usually at the Palace of Versailles, to vote on revisions to the Constitution, to listen to an address by the President of the French Republic, and, in the past, to elect the President of the Republic
 * The Congress of New Caledonia is the national legislature under the semi-presidential system of the autonomous collectivity.

Non-presidential systems

 * Spanish Congress of Deputies (Spanish: Congreso de los Diputados) is the lower house of the Cortes Generales, Spain's legislative branch.
 * The National Congress of Belgium was a temporary legislative assembly in 1830, which created a constitution for the new state.
 * The legislature of the People's Republic of China is known in English as the National People's Congress.
 * The Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union was the legislature and nominal supreme institution of state power in the Soviet Union.
 * Congress of People's Deputies of Russia was modeled after the Soviet Union's and existed in 1990–1993.
 * The Congress of Cuba was the bicameral legislature of Cuba from 1902 to 1959.

Parties
Many political parties have a party congress every few years to make decisions for the party and elect governing bodies, while others call it a party convention. Congress is included in the name of several political parties, especially those in former British colonies:
 * India
 * Indian National Congress
 * All India Trinamool Congress
 * Kerala Congress
 * Nationalist Congress Party
 * Tamil Maanila Congress
 * USA Congress
 * Janta Congress Chhattisgarh
 * All India N.R. Congress
 * Canary Islands
 * National Congress of the Canaries
 * Eswatini
 * Ngwane National Liberatory Congress
 * Fiji
 * National Congress of Fiji
 * Guyana
 * People's National Congress

 * Lesotho
 * Basotho Congress Party
 * Lesotho Congress for Democracy
 * Lesotho People's Congress
 * Malawi
 * Malawi Congress Party
 * Malaysia
 * Malaysian Indian Congress
 * Namibia
 * Congress of Democrats
 * Nepal
 * Nepali Congress
 * Pakistan
 * Peoples Revolutionary Congress Pakistan
 * Sierra Leone
 * All People's Congress
 * South Africa
 * African National Congress
 * Congress of the People
 * Pan-Africanist Congress
 * Sri Lanka
 * All Ceylon Tamil Congress
 * Sri Lanka Muslim Congress
 * Sudan
 * National Congress (Sudan)
 * Trinidad and Tobago
 * United National Congress
 * Uganda
 * Ugandan People's Congress
 * Iraqi National Congress

Political organizations

 * National Congress of American Indians
 * Congress of Racial Equality
 * Continental Congress 2.0

Labor congresses

 * Congress of Industrial Organizations
 * Trade Union Congress of the Philippines
 * Trades Union Congress
 * Canadian Labour Congress

Religious Congresses
Catholic Congresses Eucharistic Congresses 1947 Marian Congress

Non-political congresses
Congress is an alternative name for a large national or international academic conference. For instance, the World Congress on Men's Health is an annual meeting on men's medical issues.

Organizations in some athletic sports, such as bowling, have historically been named "congresses". The predecessors to the United States Bowling Congress (formed in 1995) were the American Bowling Congress (founded in 1895) and the Women's International Bowling Congress (founded in 1927). A chess congress is a chess tournament, in one city, where a large number of contestants gather to play competitive chess over a limited period of time; typically one day to one week, or more.

ICCA Congress & Exhibition

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Congress


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User:Chexum

A surprisingly uniquish distortion of the term checksum.

Also a Linux freak. I'm not that famous to tell more about me. IMHO

I plan to work on improving on the following topics:

 * supernova, nova
 * hungarian, hungarian language: crosslink, reedit.
 * language families and languages: fill in the rest of uralic languages.
 * hypercomplex numbers: mention the method to stem them from complex numbers, also the ones that build upon nonnegative square results.
 * Miscellaneous core IT specific technology terms.
 * Commodore and Amiga history, factlets.

It will just take its time :)

See also:

 * http://www.last.fm/user/chexum/
 * http://chexum.livejournal.com/profile
 * http://www.advogato.org/person/chexum/
 * http://slashdot.org/~Chexum
 * http://freshmeat.net/~chexum/

title: User:Chexum


text:
User:MarXidad

$$\bigodot$$ Mark Cidade (𐌼𐌰𐍂𐌺 𐌱𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌲𐍃)

 * My Contributions
 * Wikipedia
 * Wikiquote
 * Wiktionary

 * Sandbox

title: User:MarXidad


text:
Talk:Statistics

Please click here to add new comments at the bottom of this page.

First sentence
With all due respect, I think that the first sentence does not belong in an encyclopedia. At best it is an opinion and, at worst, it is an incorrect statement. Rather than a branch of mathematics, many would argue that statistics is a discipline in its own right. Of course statistics uses mathematical tools---as does physics, chemistry, computer science, etc.---but, then again, it also uses computational tools. On a related note, referring to one as a statistician does not imply that one is a mathematician (which would necessarily be the case if statistics were indeed a branch of mathematics).

Looking at the websites of the largest organizations that represent those who actually work in the field will help reinforce the view that, within an encyclopedia, statistics should not be positioned as a branch of mathematics. Note that the American Statistical Association is one such organization.

I also draw your attention to the relevant entry in Encyclopedia Britannica, which does not assert that statistics is a branch of mathematics.

I suggest the following alternative first sentence: Statistics is the disciple that concerns the collection, visualization, exploration, analysis and modelling of data as well as the development of theory, methods and tools pertaining thereto.

 * The article goes back and forth on this issue. For much of its history the wording has matched your viewpoint (with which I agree). The wording was changed to its current formulation in this edit from 2017.
 * All edits, especially on contentious points like this one, need to be supported by Reliable sources. So please include those in your proposed text. And if there are reliable sources espousing the opposite viewpoint, then we have to write text that supports both viewpoints. Mgnbar (talk) 18:39, 2 August 2019 (UTC)

 * Thanks for the response Mgnbar. I agree that it would be interesting to add a piece to the entry dealing with both viewpoints on whether statistics is a branch of mathematics. However, I do not see why a topic on which there is not clear agreement would have any place in the first sentence? Surely, the first sentence should simply define what statistics clearly is and the relationship with other disciplines such as mathematics and data science discussed later (perhaps in a dedicated section), with different points of view provided? Once I have clarity on how to proceed, it will not be difficult to add Reliable sources. Oscohe (talk) 19:16, 2 August 2019 (UTC)

 * I don't know you as an editor, so I apologize for telling you things that you already know. But please engage the issue of reliable sources now rather than later. Our job is not to say what statistics is. Our job is to summarize what reliable sources say it is.
 * Two reliable sources are already cited in the first sentence. I can't access the first source exactly, but it might be identical to this, which says, "The science of collecting, displaying, and analysing data." The second source says, "Statistics is a mathematical and conceptual discipline that focuses on the relation between data and hypotheses." So these two sources do not define statistics as a branch of mathematics, so the current opening sentence is misleading.
 * If you want to help Wikipedia a lot, then find one or two more sources, list their definitions of statistics here, and then summarize all of the definitions in the opening sentence of the article. I hope that they all agree, so that the opening sentence remains succinct. If they disagree, however, then we should acknowledge that somewhere in the article. Mgnbar (talk) 20:10, 2 August 2019 (UTC)

 * Thanks again for this and my apologies for the slow reply. I really appreciate the careful response you provided. I agree that the first sentence is misleading because the definition does not agree with what is found at either of the stated references.

 * In addition to the reliable sources you cite and those already given in relation to the first sentence, here are some others. The Cambridge Dictionary defines statistics as "the science of using information discovered from collecting, organizing, and studying numbers", which is quite similar to the Oxford definition you provide above. Another similar, but longer, definition is given at Dictionary.com: "the science that deals with the collection, classification, analysis, and interpretation of numerical facts or data, and that, by use of mathematical theories of probability, imposes order and regularity on aggregates of more or less disparate elements." The Encyclopedia Brittanica entry for Statistics begins: "Statistics, the science of collecting, analyzing, presenting, and interpreting data." The Merriam-Webster definition is different in that it defines statistics as "a branch of mathematics dealing with the collection, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of masses of numerical data".

 * All of this considered, I think an accurate summary of the situation is that many sources describe statistics as a science and some (one, at least) defines statistics as a branch of mathematics. I propose the following first sentence, which I think is a reasonable consensus based on these reliable sources: Statistics is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, displaying, analysis, interpretation and presentation of data.

 * If you are happy with this updated fist sentence, I will then mention both points---the categorization of statistics as a science or as a branch of mathematics--- later in the article along with relevant references to reliable sources. (User Oscohe forgot to sign.)

 * Great. I support your changing the first sentence.
 * I'm ambivalent about adding text elsewhere about whether or not stats is a branch of mathematics. We shouldn't present controversy if there really isn't any. (And I personally find the matter semantic and pedantic. But readers do like to pin down that kind of thing.) Maybe leave it out until other editors weigh in on this talk page?
 * One more thing: Please do try to consistently sign your talk page posts with four tildes. Thanks for your contributions. Mgnbar (talk) 21:04, 12 August 2019 (UTC)

 * I have made that edit to the first sentence. I will not make any further edits for now. Apologies for forgetting to sign last time. Oscohe (talk) 16:34, 14 August 2019 (UTC)

 * "the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data." isn't that just called science? you've gone too broad now.  Needs to be narrowed down to counting cases and mathematically analyzing those counts, or something, I think...Indeed, *nearly* every single source quoted here in the talk page uses some variation of "counting" or "numerical".BrianPansky (talk) 19:28, 18 September 2021 (UTC)

 * It's worth discussing, but at this moment I'm not sure that there is a problem. What the definition doesn't include is everything specific to the problem domain (e.g. biology): the motivation behind the data collection process, the meaning of the data, the practical interpretation of the results, etc.
 * I'm not sure which sources you mean. It would be helpful to have a roundup of what the sources say. Mgnbar (talk) 22:34, 18 September 2021 (UTC)

"Mathematics and Statistics" listed at Redirects for discussion
The redirect [//en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mathematics_and_Statistics&redirect=no Mathematics and Statistics] has been listed at redirects for discussion to determine whether its use and function meets the redirect guidelines. Readers of this page are welcome to comment on this redirect at  until a consensus is reached. Jay 💬 09:04, 20 May 2023 (UTC)

title: Talk:Statistics


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Indigo Books and Music

Indigo Books & Music Inc., known as "Indigo" and stylized "!ndigo", is Canada's only major English-language bookstore chain. It is Canada's largest book, gift, and specialty toy retailer, operating stores in all ten provinces and one territory, and through a website offering a selection of books, toys, home décor, stationery, and gifts. Most Chapters and Indigo stores include a Starbucks café inside. As of 2022, Indigo has started selling music (vinyl, CDs), and select audio equipment (headphones, turntables).

At the end of its fiscal year in March 2018, the company reported a record annual revenue surpassing CAD $1 billion. As of July 1, 2017, the company operated 86 superstores under the banners Chapters and Indigo and 123 small format stores, under the banners Coles, Indigospirit, and The Book Company. Indigo is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario and employed more than 7,000 people throughout Canada.

After a series of mergers and acquisitions in the Canadian bookstore industry, Indigo stands as Canada's last remaining national bookstore chain. In late 2017, announcements were made to expand to the United States, starting with a location in The Mall at Short Hills in Millburn, New Jersey.

History
The company was founded in 1996 by Heather Reisman, who is married to Gerry Schwartz, majority owner and CEO of Onex Corporation.

The company's first big-box bookstore initially called "Indigo Books, Music & More", was opened in Burlington, Ontario on September 4, 1997. With financing from Onex Corporation, Indigo bought Chapters, their largest Canadian competitor, in 2001 and continues to operate many stores under the Chapters banner. Indigo also gained the ownership of the Coles chain of small-format bookstores, which was also owned by Chapters.

Indigo closed three high-profile stores in Toronto in the spring of 2014, including the World's Biggest Bookstore, which it acquired when it bought Chapters. In June 2014, Reisman said the company was headed into a new phase, selling a much higher percentage of non-book items.

In late 2017, it was announced that it would expand to the United States, with its first location opening in The Mall at Short Hills in October 2018.

In September 2022, Reisman stepped down as CEO and became executive chair, with Peter Ruis being named CEO.

In February 2023, Indigo was the victim of a ransomware attack that rendered them unable to process non-cash transactions, returns, and gift cards for approximately four days. They got back their card transactions through a wireless pinpad, but the rewards system was still down. Online shopping remained unavailable for almost two months. While Indigo has assured the public that customer data was not compromised, they notified current and former employees that employee data had been. LockBit has claimed responsibility for the attack. Indigo made the decision not to pay the ransom due to the possibility that the money would be used to fund terrorism or organized crime.

In June 2023, Reisman announced her retirement, effective August 22, 2023. This came after four out of ten board members stepped down, citing loss of confidence and mistreatment from the board leadership.

In September 2023, founder Heather Reisman returned as chief executive officer, after Peter Ruis abruptly resigned earlier in the month.

Operations
The company sells books, magazines, gifts, and toys through its website and in its stores. Its banners currently include Indigo Books & Music, Chapters, Coles, SmithBooks, IndigoSpirit, and The Book Company (small format).

Indigo began a partnership with Apple and iUniverse publishing in the 2010s. Indigo also manufactures its own brand of products, called IndigoLife. In addition, the chain's Indigo Trusted Advisor Program offers book recommendations from experts in health, finance, and the environment, such as David Bach and David Suzuki.

Charitable activities
In 2004, Indigo started the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation, a program that helps provide new books and learning materials to high-needs elementary schools. Indigo commits $1.5 million annually to schools across Canada.

The money is raised by Indigo itself, customers, staff, suppliers, and proceeds from Love of Reading fundraising products (i.e., gift card sleeves). Only 80% of customer donations have been granted to over 1800 schools  since the Love of Reading Foundation's inception, with Indigo covering all of the operating costs of the foundation. The funding given to the schools is split across a 90% credit to spend at Indigo and 10% cash to be spent anywhere, as long as it contributes to advancement of literacy.

In addition to the regularly collected funds, the annual Adopt a School program has increased the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation's donations up to a total of CAD 26 million given to more than 3,000 school libraries in Canada since 2004. During the month-long Adopt a School program, each retail store selects a local school to be the recipient of the donations the store collects during that time period.

In 2007, the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation produced a documentary chronicling the issue of funding for books in Canadian elementary schools. The documentary Writing on the Wall recounts the establishment of the foundation, while revealing the current conditions of school libraries and literacy in Canada. A follow-up documentary was created in 2017 titled "Read Between the Lines".

Kobo Inc.
Kobo Inc., an e-reader platform and manufacturer, was founded and spun off of Indigo in November 2009. By August 2011, the Kobo e-reading platform had become the dominant player in Canada, with research firm Ipsos Reid estimating that it represented 36% of the Canadian market as of that date.

In November 2011, Japanese e-commerce company Rakuten purchased the company for US$315 million in cash. Around 58% of Kobo was owned by Indigo at the time of the purchase.

Employee programs
Indigo was listed as one of Canada's Top 20 Employer Brands in the 2018 survey by Randstad Holding. This is due in part to staff rewards program which includes benefits eligibility for both full-time and part-time employees. Indigo also offers a company-matched RRSP program and yearly employee scholarships.

Charity scandal
CBC Marketplace showed that Indigo is doubly profiting from its own charity "Love of Reading Foundation": the charity forced schools to buy books only from Indigo at full retail price. All other donors usually sell to charities at wholesale price. Then the charity used the profits to get charity tax refund for the donation to its own charity. Based on data provided by the CBC documentary - the profits obtained is almost equal to the charity it gives if the tax refunds is taken into account.

Product removal
In 2001, Indigo removed Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf from the shelves. In 2006, Indigo decided not to sell the June issue of Harper's Magazine, which reprinted the controversial cartoons of the Muslim prophet Muhammad that had led to violent demonstrations around the world. Indigo also did not distribute the issue of Western Standard which reprinted and discussed those same cartoons. The company has also reportedly refused to stock several titles by David Icke, and firearms magazines.

Competitive position
The Indigo/Chapters chain has been criticized over what some perceive as a virtual monopoly over retail-based book sales in Canada. In 2002, the company strongly opposed the entry of Amazon into the Canadian marketplace with accusations the U.S.-based company was skirting regulations about foreign ownership of Canadian booksellers.

Indigo's expansion has been blamed, among other factors, for the financial difficulties of some independent booksellers in Canada. In particular, its rise coincided with the bankruptcy of Lichtman's, once Canada's largest independent bookseller.

title: Indigo Books and Music


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User:Racmeister

Reporter, editor, engineer, nerd, Denmark

title: User:Racmeister