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Mark Holden

Mark Ronald Holden (born 27 April 1954) is an Australian singer, actor, TV personality, record producer, songwriter, and barrister. He was a pop star in the 1970s and had four top 20 hit singles, "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again" (May 1976), "I Wanna Make You My Lady" (September), "Last Romance" (November) and "Reach Out for the One Who Loves You" (October 1977). Holden regularly appeared on national pop music show, Countdown. Holden is remembered for his clean-cut image, his white dinner suit and his penchant for handing out carnations to girls on the set of the popular television show Countdown – he was nicknamed "The Carnation Kid". In the 1980s he worked as a songwriter in Los Angeles providing material recorded by Meat Loaf, Joe Cocker, Gladys Knight, Bob Welch and Steve Jones. He was one of three original judges on the television series Australian Idol (2003–07) and the first season (2005) of The X Factor. In 2023, Holden voiced "The Old Man" in the narrative video game RoboCop: Rogue City.

Early years
Mark Ronald Holden was born on 27 April 1954 to Helen (née King) and Ron Holden at Calvary Hospital, North Adelaide. His father's family were involved with the Holden and Sloggetts Travelling Circus; although Ron became an architect and Helen was a teacher.

In the mid-1960s, Holden became involved in music after inheriting a guitar from his older brother Craig. Holden attended Westminster School in Adelaide and formed a school band. Holden began writing songs and took classical vocal lessons with Lewis Dawe. In a 2010 interview with the ABC, Holden said the band was encouraged; "I remember we were given a room under a stairwell to rehearse our band." In 1972, Holden enrolled at the University of Adelaide where he studied law for three years.

In 1972, Holden was encouraged by a neighbour to audition for Adelaide Tonight, a local television show hosted by Ernie Sigley. Holden attended an open audition along Tynte Street, North Adelaide, singing an original song and "I'll Walk with God", where he was successful and performed on the show a number of times. In 1973, Sigley moved to Melbourne and launched his own show The Ernie Sigley Show. Sigley invited Holden to Melbourne, where he performed on this show. Throughout 1973, Holden travelled between Melbourne and Adelaide, balancing his music and law degree.

1974–1977: Music career
In 1974, Holden entered Showcase '74, a television talent show on Network 9 where he sang original folky songs. Holden ultimately placed fifth. John Bromwell from Essex Music encouraged Holden to relocate to Sydney and arranged a meeting with Peter Dawkins a record producer with EMI Music who signed Holden. Holden's debut album Dawn in Darkness was released in 1975, in which Holden wrote or co-wrote all tracks.

From 1975 to 1976, Holden performed as Joseph in the first Australian production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Seymour Centre, Sydney. He was the first pop star in the world to play the lead role.

In April 1976, Holden released a cover of Eric Carmen's "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again". The song became a hit peaking at number 13 on the Australian Kent Music Report. He released "I Wanna Make You My Lady" in August and "Last Romance" in November, which both peaked at number 11. Holden issued his second studio album, Let Me Love You. At the TV Week King of Pop Awards of 1976 he won Most Popular New Talent.

In 1977, Holden released "Hey, My Love" in February which peaked at number 32, and "Reach Out for the One Who Loves You" in August, which peaked at number 17. Holden's third album Encounter was released in September 1977. Both Let Me Love You and Encounter were each certified double gold for shipment of 50,000 copies.

1976–1978: TV & film
In 1976, Holden played the role of Greg Mason on the TV soap opera The Young Doctors. In 1977, he starred in Blue Fire Lady and Newsfront and Reach for the Stars and Case for the Defence in 1978.

At the Logie Awards of 1977, Holden won Most Popular Australian TV Teenage Personality and the George Wallace Memorial Logie for Best New Talent. He won Most Popular Australian TV Teenage Personality in 1978 also.

1979–1983: Music in Los Angeles
In 1979, Holden relocated to Los Angeles and signed with American label Scotti Brothers Records. His first release on this label was "Stay" which he co-wrote with Gloria Sklerov. The song didn't chart but was covered by John Schneider on his 1981 album, Now or Never. Mark recorded "Scintillating Lady" which he co-wrote with Roger Atkins, and was due to launch his American career with a performance of the song live on CBS; however, just before the performance, his wisdom teeth needed removing and he sang the song though pain and a swollen mouth. The song was poorly received and not released. Holden and Scotti Brothers Records parted ways.

In 1983, Holden released his fourth studio album, Mark Holden on Casablanca Records, in which he co-wrote all of the tracks. The album did not chart and Holden began to focus on writing and producing.

1984–1996: Music producer in Los Angeles
After the lack of success of Mark Holden, Holden focussed on becoming a songwriter and music producer. He formed a company called Multimedia with Anthony Curtis and Dan Wilson and over the next decade co-wrote two top ten hits on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for the Temptations, "Lady Soul" (June 1986) and "Look What You Started" (1987). There were also hits with Tracie Spencer, Joey Lawrence, Will Downing, a #1 dance hit with Kathy Sledge, and over 50 cover recordings of his songs from artists as varied as Belinda Carlisle, Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols, The Manhattans, Donny Osmond, José Feliciano, Fleetwood Mac, David Hasselhoff, Scarlett and Black and Branford Marsalis. He also developed and produced artists including model and actress Milla Jovovich (The 5th Element), for EMI Records Group, New York. This led to her debut album; a US Top Ten Post Modern hit, it won critical raves including a 3-star review in Rolling Stone magazine.

For three years between 1992 and 1995, Holden worked with David Hasselhoff, producing and coordinating his albums, live promotion and musical projects for television, particularly in Europe where David enjoyed multi-platinum successes including the Top Ten hit in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, 'Wir Zwei Allein Heut Nacht' ('Together alone tonight') which Mark wrote with David Hasselhoff. Jeremy Jackson, the actor who played David Hasselhoff's son on Baywatch, was signed to Mark Holden's production company and had two hits in Europe including "You Can Run" which was Top 5 in the Netherlands.

In 1995, Holden's second child Katie was born. Amid the rising violence in Los Angeles in the early 1990s, Holden and his partner Anna decided to move back to Australia in September 1996.

1996–2007: Marjac Productions, Australian Idol & The X Factor
In 1996, Holden recommenced his law degree and by 1997 was keen to get back into the music business. He teamed with Jack Strom who he knew from the early 1970s and was the producer of Red Faces on Hey Hey It's Saturday. The pair listened to a number of demos before visiting a Russian restaurant in Carnegie where they met a 15-year-old Vanessa Amorosi. They signed her and launched her career in 1999. Amorosi's debut album The Power peaked at number 1 and was certified 4 times platinum in Australia. At the APRA Music Awards of 2001, Amorosi's "Shine" won Most Performed Australian Work, in which Holden co-wrote. Strom and Holden formed MarJac Productions and wrote songs and helped launch careers of Delta Goodrem, Nikki Webster and Sophie Monk.

In 1999, Holden performed his show "100 Years of Australian Music" at the School of Arts Café in Queanbeyan and hosted the Silver Jubilee edition of Countdown. In 2002, Holden was honoured by This is Your Life.

In 2003, Holden was a judge on the inaugural season Australian Idol, where he remained for five seasons until 2007. Holden executive-produced the "Final 12" cast CD for Australian Idol which went double platinum and included the song "Rise Up" which he co-wrote with Vanessa Amorosi and peaked at number 1 on the ARIA Charts. His phrase "Touchdown" became the highest form of accolade for the contestants. Cosima De Vito received the first touchdown, for her rendition of Cold Chisel's "When the War Is Over". In 2003, Holden appeared in cameo acting roles on Kath & Kim.

In 2004 Holden signed and managed Joel Turner, a beat-boxer from Idol. Credited to Joel Turner and the Modern Day Poets, their first single "These Kids" reached #1 on the ARIA Charts and achieved double platinum status. Their self-titled album was released in late 2004 was also certified platinum. In 2004, Holden recorded a live DVD titled Live at the George Ballroom. The DVD was produced by Drew Thompson and released in 2005 as a DVD + CD through Thompson Music. In 2004, Mark's family group, The Holdens, released their first CD, A Tribute to Tex Morton. The album featured songs made famous by the legendary country singer Tex Morton.

In 2005, Holden appeared as a judge on the first season of The X Factor, along with John Reid and Kate Ceberano. The R&B group he mentored during the show, Random, went on to win, becoming the first group anywhere in the world to do so.

On 14 June 2005 Holden was one of the guest hosts that stood in for Bert Newton on morning program Good Morning Australia (GMA). Both Australian Idol and GMA aired on Network Ten.

By late 2005, Amorosi ended her 7-year contract with MarJac and signed with Ralph Carr Management, Sony BMG were in dispute with Holden regarding Delta Goodrem and Turner had requested to cease his contract with MarJac, involving Holden in a legal dispute to being 2006.

In 2007, Holden featured in The Starter Wife and Pizza. Holden's radio career includes co-hosting The Drive Home with Cal Wilson while regular host Akmal Saleh was sick. He also hosted the short lived show in 2007, The Dicko, Holden and Chrissie Show on Nova FM.

At the end of the fifth season of Australian Idol in 2007, Holden was told he wasn't required on the show any longer.

2008–present: Theatre, Dancing with the Stars and autobiography
From January to May 2008, Holden played the role of Johnny O'Keefe's manager Lee Gordon in Shout! The Legend of The Wild One. In 2010, Holden had a cancer removed from his neck, affecting his vocal cords.

In 2010, he guest starred as Doctor Wallace in Season 5 of Sea Patrol, which aired in July 2011. From 2010 to 2011 he was a fill-in presenter of the weekday afternoon show on South Australia's 891 ABC Adelaide, where his focus has been on musical discussion. In early 2011 he has been fill in presenter of ABC Local Radio nationally. Mark is one of the regular fill-ins for Richard Stubbs on 774 ABC Melbourne. In early 2012 he was fill-in presenter for the nationwide ABC Local network show Nightlife with Tony Delroy.

From 2012 to 2014 Holden began researching and placing together information from his great-uncle Aldophus Holden's travelling circus from the 1890s. Holden made five 24-minute short films about the circus, including footage from the 1950s and 60s. Holden recorded a soundtrack with his family, including his daughter Katie singing and his son Cain co-writing "Rambling Man". The Holden Brothers Travelling Circus documentary and soundtrack were released on iTunes in September 2014.

To promote the series, Holden appeared on Celebrity Come Dine With Me Australia in January 2014. On 28 August 2014, it was announced Holden would be a participant on the 14th season of Dancing with the Stars commencing in September. Holden had been asked in early seasons but declined. He saw this as an opportunity to promote Holden Brothers Travelling Circus and Network Seven agreed to air the show in December, although this never occurred.

In week one of Dancing with the Stars, Holden did a dance tributing "The Carnation Kid" from 40 years ago. In week two, he danced a waltz to The Beatles' "She's Leaving Home". Holden was receiving positive feedback from judges and audience despite his lack of dancing ability. In week three, Holden dressed up and danced as Bobo the Clown. Intended to be homage to a childhood clown, the performance received high-profile condemnation with people calling his performance a "disaster on the dance floor", "one of the scariest things I've ever seen" and "a train wreck". Holden received 4 out of 40 (the lowest score possible) and was voted out of the show.

Holden subsequently apologised for his behaviour saying "I want to apologise to everyone I've offended, I want to apologise to Channel Seven, to all the contestants on DWTS, and to the judges."

Following the Bobo incident, Holden self-released Holden Brothers Travelling Circus on CD/DVD in December 2014.

In May 2017, Holden released his autobiography, titled, My Idol Years.

Holden produced Judith Durham's 2018 album, So Much More.

During the Adelaide Cabaret Festival in June 2018 Holden said "I'm about to do a limited release of a CD called Mark Holden – The Lost '80s Album. It's a collection of songs I recorded in the '80s when I was a journeyman songwriter in LA. Looking back on all those songs and recordings I was rewriting the same song over and over again centred on my relationship with my now wife and the ultimate conception and birth of our now 22-year-old daughter Katie."

In September 2020, Holden and his daughter Katie commenced releasing The Idol Archives podcast, which sees the duo chat to former Idol contestants about their memories, in this behind-the-scenes look at the reality show. In 2023, Holden voiced "The Old Man" in the narrative video game RoboCop: Rogue City.

Personal life
Holden became a father at the age of 20. His son Cane was born in 1974. Holden's second child Katie was born in 1995.

Holden graduated with a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Adelaide in 2001, which he completed externally at Monash University. He was close to completing the degree in 1974 when his music career took off. In November 2009 he signed the Victorian Bar roll, reading with barrister William Lye, and is now practising full-time at the Victorian Bar.

He has suffered several bone fractures as a direct result of osteoporosis, and featured on an awareness ad on Channel 7. He also suffered from thyroid cancer in 2010. In September 2015 he announced that his cancer had returned.

He is a long-time supporter of the Adelaide Football Club, and was made an ambassador of the club in 2006. Holden is an ambassador of Blue September, an organisation supporting men with cancer.

King of Pop Awards
The King of Pop Awards were voted by the readers of TV Week. The King of Pop award started in 1967 and ran through to 1978.

 * 1975
 * himself
 * Best New Talent
 * Won
 * 1976
 * himself
 * Most Popular New Talent
 * Won
 * Most Popular New Talent
 * Won

title: Mark Holden


text:
Mannerheim Line

The Mannerheim Line (Mannerheim-linja, Mannerheimlinjen) was a defensive fortification line on the Karelian Isthmus built by Finland against the Soviet Union. While this was never an officially designated name, during the Winter War it became known as the Mannerheim Line, after Finnish Army's then commander-in-chief Field Marshal Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim. The line was constructed in two phases: 1920–1924 and 1932–1939. By November 1939, when the Winter War began, the line was by no means complete.

Background

After the October Revolution in the Russian Empire, the Finns declared independence in 1917. Although the Soviet Union recognized Finland's independence, the Finns did not trust their sincerity. The relationship between the two countries deteriorated, with Soviet Russia supporting the Red Guard during the Finnish Civil War in 1918. After the victory of the White Guard, a group of Finnish communists fled to Soviet Russia and established the Communist Party of Finland.

The situation was considered dangerous for a new nation like Finland, especially as the capital of the new communist revolution was nearby Petrograd, (now Saint Petersburg). Furthermore, before the Treaty of Tartu in 1920, the border area was restless. The former general of Imperial Russia, C.G.E. Mannerheim, strongly opposed the Bolsheviks (Communists). Construction work on the Karelian Isthmus had already begun when the Bolsheviks won the Russian Civil War in 1922. The line was constructed in two phases: In 1920–1924 and 1932–1939.

Planning in 1918
During the civil war of 1918, the Finnish government and high command started to develop defence plans to protect against possible attacks from the Soviet Union. The main such route was the Karelian Isthmus. The most endangered part of that isthmus was to the west, near the Gulf of Finland, the eastern part was better protected by the natural water-ways of Vuoksi, Suvanto and Taipaleenjoki. The first plans for a defensive line were commissioned by Mannerheim from the Swedish volunteer Lieutenant Colonel A. Rappe at the beginning of May 1918. Rappe's line was placed close to the border and designed to protect two rail lines that crossed the border, which could be used in a counterattack toward Petrograd. When Mannerheim resigned at the end of May, Rappe's plans were abandoned.

The young nation possessed no guard troops, and the border area was insecure. Security of the border on the isthmus was the responsibility of the 2nd Division and local White Guard units in June 1918. In that form they were also entrusted with the security of the fortification construction. First efforts were weak depots without any concrete.

The Germans had ordered Colonel Otto von Brandenstein to investigate defensive positions on the Karelian Isthmus; he delivered his plan on 16 July. He was the first to suggest using the lake isthmuses, where smaller lakes like Lake Kuolemajärvi, Lake Muolaa, Lake Suvanto and the Taipaleenjoki river divided the Karelian Isthmus to the shorter land sections, as defensive positions, his plan was initially approved by the Finnish high command in August 1918. In October 1918, the Finnish government allocated 300,000 marks for the work, which was to be carried out by German and Finnish sappers as well as Russian prisoners of war. However, the money allocated was insufficient and a lack of building materials and a qualified workforce hampered the building of proper fortifications. With Germany's defeat in The Great War, von Brandenstein's plan was scrapped.

Unreinforced concrete bunkers in 1919–1924
During October 1919 Finnish Chief of Staff Major General Oscar Enckell sited the line, mostly following the original course that von Brandenstein had presented. Major J. Gros-Coissy, a member of the French military commission, designed the fortifications together with Finnish Lt Col Johan Fabritius. During the first building period, Fabritius suggested moving the defensive line further to the south-east. The general staff discussed the issue, but Enckell's earlier plans were followed. Furthermore, insufficient funds resulted in a disagreement between the officers and Enckell resigned in 1924. Construction work was interrupted for a long period.

The prime contractor of the fortifications was the Finnish construction company Ab Granit Oy. The first hundred small bunkers were built in 1920–1924. For reasons of cost, the first phase hard fortifications were of unreinforced concrete, which provided only partial protection. The compression density of the concrete was too low to offer resistance to anything larger than medium artillery.

First large bunkers 1932–1937

The second construction phase started on 1 April 1934, with Fabritius in command of the construction work. He designed two new kinds of bunker, Ink 1 and Ink 2. The bunkers were mainly designed for troop accommodation, but loopholes were crafted into armour plate in 1938 and 1939. A bunker was typically 15–20 meters in length and 5–6 meters wide. A pioneer battalion constructed six bunkers in the Inkilä sector.

Between 1932 and 1938 the defence budget was such that the Finns could only construct two or three bunkers per year. In 1936 and 1937 they constructed two large strong-points, Sk 10 and Sj 4 in the Summankylä and Summajärvi areas. Two smaller bunkers, Le 6 and 7, in the Leipäsuo sector, and Ink 6, in the Inkilä sector, were also built. New bunkers differed from earlier designs in that their troop accommodation was located between the gun chambers, thus saving the cost of expensive reinforced concrete; the roof was protected by two to three meters of soil and one to three meters of stone rubble.

The 1938 and 1939 period
The Karelian defensive fortifications received considerably more funds and resources from May 1938, as the European situation worsened. The Finns built new strongholds and modernized old ones. In Summakylä and Summajärvi they built two large Sk 11 bunkers, a "Peltola", a Sj 5, a "Miljoonalinnake", and an incomplete third Sk 17. These bunkers had better fire shelters, ventilation and an observation cloche.

In Suurniemi near Muolaanjärvi, the Finns started the construction of seven new bunkers, Su 1–7. Two others, Su 3 and Su 4, were for accommodation, and the rest were for machine guns nests. They also modernised those structures built in the 1920s. The older bunkers were given added flank-fire capability and enlarged. Some bunkers' loopholes were simply closed-up as part of a plan to make them more suitable for accommodation or command posts.

The line was still incomplete in November 1939.

Soviet intelligence

Soviet intelligence worked in Finland on multiple levels. The Finnish communist party, run from the Soviet Union, had its own military reporting line to the Central Committee. Its intelligence concentrated on the Finnish army, recording the locations of Finnish artillery and defensive positions. The most important Soviet intelligence organisations in Finland were the NKVD and the Fourth Department of the Army General Staff. Leningrad Military District, the Baltic Fleet and border troops under the NKVD conducted espionage operations.

The Finns exposed two espionage cases during the 1930s. Vilho Pentikäinen, a photographer serving on the Finnish general Staff, escaped to the Soviet Union in 1933. The second case was of Simo Haukka; he took photographs and measured roads and terrain for Soviet intelligence in 1935.

Soviet intelligence published a top-secret and very detailed photobook of the Finnish terrain and fortifications in 1938. The book included a seven-page report and 22 pages of maps and photographs. Every issue was numbered, running probably only into dozens. Soviet intelligence activity increased in 1938 and expanded still further in 1939. Before the start of the Winter War, Soviet intelligence published a book for Red Army officers. It was called "Finland. Written Description of March Routes". It was later translated and republished as the "Red Army March Guide to Finland". The guide included over 200 pages of maps and photographs.

Along with the intelligence, the Soviet Union received a detailed map of the defences on the Isthmus. A German military attaché in Helsinki, General Arniké, handed it over in Moscow in September 1939.

Structure of the Line

The line ran from the coast of the Gulf of Finland in the west, through Summa to the Vuoksi River and ended at Taipale in the east. It consisted of 157 machine gun positions and eight artillery positions built of concrete. The area around Summa was the most heavily fortified because it was thought to be the most vulnerable position.

The Gulf of Finland coast was guarded by Fort Saarenpää, the side of Lake Ladoga (Laatokka) by Fort Järisevä. These coastal artillery positions had 5", 6" and 10" guns.

Unlike the French Maginot Line and other similar forts made with huge bunkers and lines of dragon's teeth, the Mannerheim Line was mostly built by utilizing the natural terrain. Many items such as fallen trees and boulders were incorporated into defensive positions. The Finns also mastered camouflage techniques, which they put to good use.

The Mannerheim line was not constructed at great expense. Its purpose was to delay more than repel an invasion. It used predominantly local materials. The line applied the methodology of the flexible defence, thus it used trenches and obstacles rather than large bunkers.

The name Mannerheim Line was supposedly coined by Jorma Gallen-Kallela and spread by foreign journalists.

The Red Army repelled

In the Winter War, the line halted the Soviet advance for two months. The Soviet battleships Marat and Oktyabrskaya Revolutsiya attacked Fort Saarenpää several times during December 1939 and January 1940, but the Finns repelled the attacks, driving off the Revolutsiya by near misses on 18 December 1939.

During the war, both Finnish and Soviet propaganda considerably exaggerated the extent of the line's fortifications: the former to improve national morale, the latter claimed it was stronger than the Maginot Line to explain the Red Army's slow progress against the Finnish defences. Subsequently, the myth of the "heavily fortified" Mannerheim Line entered official Soviet war history and some western sources. The vast majority of the Mannerheim Line simply comprised trenches and other field fortifications. Bunkers along the line were mostly small and thinly spread out; the Line had hardly any artillery.

Aftermath
Following the Winter War, Soviet combat engineers destroyed the remaining installations. In the Continuation War the line was not re-fortified, although both Soviets and Finns used its natural benefits in defence during the Finnish advance in 1941 and the Soviet offensive in 1944 (see VT-line and VKT-line).

Debate on the strength of the Mannerheim Line
The first month of the Finnish campaign was humiliating for the Red Army. By the third week of the war, Soviet propaganda was working hard to explain the failure of the Red Army to the populace, and claimed that the Mannerheim Line was stronger than the Maginot Line. The Finns originally aimed to make its defence line impregnable, however actual construction progress came nowhere close to this goal by the time the Winter War broke out, in contrast to the Maginot Line which effectively deterred a cross-border assault. The Finns had funds and resources for only 101 concrete bunkers; the equivalent length of the Maginot Line had 5,800 of these structures which were also linked by underground railway connections. The weakness of the line is illustrated by the fact that the amount of concrete used in the whole Mannerheim Line—14,520 m3—is slightly less than the amount used in the Helsinki Opera House (15,500 m3). The much shorter VT-line used almost 400,000 m3 of concrete.

However, "flexible" defense lines (Mannerheim Line, Árpád Line, Bar Lev Line) were not based on dense lines of concrete bunkers and pillboxes (as the Maginot system was). The main intention of flexible type field fortification was to close potential traffic and attack barriers with multiplied anti-tank ditches, hedgehogs, and dragon's teeth. These were followed by a complex system of ditches and barbed wire obstacles, which protected the anti-tank barrier against sappers, bridge-layer tanks, and engineer teams. Therefore, the enemy was forced to attack trenches as in World War I, at the cost of numerous losses, without armor and direct fire support. It was termed "flexible defense" because defending soldiers were not 'locked' into bunkers, but the defensive platoons could be regrouped between field fortifications (wood-earth firing posts, dugouts and pillboxes). They would also have the option of carrying out a counterattack. All soldiers and weapons had multiple firing positions in order to make it difficult to keep them under fire. Concrete bunkers were usually only shelters; just a few had crenels. Concrete pillboxes were side-firing in order to defend anti-tank obstacles.

Maginot and Siegfried-like bunkers had numerous weaknesses, such as having destructible air inlets and firing holes, being too large (camouflage and costs), and yet being vulnerable to small sapper teams (at Sedan a few German soldiers destroyed several MG bunkers with pre-fabricated bombs and smoke grenades), and being blinded by small concentrated smoke screens. The flexible defense lines were almost immune to small sapper teams or small smoke screens, and had no easily targetable objects.

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

title: Mannerheim Line


text:
Årstad, Bergen

Årstad is a borough in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. Historically, the area was a separate municipality called Årstad until 1916, when it was merged into the city of Bergen. The borough has similar (but not the same) boundaries to those of the old municipality.

The borough is located south of the city centre, and has a population of around 39,906 as of 1 January 2014. Årstad is home to Bergen's hospital, Haukeland University Hospital, as well as Norway's second largest vocational high school, Årstad videregående skole (the largest being Sandefjord videregående skole), and Brann Stadion, the stadium of the city's largest association football team, Brann.

Name
"This whole area of the city was part of the king's property Ålrekstad (Årstad)", according to encyclopedia Store norske leksikon.

The municipality (originally the parish) was named after the old Årstad farm (Old Norse: Álreksstaðir), since the first Årstad Church was built there. The first element is probably the genitive of Álrekr, the old name of the mountain Ulriken. The last element is staðir meaning "farm".

History
During the early Viking Ages, a king of Norway is believed to have had a Kongsgård estate at the foot of Ulriken called Álreksstaðir (Alrekstad). At times the farm was the home of, at least, King Harald Fairhair, his son, King Eric Bloodaxe, Bloodaxe's children, and King Haakon the Good (Haakon I). Later, the founder of Bergen, King Olav Kyrre (Olaf III), ruled the city from Alrekstad for 26 years. However, Alrekstad lost its importance when King Eystein I moved his seat to Holmen, located within the city limits. Around year 1300, the farm was handed over to the monastery of Nonneseter.

It is believed that the name Álreksstaðir is derived from Ulriken rather than the name Alrekr, the name Årstad being an abbreviation of the word Alrekstad. Another theory is that the farm was named after a king Alrek, who may or may not have existed, and who may have ruled over the petty kingdom of Hordariket around year 400. Today, the area where the farm was located (included in, but not limited to, the place now called Årstadvollen) is not a part of the borough of Årstad, but Bergenhus.

The 19th century was a period of heavy industrial development in the municipality of Årstad, most significantly in the bay of Solheimsviken. At the end of the century, there were approximately 25 factories in the municipality, and it was the country's 4th largest in terms of industrial production output.

The parish of Aarstad was established as Aarstad municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). It remained a separate municipality until 1 July 1916, when it, as the second of six municipalities over the years, was merged with Bergen, increasing the area of Bergen municipality from 13.9 km2 to 34.9 km2. The merger happened after a long political process, following decades of close cooperation between the two municipalities - most of Årstad had been included in the Bergen Police District since 1808.

Economy
The inhabitants of Årstad have the lowest average income of Bergen's boroughs, earning on average almost NOK70,000 (US$) less per annum than the inhabitants of the borough with the highest average income, Ytrebygda.

Demographics
As of 1 January 2008, 7.4% of the population of Årstad was 0–5 years of age. 5.5% was in the age group 6–12 years, 2.5% between 13–15 years, 69.5% between 16–66 years, 8.1% between 67–79 years, and 7.0% were over 80 years of age. In total, 15.1% of the population were over 67 years of age, the Norwegian age of retirement, the highest amount in Bergen. In 2006, the mean gross income was NOK272,400 (approximately March 2008 USD). As of 1 January 2007, a total of 71.4% of the 6,589 couples living together were married. 43.5% were married without children, while the remaining 27.9% were married with children. 28.6% of the couples were not married; 15.9% were cohabitating couples without children while 12.7% were cohabitating with children.

Education
Årstad contains five elementary schools, Fridalen skole, Kronstad skole, Landås skole, Minde skole, and Slettebakken skole, one lower secondary school, Gimle skole, one combined elementary and lower secondary school, Ny Krohnborg barne- og ungdomsskole, one special school, Alrekstad alternative skole, as well as two upper secondary schools, Årstad videregående skole and Langhaugen videregående skole. Årstad videregående skole is one of the largest upper secondary schools in Norway, with a total of 300 employees and 1400 students.

Over the last few years, there have been plans to shut down several schools in the borough. Kronstad skole was proposed for closure most recently in 2006. This proposal didn't go through, however, as the majority of the parties in the city council, as well as several parties in the opposition, voted against the school being shut down. Due to the school building being in poor condition, it was decided in 2004 that Fridalen skole was to be closed. However, following protests from the neighbourhood, the decision was retracted, at least temporarily. In 2008, the municipality released a report which predicts an increasing number of pupils in Årstad after many years of decline.

Neighbourhoods
The list of neighborhoods in Årstad include Gyldenpris, Kronstad, Landås, Løvstakksiden, Minde (incl. Wergeland ), Nattland, Solheim, Slettebakken

Årstad is the smallest borough in Bergen (by area), but also the second most densely populated. Most of the land in the borough was already built-up before the construction of the city's outer suburbs began in the middle of the 20th century. Årstad lacks traditional neighbourhood names as found in the city centre borough, Bergenhus, where these were established over several hundred years. Neighbourhood names are frequently named after the farm that owned the land before the area was urbanized.

Some parts of western Årstad, is however for example locally referred to as Løvstakksiden, which makes up one neighbourhood. Throughout the borough more such more or less informal neighbourhood names do also exist.

Sports and culture
Brann stadion, the stadium of Bergen's most successful football club SK Brann, was constructed in the late 1910s, and opened 25 May 1919, with a match between Brann and Norway's national team. The stadium has been upgraded several times since, and is currently being upgraded to an all-seater capacity of more than 20,000. As of June 2007, the stadium has a total seating capacity of 17,824.

Several other sport clubs have or have had their home in Årstad. The first was IL Nornen, founded in 1893 as a mountaineering, skiing, gymnastics and rowing club. Today, Nornen is mainly a gymnastics, handball and floorball club. Other sport clubs include the football club Nymark IL, Ny-Krohnborg IL, SK Baune. The main activity of most of the clubs is youth sports.

Although almost twenty buekorps have had their home in Årstad, only one, Løvstakkens Jægerkorps, still exists. As of 2000, Løvstakkens Jægerkorps is the only buekorps in the city to allow both girls and boys to join.

Notable people
Notable people that were born or lived in Årstad include:
 * Olaf Kronstad (1892–1939), actor

title: Årstad, Bergen


text:
Mil

Mil, mil, or MIL may refer to:

Places

 * Mil, Syria, a village in Syria
 * Mil, Azerbaijan, a municipality in Beylagan Rayon
 * Mil, Markazi, a village in Markazi Province, Iran
 * Metropolitan area of Milan (IATA code: MIL), Italy (Milan is city in Italy)
 * Mill Hill Broadway railway station (National Rail station code: MIL), England
 * Miltenberg (district), (German vehicle registration code: MIL)
 * A common abbreviation for the U.S. city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and its major professional sports teams:
 * Milwaukee Brewers, the city's Major League Baseball team
 * Milwaukee Bucks, the city's National Basketball Association team

Business and organizations

 * Marine Industries Limited, a Canadian shipbuilder
 * Microsystems International Limited, a former Canadian semiconductor device manufacturer
 * Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant, a Russian helicopter manufacturer
 * Movimiento Ibérico de Liberación (Iberian Liberation Movement), a Catalan anti-Francoist group from 1971 to 1973
 * Mouvement initiative et liberté (Initiative and Liberty Movement), a French Gaullist political association
 * mil.ru, official website of the Ministry of Defence (Russia)

Currency

 * Mill (currency), a now-abstract unit of currency used sometimes in accounting
 * mil, 1/1000 Cypriot pound
 * mil, (1⁄10-cent) of Hong Kong dollar
 * mil, 1/1000 Maltese lira
 * mil, 1/1000 Palestine pound

Military

 * .mil, the top-level Internet domain of the U.S. military
 * MIL-STD and MIL-SPEC, the United States Military Standard

Technology

 * Malfunction indicator lamp, in a computerized engine-management system
 * Media Integration Layer, the compositing engine used by Desktop Window Manager and Windows Presentation Foundation

Units of measurement

 * mil (imperial), a length equivalent to 0.001 inch
 * Biblical mile (Hebrew: מיל / mīl), a length
 * Millilitre (SI-symbol mL or ml, informally "mil"), a volume
 * Millimetre (SI-symbol mm, informally "mil" or “mill”), a length
 * Milliradian (SI-symbol mrad, informally "mil", or three slightly different non-SI units), for angular measurement
 * Scandinavian mile, (Norwegian and Swedish: mil), a length equivalent to 10 kilometres

People

 * Míl Espáine, ancestor to the Irish in Irish mythology
 * Mil Máscaras (born 1942), Mexican luchador (professional wrestler)
 * Mikhail Mil (1909–1970), founder of the Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant

Other

 * Modern Indian Language, contemporary Indian languages
 * Mother-in-law

title: Mil


text:
Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant

Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant (Московский вертолётный завод им. М. Л. Миля) is a Russian, and formerly Soviet, designer and producer of helicopters headquartered in Tomilino. It is a subsidiary of Russian Helicopters.

The Moscow Mil Helicopter Plant includes a design bureau and an experimental production plant. The Mil Design Bureau is one of the world's leading developers of helicopters, with particular expertise in heavy-lift helicopters. It has developed both civil and military versions in a wide range of payload capacities, including the world's largest in serial production, the Mi-26.

Ninety-five percent of the helicopters in the former Soviet Union were built to Mil designs. Series production facilities for Mil-designed helicopters include Rostvertol in Rostov-on-Don, the Kazan Helicopter Production Association, and the Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant. Mil participates in the Euromil joint venture with Eurocopter.

History
Mil was established in 1947 under the guidance of Mikhail Mil as the helicopter laboratory of the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute in Zhukovsky, Moscow Oblast.

The Mil Mi-1 became the first mass-produced Soviet helicopter. The Mi-8 helicopter, designed in the early 1960s, was a successful design in both military and civil applications, with over 12,000 units being produced.

Mil merged with Kamov and Rostvertol to form Russian Helicopters in 2006. The Mil brand name has been retained, although the new company eliminated overlapping product lines.

title: Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant


text:
Easter Monday

Easter Monday is the second day of Eastertide and a public holiday in some countries. In Western Christianity it marks the second day of the Octave of Easter; in Eastern Christianity it marks the second day of Bright Week.

Eastern Christianity
In the Eastern Orthodox Church and Byzantine Rite Catholic Churches, this day is called "Bright Monday" or "Renewal Monday". The services, as in the rest of Bright Week, are quite different from during the rest of the year and are similar to the services on Pascha (Easter Sunday) and include an outdoor procession after the Divine Liturgy. While this is prescribed for all days of Bright Week, often they are only celebrated on Monday and maybe a couple of other days in parish churches, especially in non-Orthodox countries.

Should the calendar date for the feast day of a major saint (e.g. Saint George on April 23, or the patron saint of a church) or one's name day fall within Holy Week and Pascha itself, the feast is transferred to Easter Monday.

Western Christianity
In Western Christianity, Easter Monday is the second day of Eastertide, as well as the second day in the Octave of Easter.

In the Lutheran Churches, the Gospel for Easter Monday concerns the Road to Emmaus appearance.

Australia
In Australia, Easter Monday is a public holiday. Some people enjoy outdoor sporting events, such as the Oakbank Easter Racing Carnival in South Australia, and the Stawell Gift in Victoria, as well as a traditional AFL match between Geelong Cats and the Hawthorn Hawks at the MCG. Since 2014, The NRL have held the Easter Monday match (NRL) between the Parramatta Eels and Wests Tigers match at Stadium Australia. Australian Three Peaks Race in Tasmania until 2011.

Austria
In Austria and Southern Germany, there is the traditional "Emmausgang", commemorating the walk of the disciples to Emmaus, to which Jesus followed them without being recognized.

Canada
Easter Monday (Le Lundi de Pâques) is the Monday immediately following Easter Sunday and is a statutory holiday for federal employees. Although not mandatory by federal regulation, some employers also give this day off to employees out of common practice. Additionally, this holiday succeeds Good Friday (the Friday preceding Easter), which is a mandatory holiday for all employees, giving those workers an extra long weekend in March or April. An exception to this rule is in Quebec, where employers must give either Good Friday or Easter Monday off to employees. In provinces where Family Day, Islander Day, or Louis Riel Day are not observed, Easter Weekend is the first provincial holiday after New Year's Day.

Central Europe
Śmigus-dyngus (or lany poniedziałek, Polish for Wet Monday) is the name for Easter Monday in Poland and the diaspora. In the Czech Republic it is called velikonoční pondělí, in Slovakia veľkonočný pondelok and in Hungary Vízbevető. All these Catholic countries (and some others) practice the unique ancient custom on this day. Traditionally, boys and men pour a bucket of water or perfume on girls and women and/or spank their buttocks and legs with long thin twigs (pussy willow) or switches made from willow, birch or decorated tree branches. A legend says that it keep women healthy, beautiful, and fertile during the whole next year.

Another related custom, unique to Poland, is that of sprinkling bowls (garce) of ashes on people or houses, celebrated a few weeks earlier at the "półpoście". This custom is almost forgotten, but still practiced in the area around the borders of Masuria and Masovia.

Egypt
In Egypt, the ancient festival of Sham Ennesim (شم النسيم, literally meaning "smelling of the breeze") is celebrated by the Coptic Orthodox Church (i.e. Eastern) Easter Monday, though the festival dates back to Ancient Egypt times (about 2700 BC). It is an Egyptian national holiday. Traditional activities include painting eggshells of boiled eggs, taking meals outdoors, and eating boiled eggs, lettuce, fesikh (pickled mullet (fish)) with lemon and scallion.

Germany
In Germany, people go out into the fields early in the morning and hold Easter egg races. For Roman Catholics, Easter Monday is also a Holy Day of Obligation in Germany.

Ireland
In Ireland it is a day of remembrance for the men and women who died in the Easter Rising which began on Easter Monday 1916. Until 1966, there was a parade of veterans, past the headquarters of the Irish Republican Army at the General Post Office (GPO) on O'Connell Street, and a reading of the Proclamation of the Irish Republic.

Italy
In Italy, Easter Monday is an official public holiday and is called “Lunedì dell'Angelo” (“Monday of the Angel”), “Lunedì in Albis” or more commonly “Pasquetta”. It is customary to hold a family picnic in the countryside or barbecues with friends.

New Zealand
In New Zealand it is a National Public Holiday. Schools often extend the weekend to the Tuesday to give students a 5-day break.

Spain
In Spain, Easter Monday is an official public holiday in Catalonia, the Land of Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Navarre, the Basque Country, Cantabria, and La Rioja. In Catalonia, the Land of Valencia, and Murcia a feature of this day is a pastry called Easter mona. It is usually given by godparents to their godchildren, and it is traditional for families or groups of friends to gather for a trip somewhere, like the countryside, to eat the mona.

Netherlands
In the Netherlands, Easter Monday is an official public holiday. Apart from church services in some locations in the Dutch Bible Belt, there are no widespread festivities or traditions for the "Second Easter Day" ("Tweede Paasdag").

United States
In the United States, Easter Monday is not a federal holiday and there are few national observances apart from traditions such as the White House Easter egg roll. On a local level, the day is informally observed in some areas such as the state of North Dakota, and some cities in New York, Michigan, and Indiana. Easter Monday was a public holiday in North Carolina from 1935 to 1987, due to the early-20th-century tradition of state government workers taking the day off to attend the annual baseball game between North Carolina State College and Wake Forest College. Texas and Maryland schools often have two holidays on Good Friday and Easter Monday. In some states and districts, public schools and universities are closed on Easter Monday, often part of spring break.

Dyngus Day
Traditionally Polish areas of the United States observe Easter Monday as Dyngus Day. Dyngus Day celebrations are widespread and popular in Chicago; Cleveland; Buffalo, New York; Wyandotte and Hamtramck in Michigan; South Bend and La Porte in Indiana; and Hanover, New Hampshire.

United Kingdom
Only England, Wales and Northern Ireland observe Easter Monday as a bank holiday, with many large retailers being closed on Easter Monday. It is not an official public holiday in Scotland, but might be locally observed, with large retailers being open; but with reduced opening hours.

South Africa
In South Africa, Easter Monday is the last day of the holy weekend. It is known as Family Day and is a public holiday. After this day, people return to work and children to school, so it is a day of rest.

Ukraine
In Ukraine, Easter Monday is celebrated. It is a public holiday. After this day, people return to work and children to school, so it is a day of rest.

title: Easter Monday


text:
Talk:Serb enclaves in Kosovo

NPOV in many other articles
I, at least in my own opinion, find not only this article "Kosovo Serb enclaves" and the articles "Kosovo", but also many other related documents about Kosovo : UNMIK, Kosovo War, KFOR.... much like tilting towards Serbian-Nationalist side of viewpoint. It could had been the same author in all these doucments.

I had edit some parts of these 5 documents, not all and not quite much. but in my free time i tried to rectify these articles towards Wiki neutral traditions later. Cat12.

Re: NPOV in many other articles
The following are removed, which at least IMO are not neutral and definitely a volatile info. (The Kosovo Serbs, like many other ethnics, are scattered in Kosovo and not just some finite number of places)..Cat12:

 * Ibarski Kolasin around Northern Kosovska Mitrovica, Leposavic, Zubin Potok and Zvecan
 * Sirinicka Zupa with center in Strpce
 * Kosovosko Pomoravlje around Gnjilane and Kosovska Kamenica
 * Priluzje
 * Gracanica with Laplje Selo
 * Goraždevac
 * Bica
 * Velika Hoca

What's this page about? A place? --Yacht 11:37, Dec 1, 2003 (UTC)

NPOV
I don't think "Kosovo Serb Enclaves are the few remaining areas of ... Kosovo where Serbs, Roma and other minorities live peacefully without the constant violence and intimidation (ethnic cleansing) of their Albanian neighbours" (Italics added for emphasis) is a very neutral way of putting it. Aecis

 * ! agree. Nikola 10:03, 21 Sep 2004 (UTC)

No argumet
'''No argumet!!! please dont inteprete the documents '''

Sombody have putit this Kosovo place in Serbia stub or category or template here with out argumet. We dont have a argumet that Kosovo is part of S/M. We have tha Constitution of this countrie but we have the rez. 1244 wich is more importen for the Wikipedia and is saying that Kosovo it is a part of Yougoslavia and is prototoriat of UN. Till we dont have a clearly argument from UN, aricel about Kosovo must be out of this stub or category or template. Pleas dont make the discution with intepretation or the Law wich are not accordin to 1244. Everybodoy can do that but that is nothing for Wikipedia.--Hipi Zhdripi 04:35, 17 April 2006 (UTC)

Kosovo Serb enclaves
The part witch dont have to do with serbs in Kosovo, must be delete from this article. I remenber you the article name is Serbs enclaves E.x Gora is not enklave and even ist a komunë. See the oficila side of Dragash.

The copetent peopel (organisation) about the Kosovo statistic OSCE, is saying : It is noted that the 1991 census was highly politicised and is thus unreliable., beacouse of thate this NOTE must be putit in the data. E.x see: --Hipi Zhdripi 00:10, 21 May 2006 (UTC)

 * Maybe we can change name of the article into "Serb and Slavic Muslim inhabited areas in Kosovo" or something like that? PANONIAN   (talk)  00:32, 21 May 2006 (UTC)

We dont need that. You are compicetend. The static is clear the officel names of the ethnic group are in the documents, we dont need to imagened a new ethnic groups (they have dont). And what is more importen they wasen t under the pressur fom no one. Ther is one importen componet "nationality of the group" not somthing else. I understand you wish to make another selected group "religion" but you are going to far with your selectiv groups. I dont know if this peopel wont to be declared als Slave, Bulgarien, Bisanti, Albanian or what a know. There are no sicen argument witch are profing thate they are clear slavonic peopel. I thik (I think) that from languege they speek not serbian or slavonic bout old Prizren dialect from Ottoman L, is not clear turkish but mixed bugarien, albanian (south), serbian and mostly turkish, it was spoket in the area of Shkup Vilajet from Prizren to Sofje. Some albanans in this area speek the south dialect (toske or what I now Dibrançe, enyway it songs not so hard like in Prishtina is more influenced and some words are clean old gegë and tradiciona greece/ not new greece). My opinion for thes peopel is that they are Dacia/ Vllahë --Hipi Zhdripi 17:26, 26 May 2006 (UTC)

This article must be merget
This article must be merge with Serbs in Kosovo it hase no sens if we start to make articels for each folk in the world or we are going to make the article about the albanians in Serbia (Blgrade, Novi Sad)--Hipi Zhdripi 17:13, 26 May 2006 (UTC)

 * I'd support merging with Serbs in Kosovo, because this is covering basically the same information. In fact that article already has the map from here and as far as I can tell basically all the information that this one contains. --Delirium 08:41, 4 August 2006 (UTC)

 * Disagree - two different things. --PaxEquilibrium 09:33, 18 October 2006 (UTC)

 * Disagree 99.236.221.124 (talk) 13:55, 19 February 2010 (UTC)

 * I agree; as far as I'm concerned, it has no sense to talk about "enclaves" in a disputed territory like Kosovo. Oikema (talk) 19:20, 26 April 2010 (UTC).

About the external link to www.kosovocompromise.com
I’ve removed the site above from the “External links” setion because though it seems at first a non-biased site (an egg with a half-Albanina, hal-Serbian eagle pictured on), entering the site one can see that all the text presented on it the same old same Serb nationalist cheap talk that we see since Milosevic times. And the link per se is not even related to this article, simce is much more like Serbian government advocacy than any comprehensive and serius description about Serbian-populated areas in Kosovo (see Citing sources and Verifiability for background).

Other thing to note: the site is allegedly from a so-called “4S Institute” that claims it’s “localized in Brussels”, but in fact it should be remebered that “4S” means “Only Unity Saves the Serbs”, the same old religious-nationalistic slogan that Arkan and other forces at the service of the Milosevic regime used as a motto during the campaing of genocide during Yugoslav Wars. And a basic Whois search show that, in fact, the site www.kosovocompromise.com wasn’t registered in Brussels, but by someone living in the Serbian city of Kovin…--MaGioZal 04:56, 1 May 2007 (UTC)

What about an international protectorate as in Bosnia with two parliaments for Kosovo? What about an independent Vojvodina? (86.134.27.216 (talk) 17:25, 26 February 2008 (UTC))

This article should be renamed
I would propose that this article is urgently renamed and thouroughly edited, and that all references to "Serb enclaves" in Kosovo are removed from Wikipedia. The new name could be "Serb majority municipalities in Kosovo". There are no "Serb enclaves" in Kosovo today. With the exception of four municipalities in northern Kosovo (which are not "enclaves") there are a number of legally functioning Serb majority municipalities in Kosovo. These are fully integrated into the Kosovo state and have municipal bodies (assemblies etc) elected according to Kosovo state laws. The assertion that freedom of movement for citizens of the Serb majority municipalities is restricted is totally unfounded today. The Serb majority municipalities are interacting with the Kosovo state and government like any other municipalities in Kosovo and travel is completely unrestricted. Civil protection in these municipalities is provided by Kosovo Police (KP), which has police commanders nominated by the municipalities, but formally elected by the Government of Kosovo. The religious and cultural heritage monuments are with a small number of exceptions protected only by Kosovo Police (the exceptions are the Pec patriarchate and Visoki Decani monastery, which still have KFOR protection). — Preceding unsigned comment added by BalkanMan (talk • contribs)
 * I'd support renaming the article along these lines. bobrayner (talk) 13:02, 2 May 2012 (UTC)
 * Indeed, there are no such entities in Kosovo nowadays i.e. I support the proposal, though the article should cover all minority majority municipalities like Mamushë or parts of Dragash. -- — ZjarriRrethues — talk 12:13, 23 September 2012 (UTC)
 * Oppose per sources and most common use. You must use RM template for these kind of moves, so this unconventional proposal is not enough. -- WhiteWriterspeaks 21:01, 23 September 2012 (UTC)
 * Please stick to the sources WW. Your view that these are enclaves without any rights and under constant repression etc. doesn't correspond to reality. In fact the 2012 report of the Helsinki Committee of Serbia paints a very different picture. -- — ZjarriRrethues — talk 22:54, 23 September 2012 (UTC)

Name
Gbooks hits.--Z oupan 21:32, 7 February 2016 (UTC)
 * "Serbian enclaves in Kosovo" (21)
 * "Serb enclaves in Kosovo" (4)
 * "Kosovo Serb enclaves" (2)

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Requested move 21 February 2024

 * The following is a closed discussion of a requested move. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section on the talk page. Editors desiring to contest the closing decision should consider a move review after discussing it on the closer's talk page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

The result of the move request was: moved. – robertsky (talk) 18:00, 28 February 2024 (UTC)

Serbian enclaves in Kosovo → Serb enclaves in Kosovo – The article is about communities with ethnic Serb majorities, not about territorial enclaves of Serbia, so "Serb enclave" is less ambiguous and more precise than "Serbian enclave".Also, "Serb enclave" is commonly used by reliable sources:• Academic articles: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7

• Agence France-Presse (AFP): 1, 2, 3

• Associated Press (AP): 1, 2

• Reuters: 1, 2

• The Guardian: 1

• The New York Times: 1, 2

• Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies: 1

• Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia: 1

• International Crisis Group: 1 — MarkH21talk 16:41, 21 February 2024 (UTC)

 * Support per nominator, also makes it more clear that these are ethnic enclaves. Killuminator (talk) 21:49, 21 February 2024 (UTC)
 * Support Excellent sourcing provided by nom. Proposed move would represent a more accurate title. AusLondonder (talk) 15:57, 22 February 2024 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

title: Talk:Serb enclaves in Kosovo


text:
Orchard oriole

The orchard oriole (Icterus spurius) is the smallest species of icterid. The subspecies of the Caribbean coast of Mexico, I. s. fuertesi, is sometimes considered a separate species, the ochre oriole or Fuertes's oriole.

The orchard oriole is a small bird with a length of 5.9-7.1 inches, a weight of 0.6-1.0 ounces, and a wingspan of 9.8 inches. Adult males have chestnut or ochre underparts, while adult females and juveniles have olive-green upper parts and yellowish breasts and bellies. They inhabit semi-open areas with deciduous trees in eastern North America, southern Tamaulipas, and Veracruz. Their winter range extends from central Sinaloa and southern Veracruz to northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela.

Orchard orioles prefer living near lakes and streams, nesting in tightly woven pouches attached to horizontal tree branches. They are nocturnal migrants and feed on insects, spiders, fruit, nectar, and seeds depending on the season. During flight, they usually swoop close to the ground and fly at or below treetop level. Courtship displays include bowing, seesawing, and begging. The species name "spurius" refers to their original misidentification as female Baltimore orioles, and they are sometimes mistaken for New World warblers.

Description
Measurements:

 * Length: 5.9-7.1 in (15-18 cm)
 * Weight: 0.6-1.0 oz (16-28 g)
 * Wingspan: 9.8 in (25 cm)

The bill is pointed and black with some blue-gray at the base of the lower mandible. The adult male of the nominate subspecies has chestnut on the underparts, shoulder, and rump, with the rest of the plumage black. In the subspecies I. s. fuertesi, the chestnut is replaced with ochre. The adult female and the juvenile of both subspecies have olive-green on the upper parts and yellowish on the breast and belly. All adults have pointed bills and white wing bars. (Orchard orioles are considered to be adults after their second year.) One-year-old males are yellow-greenish with black lores and bib.

Habitat and range
The breeding habitat is semi-open areas with deciduous trees. I. s. spurius breeds in spring across eastern North America from near the Canada–United States border south to central Mexico. A 2009 study also found breeding in the thorn forest of Baja California Sur and the coast of Sinaloa during the summer "monsoon"; this region had previously been thought to be only a migratory stopover. I. s. fuertesi breeds from southern Tamaulipas to Veracruz. There is a record of a specimen of fuertesi from Cameron County, Texas. These birds prefer living in shaded trees within parks along lakes and streams. The nest is a tightly woven pouch attached to a fork on a horizontal branch. Their nests tend to sit close together.

The nominate subspecies' winter range extends from the coastal lowlands of central Sinaloa and southern Veracruz south to northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela (Scharf and Kren 1996). The ochre subspecies has been observed in winter on the Pacific slope of Mexico.

Nominate orchard orioles depart from their winter habitats in March and April and arrive in their breeding habitats from late April to late May. Usually, they leave their breeding territories in late July and early August and arrive on their winter territories in mid August. These birds are nocturnal migrants.

Diet
While in breeding season, they eat insects and spiders. When the season changes, their diet also includes ripe fruit, which quickly passes through their digestive tract. During the winter, their diet consists of fruit, nectar, insects and seeds.

Behavior
When in flight, orchard orioles generally swoop close to the ground and fly at or below treetop level.

During courtship, females display themselves in three ways. The first is by bowing their head and torso toward the male. Seesawing, the second courtship display, involves repetitively alternating lowering and raising the head and tail. The third display is begging, which is fast-paced fluttering of wings halfway extended, followed by a high whistle.

Etymology
The specific name spurius refers to the original misidentification of the male as a female Baltimore oriole. These birds are sometimes mistakenly identified as New World warblers.

Book

 * Scharf, W. C., and J. Kren. 1996. Orchard Oriole (Icterus spurius). In The Birds of North America, No. 255 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists’ Union, Washington, D.C.

Thesis

 * Enstrom DA. Ph.D. (1990). Investigations of delayed plumage maturation in the orchard oriole. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States, Illinois.
 * Witt JW. Ph.D. (2005). Shrub and grassland birds at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge in northern Virginia and the influence burning and mowing has had upon their distribution and abundance. George Mason University, United States, Virginia.

Articles

 * Baker JM, Lopez-Medrano E, Navarro-Siguenza AG, Rojas-Soto OR & Omland KE. (2003). Recent speciation in the Orchard Oriole group: Divergence of Icterus spurius spurius and Icterus spurius fuertesi. Auk. vol 120, no 3. p. 848-859.
 * Beaton G. (1994). Late Orchard Oriole found in Clayton County. Oriole. vol 59, no 1. p. 25-26.
 * Binford LC. (1971). Roadrunner Captures Orchard Oriole in California. California Birds. vol 2, no 4.
 * Bjorklund CF. (1990). Bromhead Saskatchewan Canada Rare Bird Records. Blue Jay. vol 48, no 4. p. 212-217.
 * DePaul L & Kopitzke D. (1998). Incentives for savanna protection on private lands: Past, present, and future. Transactions of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences Arts & Letters. vol 86, no 0. p. 47-56.
 * Elliott PF. (1978). Cowbird Parasitism in the Kansas USA Tall Grass Prairie. Auk. vol 95, no 1. p. 161-167.
 * Enstrom DA. (1992). Breeding Season Communication Hypotheses for Delayed Plumage Maturation in Passerines Tests in the Orchard Oriole Icterus-Spurius. Animal Behaviour. vol 43, no 3. p. 463-472.
 * Enstrom DA. (1992). Delayed Plumage Maturation in the Orchard Oriole Icterus-Spurius Tests of Winter Adaptation Hypotheses. Behavioral Ecology & Sociobiology. vol 30, no 1. p. 35-42.
 * Enstrom DA. (1993). Female choice for age-specific plumage in the orchard oriole: Implications for delayed plumage maturation. Animal Behaviour. vol 45, no 3. p. 435-442.
 * Garvin MC, Szell CC & Moore FR. (2006). Blood parasites of Nearctic-Neotropical migrant passerine birds during spring trans-gulf migration: Impact on host body condition. Journal of Parasitology. vol 92, no 5. p. 990-996.
 * Goertz JW. (1977). Additional Records of Brown-Headed Cowbird Nest Parasitism in Louisiana. Auk. vol 94, no 2. p. 386-389.
 * Hill RA. (1976). Host Parasite Relationships of the Brown-Headed Cowbird in a Prairie Habitat of West Central Kansas USA. Wilson Bulletin. vol 88, no 4. p. 555-565.
 * Hilton GM, Atkinson PW, Gray GAL, Arendt WJ & Gibbons DW. (2003). Rapid decline of the volcanically threatened Montserrat oriole. Biol Conserv. vol 111, no 1. p. 79-89.
 * Hofmann CM, Cronin TW & Omland KE. (2006). Using spectral data to reconstruct evolutionary changes in coloration: Carotenoid color evolution in new world orioles. Evolution. vol 60, no 8. p. 1680-1691.
 * Hopkins MJ. (1968). A Disputed Nest Site Tyrannus-Tyrannus Icterus-Spurius Behavior. Oriole. vol 33, no 3. p. 37-38.
 * Leck C. (1974). Further Observations of Nectar Feeding by Orioles. Auk. vol 91, no 1. p. 162-163.
 * Lee JH, Hassan H, Hill G, Cupp EW, Higazi TB, Mitchell CJ, Godsey MS, Jr. & Unnasch TR. (2002). Identification of mosquito avian-derived blood meals by polymerase chain reaction-heteroduplex analysis. American Journal of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene. vol 66, no 5. p. 599-604.
 * Lloyd-Evans TL & Atwood JL. (2004). 32 years of changes in passerine numbers during spring and fall migrations in coastal Massachusetts. Wilson Bulletin. vol 116, no 1. p. 1-16.
 * Lohrer FE. (1977). Orchard Oriole Holding Food with the Feet. Florida Field Naturalist. vol 5, no 2.
 * Luterbach B. (1999). Orchard Orioles increase within Tyvan area, Saskatchewan. Blue Jay. vol 57, no 3. p. 150-151.
 * Mills ED & Rogers DTJ. (1990). Nearctic Passerine Fall Migration in Central Belize. Wilson Bulletin. vol 102, no 1. p. 146-150.
 * Morton ES. (1979). EFFECTIVE POLLINATION OF ERYTHRINA-FUSCA BY THE ORCHARD ORIOLE (ICTERUS-SPURIUS) - CO-EVOLVED BEHAVIORAL MANIPULATION. Ann Mo Bot Gard. vol 66, no 3. p. 482-489.
 * Parkes KC. (1990). Additional Record of Birds from the Distrito Federal Mexico Including a Possible Hybrid Spizella. Condor. vol 92, no 4. p. 1080-1081.
 * Quintana-Barrios L, Ruiz-Campos G, Unitt P & Erickson RA. (2006). Update on the birds of Isla Guadalupe, Baja California. Western Birds. vol 37, no 1. p. 23-36.
 * Schaefer VH. (1976). Geographic Variation in the Placement and Structure of Oriole Nests. Condor. vol 78, no 4. p. 443-448.
 * Scharf WC & Kren J. (1997). Summer diet of orchard orioles in southwestern Nebraska. Southwestern Naturalist. vol 42, no 2. p. 127-131.
 * Sealy SG. (1980). Breeding Biology of Orchard Orioles Icterus-Spurius in a New Population in Manitoba Canada. Canadian Field Naturalist. vol 94, no 2. p. 154-158.
 * Sealy SG & Underwood TJ. (2004). Accepters and rejecters of cowbird parasitism in the New World orioles (Icterus spp.). Ornitologia Neotropical. vol 15, no 3. p. 331-347.
 * Short LL. (1974). Nesting of Southern Sonoran Birds During the Summer Rainy Season. Condor. vol 76, no 1. p. 21-32.
 * Stevenson HM. (1979). Southward Extension of Orchard Oriole Icterus-Spurius Breeding Range in Florida USA. Florida Field Naturalist. vol 7, no 1. p. 10-11.
 * Twedt DJ & Somershoe SG. (2003). Breeding birds on reforested bottomlands in forested and agricultural landscapes. Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting Abstracts. vol 88, no 339.
 * Van Dyke F, Van Kley SE, Page CE & Van Beek JG. (2004). Restoration efforts for plant and bird communities in tallgrass prairies using prescribed burning and mowing. Restoration Ecology. vol 12, no 4. p. 575-585.
 * VanderWerf EA & Freed LA. (2003). Elepaio subadult plumages reduce aggression through graded status-signaling, not mimicry. Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 74, no 4. p. 406-415.
 * Whitehead MA, Schweitzer SH & Post W. (2002). Cowbird/host interactions in a southeastern old-field: A recent contact area?. Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 73, no 4. p. 379-386.
 * Wormington A & Lamond W. (1987). Orchard Oriole New to Northern Ontario Canada. Ontario Birds. vol 5, no 1. p. 32-34. -->

title: Orchard oriole


text:
Talk:Kubrat

Helpfull links to facts and artefacts
Link to an image of his rings with monograms - 2019 Newspaper′s name translated as ″What we don′t know for the treasure of Chan Kubrat?″ I need help from more experienced User to confirm I can use it, in regars copy rights. Feel free to add other links which you can find helpfull for improving the article and discuss. Please stick to facts and respect the others! Dahlia La Mar (talk) 13:08, 6 September 2020 (UTC)
 * I would like to post a link and reference here, regarding the name of Kubrat and artefacts and images proving it. His name has been deciphered in 1984 by the German archaeologist Joachim Werner. I found this link as proof, page 99-100. Kardaras, edited by Florin Curta and Dushan Zupka.Please administrator to help is the source reliable?
 * Reliable External links to images for artefacts
 * You can't use the images in the Bulgarian article or Kardaras 2018 for that matter because they are copyrighted. You are welcome to add information in your own words and cite the sources. I can't soeak to the reliability of the Bulgarian language article, but Kardaras 2018 looks fine. Rotideypoc41352 (talk · contribs) 20:22, 6 September 2020 (UTC)

qobrat "to gather"?
I never heard of this word. Where else is this attested? Does it exist in OT at all? Gengiev (talk) 12:23, 12 June 2021 (UTC)

Origins
According to the Oxford Dictionary of Late Antiquity, edited by Oliver Nicholson, published by the Oxford University Press in 2018, ISBN-13:9780198662778: ''The Bulgars were a Turkic tribal union of the Pontic steppes that gave rise to two important states: Danubian-Balkan Bulgaria (First Bulgarian Empire, 681–1018) and Volga Bulgaria (early 10th century–1241). They derived from Oghuric-Turkic tribes, driven westward from Mongolia and south Siberia to the Pontic steppes in successive waves by turmoil associated with the Xiongnu (late 3rd cent. - mid - 2nd cent. AD) and subsequently by warfare between the Rouran / * Avar (c.402-552) and northern Wei (386-534).'' Check on p. 271, please. Since such an authoritative source strongly supports this thesis, I do not see why this should be covered up. Jingiby (talk) 17:17, 17 July 2021 (UTC)

Comment made by IP within article
Taken from the article here. Bulgarian historians believe that the ancient Bulgarians spoke a language that is from a different group compared to today's Bulgarian. Some researchers attribute the speech of our ancestors to the Turkic languages, and others to the Iranian ones. None of the two groups of specialists explain the mystery: Why is there not a single Turkic or Iranian word in the entire Old Bulgarian equestrian terminology?

Neither кон - horse nor кобила, жребец, седло, юзда, стреме, лък, тулъ (колчан), стрела, тетива, острие, яздя, ездач - mare, stallion, saddle, bridle, stirrup, bow, quiver, arrow, string, blade, ride, rider, etc. do not belong to the Turkic or Iranian linguistic wealth. On the other hand, in the Thracian onomastics we find Kone, Kobilatus, tula-, Uzdika, Asdul, Ezdikaya, etc., but this apparently does not affect anyone. It is as if there is a taboo that any connection between the old Bulgarians and the local Balkan population should be avoided. Even if we did not have the Thracian words indicating that the Bulgarian equestrian terminology is of Balkan origin, the scholars were well aware of what a serious problem the complete lack of Iranian or Turkic terms was, and of course this was not shared either with the students or with the general public. --73.211.25.167 Kansas Bear (talk) 21:19, 28 July 2022 (UTC)

title: Talk:Kubrat


text:
Talk:American Bible Society

Declaration of Interest
'In the past, I have donated to the American Bible Society (ABS). My donation in no way reflects any bias for or against the ABS or it's activities.iHoshie 11:37, 1 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Catholic staff members
There are reports that a high percentage of the Society's staff members are Catholic, perhaps up to 50 or 60 percent. This is somewhat controversial, since Bible societies were previously condemned by the Roman Catholic Church. It would be interesting if we could verify this and include it within the article's contents. ADM (talk) 07:49, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

External links modified
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Incorrect year in article.
There is an inconsistency in the dates of the following paragraph :

In January 2019, American Bible Society introduced the Affirmation of Biblical Community, an employee policy which requires staff to align around a core set of Christian beliefs and practices.[19] The organization came under criticism as the policy excludes individuals in homosexual or unwed heterosexual relationships from employment at the organization. [20] While the organization lost 20 percent of its workforce in 2018, according to American Bible Society, only 4 percent of the organization's staff left in response to the Affirmation. Leadership of the organization explained that the 20 percent attrition in 2018 was consistent with annual totals prior to the new Affirmation policy.[21]

It says that the Affirmation policy was introduced in January 2019, but then says that the organization lost 20 percent of its workforce in 2018 [because of the Affirmation policy].

It looks as though the year 2019 at the beginning of the paragraph should be 2018 because the organization could not have lost 20 percent of its staff in 2018, as it says in the third sentence, if the policy was introduced the next year, 2019, as it says in the first sentence.

76.170.153.18 (talk) 22:53, 2 February 2020 (UTC)

title: Talk:American Bible Society


text:
Talk:Contemporary English Version

Declaration of Interest
'In the past, I have donated to the American Bible Society (ABS). My donation in no way reflects any bias for or against the ABS or it's activities.'

iHoshie 11:38, 1 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Plain English Society Crystal Award
I tried to research this line, and while I found that the British and Foreign Bible Society did win an award from the Plain English Society, their site does not specifically mention the CEV, so I removed the line. If someone can find some clarification on this issue--an article mentioning the CEV, for example--then it should be added back in, though. 24.247.162.139 (talk) 03:25, 9 February 2011 (UTC)

External links modified
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title: Talk:Contemporary English Version


text:
Fgura

Fgura (Il-Fgura, Figura) is a town in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It has a population of 13,066 as of 2021. Its northern fringes are bordered by the Cottonera Lines of fortifications while it merges with the towns of Żabbar to the east and Paola and Tarxien to the West. A modern settlement, Fgura expanded to the outskirts of the Grand Harbour area and was one of the fastest-growing towns of Malta. Fgura has grown to become one of the foremost commercial areas in the central-southern part of the island. Today, Fgura has one of the highest population densities in the country.

Name and symbols
The name Fgura comes from the surname of the Ficura family who owner land and lived in the area when it was a rural village.

The coat-of-arms of Fgura is made up of a red horizontal stripe containing three golden 5-pointed stars, centred across a white background. Fgura Day was established by the local council in 1994, and its first celebration was held on 30 October. It is now celebrated on the last Sunday of October.

The patron saint of Fgura is Our Lady of Mount Carmel and an annual feast in her honour is celebrated on the second Sunday of July. Fgura also has one of the most peculiar shaped churches in Malta, built in the shape of a tent.

History
It is thought that a settlement where Fgura currently lies existed in Phoenician times. Between 28 October and 2 December 1948, six Phoenician tombs were found in Fgura, dating to the 3rd or 4th century B.C. These tombs were in irregular shapes and human skeletons, remains of animals, pottery and other Bronze materials and objects were found. In Fgura, a street was named 'Triq is-Sejba Punika' - in English 'Phoenician Discovery Street' - in honour of this historic finding.

Medieval archaeological remains including an Arabic inscription were discovered in Fgura during a construction project in April 2023.

Before World War II, Fgura was a rural village which consisted of a few scattered farm-houses, of which there remains practically nothing, situated near the new church, near the new school and in St. Thomas Street. There were 20 families and the people of this town were farmers. After the Second World War, the Carmelite Fathers were entrusted with the spiritual needs of the community. The Carmelite Fathers arrived in Fgura on 14 December 1945, where they built a new church and convent, which were inaugurated in November 1950, in the presence of Prime Minister Enrico Mizzi. Before Fgura was declared a parish on 21 January 1965, it was a suburb of Tarxien.

Lying inland from the Three Cities, Fgura was influenced by the growth of the Malta Dockyards, especially after World War II. Much of Fgura was built around the 1960s and 1980s. As the population grew, the need arose for the building of a new modern church. The new church was inaugurated on 25 May 1988 and was consecrated by Archbishop Joseph Mercieca on 1 February 1990.

Fgura Local Council
Local Councils in Malta were established through legislation in Parliament in July 1993. The first local election in Fgura was held on 16 April 1994, and successive elections were held every three years on the 2nd Saturday of March. The first mayor of Fgura was Anthony Degiovanni. He was replaced by Saviour Camilleri in 1997, but returned to his post on 1 April 2000. However Anthony Degiovanni resigned from office in 2004, and was succeeded by Darren Marmara. The 6th Fgura Local Council elections were held on 6 June 2009. The incumbent mayor, Darren Marmara was confirmed for the 3rd consecutive time. However, on 7 July 2010 the deputy mayor Anthony Degiovanni together with his fellow labour councillors presented a no confidence motion in the incumbent mayor, Darren Marmara. The motion was due to be discussed on 16 July, but when the local council meeting was about to commence, the mayor resigned from office, saying that in the preceding days, he and his family received various threats. No official reason was given why the mayor was forced to resign. A meeting to elect a new mayor, scheduled for 21 July had to be postponed till 3 August, after a decision by the Department of Local councils, that found that there were irregularities in the way the meeting was summoned. Newcomer Byron Camilleri, a 23-year-old law student was nominated as the fourth mayor of Fgura.

Byron Camilleri was confirmed mayor for a second term, after the elections held on 9 March 2013, but eventually resigned his seat, after he was elected in Parliament in June 2017. Pierre Dalli succeeded Byron Camilleri, and was reconfirmed as Mayor in May 2019 after obtaining the majority of votes. The new deputy mayor is Clayton Portelli Cascun. The other members of the council are: Charles Bonello, Raymond Deguara, Ryan Ellul, Mario Fava, Mark Lombardo, Toshera Schembri and Adrian Tanti. Mark Lombardo is the only councillor who was elected in all local council elections held since they were established in 1993. As of now, Clayton Cascun Portelli is now the Mayor as of the 2024 Local Council elections and the vice mayor being Darren Marmara. Other Local councilors elected are Charles Bonello, Ray Deguara, Izak Catania De Giovanni, Mark Lombardo, Dr. Ryan Ellul, Josianne Scicluna and Adrian Tanti.

Parish Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
The parish church of Fgura was built in 1988 and dedicated to Our Lady of Mount Carmel on 1 February 1990, on a project by architect Victor Muscat Inglott and structural engineer Godfrey Azzopardi from the 1960s. The parish church is built in modern, post-Vatican II Council style, with a ceiling supported at four points to provide a symmetrical cross design, while retaining a square plan at the base across both axis. It was meant to be appreciated as a free-standing structure surrounded by open space. The Fgura parish church is included in the 2011 National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands under ID 00009.

The Cross Monument
There is a monument in Hompesch Street, which is known as 'Il-Monument tas-Salib' by the Fgura residents (The Cross Monument). This monument was inaugurated by Minister Ugo Mifsud Bonnici in February 1990, exactly when Fgura celebrated its 25th anniversary when it became a parish in 1965. This monument was designed by the sculptor Ġanni Bonniċi and built by apprentices of the Ġlormu Cassar School.

This monument was placed on the exact spot where a small church dedicated to Our Lady of Mount Carmel was built in 1790 instead of a niche that was there for a long time. The church was demolished in the 1950s to allow the widening of the road. As a remembrance of this niche, a new niche was built in Carmel Street.

The monument rests on four columns and they have a significant meaning. Three of these columns represent the towns which Fgura is adjacent to:- Paola, Tarxien and Żabbar {limits from these places were taken in order to form the Parish of Fgura in 1965}. The other one represents the Parish of Fgura. At the base of this monument there are 4 gravestones. They represent the 25th anniversary since Fgura became a parish, the inauguration of this monument and one is a copy of another gravestone that was situated at the side of a church that was built in 1844. This gravestone was written in Latin and it told the story of this church.

Reggie Miller Square
Reggie Miller Square (Wesgħa Reggie Miller) is an open space decorated with palm trees to the right side of the Parish Church. The original site had been developed into a garden which was inaugurated on 28 March 1976 by Minister Lorry Sant. Reggie Miller was a trade unionist and the founder of the General Workers' Union, the strongest trade union in Malta. The original garden featured a fish pond and a sundial designed by Paul Ignatius Micallef. Fgura Local Council, on being established in 1993, had identified this space as one if its first projects and very soon developed it into an open plan square to the design of Vice Mayor Saviour Camilleri. The new square was inaugurated on 10 February 1996. In 1996 the Fgura Local Council erected a monument of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, which was designed and executed by Fgura sculptor Alfred Camilleri Cauchi.

Patri Redent Gauci Gardens
This garden was built in 2000 by the Ministry of Social Policy as part of the scheme of Gardens in Government Housing Estates. Fr Redent Gauci who was one of the original Carmelite friars that had started the Carmilte Community in Fgura, was eventually ordained Bishop. The Council had intended this garden to be family leisure grounds and have incorporated a multipurpose court, a club house, and a playing field. The garden was inaugurated by Minister Lawrence Gonzi. As part of the embellishment works within the Housing Estate, the Local Council embellished also the immediate surroundings of the nearby apartments, both from its annual allocation, together with other funds from parking schemes by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority.

George Stevens Square
On 6 September 1986, the 35th anniversary of the foundation of the Malta Literary Society, Minister Lorry Sant inaugurated a monument commemorating George Stevens, poet, author of various popular songs and co-founder of the Literary Society. A hardline Malta Labour Party member by family tradition and a very intelligent man also self-made millionaire, Prof. George Stevens was a well loved character in the port area. Even though much controversy surrounds the facts of an Italian diplomat's murder whom Stevens confessed to. Still he was a hero to most in the southern part of Malta so a monument was erected The monument, erected in a square bearing his name, was commissioned by the Malta Literary Society and executed by sculptor Alfred Camilleri Cauchi. After the unveiling it was blessed by the Parish Priest Father Guido Micallef O. Carm. In 2000, the Fgura Local Council commissioned architect Stefan Buontempo to redesign this square and entrusted the original sculptor with the restoration of the monument and the design a new plinth. The project was inaugurated in 2001 in the presence of the Stevens family and members of the Malta Literary Society, by the President of Malta Guido de Marco.

Wied Blandun
Wied Blandun is the only natural area included in the limits of Fgura, and one of the few remaining open spaces in the conurbation around the Three Cities. It lies immediately outside the western part of the Cottonera bastions and south of the Bormla drydocks. Wied Blandun is part of the drowned valley system of the Grand Harbour area; with a length of circa 500 metres, it is irrigated by rainwater run-off from the streets of Paola and Fgura. It comprises terraced fields and the area closest to the road which leads to Fgura includes an important stand of carobs and almonds. The valley has long been subject to important environmental degradation, being used in its lower (northern) part as dumping ground for hazardous grit blasting waste from the nearby shipyards.

In November 2001 the Malta Environmental and Planning Authority scheduled Wied Blandun for its scientific and ecological importance among the Protected areas of Malta. In 2015 the Maltese government allocated €125,000 for an environmental study for the rehabilitation of the valley, to include a desk study, a site description and a preliminary risk assessment, with the aim of the rehabilitation and restoration of Wied Blandun, as confirmed by Paola MP Silvio Parnis, head of the consultative council for the south of Malta.

A EU-funded catchment management study and masterplan were published in December 2020 and March 2021 respectively.

Fgura United Football Club
Fgura United is the local football club and it officially represents the locality of Fgura in Maltese football. In 2012, Fgura Utd FC were promoted to the Second Division, after an eventful season for the local sports club. This was the second time that the club was promoted to a higher division, after the first success registered in the season 1987/88. On 31 March 2012, the Fgura Utd Sports complex was inaugurated by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and UEFA President, Michel Platini.

16 July External Feast Commission
The External Feast Commission 16 July, or as it is better known in Maltese; Kummissjoni Festa Esterna 16 ta' Lulju is under the auspices of the Fgura Parish Church. This Commission was founded in 1993 under the auspices of Fr. Adrian Cassar Pulis O.Carm. Different activities are held during the year as a means of fund raising. These funds are spent on the expenses incurred in organizing the village feast on the second Sunday of July. The Village Feast of Fgura is dedicated to Our Lady of Mount Carmel. On 5 March 2023, Kummissjoni Festa Esterna celebrated 30 years of success and work to organise the village feast in Fgura, and celebrated with a new logo.

Scout Group

The Fgura Scout Group was established in 1987 is a member of the South District of the Scout Association of Malta. They currently have about 100 Uniformed Members in 4 Co-ed Sections. A Beaver section (ages 5–7) a Cub Scout section (ages 7–10), a Troop Section (ages 10–15), a Venture Unit ages (15-18) and a Rover Crew (18-25). The Group also has a marching band composed of members from the group's sections. Apart from the local and national activities, the Group also participates in overseas activities and frequently hosts the First Woodend Scout Group of Bristol-UK for their traditional exchange visits. In 2005, 11 scouts and 1 leader attended EuroJam 2005 (European Jamboree) in Chelmsford, UK this year being the 100th anniversary of scouting. In November 2017, the Fgura Scout Group celebrated its 30th anniversary and organised a special group camp for the occasion. In 2015 and 2019 a contingent of scouts and ventures from the Fgura Scout Group took part in the Haarlem Jamborette, held in The Netherlands.

Band Club
Our Lady of Carmel Society and Band Club (L-Għaqda Mużikali u s-Soċjali Madonna tal-Karmnu) was founded in 1985. Its premises in Hompesch Road were inaugurated in 1991. Teaching of musical instruments for free is one of the main goals of this band club, whilst the Band takes active part in the organisation of all local festivities throughout the year, and which reach their climax during the second week of July, when the titular feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is celebrated.

Zones in Fgura

 * Wied Blandun
 * Tal-Liedna
 * Ta' Ġerman
 * Ta' Penza
 * Ta' Tira
 * Tal-Foss
 * Tal-Gallu
 * Tal-Patri
 * Tax-Xemx u l-Qamar
 * Taz-Zilfa

title: Fgura


text:
British Optical Association

The British Optical Association (BOA) was founded in February 1895 as the first professional body for ophthalmic opticians (optometrists) in the world. The British Optical Association Museum and Library was founded in 1901; it retains the BOA name but is now part of the College of Optometrists, located in Craven Street, Charing Cross, central London.

History
At a meeting called by Mr Robert Sutcliffe, a sight-testing optician of Rochdale, the BOA was formed and elected the distinguished London optician John Browning (scientific instrument maker) as its first President. The BOA ran the first professional examinations in optics in 1896 and campaigned over many years for the state recognition of the profession, finally achieving success in 1958 with the passing of the Opticians Act by Parliament. It operated a number of local associations across the UK and was responsible for establishing the Army Spectacle Depot during World War I and establishing the Joint Council of Qualified Opticians (JCQO) together with the Institute of Ophthalmic Opticians (IOO) in 1922. The BOA also provided the Secretariat for a number of other optical bodies including what would eventually become the Association of Optometrists and the International Optometric and Optical League (IOOL), known since 1995 as the World Council of Optometry.

In a series of amalgamations the BOA swallowed up the smaller rival examining bodies, the National Association of Opticians (NAO) in 1955, and the Institute of Optical Science (IOSc) in 1962. In 1980, the BOA joined forces with the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers (WCSM) and the Scottish Association of Opticians (SAO, now disbanded) to found the British College of Ophthalmic Opticians (Optometrists); the title was changed to the British College of Optometrists in 1987 and, with the grant of a Royal Charter in 1995, the territorial distinction was dropped and the name shortened to the College of Optometrists.

Fellows of the British Optical Association were entitled to use the affix FBOA, introduced in 1897, and those who held only the Dioptric Grade the affix DBOA or the Ophthalmometric Grade, the little-used affix OBOA. These latter grades were abolished in 1923. Examinations for dispensing opticians were first introduced in 1928. The BOA also administered several higher qualifications including the Diploma in Contact Lens Practice (DCLP), introduced in 1961, and awarded the BOA Research Medal from 1953. The Association published the Dioptric Review from 1896 which continued with breaks and with minor changes of title until 1961 when it was replaced by The Ophthalmic Optician a journal jointly sponsored by the BOA and the AOP. A learned clinical journal, the British Journal of Physiological Optics was produced from 1925, on the Association's own in-house printing press.

After a peripatetic existence in Rochdale, Blackpool and London, an 'Association House' was eventually acquired in 1914 at Cliffords Inn Hall, a former Inn of Chancery close to the former Public Records Office. From 1934, when that building was compulsorily purchased for demolition, and until 1978, the BOA was housed at 65 Brook Street, Mayfair.

British Optical Association Museum
The British Optical Association Museum was founded in London, England, by John H. Sutcliffe OBE in January 1901 as a collection of historic spectacles and visual aids designed to illustrate the development of corrective eyewear. It subsequently expanded its collecting activities to encompass ophthalmic instrumentation and the depiction of optometric subject matter in works of art such as paintings, prints and sculpture. With over 27,000 catalogued objects (including archives) it may be judged one of the most comprehensive and high quality collections of its type. It is believed to be the oldest such museum to be open to the public. Many of its objects are rare survivals and several are unique.

The museum is located at the College of Optometrists at the north end of Craven Street, adjacent to Charing Cross railway station in Westminster. Visits to the museum gallery are free and by advance appointment only.

The BOA Museum provides a heritage service to the College, the WCSM and the wider optical professions. The public may visit the exhibition rooms (the Sutcliffe Room and Giles Room) by prior appointment or pay for a guided tour of the College meeting rooms in which various exhibits are displayed. Museum staff are available to give external lectures and objects are frequently lent to temporary exhibitions at other accredited museums in the UK and occasionally overseas.

The BOA Museum is a UK Accredited Museum and a member of the London Museums of Health & Medicine.

title: British Optical Association