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Belial

Belial (, Bəlīyyaʿal) is a term occurring in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament which later became personified as the devil in Christian texts of the New Testament. Alternate spellings include Baalial, Balial, Belhor, Beliall, Beliar, Berial, Bylyl and Beliya'al. In the Secret Book of John, an early Gnostic text, the ruler of the underworld is referred to as Belias.

Hebrew Bible/Old Testament
Belial is a Hebrew word "used to characterize the wicked or worthless". The etymology of the word is often understood as "lacking worth", from two common words: beli- (בְּלִי "without-") and ya'al (יָעַל "to be of value").

Some scholars translate it from Hebrew as "worthless" (Beli yo'il), while others translate it as "yokeless" (Beli ol), "may he have no rising" or "never to rise" (Beli ya'al). Only a few etymologists have believed it to be an invented name from the start.

The word occurs twenty-seven times in the Masoretic Text, in verses such as the Book of Proverbs, where the King James Version (KJV) translates the Hebrew phrase adam beli-yaal as "a naughty person".

In the Hebrew text, the phrase is either "sons of Belial" or simply "sons of worthlessness". Phrases beginning with "sons of" are a common Semitic idiom, such as "sons of destruction" or "sons of lawlessness".

Of these 27 occurrences, the idiom "sons of Belial" (בְּנֵֽי־בְלִיַּעַל beni beliyaal) appears 15 times to indicate worthless people, including idolaters (Deuteronomy 13:13), the men of Gibeah (Judges 19:22, 20:13), the sons of Eli (1 Samuel 2:12), Nabal, and Shimei. The Geneva Bible (1560) uses "wicked", and at the Book of Judges 19:22 has the marginal note "Ebr [Hebrew] men of Belial: that is, given to all wickednes." In the KJV these occurrences are rendered with "Belial" capitalised: In modern versions these are usually read as a phrase:
 * "the sons of Eli were sons of Belial" (KJV)
 * "the sons of Eli were worthless men" (1 Samuel 2:12, NRSV and NIV)
 * "the wicked men of the city" (Judges 19:22, NIV)

"Belial" is applied to ideas, words, and counsel, to calamitous circumstances, and most frequently, to worthless men of the lowest sort, such as men who would induce worship of other gods; those of Benjamin who committed the sex crime at Gibeah; the wicked sons of Eli; insolent Nabal; opposers of God's anointed, David; Rehoboam's unsteady associates; Jezebel's conspirators against Naboth; and men in general who stir up contention. Indicating that the enemy power would no longer interfere with the carrying out of true worship by his people in their land, YHWH declared through his prophet: "No more will any worthless person pass again through you. In his entirety he will certainly be cut off."

Second Temple period
The term belial appears frequently in Jewish texts of the Second Temple period (texts classified by Christians as the Old Testament pseudepigrapha and apocrypha). Also a large number of references to Belial are evidenced in the Dead Sea Scrolls discovered at Qumran from 1948.

Dead Sea Scrolls
In The War of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness, one of the Dead Sea scrolls, Belial is the leader of the Sons of Darkness:

"You made Belial for the pit, angel of enmity; in darkness is his domain, his counsel is to bring about wickedness and guilt. All the spirits of his lot are angels of destruction, they walk in the laws of darkness; towards it goes their only desire."

In the Rules of the Community, God is depicted as saying, "I shall not comfort the oppressed until their path is perfect. I shall not retain Belial within my heart." Belial controls scores of demons, which are specifically allotted to him by God for the purpose of performing evil. Belial, despite his malevolent disposition, is considered an angel.

Belial's presence is found throughout the War Scrolls and is established as the force occupying the opposite end of the spectrum of God. In Col. I, verse 1, the first line of the document, it is stated that "the first attack of the Sons of Light shall be undertaken against the forces of the Sons of Darkness, the army of Belial." This dichotomy sheds light on the negative connotations that Belial held at the time.

The War Scroll and the Thanksgiving hymns both delve into the idea that Belial is accursed by God and his people, and shows how the existence of Belial in this world can be attributed to the mysteries of God since we can not know why he permits the dealings of Belial to persist.

In the Dead Sea Scrolls, Belial is further contrasted with God. These are the Angel of Light and the Angel of Darkness. The Manual of Discipline identifies the Angel of Light as God himself. The Angel of Darkness is identified in the same scroll as Belial.

Also in The Dead Sea Scrolls is a recounting of a dream of Amram, the father of Moses, who finds two watchers contesting over him. One is Belial who is described as the King of Evil and Prince of Darkness. Belial is also mentioned in the Fragments of a Zadokite Work (which is also known as The Damascus Document (CD)), which states that during the eschatological age, "Belial shall be let loose against Israel, as God spoke through Isaiah the prophet." The Fragments also speak of "three nets of Belial" which are said to be fornication, wealth, and pollution of the sanctuary. In this work, Belial is sometimes presented as an agent of divine punishment and sometimes as a rebel, as Mastema is. It was Belial who inspired the Egyptian sorcerers, Jochaneh and his brother, to oppose Moses and Aaron. The Fragments also say that anyone who is ruled by the spirits of Belial and speaks of rebellion should be condemned as a necromancer and a wizard.

Jubilees
In the Book of Jubilees, uncircumcised Israelites are called "sons of Belial".

Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs
Belial is also mentioned in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs. The author of the work seems to be a dualist because he presents Belial as God's opponent, not as a servant, but does not mention how or why this came to be. Simeon 5:3 says that fornication separates man from God and brings him near to Belial. Levi tells his children to choose between the Law of God and the works of Belial It also states that when the soul is constantly disturbed, the Lord departs from it and Belial rules over it. Naphtali contrasts the Law and will of God with the purposes of Belial. Also, in 20:2, Joseph prophesies that when Israel leaves Egypt, they will be with God in light while Belial will remain in darkness with the Egyptians. Finally, the Testament describes that when the Messiah comes, the angels will punish the spirits of deceit and Belial and that the Messiah will bind Belial and give to his children the power to trample the evil spirits. "For many hath fornication destroyed; because, though a man be old or noble, it maketh him a reproach and a laughing-stock with Beliar and the sons of men."

Ascension of Isaiah
In the Ascension of Isaiah, Belial is the angel of lawlessness and "the ruler of this world", and identified as Samael and Satan.

"And Manasseh turned aside his heart to serve Belial; for the angel of lawlessness, who is the ruler of this world, is Belial, whose name is Matanbuchus."

- (Ascension of Isaiah 2:4)

Christianity/New Testament
The word occurs just once in the New Testament, when Paul the Apostle asks: "[W]hat concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?"

The spelling found in most manuscripts of 2 Corinthians is actually Beliar (Βελιάρ) not Belial (Βελίαλ). This is the reading preferred by textual scholars and the change of -l to -r is attributed to a common change in Aramaic pronunciation.

The Jewish Greek Septuagint, later the Old Testament of the early Christian church, generally renders the "sons of Belial" verses in the Hebrew Bible either as "lawless men", by idioms "sons of the pestilence", rather than a personal name "sons of Belial": The Septuagint also avoids Belial in the singular so Shimei (2 Samuel 16:7) when he cursed David, "Come out, come out, thou bloody man, and thou man of Belial" is rendered "you lawless man" (paranomos), and Hannah to Eli "Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial" is rendered "don't count your maidservant as a daughter of the pest." The Latin Vulgate and Syriac Peshitta Old Testaments in some cases follow the Greek, in other literalize as Hebrew. The single New Testament use is preserved "Belial" in Latin and Syriac.
 * andres paranomoi ("lawless men" ἄνδρες παράνομοι) (Deuteronomy 13:13)
 * huioi loimoi ("sons of the plague" υἱοὶ λοιμοὶ) (1 Samuel 2:12)

Rabbinical literature
The Talmud and rabbinical interpretation generally follow a non-supernatural view, an allegorical personification of evil, as with rabbinical interpretations of evil. The phrase "sons of Belial" from the Torah continued to retain currency.

In the Teliya Yeshu, the name Belial is given to Yeshu, the son of Miriam Magdala, also called Ben Stada and Ben Pantheras in the Wagenseil version of the same as well as in the Talmud.

English literature
John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book I:

BELIAL came last, than whom a Spirit more lewd Fell not from Heaven, or more gross to love Vice for it self: To him no Temple stood Or Altar smoak'd; yet who more oft then hee In Temples and at Altars, when the Priest Turns Atheist, as did ELY'S Sons, who fill'd With lust and violence the house of God. In Courts and Palaces he also Reigns And in luxurious Cities, where the noyse Of riot ascends above thir loftiest Towrs, And injury and outrage: And when Night Darkens the Streets, then wander forth the Sons Of BELIAL, flown with insolence and wine. Witness the Streets of SODOM, and that night In GIBEAH, when hospitable Dores Yielded thir Matrons to prevent worse rape.

John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book 2: ... On th' other side up rose BELIAL, in act more graceful and humane; A fairer person lost not Heav'n; he seemd For dignity compos'd and high exploit: But all was false and hollow; though his Tongue Dropt Manna, and could make the worse appear The better reason, to perplex and dash Maturest Counsels: for his thoughts were low; To vice industrious, but to Nobler deeds Timorous and slothful: yet he pleas'd the eare...

Robert Browning (1839), "Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister", eighth stanza: Or, my scrofulous French novel On gray paper with blunt type ! Simply glance at it, you grovel Hand and foot in BELIAL's gripe: If I double down its pages At the woeful sixteenth print, When he gathers his greengages, Ope a sieve and slip it in't?

Occult
The 17th-century grimoire The Lesser Key of Solomon mentions Belial, as does Aleister Crowley's Goetia (1904) and Anton LaVey's The Satanic Bible (1969). In The Satanic Bible (The Book of Belial), Belial means "without a master", and symbolizes independence, self-sufficiency, and personal accomplishment.

In 1937, Edgar Cayce used the term "sons of belial" and (in opposition to) the "sons of the law of one" for the first time in one of his deep trance readings given between 1923 and 1945. Cayce was often referred to as the "sleeping prophet" who gave over 2,500 readings to individuals while in a deep trance state. While his definition of the sons of belial was consistent with the Hebrew meaning of "worthless" individuals focused on self-gratification, Cayce went on to use the term frequently to compare opposing human forces at work in pre-historical times related to the early development of Atlantis.

In popular culture
Popular culture in the 20th century included many references to Belial; notably in the celebrated silent film Nosferatu (1922), Aldous Huxley's novel Ape and Essence (1948), Philip K. Dick's novel The Divine Invasion (1981), the cult horror film Basket Case (1982), Dean Koontz's novel Phantoms (1983), and Graham Masterton's novel Master of Lies (1991). Belial has also experienced a resurgence in popularity during the 21st Century in numerous media, with video games being the most prominent.
 * Digimon Adventure 2 BelialVamdemon.
 * In the Gothic (series) game series Beliar is the god of death.
 * In the Square Enix game "Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions" a character named Wiegraf uses the power of a mystical stone and is then possessed by the demon "Belial".
 * In the 2005 horror film, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, Belial is featured as the Devil's representative who possesses the title character.
 * In the real time strategy game Dungeon Keeper's Deeper Dungeons expansion the final level is titled "Belial".
 * In the role playing game Vampire: the Requiem, Belial's Brood is a covenant of vampires that serve Vice and evil forces, consorting with infernal spirits for power.
 * Blizzard Entertainment's video game Diablo 3 has Belial function as the final boss of Act 2 in its storyline. In the City of Caldeum, where Belial takes residence, there are definite Arabic tones for the art direction and setting in the aforementioned chapter. Also known as the "Lord of Lies" and the "Master of Deception", Belial is regarded as one of the four Lesser Evils and seven Great Evils in the mortal realm that seek to make this world an outpost of Hell itself.
 * Westwood Studios's PC game Lands of Lore: Guardians of Destiny features Belial as its main antagonist, portraying him as an evil god with a devil-like appearance.
 * In the Warhammer 40k universe Belial is the current Grand Master of the Deathwing of the Dark Angels Space Marine Chapter which has other characters named after bleaker Abrahamic entities, such as Samael, the poison of God, and Azrael, the Angel of Death.
 * In the mobile game Puzzle and Dragons, Belial is a monster that is part of the Archdemon series.
 * In the book The Little Ships by J.A. Sutherland, the main character sails in a spaceship named Belial.
 * "Belial's Meat" is a health item in the video game Off by Mortis Ghost.
 * In the video game Binding of Isaac, the Book of Belial is an activated item that increases damage for the current room.
 * In the mobile game Crash Fever, Belial is one of the first protagonists.
 * In Granblue Fantasy, Belial is a "fallen angel", appearing in the What Makes The Sky Blue 2 and 3 event(s) as one of the main antagonists. Belial is also a summon in the gacha, and another summer variant summon. Belial has theme songs associated with his story. His costumes can be unlocked for the main character though in-game code.
 * Similarly, in Granblue Fantasy Versus fighting game and its sequel Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, Belial is a playable character.
 * "Belial" is the theme held in meditation by Vaughn Benjamin (Akae Beka) on the Midnite & Ras L Collaborative album Thru & True (2006).
 * Belial is referenced, among other demons, on Mayhem's 2014 studio album Esoteric Warfare. Belial is mentioned in "Pandaemon," the fourth track on the LP.
 * Lord Belial is a Swedish black metal band.
 * In the Ultra Series, Belial is the namesake of recurring villain Ultraman Belial, a rogue Ultraman that made a dark pact to gain the ability to control and merge with monsters, with his alternate forms occasionally taking on demonic appearances.
 * Belial is mentioned in the track "Fall from Grace" from Morbid Angel's 1991 album, Blessed Are the Sick.
 * In Cassandra Clare's bestselling Shadowhunter Chronicles, Belial is one of the Princes of Hell as well as the demonic father of a major character, Theresa Gray, who was the protagonist of The Infernal Devices. In Shadowhunters, the television adaptation of the novel series, Belial is the demonic father of a supporting character in season 3, the warlock Lorenzo Rey. Belial is mentioned as Lorenzo's father in the episode "City of Glass".
 * In the 2019 comedy horror film, Ready or Not, the name of the demonic presence, Mr. Le Bail, is an anagram for Belial.
 * In the Shin Megami Tensei and Persona games, Belial appears as a demon and persona to be used in combat.
 * In the 2021 Anime series Beyblade Burst Dynamite Battle the main character Bell Daikokuten named his Beyblade Dynamite Belial. Later on, he upgrades Dynamite Belial into Dangerous Belial after its destruction. The name of the bey, however, was changed to Belfyre in the dub and in Hasbro toy releases.
 * In Season 2 episode 5 of  The Chosen, Caleb is possessed by Belial and shares who he is while conversing with Mary.
 * In The Wheel of Time, one of the Forsaken is named Belal, a reference to Belial.

title: Belial


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Narrow Gauge Railway Museum

The Narrow Gauge Railway Museum (Welsh: Amgueddfa Rheilffyrdd Bach Cul) is a purpose-built museum dedicated to narrow-gauge railways situated at the Tywyn Wharf station of the Talyllyn Railway in Tywyn, Gwynedd, Wales.

The museum has a collection of more than 1,000 items from over eighty narrow-gauge railways in Wales, England, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Scotland. This includes six locomotives on display (and several others in store or at other sites); eleven wagons inside with a further eleven outside; a display showing the development of track work from early plateways to modern narrow-gauge tracks; several large signals along with single-line working apparatus and documents; a growing collection of tickets and other documents, posters, notices, crockery and souvenirs; relics from vehicles scrapped long ago and the Awdry Study, re-created with the original furniture and fittings in memory of the Rev. Wilbert Awdry, an early volunteer on the Talyllyn Railway best known for his series of railway books such as "Thomas the Tank Engine."

Background
The Narrow Gauge Railway Museum collection began in the 1950s when the Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society (TRPS) was the first voluntary society in the world to take over and run a public passenger carrying railway. Narrow-gauge railways were becoming redundant and their equipment scrapped. Immediately, items from other narrow-gauge lines began to be offered to the TRPS and a committee was formed to acquire examples of locomotives, rolling stock and other equipment to place on public display. In 1964 a charitable trust was formed to manage and develop the museum and this was replaced by the present Narrow Gauge Railway Museum Trust on 11 July 1994.

The main activity of the trust takes place at the Talyllyn Railway Wharf station. Inside the museum interactive and static exhibits illustrate the diversity, individuality, technical ingenuity and charm of narrow-gauge railways. The fleet of historic wagons kept outside is operational and the original wagon weighbridge from 1865 has been restored and included in a redeveloped section of the Wharf yard including a purpose-built weighbridge hut.

The first museum displays were in the old Gunpowder Store at Wharf station. Soon a walled yard, used for the storage of coal, was roofed over and an extension added in 1964. The building served well but had no insulation, was damp and cold in winter and hot and airless in summer making it difficult to conserve the collection. What was needed was a new museum building with adequate space, accessibility and environment, and professionally designed displays.

At the same time the Talyllyn Railway was seeking to improve its facilities at Wharf station to better meet the needs of passengers and the operation of the railway. When the TRPS took over, there was a single small building which served as a booking office, weigh house, and general office for the railway. Like the museum, this had been augmented by various extensions and portable buildings: a radical solution was needed. With the approach of the golden jubilee of the TRPS in 2000, an appeal was launched for funds to build a new station and museum. Funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to conserve the unique museum collection plus other government and charitable sources was obtained to match money raised by friends of the Railway and Museum. A two-storey building now houses the museum, refreshment room, education room and railway offices, which links with a shop and booking office in an extended version of the original building. Work began in stages in 2001, and the new station and museum complex was opened by Charles, Prince of Wales and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall on 13 July 2005. In 2010 the museum gained Accredited status under the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council scheme to improve standards in museums.

Rolling stock on display in the museum

 * Birkby's Brickworks, small steel wagon with 4 flangeless wheels and forked bracket to accept haulage chain. It ran on an 18in gauge plateway made up from lengths of steel angle. Donated in 1983.
 * Bicslade Tramroad oak-framed 4-wheel plateway wagon, 3 ft, from Bixslade in the Forest of Dean. The oldest item in the collection built about 1790 and given to the Trust in 1964.
 * Dinorwic Quarry Railway (Padarn Railway), 4 ft gauge host wagon built 1848 to carry three 2′ gauge slate wagons and a 2′ gauge guards van from the Quarries to the Incline down to Port Dinorwic. The line was closed in 1961 and the wagons came to the museum in 1964.
 * Nantlle Tramway wagon, gauge 3 ft; steel: double-flanged wheels, loose on fixed axles, built by Glaslyn Foundry, Portmadoc. Line opened 1828 worked by horses until the final section was closed by British Railways (BR) in 1963, the last use of horses by BR. Given to the museum in 1958.
 * Oakley Quarry Coal Wagon, 1 ft wooden body with doors at one end, ran on Festiniog Railway. Purchased in 1963.
 * Bryn Eglwys Quarry Wagon, 2 ft, wood, for carrying slate slabs out of the quarry. Donated in 1980 and in store until restoration and display in 2001.
 * Woolwich Arsenal Wagon, 18 in wooden flat body for carrying explosives. Donated in 1976.

Rolling stock on display outside the museum

 * Corris Railway Mail Wagon, 2 ft, used for carrying mail by gravity down the line every week-day afternoon, lamp bracket fitted at down end. Four-wheel, end door, 1-ton wagon ex-GWR 31992, TR 10, Turner axleboxes, bought by TR in 1951 and donated to museum in 1994.
 * Corris Railway. Incline balancing wagon used on incline at Aberlefenni. Given to museum in 2006.
 * Crofty Tin Mine, 1 ft 14 cu ft capacity tipping mine tub to museum in 1996.
 * Great Western Railway steel bodied, 1 ft slate wagon for use in Blaenau Ffestiniog area: purchased 1980.
 * London & North Western Railway, 1 ft steel slate wagon, built at Earlstown in 1887, LMS 284465, used in Blaenau Ffestiniog area on piggy back wagons to carry slate for transshipment. Donated by British Railways in 1964.
 * Talyllyn Railway, 2 ft rebuilt wagons, using original and replica steel and cast iron parts and new timber. (The numbers are simply for identification and do not relate to historic numbers)
 * 101 – two bar wooden slate wagon, 1 ton capacity: the first item in the museum collection in 1953.
 * 117 – metal bodied incline wagon: to museum in 1973.
 * 136 – three bar wooden slate wagon, 1 ton capacity: to museum in 1994.
 * 146 – covered wooden van, with brake, based on parts lying at Rhydyronen from the 1930s to 1997.
 * 164 – two bar wooden slate wagon, 1 ton capacity with brakes: purchased 2000.
 * 178 – display wagon at Neptune Road entrance.

Rolling stock on display at other sites

 * Furzebrook Wagon – 2 ft gauge wagon with wooden body with end door and sledge brake, four wheels, from the Pike Bros, Fayle & Co clay workings in the Isle of Purbeck, donated by The Narrow Gauge Railway Society 1958 was loaned for display at the Swanage Railway in 2002.

Major exhibits in the museum

 * Track, from early plateways to modern versions
 * Narrow-gauge railways in industry
 * Narrow-gauge railways in military use
 * Narrow-gauge railways as public carriers
 * Temporary exhibitions
 * Ticket collection
 * Rev. W. Awdry collection
 * New accessions
 * Signals from the Manx Northern Railway, the Isle of Man Railway and County Donegal Railways
 * Chattenden and Upnor Railway lever and locking frame to control points and signals in replica signal box
 * Chattenden and Upnor Railway signal
 * Film of Talyllyn Railway in the 1950s

Major exhibits at other locations

 * DeWinton cast iron lamp post in Wharf yard
 * Festiniog disc signal in Wharf yard
 * TR wagon turntable and track: Wharf edge
 * TR wagon weigh bridge with original TR trackwork and new weigh bridge office (built 2008 - 2011)
 * Point (turnout) in 1865 track materials: Abergynolwyn
 * Village Incline winding drum and site: Abergynolwyn

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

title: Narrow Gauge Railway Museum


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Asmodeus

Asmodeus (Ἀσμοδαῖος, Asmodaios) or Ashmedai (אַשְמְדּאָי; آشماداي;see below for other variations) is a king of demons in the legends of Solomon and the constructing of Solomon's Temple.

His story features variously in Talmudic stories where he is the king of the shedim. The Quran refers to a "puppet" in the Story of Solomon in Surah Ṣād verses 30-40, which is according to the mufassirūn (authorized exegetes of the Quran) referring to the demon-king Asmodeus (Sakhr).

In Christian lore, Asmodeus is mostly known from the deuterocanonical Book of Tobit. He is the primary antagonist and disrupts the marriages of Sarah. Peter Binsfeld classifies Asmodeus as the "demon of lust".

Etymology
The name Asmodai is believed to derive from the Avestan *aēšma-daēva (𐬀𐬉𐬴𐬨𐬀𐬛𐬀𐬉𐬎𐬎𐬀*, *aēṣ̌madaēuua), where aēšma means "wrath", and daēva signifies "demon". While the daēva Aēšma is thus Zoroastrianism's demon of wrath and is also well-attested as such, the compound aēšma-daēva is not attested in scripture. It is nonetheless likely that such a form did exist, and that the Book of Tobit's "Asmodaios" (Ἀσμοδαῖος) and the Talmud's "Ashmedai" (אשמדאי) reflect it. In the Zoroastrian and Middle Persian demonology, there did exist the conjuncted form khashm-dev (خشم + دیو), where both terms are cognates.

The spellings Asmoday, Asmodai, Asmodee (also Asmodée),  Osmodeus,  and Osmodai  have also been used. The name is alternatively spelled in the bastardized forms (based on the basic consonants אשמדאי, ʾŠMDʾY) Hashmedai (חַשְמְדּאָי, Ḥašmədʾāy; also Hashmodai, Hasmodai, Khashmodai, Khasmodai),   Hammadai (חַמַּדּאָי, Hammadʾāy; also Khammadai), Shamdon (שַׁמְדּוֹן, Šamdōn), and Shidonai (שִׁדֹנאָי, Šīdōnʾāy). Some traditions have subsequently identified Shamdon as the father of Asmodeus.

The Jewish Encyclopedia of 1906 rejects the otherwise accepted etymological relation between the Persian "Æshma-dæva" and Judaism's "Ashmodai" claiming that the particle "-dæva" could not have become "-dai" and that Æshma-dæva as such—a compound name—never appears in Persian sacred texts.

Still, the encyclopedia proposes that the "Asmodeus" from the Apocrypha and the Testament of Solomon are not only related somewhat to Aeshma but have similar behaviour, appearance and roles, to conclude in another article under the entry "Aeshma", in the paragraph "Influence of Persian Beliefs on Judaism", that Persian Zoroastrian beliefs could have heavily influenced Judaism's theology on the long term, bearing in mind that in some texts there are crucial conceptual differences while in others there seems to be a great deal of similarity, proposing a pattern of influence over folk beliefs that would extend further to the mythology itself.

However, the Jewish Encyclopedia asserts that although 'Æshma does not occur in the Avesta in conjunction with dæva, it is probable that a fuller form, such as Æshmo-dæus, has existed, since it is paralleled by the later Pahlavi-form "Khashm-dev"'. Furthermore, it is stated that Asmodeus or Ashmedai "embodies an expression of the influence that the Persian religion or Persian popular beliefs have exercised" on Judaism.

In the Book of Tobit
The Asmodeus of the Book of Tobit is hostile to Sarah, Raguel's daughter, and slays seven successive husbands on their wedding nights, impeding the sexual consummation of the marriages. In the New Jerusalem Bible translation, he is described as "the worst of demons". When the young Tobit is about to marry her, Asmodeus proposes the same fate for him, but Tobit is enabled, through the counsels of his attendant angel Raphael, to render him innocuous. By placing a fish's heart and liver on red-hot cinders, Tobit produces a smoky vapour that causes the demon to flee to Egypt, where Raphael binds him. According to some translations, Asmodeus is strangled.

Perhaps Asmodeus punishes the suitors for their carnal desire, since Tobit prays to be free from such desire and is kept safe. Asmodeus is also described as an evil spirit in general: "Ασμοδαίος τὸ πονηρὸν δαιμόνιον or τὸ δαιμόνιον πονηρόν, and πνεῦμα ἀκάθαρτον".

In the Talmud
The figure of Ashmedai in the Talmud is less malign in character than the Asmodeus of Tobit. In the former, he appears repeatedly in the light of a good-natured and humorous fellow. But besides that, there is one feature in which he parallels Asmodeus, in as much as his desires turn upon Bathsheba and later Solomon's wives.

Another Talmudic legend has King Solomon tricking Asmodeus into collaborating in the construction of Solomon's Temple (see: The Story of King Solomon and Ashmedai).

Another legend depicts Asmodeus throwing King Solomon over 400 leagues away from the capital by putting one wing on the ground and the other stretched skyward. He then changed places for some years with King Solomon. When King Solomon returned, Asmodeus fled from his wrath. Similar legends can be found in Islamic lore. Asmodeus is referred to as Sakhr (صخر the Rock or the Stony One), because Solomon banished him into a rock, after he takes his kingdom back from him. He is considered to be a king of the (divs or ifrits).

Another passage describes him as marrying Lilith, who became his queen.

In the Testament of Solomon
In the Testament of Solomon, a 1st–3rd century text, the king invokes Asmodeus to aid in the construction of the Temple. The demon appears and predicts Solomon's kingdom will one day be divided (Testament of Solomon, verse 21–25). When Solomon interrogates Asmodeus further, the king learns that Asmodeus is thwarted by the angel Raphael, as well as by sheatfish found in the rivers of Assyria. He also admits to hating water. Asmodeus claims that he was born of a human mother and an angel father.

In the Malleus Maleficarum
In the Malleus Maleficarum (1486), Asmodeus was considered the demon of lust. Sebastien Michaelis said that his adversary is St. John. Some demonologists of the 16th century assigned a month to a demon and considered November to be the month in which Asmodeus's power was strongest. Other demonologists asserted that his zodiacal sign was Aquarius but only between January 30 and February 8.

He has 72 legions of demons under his command. He is one of the Kings of Hell under Lucifer the emperor. He incites gambling, and is the overseer of all the gambling houses in the court of Hell. Some Catholic theologians compared him with Abaddon. Yet other authors considered Asmodeus a prince of revenge.

In the Dictionnaire Infernal
The Dictionnaire Infernal (1818) by Collin de Plancy portrays Asmodeus with the breast of a man, a cock leg, serpent tail, three heads (one of a man spitting fire, one of a sheep, and one of a bull), riding a lion with dragon wings and neck - all of these creatures being associated with either lascivity, lust or revenge in some cultures. The Archbishop of Paris approved the portrait.

In the Lesser Key of Solomon
Asmodeus appears as the king 'Asmoday' in the Ars Goetia, where he is said to have a seal in gold and is listed as number thirty-two according to respective rank.

He "is strong, powerful and appears with three heads; the first is like a bull, the second like a man, and the third like a ram or a goat; the tail of a serpent, and from his mouth issue flames of fire." Also, he sits upon an infernal dragon, holds a lance with a banner and, amongst the Legions of Amaymon, Asmoday governs seventy-two legions of inferior spirits.

In The Magus
Asmodeus is referred to in Book Two, Chapter Eight of The Magus (1801) by Francis Barrett.

In Christian thought
Asmodeus was named in the Order of Thrones by Gregory the Great.

Asmodeus was cited by the nuns of Loudun in the Loudun possessions of 1634.

Asmodeus' reputation as the personification of lust continued into later writings, as he was known as the "Prince of Lechery" in the 16th-century romance Friar Rush. The French Benedictine Augustin Calmet equated his name with a fine dress. The 1409 Lollard manuscript titled Lanterne of Light associated Asmodeus with the deadly sin of lust. The 16th-century Dutch demonologist Johann Weyer described him as the banker at the baccarat table in hell, and overseer of earthly gambling houses.

In 1641, the Spanish playwright and novelist Luis Velez de Guevara published the satirical novel El diablo cojuelo, where Asmodeus is represented as a mischievous demon endowed with a playful and satirical genius. The plot presents a rascal student that hides in an astrologer's mansard. He frees a devil from a bottle. As an acknowledgement the devil shows him the apartments of Madrid and the tricks, miseries and mischiefs of their inhabitants. The French novelist Alain-René Lesage adapted the Spanish source in his 1707 novel le Diable boiteux, where he likened him to Cupid. In the book, he is rescued from an enchanted glass bottle by a Spanish student Don Cleophas Leandro Zambullo. Grateful, he joins with the young man on a series of adventures before being recaptured. Asmodeus is portrayed in a sympathetic light as good-natured, and a canny satirist and critic of human society. In another episode Asmodeus takes Don Cleophas for a night flight, and removes the roofs from the houses of a village to show him the secrets of what passes in private lives. Following Lesage's work, he was depicted in a number of novels and periodicals, mainly in France but also London and New York.

Asmodeus was widely depicted as having a handsome visage, good manners and an engaging nature; however, he was portrayed as walking with a limp and one leg was either clawed or that of a rooster. He walks aided by two walking sticks in Lesage's work, and this gave rise to the English title The Devil on Two Sticks (also later translated The Limping Devil and The Lame Devil). Lesage attributes his lameness to falling from the sky after fighting with another devil.

On 18 February 1865, author Evert A. Duyckinck sent President Abraham Lincoln a letter, apparently mailed from Quincy. Duyckinck signed the letter "Asmodeus", with his initials below his pseudonym. His letter enclosed a newspaper clipping about an inappropriate joke allegedly told by Lincoln at the Hampton Roads Peace Conference. The purpose of Duyckinck's letter was to advise Lincoln of "an important omission" about the history of the conference. He advised that the newspaper clipping be added to the "Archives of the Nation".

In the Kabbalah
According to the Kabbalah and the school of Shlomo ibn Aderet, Asmodeus is born as the result of a union between Agrat bat Mahlat and King David.

In the Treatise on the Left Emanation, which describes sitra achra (Aramaic: סטרא אחרא), meaning the "other side" or the "side of evil", Asmodeus is described as a figure living in the third ether of Heaven. He is Samael's subordinate, and married to a younger form of Lilith (Samael is married to the older Lilith). Asmodeus is still able to inflict pain and destruction, but only on Mondays.

Islam
In Islamic culture, Asmodeus is known as a demon (شَيَاطِين ) called Sakhr (rock), probably a reference to his fate being imprisoned inside a box of rock, chained with iron and thrown into the sea. or his association with the desires of the lower world. He features prominently as the antagonist of the prophet Solomon. He is sometimes identified with the ifrit who offered to carry the Throne of Solomon. In the story of Buluqiya, Asmodeus teaches a young Jewish prince about the seven layers of hell.

Quran and exegesis
Islamic allegorical comments about Asmodeus are abundant in Medieval Islam and Asmodeus became a central figure figure in exegesis (tafsīr) of the Quranic verse Surah 38:34: "We allowed Solomon to be seduced by temptation, and we cast a body upon his seat. Then he repented." Tabari (224–310 AH; 839–923 AD) identifies the body mentioned in the verse as a shaytan in both his Annals of al-Tabari as well as his tafsir. Abd al-Razzaq Kāshānī comments on Surah 38:34: "'The satan who sat thereupon [sovereignity's throne] and took its ring away, represents the elemental earthly nature, ruler over the lower sea of matter, called Sakhr, the 'rock,' on account of its inclination toward the lowest thigns and clinging thereto, even as a stone on account of heaviness.'" ʻAziz Nasafi depicts Solomon as God's vicar (caliph), as a symbol of the ruling intellect, whose task it is to reduce the physical passions to proper obedience, else the forces will capture the mind's seat and turn into an usurping demon. Solomon's ring signifies the imperial command over the forces of nature. which Solomon's lapse into lust and idolatry caused him to lose. Attar of Nishapur elucidates a similar allegory: one must behave like a triumphant 'Solomon' and chain the demons of the nafs or lower self, locking the demon-prince into a 'rock', before the rūḥ (soul) can make the first steps to the Divine.

Narrative exegesis (Qiṣaṣ)
The Stories of the Prophets Qiṣaṣ al-Anbiyāʾ give various reasons for Solomon's punishment and Asmodeus' consequently temporary victory; sometimes because of acting injustly before a family dispute or hands the ring to a demon in exchange for knowledge, while most sources (such as Tabari, ʿUmāra ibn Wathīma, Thalabi, ibn Asakir, ibn al-Athir) invoke the idea that one of his wives committed idolatry. When Asmodeus put the ring on his finger, he turned into the shape of Solomon and sat on his throne, ruling in wickedness, while the real Solomon emerged from his bath and not recognized by anyone in the palace, thus cast into the streets to wander as a beggar. Finally Solomon found work at a harbor, gutting fish.

After 40 days the false Solomon's evil ways aroused suspicion and the royal minister Asaph recites some holy verses in the presence of the demon king, who screamed in rage, unable to bear the recitation, and tore of the ring. The ring then fell into a river and was swallowed by a fish. The fish eventually arrived at the table of the real Solomon who slipped the ring back on and was immediately surrounded by loyal jinn who carried him to his throne, where he and his army of men, jinn, birds, and beasts battle Asmodeus and locked him in a stone after his defeat.

Folk-Literature
The idea of "Genie in a bottle" probably roots in the Islamic legend about the demon Asmodeus. In a story of Thousand and One Nights, the "Tale of the City of Brass" refers to Asmodeus' fate after his failure against the Prophet. According to this story, travelers discover the demon locked in a stone in the middle of the desert. The story goes as follows according to Sir Richard Burton: "Then they came upon a pillar of black stone like a furnace chimney wherein was one sunken up to his armpits. He had two great wings and four arms, two of them like the arms of the sons of Adam and other two as they were lions' paws, with claws of iron, and he was black and tall and frightful of aspect, with hair like horses' tails and eyes like blazing coals, slit upright in his face.'" In the essay on the Arabic "Tale of the City of Brass", Andras Hamori relied only on incomplete versions of the story without mentioning the name of the demon.

In the story of Sakhr and Buluqiya, a young Jewish prince searching for the final Prophet (Muhammad), Sakhr is said to have reached immortality by drinking from the Well of Immortality. When Buluqiya arrives in his search for Muhammad an island, he is greeted by two snakes, as big as camels and palm trees, glorrifying the name of God and Muhammad. They explain that they are tasked with punishing the residents of hell. Later on a different island, he meets Asmodeus the king of demons, who explains the seven layers (ṭabaqāt) and the punisher angels (zabāniyya) who sire hell's snakes and scorpions by self-copulation.

Then, he explains the creation of the world by God, explains God's intention to place Muhammad therein and punish the infidels, describing the different layers (ṭabaqāt) of hell and mentions the angels.

In popular culture
On 23 May 1960, the Tel Aviv newspaper Haboker ran a banner headline announcing the capture of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann by Israeli security forces that read: Ashmadai b'Khevlei Yisrael (אשמדאי בכבלי ישראל), which translates as "Asmodeus in Israeli chains".

In a 1975 episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker titled "Demon in Lace", Asmodeus is the antagonist.

One of the main characters in Jack L. Chalker’s 1979 novel And the Devil Will Drag You Under is named Asmodeus Mogart.

In the Children’s Fantasy book series Redwall, a side antagonist of the first book of the series (1986) is called Asmodeus Poisonteeth, a venomous snake who threatens the creatures of the forests surrounding Redwall Abbey.

In a 73. episode of Polish sitcom The Lousy World titled "Nie bój żaby" (2000) Asmodeus is summoned by Mariola in the form of Postman Edzio. Asmodeus is played by Bohdan Smoleń.

In Alan Moore's novel Jerusalem, published in 2016, Asmodeus takes a young protagonist on a cosmological flight/tour.

In the manga Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun, running since 2017, Asmodeus is a prominent clan of devils, and one of their members, Alice Asmodeus, is depicted as the best friend of the main character.

Asmodeus is a Prince of Hell and one of the main antagonists in season 13 of Supernatural.

In the 2018 horror film Astral, Asmodeus possesses the body of a university student who seeks the ghost of his dead mother.

In the 2021 movie Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin, Asmodeus appears as an antagonist.

On October 3, 2021, an episode of the web series Puppet History mentioned Asmodeus's naming in the Loudun Possessions, and a three-headed puppet rendition of Asmodeus both performed the episode's customary ending song and featured in the episode's plot-heavy finale.

The 2023 film The Pope's Exorcist features a demonic possession attributed to Asmodeus.

Asmodeus is depicted as an evil deity and the King of the Nine Hells in most published material for Dungeons & Dragons.

Asmodeus appears in the adult animated web series Helluva Boss, voiced by James Monroe Iglehart. Nicknamed "Ozzie", he is the ruler of Hell's Ring of Lust and the owner of a popular nightclub.

Asmodeus is a character in the 2019 visual novel otome game, "Obey Me!", and its prequel game, “Obey Me! Nightbringer”. He is the avatar of lust, and the fifth born out of the seven demon brothers present in the game.

Asmodeus is Magnus Bane's father in the book series The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare.

title: Asmodeus


text:
Jazz standard

Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list of jazz standards, and the list of songs deemed to be standards changes over time. Songs included in major fake book publications (sheet music collections of popular tunes) and jazz reference works offer a rough guide to which songs are considered standards.

Not all jazz standards were written by jazz composers. Many are originally Tin Pan Alley popular songs, Broadway show tunes or songs from Hollywood musicals – the Great American Songbook. In Europe, jazz standards and "fake books" may even include some traditional folk songs (such as in Scandinavia) or pieces of a minority ethnic group's music (such as traveller music) that have been played with a jazz feel by well known jazz players. A commonly played song can only be considered a jazz standard if it is widely played among jazz musicians. The jazz standard repertoire has some overlap with blues and pop standards.

The most recorded standard composed by a jazz musician, and one of the most covered songs of all time, is Duke Ellington's and Juan Tizol's "Caravan" with over 500 uses. Originally, the most recorded jazz standard was W. C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues" for over 20 years from the 1930s onward, after which Hoagy Carmichael's "Stardust" replaced it. Following this, the place was held by "Body and Soul" by Johnny Green.

Before 1920

From its conception at the change of the twentieth century, jazz was music intended for dancing. This influenced the choice of material played by early jazz groups: King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, New Orleans Rhythm Kings and others included a large number of Tin Pan Alley popular songs in their repertoire, and record companies often used their power to dictate which songs were to be recorded by their artists. Certain songs were pushed by recording executives and therefore quickly achieved standard status; this started with the first jazz recordings in 1916, with That Funny Jas Band from Dixieland (1916) by Collins and Harlan for Thomas A. Edison, Inc. on Blue Amberol in December 1916 and in 1917, when the Original Dixieland Jass Band recorded "Darktown Strutters' Ball" and "Indiana". The first record with 'Jass' on the label, The Original Dixieland One-Step was issue 18255 by Victor Talking Machine Company in 1917. Originally simply called "jazz", the music of early jazz bands is today often referred to as "Dixieland" or "New Orleans jazz", to distinguish it from more recent subgenres.

The origins of jazz are in the musical traditions of early twentieth-century New Orleans, including brass band music, the blues, ragtime and spirituals, and some of the most popular early standards come from these influences. Ragtime songs "Twelfth Street Rag" and "Tiger Rag" have become popular numbers for jazz artists, as have blues tunes "St. Louis Blues" and "St. James Infirmary". Tin Pan Alley songwriters contributed several songs to the jazz standard repertoire, including "Indiana" and "After You've Gone". Others, such as "Some of These Days" and "Darktown Strutters' Ball", were introduced by vaudeville performers. The most often recorded standards of this period are W. C. Handy's "St. Louis Blues", Turner Layton and Henry Creamer's "After You've Gone" and James Hanley and Ballard MacDonald's "Indiana".

1920s
A period known as the "Jazz Age" started in the United States in the 1920s. Jazz had become popular music in the country, although older generations considered the music immoral and threatening to old cultural values. Dances such as the Charleston and the Black Bottom were very popular during the period, and jazz bands typically consisted of seven to twelve musicians. Important orchestras in New York were led by Fletcher Henderson, Paul Whiteman and Duke Ellington. Many New Orleans jazzmen had moved to Chicago during the late 1910s in search of employment; among others, the New Orleans Rhythm Kings, King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band and Jelly Roll Morton recorded in the city. However, Chicago's importance as a center of jazz music started to diminish toward the end of the 1920s in favor of New York.

In the early years of jazz, record companies were often eager to decide what songs were to be recorded by their artists. Popular numbers in the 1920s were pop hits such as "Sweet Georgia Brown", "Dinah" and "Bye Bye Blackbird". The first jazz artist to be given some liberty in choosing his material was Louis Armstrong, whose band helped popularize many of the early standards in the 1920s and 1930s.

Some compositions written by jazz artists have endured as standards, including Fats Waller's "Honeysuckle Rose" and "Ain't Misbehavin'". The most recorded 1920s standard is Hoagy Carmichael and Mitchell Parish's "Stardust". Several songs written by Broadway composers in the 1920s have become standards, such as George and Ira Gershwin's "The Man I Love" (1924), Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies" (1927) and Cole Porter's "What Is This Thing Called Love?" (1929). However, it was not until the 1930s that musicians became comfortable with the harmonic and melodic sophistication of Broadway tunes and started including them regularly in their repertoire.

1930s
Broadway theatre contributed some of the most popular standards of the 1930s, including George and Ira Gershwin's "Summertime" (1935), Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart's "My Funny Valentine" (1937) and Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II's "All the Things You Are" (1939). These songs still rank among the most recorded standards of all time. The most popular 1930s standard, Johnny Green's "Body and Soul", was introduced in Broadway and became a huge hit after Coleman Hawkins's 1939 recording.

1930s saw the rise of swing jazz as a dominant form in American music. Duke Ellington and his band members composed numerous swing era hits that have later become standards: "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" (1932), "Sophisticated Lady" (1933) and "Caravan" (1936), among others. Other influential band leaders of this period were Benny Goodman and Count Basie.

1940s
The swing era lasted until the mid-1940s, and produced popular tunes such as Duke Ellington's "Cotton Tail" (1940) and Billy Strayhorn's "Take the 'A' Train" (1941). With the big bands struggling to keep going during World War II, a shift was happening in jazz in favor of smaller groups. Some swing era musicians, such as Louis Jordan, later found popularity in a new kind of music, called "rhythm and blues", that would evolve into rock and roll in the 1950s.

Bebop emerged in the early 1940s, with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk leading the way. It appealed to a more specialized audiences than earlier forms of jazz, with sophisticated harmonies, fast tempos and often virtuoso musicianship. Bebop musicians often used 1930s standards, especially those from Broadway musicals, as part of their repertoire. Among standards written by bebop musicians are Gillespie's "Salt Peanuts" (1941) and "A Night in Tunisia" (1942), Parker's "Anthropology" (1946), "Yardbird Suite" (1946) and "Scrapple from the Apple" (1947), and Monk's "'Round Midnight" (1944), which is currently one of the most recorded jazz standards composed by a jazz musician.

1950s and later
Modal jazz recordings, such as Miles Davis's Kind of Blue (1959), became popular in the late 1950s. Popular jazz standards include Miles Davis's "Round About Midnight" (1959), John Coltrane's "My Favorite Things" (1961) and Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man" and "Cantaloupe Island".

In Brazil, a new style of music called bossa nova evolved in the late 1950s. Based on the Brazilian samba as well as jazz, bossa nova was championed by João Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Luiz Bonfá. Gilberto and Stan Getz started a bossa nova craze in the United States with their 1963 album Getz/Gilberto. Among the genre's songs that are now considered standards are Bonfá's "Manhã de Carnaval" (1959), Marcos Valle's "Summer Samba" (1966), and numerous Jobim's songs, including "Desafinado" (1959), "The Girl from Ipanema" (1962) and "Corcovado" (1962).

The jazz fusion movement fused jazz with other musical styles such as rock and classical music. Its golden age was 1970s. Famous fusion artists, such as Weather Report, Chick Corea and Return to Forever, Herbie Hancock and The Headhunters, The Manhattan Transfer, and the Mahavishnu Orchestra, achieved cross-over popularity, although public interest in the genre faded at the turn of the 1980s. Fusion's hits were Daodato's "Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001)" (1973), and Bob James's "Night on Bald Mountain" (1974), and Herbie Hancock's "Chameleon" (1973). Weather Report and The Manhattan Transfer covered Joe Zawinul's jazz standard "Birdland". Linda Ronstadt's What's New, Chaka Kahn's Echoes of an Era, and Carly Simon's Torch were 80s jazz standard albums.

title: Jazz standard


text:
Knut Långe

Knut Långe ("the Tall"), also known as Canute II, was King of Sweden from 1229 until his death in 1234. He was the father of Holmger Knutsson, a later pretender for the Swedish throne. Both father and son were members of the House of Folkung. He is often identified with Knut Holmgersson, a relative of King Eric XI of Sweden.

Family
Not much is certain about his background. An unreliable, late fourteenth century source calls him "Knut Joansson", but the dominating theory is that he was identical with "Knut Holmgersson" who was a member of King Eric XI's council and was a relative to the king, and that his father was the man Holmger who was called a "nepos" of King Knut Ericsson. This theory is supported by the fact that one of Knut's sons was named Holmger. Nepos usually meant nephew, but could be used for other younger relatives. If these identifications are correct, Knut would be the great-grandson of king Eric the Holy. A few historians have instead suggested that the late source might be correct and that Knut's father was Jon Jarl. Some sources give Knut's spouse as Danish noble woman Helena Pedersdatter Strange ( c. 1200–1255). However this theory has been challenged by Hans Gillingstam (1925–2016), who instead believed that he was married to an unknown woman from the House of Bjälbo, evidenced by the coat of arms on the tomb cover of his son Holmger. Knut had the sons Holmger Knutsson (d. 1248) and Philip Knutsson (d. 1251), who both died in Folkung uprisings against Birger Jarl.

Biography
In 1220, Knut donated land to two Dominican friars at Sko in Uppland. They left after a while, and the land instead formed the nucleus of the Sko Abbey for Cistercian nuns. According to a 16th-century source, he was eventually buried there.

Knut Långe was probably a member of the council that ruled Sweden from 1222 to 1229, during the minority of King Eric XI of Sweden. In 1229 or 1230, Eric was overthrown after the Battle of Olustra in Södermanland. Knut's exact involvement in the rising is unclear: he might have participated, or been a compromise candidate. He was recognized in 1231 at the latest, but his time in office was short. The sources contradict each other on the matter of Eric's return: the Lund annals claim that Eric returned before the death of Knut in 1232, the Eric Chronicle claims that he returned following the death of Knut and after renewed fighting. Sturla Tordsson claimed that Knut for a while was co-regent with King Eric X, which could indicate that he was also co-regent with Eric XI during part of his reign.

Knut's reign likely saw the revision of some Swedish laws: creditors could no longer enter the homes of debtors to collect debts without the assistance of a government official, and the king was required to hold judicial reviews at least every third year. These changes have been noted as having taken place in the reign of a "King Knut", and due to chronological considerations, Knut Långe is thought to be most likely.

title: Knut Långe


text:
Talk:RAID

Caps
We should use title case for Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks only if RAID is considered to be a proper noun. If not, redundant array of inexpensive disks is more compatible with the MOS (see WP:EXPABBR and WP:PROPERNAME) despite how sources may style it. ~Kvng (talk) 01:48, 1 May 2020 (UTC)
 * IMO initial capitalization is appropriate under MOS:ACROFIRSTUSE which states, "Unless specified in the "Exceptions" section below, an acronym should be written out in full the first time it is used on a page, followed by the abbreviation in parentheses, e.g. Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) if it is used later in the article." Note the initial capitalization of Millennium Development Goals. RAID is the title of this article and the first time the acronym is written out it follows this policy. I would also note that the spelled out acronym frequently appears with initial caps in relevant literature such at the defining Patterson paper, the RAIDbooks, etc.  Tom94022 (talk) 06:58, 1 May 2020 (UTC)
 * That's true but MOS:ACROFIRSTUSE isn't talking about caps, the section refers to WP:EXPABBR for that. Millennium Development Goals gets title case because it is a proper noun, not because it is an acronym definition. I have started a discussion at Abbreviations to improve our guidance on this. ~Kvng (talk) 13:37, 4 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Then I suggest Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks is a proper noun per dictionary definition and as described at WP:PROPERNAME in that it is a specific storage technology as defined in the original paper and continued in general use. FWIW I looked for a discussion at Abbreviations but didn't find one.  Tom94022 (talk) 20:01, 4 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Sorry about the bum link. Wikipedia_talk:Manual_of_Style/Abbreviations is the correct link.
 * I don't have a good track record identifying proper nouns for these topics so I'm not going to argue about that if that's now the justification. It does look like a different call was made at Redundant array of independent memory though. ~Kvng (talk) 21:46, 4 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Interesting observation about RAID and RAIM. I suggest that RAID's general acceptance has made its unabbreviated form a proper noun where as RAIM has not yet reached such a level of specificity and industry acceptance to be an unabbreviated proper noun.  I note that RS's use both versions of RAIM but it's main promulgator IBM used the lower case version.  Tom94022 (talk) 00:41, 5 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Style guides used by sources may dictate capitalization in acronym definitions. (Wikipedia's style guide sees things differently in this area.) because of this, seeing title case in a source isn't necessarily evidence that the term is considered a proper noun. ~Kvng (talk) 13:34, 5 May 2020 (UTC)

Unreliable sources
The source 87:

Leventhal, Adam (2009-12-01). "Triple-Parity RAID and Beyond. ACM Queue, Association of Computing Machinery". Retrieved 2012-11-30.

uses uncommon bit error rates, with EVEN FICTIONAL VALUES to proof something that not exists. Raid 6 2019 same reliability as 5 in 2010 ?????

Highly questionable way to calculate. MTBF is used in REALITY, increasing the reliability of bit-error-rates drastically.

92.116.65.204 (talk) 19:54, 24 October 2020 (UTC)

Seems like a student published his homework. 92.116.65.204 (talk) 20:12, 24 October 2020 (UTC)

Unreliable, obsolete source 11
Chen, Peter; Lee, Edward; Gibson, Garth; Katz, Randy; Patterson, David (1994). "RAID: High-Performance, Reliable Secondary Storage". ACM Computing Surveys. 26 (2): 145–185. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.41.3889. doi:10.1145/176979.176981.

26 Years old and same error as above: Bit-error instead of MTBF.

 1014: This would mean a single 12TB SATA drive is only readable/writable once, a 20TB cannot be read/written a SINGLE TIME!!! 92.116.65.204 (talk) 21:32, 24 October 2020 (UTC)

Note on Bit Error Rate
Bit error rates are averages and can be misleading taken by themselves, because errors may not be distributed randomly among the individual bits. The errors may be clustered. This means that the lack of errors could also be clustered. Instead of 1014 good bits followed by 1 bad bit, you might have 1014 good blocks followed by one bad block. The average bit error rate in both these cases is exactly the same, but the latter would be much easier for most block-based RAID implementations to deal with. — Unfortunately I do not have a good source to cite for this. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:344:8080:A50:ED61:6F21:54DD:728 (talk) 04:40, 28 February 2021 (UTC)

RAID-5 write hole.
I check the 1994 paper mentioned in footnote 11. Is does not contain the word "hole". Your attribution appears to be incorrect. 149.32.192.47 (talk) 17:38, 20 February 2023 (UTC)

 * Thanks for the heads up – I've marked the source as failing verification. The term itself is in use though, we just need a better source. --Zac67 (talk) 18:38, 20 February 2023 (UTC)

 * Fixed? Tom94022 (talk) 21:05, 20 February 2023 (UTC)

Introduced in Windows in 2000 incorrect?
I've been playing around with Windows NT 3.51 in an emulator and the diskmgmt.msc within NT 3.51 supports RAID 0 and 1, though simply called "Striped" and "Mirrored" respectively. The article seems to imply this sort of thing was introduced with dynamic disks in 2000. Should this be corrected? 172.4.121.7 (talk) 13:48, 18 February 2024 (UTC)

title: Talk:RAID


text:
Abbé Faria

Abbé Faria (Abade Faria), or Abbé) (born José Custódio de Faria; 31 May 1756 – 20 September 1819), was a Luso-Goan Catholic priest who was one of the pioneers of the scientific study of hypnotism, following on from the work of Franz Mesmer. Unlike Mesmer, who claimed that hypnosis was mediated by "animal magnetism", Faria understood that it worked purely by the power of suggestion. In the early 19th century, Abbé Faria introduced oriental hypnosis to Paris.

He was one of the first to depart from the theory of the "magnetic fluid", to place in relief the importance of suggestion, and to demonstrate the existence of "autosuggestion"; he also established that what he termed nervous sleep belongs to the natural order. From his earliest magnetizing séances, in 1814, he boldly developed his doctrine. Nothing comes from the magnetizer; everything comes from the subject and takes place in his imagination generated from within the mind. Magnetism is only a form of sleep. Although of the moral order, the magnetic action is often aided by physical, or rather by physiological, means–fixedness of look and cerebral fatigue.

Faria changed the terminology of mesmerism. Previously, the focus was on the "concentration" of the subject. In Faria's terminology the operator became "the concentrator" and somnambulism was viewed as a lucid sleep. The method of hypnosis used by Faria is command, following expectancy. The theory of Abbé Faria is now known as Fariism.

Later, Ambroise-Auguste Liébeault (1864–1904), the founder of the Nancy School, and Émile Coué (1857–1926), father of applied conditioning, developed the theory of suggestion and autosuggestion and began using them as therapeutic tools. Johannes Schultz developed these theories as Autogenic training.

Early life
José Custódio de Faria was born in Candolim, Bardez in the erstwhile territory of Portuguese Goa, on 31 May 1756. He was the son of Caetano Vitorino de Faria of Colvale, and Rosa Maria de Sousa of Candolim. He also had an adopted sister, Catarina who was an orphan. Caetano was in turn a descendant of Anantha Shenoy, a Goud Saraswat Brahmin, village clerk and Patil of the same village who converted to Christianity in the 16th century. He was a Goan Catholic of the Bamonn caste, and was also of partial African descent.

Since his parents fought all the time, they decided to separate and obtained the Church's dispensation. Caetano Vitorino joined the seminary to study for the priesthood (he had already taken lower orders before his marriage). Rosa Maria became a nun, joining the St. Monica Convent in Old Goa.

Lisbon
The father had great ambition for himself and his son. Hence, Faria reached Lisbon on 23 December 1771 with his father at the age of 15. After a year they managed to convince the King of Portugal, Joseph I, to send them to Rome for Faria Sr. to earn a doctorate in theology, and the son to pursue his studies for the priesthood.

Eventually, the son too earned his doctorate, dedicating his doctoral thesis to the Portuguese Queen, Mary I of Portugal, and another study, on the Holy Spirit to the Pope. Apparently the pope was sufficiently impressed to invite José Custódio to preach a sermon in the Sistine Chapel, which he himself attended.

On his return to Lisbon, the Queen was informed by the Nuncio of the Pope's honour to Faria Jr. So, she too invited the young priest to preach to her as well, in her chapel. But Faria, climbing the pulpit, and seeing the august assembly felt tongue tied. At that moment his father, who sat below the pulpit, whispered to him in Konkani: Hi sogli baji; cator re baji (they are all vegetables, cut the vegetables). Jolted, the son lost his fear and preached fluently.

Faria Jr., from then on, often wondered how a mere phrase from his father could alter his state of mind so radically as to wipe off his stage fright in a second. The question would have far reaching consequences in his life.

Participation in conspiracy
He was implicated in the Conspiracy of the Pintos during 1787, and left for France in 1788. He stayed in Paris residing at Rue de Ponceau.

France
In Paris, he became a leader of one of the revolutionary battalions in 1795, taking command of one of the sections of the infamous 10 of the Vendémiaire, which attacked the infamous French Convention, taking an active part in its fall. As a result, he established links with individuals like Chateaubriand, the Marquise of Coustine. He was also a friend of Armand-Marie-Jacques de Chastenet, Marques of Puységur (a disciple of Franz Anton Mesmer), to whom he dedicated his book Causas do Sono Lúcido ("On the Causes of Lucid Sleep").

In 1797 he was arrested in Marseille for unknown reasons, and sent by a law court to the infamous Château d'If in a barred police carriage. He was shut up in solitary confinement in the Château. While imprisoned he steadily trained himself using techniques of self-suggestion.

After a long imprisonment in the Château, Faria was released and returned to Paris.

In 1811, he was appointed Professor of Philosophy at the University of France at Nîmes, and was elected member of the Société Medicale de Marseille at Marseille.

In 1813 Abbé Faria, realising that animal magnetism was gaining importance in Paris, returned to Paris and started promoting a new doctrine. He provoked unending controversies with his work Da Causa do Sono Lúcido no Estudo da Natureza do Homem (On the cause of Lucid Sleep in the Study of the Nature of Man), published in Paris in 1819 and was soon accused of being a charlatan.

He retired as chaplain to an obscure religious establishment, and died of a stroke in Paris on 30 September 1819. He left behind no addresses and his grave remains unmarked and unknown, somewhere in Montmartre.

Tributes

 * There is a bronze statue of Abbé Faria trying to hypnotise a woman in central Panjim, Goa, India (next to the former Government Secretariat or Idalcão palace). It was sculpted in 1945 by Ramchandra Pandurang Kamat or earlier by Constâncio Fernandes.
 * Portugal commemorated the 250th anniversary of the Abbé's birth in May 2006 by releasing a postcard (featuring his statue in Panjim, India).
 * A street in the Areeiro zone of Lisbon is also named in his honour.
 * An authentic caricature of him is preserved in the National Library of Paris.
 * A prominent thoroughfare in the city of Margao in Goa, India is named 'Rua Abade Faria' (Abbé Faria Street) in his honour.
 * On Abbe Faria Street in Margao, there was an educational institution called Instituto Abade Faria which imparted Portuguese language secondary school education known as "Lyceum studies", consisting of First Year To Fifth Year classes. It ceased to function after the liberation of Goa.
 * Alexandre Dumas' 1844 novel The Count of Monte Cristo features a prominent character named Abbé Faria, who was imprisoned in the Château d'If in solitary confinement, and he learned a certain self-control while imprisoned. Otherwise, the character does not have a strong resemblance to his historical analogue.
 * Abbé Faria, a play by Indian writer Asif Currimbhoy, dramatizes Faria's life and views as a revolutionary priest and premier hypnotist. It was published by Writers Workshop.
 * Jaime Valfredo Rangel presented a paper in tribute of his 200th birth anniversary to the Governor of Portuguese India, Paulo Bernard Guedes.
 * The Institute of Clinical Hypnosis and Counselling was established in the Indian state of Kerala as a memorial to Abbé Faria.
 * Kator Re Bhaji, is a play was written and directed by Isabel de Santa Rita Vas and performed by the Mustard Seed Art Company, an Indian theatre troupe from Goa, which celebrated the 250th anniversary of Faria's birth.
 * Laurent Carrer included the first English translation of Faria's single tome, originally written in French as De la cause du sommeil lucide ou Etude de la nature de l’homme (On the Cause of Lucid Sleep or Study On The Nature of Man) in his 2004 José Custódio de Faria: Hypnotist, Priest and Revolutionary.

title: Abbé Faria


text:
Woodland (disambiguation)

Woodland is wooded land.

It may also refer to:

United Kingdom

 * Woodland, County Durham, England
 * Woodland, Cumbria, England
 * Woodland, Devon, England

United States

 * Woodland, Alabama
 * Woodland, California
 * Woodland (Washington, D.C.), a neighborhood
 * Woodland, Georgia
 * Woodland (Eatonton, Georgia), a National Register of Historic Places listing in Putnam County, Georgia
 * Woodland (Lumber City, Georgia)
 * Woodland (Lexington, Kentucky), a National Register of Historic Places listing in Fayette County, Kentucky
 * Woodland (Nicholasville, Kentucky), a National Register of Historic Places listing in Jessamine County, Kentucky
 * Cave City, Kentucky or Woodland
 * Woodland, Illinois
 * Woodland, Indiana
 * Woodland, Aroostook County, Maine
 * Woodland, Washington County, Maine
 * Woodland, Maryland
 * Woodland, Michigan
 * Woodland Township, Michigan
 * Woodland, Minnesota
 * Woodland Township, Minnesota
 * Woodland (Duluth), Minnesota, a neighborhood
 * Woodland, Mississippi
 * Woodland, Missouri
 * Woodland Township, New Jersey
 * Woodland, North Carolina
 * Woodland, Ohio
 * Woodland (St. Thomas Township, Franklin County, Pennsylvania)
 * Woodland (Huntsville, Texas), a National Historic Landmark house on the campus of Sam Houston State University
 * Woodland, Utah
 * Woodland, Washington
 * Woodland, Wisconsin, a town in Sauk County
 * Woodland, Dodge County, Wisconsin, an unincorporated community

Parks

 * Arthur B. Ripley Desert Woodland State Park, California
 * Woodland Park (Seattle), Washington
 * Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle

Camouflage patterns

 * US Woodland, the default camouflage pattern issued to United States soldiers, marines, airmen, and sailors from 1981 until its replacement around 2006
 * TAZ 90 (camouflage) or Swiss Woodland, the camouflage patterns for current standard issue Battle dress uniform of the Swiss Armed Forces

Railway stations

 * Woodland railway station, a station in Cumbria, England
 * Woodland (MBTA station), a station in Newton, Massachusetts

Other uses

 * Whitefaced Woodland,a sheep breed
 * Woodland cemetery, a type of cemetery
 * Woodland period, a period of pre-Columbian Native American history
 * Woodland management
 * Woodland Regional High School, a high school in Beacon Falls, Connecticut
 * Woodland Trust

People with the surname

 * Albert Woodland (1895–1955), English cricketer
 * Arthur Woodland (1889–1941), English footballer
 * Barry Woodland, British former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer
 * Donald L. Woodland (1930–1994), Ohio state senator
 * Gary Woodland (born 1984), American professional golfer
 * Lauren Woodland (born 1977), American actress and attorney
 * Luke Woodland (born 1995), footballer
 * Norman Joseph Woodland (1921–2012), American co-inventor of the barcode
 * Philip Charles Woodland, British engineer
 * Rae Woodland (1922–2013), British soprano
 * Rich Woodland, Jr. (born 1970), American stock car racing driver
 * Vincent Reynolds Woodland (1879–1933), British colonial administrator

title: Woodland (disambiguation)


text:
Education in Hong Kong

Education in Hong Kong used to be largely modelled on that of the United Kingdom, particularly the English system. Since 2012, the overhaul of secondary school diploma has introduced changes to the number of school years as well as the two-tier general examinations. The DSE has replaced the old HKCEE (similar to the UK's GCSE) and the A-levels. Education policy in Hong Kong is overseen by the Education Bureau and the Social Welfare Department.

The academic year begins mid-year, usually starting in September.

History
Small village Chinese schools were observed by the British missionaries when they arrived circa 1843. Anthony Sweeting believes those small village schools existed in Chek Chue (modern-day town of Stanley), Shek Pai Wan, Heung Kong Tsai (modern-day Aberdeen) and Wong Nai Chong on Hong Kong Island, although proof is no longer available.

One of the earliest schools with reliable records was Li Ying College established in 1075 in present-day New Territories. By 1860 Hong Kong had 20 village schools. Chinese who were wealthy did not educate their children in Hong Kong but instead sent them to major Chinese cities, such as Canton, for traditional Chinese education.

The changes came with the arrival of the British in 1841. At first, Hong Kong's education came from Protestant and Catholic missionaries who provided social services. Italian missionaries began to provide boy-only education to British and Chinese youth in 1843.

In 1862 Frederick Stewart arrived in Hong Kong. His work, over a period of years, led to his being called, "The Founder of Hong Kong Education". He took up an appointment as the first headmaster of the first school to be founded and fully-funded by the Hong Kong Government, Queen's College (then named the Hong Kong Government Central School for Boys). He took a lead from various missionaries who had been active in Hong Kong education for the Chinese in the earlier post 1841 period and insisted on a bilingual and bicultural curriculum. (Half the day was spent on the Chinese language and the traditional Confucian curriculum and half the day was spent on the English language and what was then known as "useful knowledge" (i.e. western studies).

One of the much-contested debates was whether schools should offer vernacular education, teaching in Chinese. Education was considered a luxury for the elite and the rich. The first school to open the floodgate of western medical practice into East Asia was the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese. The London Missionary Society and Sir James Cantlie started the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese in 1887 (although, the 'for Chinese' was later dropped from the name). Also, the London Missionary Society founded Ying Wa Girls' School in 1900. From 1921 to 1941, St. Stephen's Girls College in Hong Kong provided a progressive science curriculum to help prepare career women for social service in China.

Belilios Public School was a girls' secondary school founded in 1890 – the first government school in Hong Kong that provided bilingual education in English and Chinese. The push for Chinese education in a British system did not begin until the rise of social awareness of the Chinese community following the 1919 May Fourth Movement and the 1934 New Life Movement in China. Educating the poor did not become a priority until they accounted for the majority of the population. Financial issues were addressed in the 1970s.

In 1997 Keith Richburg of The Washington Post wrote that in the British era education was based on education in the United Kingdom, "largely apolitical", and did not emphasise topics related to politics nor civic affairs. The governor of Hong Kong had the right to bar, under law, "the dissemination of information, or expression of opinion, of a clearly biased political nature in schools" but Richburg stated that "That law was rarely used". There were attempts to repeal said law prior to 1 July 1997. By 1991 the education authorities wanted to have history classes with a positive view of China to make the handover smoother but some teachers with liberal views sought to have more critical views.

In 1997, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region implemented the Target Oriented Curriculum (TOC) to introduce and spread the project learning in the national primary schools. To promote the interactions of work groups or individual students in a new learning environment, professors were engaged in the role of "consultant, facilitator, helper" and posers of questions. Ten years after, the 80% of the Hong Kong's institutes had left the traditional approach to education, mainly based on teachers and textbooks, to adopt an active and experiential learning pedagogy.

The imposition of the Hong Kong national security law resulted in a decline in enrolment in traditionally prestigious Hong Kong schools, as many families with the financial means chose instead to send their children abroad. According to a survey conducted across 100 schools, between July and November, approximately 1,474 students left these schools. Around 50% of these students departed Hong Kong along with other family members. In January 2023, the release of data for the academic year 2021–2022 indicated a significant increase in the number of students who chose to leave Hong Kong universities before completing their degrees. This trend was accompanied by a notable rise in the departure of lecturers, reaching a level that had not been observed in over 20 years. In February 2023, reports highlighted that approximately 3,500 teachers in subsidised schools had left their positions during the previous academic year, with a majority opting to resign rather than retire. Between 2021 and 2022, a report showed that around 28,000 students had left Hong Kong's school system.

In 2020, it was observed that references to sensitive subjects had been excluded from the majority of new textbooks in Hong Kong. In subsequent years, the government implemented additional measures, including a requirement for foreign teachers working in Hong Kong to take an oath of allegiance. Notably, new middle school textbooks disputed Hong Kong's status as a former colony, presenting it as Chinese territory occupied by Britain. These textbooks also asserted that the recent protests in Hong Kong were instigated by foreign entities. The curriculum for liberal studies classes underwent a shift, with a renewed emphasis on patriotism and national security, including the establishment of National Security Education Day.

In 2022, the Education Bureau introduced the Citizenship and Social Development subject, to replace Liberal Studies as one of the four core subjects in senior secondary education. As part of the subject, students will participate in fully subsidised field trips to mainland China. The trips range from two to five days in duration, with destinations such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Hunan. The itinerary for the two-day trips includes visits to the Memorial Museum of Sun Yat-sen's mansion and the former site of the Whampoa Military Academy in Guangzhou. Another two-day trip involves exploring the Deqing Palace, a historical site in Zhaoqing city, where students learn about the ancient imperial examination system and Confucianism.

In 2023, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Education University of Hong Kong announced that they would allow the use of artificial intelligence-enabled tools and large language models such as ChatGPT in coursework. In a letter to staff, HKUST said the decision on whether or not to allow students to use AI tools would be left to individual teaching staff. EdUHK's vice president John Lee said “The emergence of AI technology has brought about tremendous change to conventional teaching. Teachers should be more proactive than ever in serving as facilitators to foster students’ understanding about the strengths and constraints of AI, while promoting the responsible use of technology".

In August 2023, officials from Hong Kong and Guangdong signed a framework agreement to strengthen education exchanges and cooperation between schools in the two regions. The agreement aimed to promote collaboration and exchanges in education, nurture talent for the development of the Greater Bay Area, and contribute to the development of both regions. It encourages higher education institutions to collaborate on education services, talent cultivation, and technology exchanges.

The agreement also focuses on enhancing cooperation in vocational education, promoting the establishment of sister schools, facilitating exchange activities, and improving the quality of such exchanges. The Vocational Training Council signed a memorandum of understanding with Guangdong to initiate collaborative projects and establish the GBA Vocational Education Park. The agreement also involves Guangdong supporting the VTC's mainland operation center and providing guidance for the GBA Explorer Trip program, which aims to enhance students' understanding of GBA developments.

Pre-school education
Pre-school education in Hong Kong is not free, in principle, and fees are payable by pupils' parents. However, parents whose children have the right of abode in Hong Kong can pay for part of their fees with a voucher from the government under the Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme (PEVS). In 2013, the amount of subsidy under the PEVS is $16,800.

Primary and secondary education
Every child in Hong Kong is required by law to attend a primary school after the child has attained the age of 6. They are also required to attend a secondary school after primary education and is completed before he/she attains the age of 18. However, a student who has completed up to Form Three of secondary education is exempted. Education in the public sector is free. Public primary schools admit students via the Primary One Admission System.

Secondary education
Secondary education is separated into junior and senior years. In junior years, the curriculum is a broad one where history, geography, science are studied alongside subjects that have already been studied at primary schools. In senior years, this becomes more selective and students have a choice over what and how much is to be studied. Almost all schools but PLK Vicwood KT Chong Sixth Form College and its feeder junior secondary college have both sessions.

Annually, Form Six students studying in local schools in Hong Kong sit for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) between early March through early May. However, a minority of local secondary schools in Hong Kong also offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP) for their students as an alternative choice to the HKDSE curriculum, for example, Diocesan Boys' School and St. Paul's Co-educational College.

Further education
The commerce stream in secondary schools is considered vocational. Students in the Commerce stream would usually enter the workplace to gain practical work experience by this point. Further education pursuits in the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education or universities abroad are common. The Manpower Development Committee (MDC) advises the government on coordination, regulation, and promotion of the sector. Also, the Vocational Training Council (VTC) ensures the level of standard is met through the "Apprentice Ordinance". The VTC also operates three skills-centres for people with disabilities. Secondary schools in Hong Kong are going to be cut down to only two years due to the switch in the government.

Alternative education options
International institutions provide both primary and secondary education in Hong Kong. International institutions teach with English as the primary language, with some sections bilingual in German, French and Chinese. International school students rarely take Hong Kong public exams. British students take GCSE, IGCSE, and A-levels. US students take APs. Increasingly, international schools follow the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) and enter universities through non-JUPAS direct entry. International students apply on a per-school basis, whereas Hong Kong local students submit one application for multiple local universities as a JUPAS applicant.

Medium of instruction
In the 1990s, following the handover of Hong Kong, most secondary schools in the territory switched their medium of instruction from English to Chinese (Cantonese). The remaining 114 schools (about 20–30%) are known as EMI schools and are often viewed as prestigious. EMI schools also have far better university acceptance rates than CMI schools; hence, EMI schools are heavily sought after by parents and are often labelled as 'elite schools'. From 2009 onwards, schools which use Chinese as medium of instruction were also allowed to have classes that use English as medium of instruction.

In addition, the Hong Kong government has pushed the use of Putonghua (Standard Mandarin Chinese) as medium of instruction in the Chinese language subject (PMIC). As of 2015–2016, about 16.4% primary schools and 2.5% secondary schools have adopted Putonghua, instead of Cantonese, for teaching the Chinese language subject across all grades and classes. An additional 55.3% primary schools and 34.4% secondary schools have adopted Putonghua in some of their grades and classes. The remaining 28.3% primary schools and 63.1% secondary schools still use Cantonese in all their grades and classes.

Tertiary and higher education
Higher education in Hong Kong has historically been exclusive. Fewer than 20,000 students were offered government-funded places in 1975, though the figure has been growing over the past decades. Many continue their studies abroad as shown in table below.

Bachelor's degrees issued in Hong Kong have honours distinctions: first class, second class upper division, second class lower division, and third class. Since the introduction of a new academic structure in 2012, the duration of undergraduate programmes in Hong Kong has been switched from three years to four years.

Admission
The Joint University Programmes Admissions System (JUPAS) is the main route of application designed to assist students holding Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) or Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination (HKALE) results in applying for admission to universities in Hong Kong.

Medium of instruction
English is the medium of instruction and assessment for most university programmes in Hong Kong.

UGC-funded universities
There are currently eight UGC-funded universities in Hong Kong: HKU, CUHK, and HKUST are consistently ranked among the top 50 or top 100 universities worldwide, while PolyU and CityU are consistently ranked among the top 100 or top 200 universities worldwide. HKUST, PolyU, and CityU are also ranked among the best young universities worldwide.

Publicly-funded institutions

 * The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA, founded in 1984) – The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Ordinance (Cap.1135)

Self-financing institutions – Statutory university

 * Hong Kong Metropolitan University (HKMU; formerly the Open University of Hong Kong, OUHK; founded in 1989, granted university status in May 1997) – The Open University of Hong Kong Ordinance (Cap. 1145)

Self-financing institutions – Approved post secondary colleges
Approved post secondary colleges are educational institutes registered under the Post Secondary Colleges Ordinance (Cap. 320). This kind of colleges are allowed to give out academic awards at bachelor's degree level or above as well as to include the Chinese words "學院" or "大學", or the English word "University" in the registration name with prior approval from the Chief Executive-in-Council.

 * Hong Kong Shue Yan University (HKSYU, founded in 1971, granted university status in December 2006)
 * Hang Seng University of Hong Kong (HSUHK, founded in 2010, granted university status in October 2018)
 * Chu Hai College of Higher Education
 * HKCT Institute of Higher Education
 * Tung Wah College
 * Caritas Institute of Higher Education
 * Centennial College
 * Gratia Christian College
 * Hong Kong Nang Yan College of Higher Education
 * Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi), Vocational Training Council
 * UOW College Hong Kong

Adult education
Adult education is popular, since it gives middle age adults a chance to obtain a tertiary degree. The concept was not common several decades ago. The EMB has commissioned two non-profit school operators to provide evening courses. The operators have fee remission schemes to help adult learners in need of financial assistance. Adult education courses also provide Vocational Training Council through universities and private institutions. The Open University of Hong Kong is one establishment for mature students. Several secondary schools operate adult education sessions, the first being Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Secondary School, while PLK Vicwood KT Chong Sixth Form College offers associate degree and joint-degree programmes.

Special education
However, since special education is accused of being a measure of discrimination and separation, the British education suggests that integrated education should be the leading factor, and many special schools will be forced to transform. Since the 2000s, special schools in Hong Kong have also followed this trend, except for moderately to severely intellectual disability students, other types of special schools need to be transformed into mainstream schools to accept ordinary students.

Education for immigrant and non-Cantonese-speaking children
The Education Bureau provides education services for immigrant children from mainland China and other countries, as well as non-Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong children. Free "Induction Programmes" of up to 60 hours have been offered to NAC by non-government organisations. The EMB also provides a 6-month full-time "Initiation Programme" incorporating both academic and non-academic support services, for NAC before they are formally placed into mainstream schools. The social issue aroused the interest of academic researchers to publish work about NACs' adaptation and school performance

In 2017 the Hong Kong government schools had 6,267 Pakistani students, the largest non-local bloc, and 818 white students of any national background. In 2013 there were 556 white students of any background in Hong Kong government schools. Historically, non-local students from other Asian countries attended government schools, while white students attended private schools. In 2018 Angie Chan of The New York Times reported that increasing numbers of white students were enrolling in Cantonese-medium government schools. This was due to increasing tuitions from international schools which received influxes of wealthy mainland Chinese and desires from parents for white students to learn Cantonese.

International education
As of January 2015, the International Schools Consultancy (ISC) listed Hong Kong as having 175 international schools. ISC defines an 'international school' in the following terms "ISC includes an international school if the school delivers a curriculum to any combination of pre-school, primary or secondary students, wholly or partly in English outside an English-speaking country, or if a school in a country where English is one of the official languages, offers an English-medium curriculum other than the country's national curriculum and is international in its orientation." This definition is used by publications including The Economist.

While the ISC definition allows for an objective number it does also mean that the count of "international schools" is often considerably higher than the number of schools that would be relevant to an international, expatriate audience. WhichSchoolAdvisor.com, a review-based site that looks exclusively at schools attended by expatriates, has 100 international schools listed in its directory, less than the ISC count, but still 17 more than its great city rival, Singapore. Of these, 24 schools follow in part or in full a UK-based curriculum (largely the I/GCSE up to 16, A Level post 16), while others follow a UK/International Baccalaureate blend with the IB Diploma offered for post-16 study. Some 33 schools in Hong Kong currently offer the Diploma.

Hong Kong's international schools are not subject to independent inspection reports by the territory's regulator, meaning word of mouth tends to drive reputation as to what are considered to be the best performing international schools in the territory. A large number of parent forums exist that help parents new to Hong Kong make an often very difficult decision.

Private, international schools come at very different prices. The most expensive school is currently Li Po Chun United World College of Hong Kong, with average annual fees of HKD $360,000 (US$46,450.13). These fees are skewed by the fact that this school is boarding only, and only for the students studying the last two years of the IB. The next most expensive school in the territory is the Chinese International School (CIS), an IB continuum, bi-lingual school (Mandarin and English). Its average fees across year groups is currently HKD 216,500 (US$27,935).

In addition to the international day school, Hong Kong's Japanese population is served by a weekend education programme, the Hong Kong Japanese Supplementary School (香港日本人補習授業校).

In 2018 Angie Chan reported that increasing numbers of Chinese students, including Hong Kong Chinese and mainland Chinese, were enrolling in private international schools. In 2017 the percentage of foreign students in such institutions was under 75%, with Hong Kong Chinese being 21.6% and mainland Chinese being about 4%. In previous eras virtually the entire international school student body was foreign.

There are top-rated exempted courses where courses offered overseas are collaborated with local institutions in Hong Kong to broaden the scope of tertiary education in Hong Kong. MIT has an innovation node in Hong Kong.

Class size
In the past, many primary schools in Hong Kong adopted a half-day schooling system to accommodate the high demand for education. This arrangement involved splitting the school day into two sessions, with separate headmasters overseeing each session. To compensate for the reduced school hours, students were occasionally required to attend school on alternate Saturdays. In line with government policy, half-day schooling was gradually phased out as resources allowed. Most schools have now transitioned towards full-day school systems.

In recent years, the decline in birth rate has had a significant impact on primary schools, leading to class reductions. This has sparked debates on the potential benefits of promoting small class teaching. Proponents posit that implementing small class sizes would help alleviate the pressures faced by teachers and address the challenges arising from reduced student-to-teacher ratios, class sizes, and school capacities.

Discipline
Good behaviour has always been emphasised in Hong Kong, to the point that it is sometimes said to hinder pupils' development. Misbehaviour is recorded and shown on school reports. The Education Bureau (EDB) provides the 'Guidelines for Student Disciplines' to schools to as guidance in creating a disciplined education environment. It outlines the principles and policies regarding student discipline, the organisational structure of a school discipline team, the roles and responsibilities of the discipline master and mistress, and discipline strategies illustrated with case studies.

Culture
Education in Hong Kong has often been described as 'spoon-fed'. Cram schools in Hong Kong have also become a popular standard in parallel to regular education. Teachers focus on helping students getting high scores in the major exams and heavily rely on textbook knowledge rather than exchanging ideas and essence of the subjects.

With the advent of education reform there is a greater emphasis on group projects, open-ended assignments on top of traditional homework. The current workload of a primary student in Hong Kong includes approximately two hours of schoolwork nightly. Along with extra-curricular activities, Hong Kong's education has become synonymous for leaning towards quantity. As early as March 1987, education advisory inspectors became concerned with the excessive amounts of "mechanical work and meaningless homework". In particular, history education has been recognised as ineffective, with critics claiming that the curriculum is not capable of delivering a sense of identity. Not only that, students have to memorise the whole history texts, thereby indicating that rote-learning has greater priority than absorbing and understanding material.

title: Education in Hong Kong


text:
Aamon

Aamon (also known as Amon and Nahum), in demonology, is a Grand Marquis of Hell who governs 40 infernal legions, and the 7th spirit of the Goetia. He is the demon of life and reproduction.

Description
The names Aamon and Amon come from the god Amun or from the Canaanite god Baal Hammon of Carthage. Nahum means "who induces to eagerness."

"Amon, or Aamon, great and powerful marquis of the infernal empire. He has the face of a wolf, with a snake's tail; he vomits flame; when he takes human form, he has only the body of man; his head resembles that of an owl and his beak shows very reckless canine teeth. He is the most solid of the princes of demons. He knows the past and the future, and reconciles, when he wants, the friends scrambled. He commanded forty legions.

The Egyptians saw Amon or Amoun, their supreme God; they represented him with blue skin, in a fairly human form. he commands 40 legions of demons and carries the title of Prince. He reconciles friends and foes and procures love for those seeking it. The Egyptians viewed Amon or Amun as their supreme God; they represented him with blue skin in human form."

- Dictionnaire Infernal, Jacques Collin de Plancy

He was written about by Johann Weyer in 1583 in the Pseudomonarchia Daemonum. "Amon, or Aamon, is a great and mighty marques, and commeth abroad in the likeness of a Wolf, having a serpents tail, [vomiting] flames of fire; when he putteth on the shape of a man, he sheweth out dogs teeth, and a great head like to a mighty [night hawk]; he is the strongest prince of all other, and understandeth of all things past and to come, he procureth favor, and reconcileth both friends and foes, and rule forthy legions of devils."

And much later by S. L. MacGregor Mathers in The Lesser Key of Solomon. "The Seventh Spirit is Amon. He is a Marquis great in power, and most stern. He appeareth like a Wolf with a Serpent's tail, vomiting out of his mouth flames of fire; but at the command of the Magician he putteth on the shape of a Man with Dog's teeth beset in a head like a Raven; or else like a Man with a Raven's head (simply). He telleth all things Past and to Come. He procureth feuds and reconcileth controversies between friends. He governeth 40 Legions of Spirits. His Seal is this which is to be worn as aforesaid, etc."

Harley MS 6483 of The Lesser Key of Solomon states that Amon can also enable the magician to summon and interrogate the spirits of those who drowned at sea.

title: Aamon