text:
Talk:Ashdod

older entries
Maccabe : One E or two EE?

 * I put a Maccabee in parens. :(

Maccabi

Maccabi is better. It is not one E anyway. Shmuliko 03:57, 11 May 2006 (UTC)

 * The official name is Maccabi. -- Ynhockey (Talk) 09:02, 12 May 2006 (UTC)

GA review 03/28/07
This article seems to be getting fairly well organized, but still does not meet the good article criteria. The images at the top of the article seem out of place, and should be integrated into sections within the article better (history, economy, perhaps). The history section seem very good, but is largely unreferenced. I would move 'modern times' into the history section as a subsection.

Economy & Transportation should be expanded, and referenced. Transportation should include descriptions of all transportation options in the city; roads, street layout, mass transit, buses, air travel, major highways, etc. the Israel Railways template also seems rather awkwardly placed here. I'm not sure what purpose it's serving.

A demographics section on the population is completely missing from the article. The small bits of info under 'income' would fall under this section, and you should include some general population statistics, perhaps census data, etc.

Create a 'government section, and provide details about the mayor & city council there. Move the list of mayors to a separate article, linked to as a 'see also' link from this section.

'Culture & sports' is largely just a list, and should be expanded. Sports might be a subsection within a 'culture' section, but 'culture' also encompasses cultural attractions, media, popular culture, annual events and fairs, and more.

You're going to have to explain what 'Chassidic Rebbes' is. I have no idea?

'Sister cities' should be referenced. There is a Sister Cities International website, but Ashdod has no sister cities listed on that site.

Overall, good start! For help with inline citations & references, please refer to WP:CITE. The good article criteria can be found at WP:WIAGA. You might also try looking at WP:CITIES for suggestions on the structure of city articles, and maybe look at some of the FA & GA articles there for suggestions. Good luck! Dr. Cash 20:07, 28 March 2007 (UTC)

Top Picture

 * On a similar vein, cities' top picture is usually one that actually shows it, either some skyline or aerial photograph. The current photo of the MonArt Center should be moved to the appropriate section and be replaced with a representative one. My use of the Image:Ashdod 2005, rooftop view p2.JPG was reverted - if there is something wrong with the image, then use a different one, but the MonArt is not a good general image.  Tewfik Talk 18:46, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

 * I didn't like the rooftop, since it is showing only small neighborhood, far from city center and can not represent anything. The MonArt became one of the city symbols. It can be changed by some aerial view, but meanwhile we have no such image. :( Shmuliko 04:45, 10 July 2007 (UTC)
 * What about Image:Ashdod Yad-le-Banim.JPG or Image:BeginBlvd.JPG? I particularly favour the latter, which shows a central boulevard, an underpass, and some of the tall buildings and lanmarks.  Tewfik Talk 23:42, 11 July 2007 (UTC)
 * I placed Image:BeginBlvd.JPG in modern time history as contrast between it and Image:Ashdod57.jpg, I think it makes the job. The Image:Ashdod Yad-le-Banim.JPG shows small concert hall and doesn't represent anything. The couple of residents buildings in the background (who put them in administrative, culture and arts area?) does not make it suitable to be a top image. Shmuliko 05:01, 12 July 2007 (UTC)
 * If you live there, perhaps you could go to one of the tall buildings and take a few shots? I understand the contrast you are trying to draw, but if we don't find a better image for the infobox, perhaps another of the modern pictures could do the same job (since the refugee camp is on the beach, perhaps a picture of the beachfront)? Cheers,  Tewfik Talk 06:51, 12 July 2007 (UTC)
 * Correct. But meanwhile I can't find such an image. Instead MonArt is kind of symbol.

 * What refugee camp??? I missed the point.Shmuliko 10:00, 12 July 2007 (UTC)

Good article nomination on hold 07/14/07

 * GA review (see here for criteria)

 * 1) It is reasonably well written.
 * a (prose): b (MoS):
 * 1) It is factually accurate and verifiable.
 * a (references): b (citations to reliable sources):  c (OR):
 * 1) It is broad in its coverage.
 * a (major aspects): b (focused):
 * 1) It follows the neutral point of view policy.
 * a (fair representation): b (all significant views):
 * 1) It is stable.
 * 2) It contains images, where possible, to illustrate the topic.
 * a (tagged and captioned): b lack of images (does not in itself exclude GA):  c (non-free images have fair use rationales):
 * 1) Overall:
 * a Pass/Fail:
 * [[Image:Symbol_wait.svg|15px]] On Hold
 * [[Image:Symbol_wait.svg|15px]] On Hold

What needs to be done
This article is much improved since its last nomination, and is getting close to but still does not meet the good article criteria. I placed it on hold for seven days. 1. It is reasonably well written: A lot of the prose seems have been written by a non-native English speaker. This in itself is not a problem, but the prose in this article is sometimes awkward. Remember to use simple declarative sentences. For instance, or Thus, or Numbers in the prose itself should be spelled out, unless they are very large or complex. For instance, But: "As of 2007, the city's population is 123,456." Correct.
 * "The time was noted by James," should instead read,
 * "James noted the time."
 * "The food was eaten by Susan," should instead read,
 * "Susan ate the food."
 * "Today the city is an important industrial center in the country" should read "Ashdod is an important industrial center."
 * "The statement of Ptolemy and Josephus that it was a maritime city, despite its standing 4 miles from the shore," should read, "Despite its location four miles from the coast, both Ptolemy and Josephus described it as a maritime city."
 * "213 people marched in the parade" should read,
 * "Two hundred and thirteen people marched in the parade."
 * Comment The MoS seems to recommend 213 over spelling out.  Tewfik Talk 19:17, 17 July 2007 (UTC)

 * Recommendations: Eliminate passive voice where it remains in the article.  Also, check the article against the Manual of Style, and make sure everything is consistent.
 * Done. I think.

2. It is factually accurate and verifiable:
 * a) The Bible should not be used as a factual, independent historical record.  If you want to include references to the Bible in the history section, then preface the sentence with "According to the Book of Daniel," or something like it, so that the reader knows he is reading a biblical reference.
 * Done.
 * b) The "Biblical references" should be folded into the "History" section, with the above in mind, or else all biblical references should be taken out of the "History" section and put into a separate section.
 * Done. Except the Book of Nehemiah part. The women of Ashdod there means all philistinian women. I don't think I should move it to Biblical mentions. It also referenced with respectfull Hugo Winckler.
 * c) There are quite a few statements, and even paragraphs, that have no citations at all.  I tried to tag them with a "citation needed" tag.
 * Done. I think.Shmuliko 19:45, 20 July 2007 (UTC)

Good article ok 07/22/07

 * GA review (see here for criteria)

 * 1) It is reasonably well written.
 * a (prose): b (MoS):
 * 1) It is factually accurate and verifiable.
 * a (references): b (citations to reliable sources):  c (OR):
 * 1) It is broad in its coverage.
 * a (major aspects): b (focused):
 * 1) It follows the neutral point of view policy.
 * a (fair representation): b (all significant views):
 * 1) It is stable.
 * 2) It contains images, where possible, to illustrate the topic.
 * a (tagged and captioned): b lack of images (does not in itself exclude GA):  c (non-free images have fair use rationales):
 * 1) Overall:
 * a Pass/Fail:
 * [[Image:Symbol_support_vote.svg|15px]]Pass
 * [[Image:Symbol_support_vote.svg|15px]]Pass

All current photos have fair use rationales.

This article has shown tremendous improvement. Good job.

 * One outstanding question thought. It is clear to me, from reading the article, that Ashdod is an ancient city, and that its population at the start of the last century was about five thousand.  Yet, in the 1950s, surveyors arrived to build the new city of Ashdod. It's not clear from the article where the new Ashdod was built.  Next to the old one?  What happened to the old city?  Please clarify this in the article.--Mcattell 16:16, 22 July 2007 (UTC)

GA on hold
This article has been reviewed as part of WikiProject Good articles/Project quality task force in an effort to ensure all listed Good articles continue to meet the Good article criteria. In reviewing the article, I have found there are some issues that may need to be addressed.

The lead does not appear to adequately summarize the article, some subsections are too short to warrant there own section (eg. Museums and exhibitions, Sea Transport) and the article is under-referenced. These statements need inline citations: I will check back in no less than seven days. If progress is being made and issues are addressed, the article will remain listed as a Good article. Otherwise, it may be delisted (such a decision may be challenged through WP:GA/R). If improved after it has been delisted, it may be nominated at WP:GAC. Feel free to drop a message on my talk page if you have any questions. Regards, Epbr123 10:29, 16 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The city absorbed another blow in 605 BCE, when Nebuchadnezzar conquered it. In 539 BCE the city was rebuilt by the Persians, but was conquered in the wars of Alexander of Macedon."
 * Done Shmuliko 19:11, 22 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The city prospered as Izotus under the Hellenistic rule, until the Hasmonean Revolt. During the rebellion Judas Maccabeus arrived at its gates, but did not conquer it. He left it for his brother Jonathan, who conquered it in 147 BCE and destroyed the Temple of Dagon."
 * Done Shmuliko 20:22, 20 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "Fearing encirclement, Egyptian forces retreated on October 28, 1948 with a majority of the city's residents."
 * Done. Shmuliko 07:05, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Most of the "Modern times" section
 * Done. Shmuliko 20:22, 20 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "taking into account the prevailing southern winds which take air pollution out of the city."
 * Done. Shmuliko 07:29, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The plan had its problems, however, including asymmetric growth of upscale and poorer neighborhoods and the long-time lack of a main business and administrative center."
 * Done. Shmuliko 07:29, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The city was planned for a maximum of 250,000 inhabitants, and an additional area in the south was reserved for further development. However, the southern border of the city was proclaimed a national nature reserve, Ashdod Nitzanim Sand Dune Park, which makes future city growth problematic, with the last of the seventeen neighborhoods of the development plan now under construction."
 * Done. Shmuliko 07:29, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The first mall to open in Ashdod was the Forum Center which was built in the industrial zone and was very popular until additional malls were built in the residential neighborhoods."
 * "Lev Ashdod Mall was opened in 1993 and soon became the most poular shopping and recreation place among the population of Ashdod."
 * Done. Shmuliko 07:30, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "Lev Ashdod Mall was followed two years later by Ashdod Mall which opened in 1995 and was at the time the biggest mall in the city. Despite this fact, however, it was not successful and is currently being redesigned."
 * "The Sea Mall is a three floor mall which now the largest in the city."
 * Statement changed. I can't find any statistics. Shmuliko 06:34, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "Star Center is a new mall which has proven to be popular to the extent that it is will double in size in 2007."
 * Done Shmuliko 17:03, 25 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "An interchange is under construction, planned to open in 2009."
 * There is the press release note supporting this sentence. ref22 Shmuliko 05:49, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The interchange is intended to continue the freeway section of Highway 4 further south by removing the traffic light at this junction, and it will also utilize grade separation with the railway."
 * There is the press release note supporting this sentence. ref22 Shmuliko 05:49, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The passenger railroad connection to Ashdod opened in 1992 after the renovation of the historical railway to Egypt."
 * Done. Shmuliko 14:04, 29 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The station was upgraded in 2005 when a new terminal building was built."
 * Done. Shmuliko 09:21, 26 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The station is modern and has all the usual facilities, but road access to it is old and clumsy. A new access road is currently under construction."
 * Done. Shmuliko 11:55, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The traffic at this gateway is constantly growing, especially due to cruise ship activities."
 * "In the 1960s Ashdod accepted a large number of immigrants from Romania, followed by a large number from Georgia and India in the 1970s. More than 60,000 Jews immigrated to Ashdod from the former Soviet Union in the early 1990s."
 * Done Shmuliko 20:22, 20 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "Ashdod also receives a significant amount of internal migration, especially from the Gush Dan region."
 * Done. Shmuliko 14:04, 29 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "Over 95% of Ashdod's population is Jewish, over 30% of whom are religiously observant."
 * "There is also a Protestant church, which mostly serves the Scandinavian seamen who arrive at the port."
 * I can't find any written source, but as local resident I know exactly were it is. What reference can I provide? Shmuliko 07:02, 18 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Shmuliko, how about a photograph, to be added to the 3 other photos in under the religion section? It may satisfy the reviewer. -- Derwig 08:08, 21 September 2007 (UTC)
 * It's the Scandinavian seamen part that needs referrncing. Epbr123 08:27, 21 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Done. Additional info added. Image added. Please enlarge the image to see the referencing for Scandinavian seamen part. Shmuliko 06:34, 26 September 2007 (UTC) [[Image:Skan Seaman Church sign.JPG|50px]]
 * "Robert Hayim was chosen to the council chairmanship in the first municipal elections, in 1961"
 * Done Shmuliko 20:22, 20 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "The orchestra was awarded the Israel Prize in 2006."
 * Done - Derwig 11:42, 16 September 2007 (UTC)
 * "the institute was established in 1966, and serves as a home for 600 young musicians in different fields."
 * Done - Shmuliko 13:08, 16 September 2007 (UTC)
 * The sister cities and famous sportsmen.
 * Done for spotsmen - Shmuliko 12:43, 18 September 2007 (UTC)
 * Done for sister cities Derwig 14:24, 18 September 2007 (UTC)

The only major problem left is that the lead needs expanding. You can have until 5th October to fix this. Epbr123 17:59, 1 October 2007 (UTC) Pass! Good work. Epbr123 13:28, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
 * Done by Derwig. Shmuliko 13:06, 5 October 2007 (UTC)

CBS statistics
Why don't any income statistics for Ashdod appear in the article? Here's a basic breakdown. -- Ynhockey (Talk) 12:10, 6 June 2008 (UTC)

Peer Review
I place it here, meanwhile, somebody blanks archive pages.Shmuliko (talk) 09:53, 4 September 2008 (UTC)

I've listed this article for peer review because I'd like to get additional opinions before FA nomination. It seems to meet FA conditions, but I'm not sure it comprehensive enough. Also some moments can be unclear.

Thanks,Shmuliko 12:35, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

 * Please see automated peer review suggestions here. Thanks, APR t 12:43, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

 * llywrch
 * I confess that I find writing articles on cities particularly difficult because I'm always finding that they aren't comprehensive enough; they tend to be little more than the history of the place. You may want to look at articles on cities that have reached FA status for ideas. In any case, here's my comments:
 * Higher education. I can't believe a city as large as Ashdod doesn't have at least one college, either full or junior. (Do they have Community colleges in Israel?)
 * Local media. Same thing: any newspapers, magazines, radio stations or tv stations in Ashdod?
 * I found the "Ancient Ashdod" section a bit choppy; it may need more material to smooth out the narrative. Some questions about that section:
 * A "'usurper' Yamani" is mentioned, with no other details. Please explain who he is, or at least put the allusion into some contect.
 * Is there a reason for splitting out the references to Ashdod in the Bible from the rest of the history section? Say, the Bible presents one image of the town, but archeology another? If so, it would be a good thing to bring out the contrast; if not, perhaps you should consider integrating the material.
 * This split was required by GA viewer. It was said that Bible source is not reliable historical reference. Shmuliko 07:38, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
 * (Bangs head agaisnt the wall) Many historians quote the Bible as a reliable source, especially for this period. For some subjects, the Bible is not reliable; for other subjects it is. That's why we provide cites -- so the reader can decide for her/himself. I wish people would recognize that, & stop trying to submit sources to the guidelines of Reliable Sources like Procrustes submitted travellers to his infamous bed. -- llywrch 17:34, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
 * A last issue is the size of the "Ancient Ashdod" section. Like many settlements around the Mediterranean, Ashdod has many thousands of years of history, & the ancient Ashdod would be what many non-Israelis think of when they consult this article. You should consider if/when it would be feasible or a good thing to spin off this section into its own article.
 * Otherwise, a good start. While there are some nits of grammar or phrasing I might pick at, lots of information here. -- llywrch 18:57, 15 October 2007 (UTC)

On the contrary to the previous reviewer, I have issues with all sections others than history. The transportation section is too short, for instance, and it's divided into short sections. Either they should be merged into a larger transportation section, or more info (which does exist) could be added to each sub-section. Next, the organization of the article isn't that great. For example, I can't see how the average salary is relevant to the Demographics > Population section. 'Origins' is also a weird section name for what it attempts to cover. The culture section is also way too short and has little information. The government section is short and not appropriately sourced. The images should also be moved around to more appropriate sections, for example the location map should be at the top of the article (just below the infobox).

All in all, I believe that the article can achieve FA status given the motivation of the main contributor (Shmuliko), but still requires quite a bit of work. I think that offline research could do this article a lot of good - there aren't any book sources outside of the history section.

Good luck, and I'll try to help with some of the above if I have time. -- Ynhockey (Talk) 18:52, 4 September 2008 (UTC)

Huge History gaps
There is no info at all of Ashdod's history in the first five centuries of Arab rule (except for a less than one-line mention of the Fatimids), and there is nothing on its role during the Crusades or anything on the Ayyubids or Mamluks. The Ottoman history is also too brief. Another thing is the section "Biblical references". Shouldn't this be a part of the Ancient settlement section? And shouldn't the brief passages on Fatimid/Ottoman rule be relocated to their own section? This is very confusing. I will try to expand the Arab/Crusader/later Muslim history, and maybe reorganize the history section a bit. --Al Ameer son (talk) 07:41, 26 December 2008 (UTC)
 * About the Biblical references: There was a discussion about this a long time ago, and it was decided to have a separate section for Biblical references, because the Bible is not a reliable source and is possibly fictitious. Therefore, anything that isn't backed by archaeological evidence should be explained as a Biblical reference.
 * About Arab rule: I don't think anyone left this history out on purpose, and agree that there isn't enough currently, although putting too much would also be undue because during Arab rule this was a very small village. If you decide to expand the information about Arab rule though, please make sure to note that Arab Isdud was not in the exact same location as modern Ashdod, but a few km to the southeast. -- Ynhockey (Talk) 12:14, 26 December 2008 (UTC)
 * Speaking of missing information, this article doesn't mention in any place that the town was once called Ashdod Yam. -- Ynhockey (Talk) 15:10, 26 December 2008 (UTC)
 * Wow, sorry for my late reply (it's not on my watchlist). Thank you for clarifying the Biblical references issue. On the Arab rule (actually Ottoman Turkish rule) issue, I have a lot of info now, but, like you said, the Arab village was to the south. So do you suggest I create a different article on Isdud? This would suck up the info from the Ancient settlement section? --Al Ameer son (talk) 21:42, 14 February 2009 (UTC)

Gaza War
How about adding sentence that it was subjected to rocket attacks? --Sceptic Ashdod (talk) 11:56, 22 July 2009 (UTC)
 * I don't think this is in the scope of this article. It is not for actuallia. Shmuliko (talk) 18:54, 22 July 2009 (UTC)
 * It could be a tourist's attraction, you know...--Sceptic Ashdod (talk) 06:49, 23 July 2009 (UTC)

Depopulation
Morris, in The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited lists the causes for the depopulation of Isdud as Military assault on settlement and Expulsion by Jewish forces. Could the editor who believes that it is "POV" to include this please explain why and provide sources disputing it?  nableezy  - 19:27, 8 November 2010 (UTC)

Merge proposal

 * The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section. A summary of the conclusions reached follows.
 * As an uninvolved editor, I have reviewed the discussion and the 's closing statement. Given that there has been no further opposition to a merge after several weeks, is within his rights to merge/redirect Isdud to Ashod pursuant to llywrch's closing statement. Cunard (talk) 07:59, 30 October 2011 (UTC)

Ashdod (Hebrew) and Isdud (Arabic) is a different prenounsation of the same place name. Similarly to other cases of place names in the region, like Acre/Acco/Akko; Tverya/Tiberias/Tabariyya; Safed/Zefat and others, different periods of the same city/town are described within the scope of one single article. Please share your opinion whether Keep or Merge regarding Isdud, regarding merging "Isdud" into the article "Ashdod". Greyshark09 (talk) 15:59, 16 September 2011 (UTC)
 * I oppose the merge per WP:SUMMARY. That article should be summarized here, but that article should remain to allow for greater detail and more material than would be necessary here.  nableezy  - 16:02, 16 September 2011 (UTC)
 * Isdud is just 7kb in size, while Ashdod barely reaching 50kb. I would agree with you if the period described (Mandatory Palestine) would have been much more comprehensive.Greyshark09 (talk) 16:06, 16 September 2011 (UTC)
 * Sure, but that is as it stands today. Additionally, the village Isdud was not located in the same location as Ashdod. The Arab village ceased to exist following its depopulation, it did not become Ashdod.  nableezy  - 18:48, 16 September 2011 (UTC)
 * You are entering a very problematic field, where you are trying to separate various ages into different articles. Note that the Arabic "Isdud" was built not at the site of "Tel Ashdod" and quiet far from "Ashdod Yam" (Ashdod-Sea - ruins from Assyrian period). I believe none of those had a fluent transition into each other and all are located within the municipal territory of the modern Ashdod. The only thing which we might consider is making a separate article on existing notable national park or archaeological site (like in the case of Ashdod-Sea), but in the case of Arabic Isdud, there is nothing left of it, thus it better be covered here in the historic section.Greyshark09 (talk) 16:29, 17 September 2011 (UTC)
 * No, Isdud was directly adjacent to Tel Ashdod overlapping the archaeological digs. I just spent an hour tracking down exact maps. Zerotalk 16:35, 17 September 2011 (UTC)
 * So there was Tel Ashdod; Ashdod-Sea (several km to the north); Isdud (back south); modern Ashdod (again to the north) - a ping-pong.Greyshark09 (talk) 16:54, 17 September 2011 (UTC)
 * Another idea however: i did participate in editing 1660 destruction of Tiberias and 1660 destruction of Safed, we might use the same, making an article for "1948 destruction of Isdud" as a notable historic event, but certainly not the town "Isdud" itself. What do you think?Greyshark09 (talk) 16:54, 17 September 2011 (UTC)

 * Merge. Agree w/merge proposal.  When the aggregate size is at/about 100K, a split of some sort -- quite possibly this one -- would be in order.--Epeefleche (talk) 17:24, 16 September 2011 (UTC)
 * Merge, for another reason. This article covers the ancient city as well as the Israeli city, but the ancient city was where the Arab village stood, not where the Israeli city stands.  If the articles are not merged, almost all the material in here referring to pre-1948 should be moved to Isdud.  Merging might be a better option. Zerotalk 16:00, 17 September 2011 (UTC)
 * Merge for reasons that have been stated many times. We shouldn't have different articles for the same location. —Ynhockey (Talk) 14:45, 21 September 2011 (UTC)

The arbitration by the administrator resulted in restarting the discussion, thus i invite the participants to clarify their position on the merge proposal.
 * Merge - in order to sort the material about the same place with same name (different prenounsation) in chronological order.Greyshark09 (talk) 21:11, 8 October 2011 (UTC)
 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made in a new section.

 * Oppose - The only thing you forgot that there are two different locations. In fact Isdud is not under Ashdod jurisdiction and belong to Be'er Tuvia regional council. Shmuliko (talk) 11:13, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

dunams
I tried to link the word "dunams" to the wiki article on it, but I lost the following measurement in km2. I duess the code is too much for me. Can someone do it? --Richardson mcphillips (talk) 01:42, 4 August 2014 (UTC)

Material belonging in Kal'at Al Mina
Some of the material here, under Ashdod seem to belong in the Kal'at Al Mina-article. Ashdud, or rather, Isdud, is also treated in Pringle, 1998, but on pp. 116-117. Huldra (talk) 22:14, 22 May 2015 (UTC) - Isdud and Ashdod have already been merged into one article. Today's Ashdod is a rather large town, which includes the territory of both ancient towns, Azotus mesogaios/inland Ashdod and Azotus paralios/Ashdod on the Sea, or whatever you want to call them. Minat al Qal'a is the Umayyad-Fatimid-Crusader castle at Ashdod on the Sea, its ruins are thus now part of Ashdod, even if they belonged to a separate port town in the past, so now it is rightly included in the larger Ashdod article. I have now added a number of clarifications to distinguish them better, OK? Arminden (talk) 04:38, 23 May 2015 (UTC)Arminden

 * Ok, I´m not quite sure if we should´t treat it in the Kal'at Al Mina-article, and leave a "main"Kal'at Al Mina for that period. Hmm, have to think about it.
 * Btw; Petersen confused me, in that in both his 2001 and in his 2005 book he gave the pal-grid for Kal'at Al Mina as 132/114(!). I compared that with the pal-grid for Isdud (118/129)....and figured that if Ashdod included both Isdud and  Kal'at Al Mina, then it must cover a half of southern  Israel..Lol. Petersen has made a mistake (again): the pal-grid for Kal'at Al Mina  is 114/132 (Pringle has it correct). Huldra (talk) 15:29, 23 May 2015 (UTC)

Look, I've researched both from books & online sources, and on the ground. I don't care much about Conder or whoever if today it doesn't correspond to the reality on the ground. Tel Ashdod for instance might have been a great source of museum artifacts and knowledge about the Philistines, but the dig site has long been covered over by a huge sand dune and is cut in two by a highway -- so for people who're looking for places one can visit, or see on Google Earth, or do the Khalidi thing and look for pre-48 ruins, or, or... it's irrelevant. Same about pal-grid: current maps don't use it anymore, the PA maybe still does, but that's it. To me the aerial photo I found today on the Hebrew WP page and had a hard time moving over, is the best piece of information in the whole article: you see the shape & size of the fort, its architecture & state of preservation are easy to "read", it's instantly clear that modern Ashdod has swallowed up all of the old Ashdod Yam, the landscape is all there - great! Who needs Petersen if you have smth like this? // Once the structure is in place and confusions are ruled out (Ashdod different from Ashdod Yam, the periods, what's there today), I always prefer adding substantial information over organisational issues. In this case: can you invest the time & effort and bring the info from, say, the christusrex Mada Map discussion?[*] It says a lot about the changing fate of inland Ashdod and coastal Ashdod, which one was the dominant town in which period and why. Negev & Gibson have more on that and the excavations. Also, Ashdod Yam is more than one site: the Assyrian town is a major excavation project and hugely interesting, and I couldn't figure out where exactly it's located in relation to the Hellenistic Azotus Paralus and to the Umayyad fort, and if the latter two do coincide more or less with each other. The question if we should split it onto 2 or 3 pages (Ashdod, Minat al-Qal'a) I personally find less essential, once the main Ashdod page can give a concise & clear overview of where these places are and how they have interacted in history. That does sound essential to me. But this would take more time than I have available, so... it's up to other volunteers out there. Interested :) ? Btw, Zero is sharing my concern over the poorly translated place & article names. Ashdod Yam = Ashdod on the Sea = Azotus Paralus/-ios, but never "Ashdod Sea", as it is now. Minat al-Qal'a ("the port with the fort") is the common Arabic term, and not Kalat Al Mina, which became popular in Israel, but I must admit it's a bit counterintuitive to call not just the port "the port with the fort", but also the fort itself, as Pringle does (#153 on p 72). Maybe he just names the site, but what about the ruin as such? Dilemma. And was the fort all there was to the Byzantine-turned-Early Muslim port, or was it only the citadel of a larger coastal town? The IAA excavation report is totally vague ("fort built over some Byzantine ruins"), so I don't know. As you can see, lots of substantial questions are still open -- to me, but maybe not to the local archaeologists -- and as long as those questions remain unanswered, the current three-page treatment is to me as good as any, as long as all 3 pags are VERY visibly interconnected by text links, "See also", maybe also by over-headings -- no overkill is as bad as leaving any user confused who doen't happen to be an old WP buff. * http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/mad/discussion/097discuss.html  and   http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/mad/discussion/096discuss.html     Arminden (talk) 18:46, 23 May 2015 (UTC)Arminden
 * As for pal-grid; Sharon, Petersen and Pringle all *only* gives those numbers: so it is essential that they are in the articles. But they were never meant to be the only ones! Take a look at Amka...and please insert ITM wherever you have it.
 * As for the 3-articles present system: I have no strong opinion (yet!) about it: I´m also in a process of learning about them. But the thing is: it look as if at least since the earliest Muslims times there have been two distinct settlement areas: Isdud is one, and the other is around Kal'at Al Mina/Ashdod Yam. Most people who visited the area during this time, reported both. Which is why I wonder why there are 2 articles on Kal'at Al Mina/Ashdod Yam, and none on Isdud.  (And http://www.christusrex.org/www1/ofm/mad/discussion/097discuss.html  seems to be a bit dated: takes the fort to be Crusader. Later sources say Umayyad.) Huldra (talk) 21:33, 23 May 2015 (UTC)

Sorry Huldra, but that wasn't my point at all. I said that there is a lot of actual research to be done, on essential points of the twin towns' history and interrelation, and that I don't care much about Pal or Isr grid, organisational considerations and alike, as long as the articles cannot inform in a concise manner WHAT is WHERE since WHEN and what site served WHICH purpose. I see you concentrate a lot on Isdud / Azdud or whatever one calls it (which did change over time; medieval Arab names were often dropped or modified by the time the PEF did its research, and some changed further until the Mandate surveys). Inland Ashdod/Azotus/Azdud and its port town existed as a duo at least since the Late Bronze Age (see homepage of the Ashdod-Yam Archaeological Project). They don't mention every period in detail, but Early Muslim Mahuz Azdud was not a new creation, and seems to have survived as a ribat and then probably as a regular port until being razed during the counter-Crusade. The fort is the only prominent archaeological feature on the southern beach of modern Ashdod, there seems to be little knowledge or interest in the rest of the medieval port; the main dig concentrates on the "biblical" (BA and IA) cities. Anyhow, while medieval Ashkelon/Ascalon seems to have stayed important as a port and altogether as a regional centre, Ashdod/Azdud doesn't. No finds, little importance, just some mentions in itineraria-thus no extra page for medieval Azdud, while the fort is worth some effort & attention.Arminden (talk) 01:11, 24 May 2015 (UTC)Arminden
 * I´m not sure I follow your argumentation. While I´m not insisting on a separate article on Isdud, I still don´t understand why we have two articles on Kal'at Al Mina/Ashdod Yam. You seem to think we should have it all into the Ashdod-article, have I understood you correctly? Huldra (talk) 19:03, 24 May 2015 (UTC)

Hi. Not quite. In general I find it good to have one central article for each location. The habit of separating pre-48 villages/towns from the post-48 kibbutz/moshav/town and attaching the entire history to the "Palestinian" page, while leaving the "Israeli" page with a few lines on Zionist settlement and Hebrew Bible quotations, is plain ridiculous. Places have their own intrinsic character, not even the deepest historical cuts usually create discontinuities worth such sharp dissociation (see Jerusalem AD 70, Straton's Tower-Caesarea-moder Keisariya, etc.) Once we have a page like the one on Ashdod, where all eras have been merged onto one central page, I'm happy. And I'm also happy to have "sub-pages" if required, where parts of a very large topic can be dealt more in-depth. Mammoth pages are quite uninviting, even if one can use a search word and get what he wants with little extra effort. So once "Ashdod" is left intact as one central page, having, say, the medieval fort on a secondary page of its own, is fine with me, not that I count so much, but I mean: it seems to me useful to the WP users, and they are those who matter. In detail, what does & what doesn't deserve a "secondary page": the fort is visually nice, Early Islam and Crusader fans alike will be interested in a page just about it alone, as will be tourists to the site. It has a largish picture gallery, etc., etc., so I see why it has got its own page, even if IN THEORY it's just one building from one single period from a larger, complicated, multi-layered site, Ashdod-on-the-Sea. As opposed to the fort, Ashdod-on-the-Sea seems to be of interest only for archaeology buffs. It's hardly been excavated, the Assyrian period, which is what it's mostly about until now, doesn't move many, visually it's mainly mud brick, not much to write home about, but... It needs to be kept distinct from inland Ashdod, and that's very hard to keep clear for the user. I guess that's the best pro argument for a whole page of its own, separate from Ahdod's main page. Why separate it from the fort too? The fort has a lot for the common user, as does the Assyrian layer for the scholar and student. Also, there isn't enough info available as to place the fort in a larger Ashdod-on-the-Sea context, and that would be even more striking if included in the AotS page: was there more to the Early Islamic port? Does the fort stand on top of a Byzantine percursor? Where is it located vs. the Byzantine/Roman/Hellenistic/... port cities? And again the pictures: are there any photos worth showing from the other excavation sites on the beach, or would the fort overwhelm all the rest? -- And '''my main point from the start was: why do we waste time on this ADMIN. issue, instead of researching & posting useful INFORMATION about all those MANY unanswered questions regarding Ashdod & environs?'''Arminden (talk) 20:54, 24 May 2015 (UTC)Arminden

Buses
''Due to the large Haredi population in Ashdod, many mehadrin lines connect the Haredi neighborhoods of Ashdod with other Haredi population centers, such as Bnei Brak, Jerusalem, Bet Shemesh, Modi'in Illit, Kiryat Gat, El'ad, Tzfat and other towns. The mehadrin lines are operated by Egged, Connex, Egged Ta'avura and Superbus, and do not use the central bus station.''

Haven't mehadrin lines been illegal in Israel since 2011, and don't female passengers now have the right to sit wherever they wish? Is the information given outdated? Skinsmoke (talk) 21:00, 1 January 2016 (UTC)

 * That was added 2008 and I just removed it. Officially segregated busses are indeed illegal, though unofficial passenger-enforced segregation remains common. Zerotalk 23:33, 1 January 2016 (UTC)

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"Arab" village?
Ashdod (Isdud in Arabic) had a mixed population upon the onset of the 1947 civil war - according to the article in 1945, it had a population of 4,620 Arabs and 290 Jews. It was thus a mixed city of Arabs and Jews (for instance modern mixed cities in Israeli are tagged as category:mixed Israeli communities, so at the British period it should have been Category:mixed communities in Mandatory Palestine), but the article emphasizes in categories and the "depopulated villages" template only the fact that the Arabs were driven out in late 1948, though prior to that in mid-1948 the Egyptian Army drove out the Jews. So, it is rather dubious to say that this was an "Arab village" depopulated by Israeli Army, while in fact it was a mixed village, first depopulated of Jews by the Egyptian Army with collaboration of local Arabs. I suggest to either rename/change the category name or remove this category from Ashdod article. Thoughts?GreyShark (dibra) 17:13, 24 October 2016 (UTC)

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Petersen, 2005
Petersen, 2005, p. 133 is given as ref. in the article....but I cannot fine anything relevant for this article on that page. Thoughts? Huldra (talk) 22:22, 4 April 2018 (UTC)

Was it always a port?
My copy of the Jewish Study Bible includes a bunch of maps that show an "Ashdod" in roughly the same place as this, but several miles inland, and the maps illustrate the region from (at least; I didn't check all of them) the time of Joshua to the time of Elisha. Thing is, I can't find anything in this article that explicitly contradicts the idea that, for example the city grew and reached the sea at some later point in its history, as our description of its early history doesn't specifically describe it as a port but would very strongly imply that to someone who wasn't looking out for it like I was. Are my maps (which are all obviously "approximations") just wrong on this specific detail? Or is our article just missing said detail? Hijiri 88 ( 聖やや ) 00:21, 17 May 2018 (UTC)
 * Shit. I just double-checked, and the "Elisha" map doesn't include Ashdod (it includes a lot of other details that I described yesterday, and I misremembered), which would roughly fit with our description of the city having been destroyed and then rebuilt near the end of the ninth century. Was it rebuilt a few miles west so as to function as a port? I could check if the JSB includes it in a different location in later maps, but it would obviously be the worst kind of OR to extrapolate from that that the city was rebuilt as a port when it had previously been a little bit inland. Gonna look into this a bit more. Hijiri 88 ( 聖やや ) 00:31, 17 May 2018 (UTC)

Population history
The years the article lists for this are arbitrary, so I want to change them, but would like to get some input on the best years to include. It makes the most sense to include past censuses, i.e. 1948, 1961, 1972, 1983, 1995 and 2008, but what about later years? Do we include just the latest (2017), or go for recentism and include every year since 2008 for example? Or 2010 and further, or something else? —Ynhockey (Talk) 08:37, 28 November 2018 (UTC)

Edit request
The one of the sources is outdated, and I can't edit it because the article itself is related to ARBPIA and I still don't have 500 edits. http://www.moia.gov.il needs to be replaced with http://archive.moia.gov.il Alex.osheter (talk) 14:31, 18 May 2019 (UTC)
 * ✅ Enigmamsg 20:16, 19 May 2019 (UTC)

A Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion
The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion: Participate in the deletion discussion at the. —Community Tech bot (talk) 13:22, 31 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Ashdod-coa-2022.png

Orphaned references in Isdud
I check pages listed in Category:Pages with incorrect ref formatting to try to fix reference errors. One of the things I do is look for content for orphaned references in wikilinked articles. I have found content for some of Isdud's orphans, the problem is that I found more than one version. I can't determine which (if any) is correct for this article, so I am asking for a sentient editor to look it over and copy the correct ref content into this article.

Reference named "Hadawi71": From Tulayl: Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 71</li> <li>From Qaddita: Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 71</li> <li>From Al-Mansura, Safad: Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 70 </li> <li>From Al-Qudayriyya: Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 71 </li> <li>From Taytaba: Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p.71</li> <li>From Al-Zuq al-Fawqani: Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 71 </li> </ul>

I apologize if any of the above are effectively identical; I am just a simple computer program, so I can't determine whether minor differences are significant or not. AnomieBOT ⚡ 01:16, 22 December 2022 (UTC)

Recent removal of history
A merger from 2011 was recently undone and a discussion is occurring at Talk:Isdud. Srnec (talk) 16:53, 30 December 2022 (UTC)

Hilarious count of schools in Ashdod
Well, it sure is a typo :)

״In 2013, Ashdod had 500 schools employing 3,500 teachers. The student population was 55,000. The city's education budget was NIS 418 million shekels.״ מקף־עברי (talk) 22:45, 25 May 2023 (UTC)

Requested move 3 July 2023
<div class="boilerplate mw-archivedtalk" style="background-color: #efe; margin: 0; padding: 0 10px 0 10px; border: 1px dotted #aaa;">
 * 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: not moved. Doesn't appear to be much (if any) consensus for either of these. The 2nd has some support, but per WP:EXPLICIT, the 2nd move cannot occur without the 1st move being supported. (closed by non-admin page mover) EggRoll97 (talk) 08:07, 18 July 2023 (UTC)

 * Ashdod → Ashdod, Israel
 * Ashdod (disambiguation) → Ashdod

Ashdod should move to the routine geographical disambiguation title of Ashdod, Israel given the substantial confusion in this area between the modern city founded in 1956 and the ancient city of Asdudu/Ashdod/Azotus/Isdud (its current title), as well as the associated but equally distinct ancient port city of Ashdod-Yam. The scope for this confusion is made plain by the voluminous literature for the ancient city under the name of Ashdod that exists prior to 1956 – with results after that presumably being split between the ancient and modern entities (and this is before one even considers the hits under alternative names such as Azotus). On Google scholar, unrefined hits for Ashdod reach about 23,300, but fall to 11,000 if you exclude the telltale signs of archaeological papers in the instance, i.e. "tel" and "yam", while you get slightly more than 12,000 hits if you steer the search towards history/archaeology by requiring "tel" to be referenced. This is a strong indication, as one might expect, that at least half of the scholarly literature in relation to the name "Ashdod" is archaeological in nature and about the ancient settlement(s). Both the Ngrams and Scholar evidence make plain that the modern city is by no means the standout WP:PRIMARYTOPIC for "Ashdod", and thus the base name should be disambiguated. Looking at the current links to this page, it is also plain that a great many are currently incorrectly targeted, such as all the Biblical references, with the intended target being the ancient city. Disambiguation will help resolve this by requiring the sorting of the links between ancient and modern, and by deterring future ambiguous linking. Iskandar323 (talk) 07:03, 3 July 2023 (UTC)

 * How much modern vs ancient Ashdod is mentioned in scholarly papers is not an indication of what interests the modern reader - which is what counts for the primary topic (WP:PRIMARYTOPIC: "A topic is primary for a term with respect to usage if it is highly likely—much more likely than any other single topic, and more likely than all the other topics combined—to be the topic sought when a reader searches for that term.")
 * Also, the current Ashdod article has a history section which discusses the history of the area and has links to Ashdod-Yam and Isdud, so I would say that it serves as a general article encompassing these topics too. The reader will not be unaware of these entities if they type Ashdod in the infobox and start reading that article. Implementing your suggestion would force the reader to make an unnecessary additional click. Alaexis¿question? 11:41, 3 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Users searching on either Google or via Wikipedia would just as readily be presented with Ashdod, Israel as an option, so for most users it would alter navigation little. It would have more impact on the inbound links, but these need sorting through anyway. Iskandar323 (talk) 12:25, 3 July 2023 (UTC)

Support 2nd per Necrothesp and Crouch, Swale. The ancient city seems to have half the hits. Onceinawhile (talk) 19:05, 15 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Oppose 1st as nominated. They're all currently in Israel, so this is no disambiguation at all. Ashdod (modern city) would be the best bet. Support 2nd. -- Necrothesp (talk) 13:44, 4 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Oppose The modern city is clearly the primary topic and the others are sub-topics. No point in adding unnecessary disambiguation and putting a disambiguation page at the title would be extremely unhelpful. Number   5  7  21:41, 6 July 2023 (UTC)
 * If it is to be moved then yes per Necrothesp a generic qualifier is needed.  Crouch, Swale  ( talk ) 18:19, 7 July 2023 (UTC)
 * So I was sort of working on the understanding that the "town, country" default WP:PLACEDAB made it implicit that a subject was an extant entity under a modern administrative division, and that here that would distinguish it from an ex-settlement. But judging by the comments here, that is not clear, and so sure, perhaps some sort of parenthetical disambiguation would be better. Iskandar323 (talk) 20:07, 7 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Oppose – almost no chance that someone would come looking for another topic, and if they did, there is a hatnote. —Ynhockey (Talk) 19:49, 14 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Oppose per Ynhockey and Number 57. Not much chance of confusion, and if there is, the hatnote takes care of it Red Slapper (talk) 21:59, 15 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Do you mean incoming links? This page has almost 90% of the pageviews. Srnec (talk) 01:10, 16 July 2023 (UTC)
 * @Srnec: I've already resolved some of the misdirected internal links, but my point was, a lot of links intended for the ancient settlement were coming to this page for the modern one. Given that this page is occupying the base name and common name for both the modern and ancient city (again, everything pre-1956 in Ngrams can only be about the ancient city), it is somewhat hard to tease out what readers were aiming for. And for casual viewers looking for history, the summary here could well be enough (I hear kids have short attention spans these days), making moving on to the more detail history hosted at Isdud needless, though some do move on. Perhaps that means that, from a broad usage perspective, the current setup is functioning. But from a long-term literary perspective, this page is definitely residing at a base name that is, if anything in historical scholarship, more strongly associated with the ancient city. Iskandar323 (talk) 09:10, 16 July 2023 (UTC)

<div style="padding-left: 1.6em; font-style: italic; border-top: 1px solid #a2a9b1; margin: 0.5em 0; padding-top: 0.5em">The discussion above is closed. <b style="color: #FF0000;">Please do not modify it.</b> Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

“ continued today by his son, Grand Rabbi Mordechai Yissachar Ber Leifer”
He died already. 82.36.70.81 (talk) 14:32, 11 June 2024 (UTC)

Edit request
Please add in the notable residents section:

2603:7000:2101:AA00:951C:542B:7B33:1FC9 (talk) 14:48, 23 June 2024 (UTC)
 * Denis Loktev (born 2000), Olympic swimmer

title: Talk:Ashdod


text:
Dhaka Division

Dhaka Division (ঢাকা বিভাগ, Ḍhaka Bibhag) is an administrative division within Bangladesh. Dhaka serves as the capital city of the Dhaka Division, the Dhaka District and Bangladesh. The division remains a population magnet, covers an area of 20,508.8 km2 with a population in excess of 44 million, It is the most populous country second level division of the world, growing at 1.94% rate since prior count, compared with national average of 1.22%. However, national figures may include data skewing expatriation of male labor force as gender ratio is skewed towards females.

Dhaka Division borders every other division in the country except Rangpur Division. It is bounded by Mymensingh Division to the north, Barisal Division to the south, Chittagong Division to the east and south-east, Sylhet Division to the north-east, and Rajshahi Division to the west and Khulna Divisions to the south-west.

Etymology
The origins of the name Dhaka are uncertain. It may derive from the dhak tree, which was once common in the area, or from Dhakeshwari, the 'patron goddess' of the region. Another popular theory states that Dhaka refers to a membranophone instrument, dhak which was played by order of Subahdar Islam Khan I during the inauguration of the Bengal capital in 1610.

Some references also say it was derived from a Prakrit dialect called Dhaka Bhasa; or Dhakka, used in the Rajtarangini for a watch station; or it is the same as Davaka, mentioned in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta as an eastern frontier kingdom. According to Rajatarangini written by a Kashmiri Brahman, Kalhana, the region was originally known as Dhakka. The word Dhakka means watchtower. Bikrampur and Sonargaon—the earlier strongholds of Bengal rulers were situated nearby. So Dhaka was most likely used as the watchtower for the fortification purpose.

History
The history of urban settlements in the area of modern-day Dhaka dates to the first millennium. The region was part of the ancient district of Bikrampur, which was ruled by the Sena dynasty. The ancient city of Dholsamudra in present-day Gazipur served as one of the capitals of the Buddhist Pala Empire. In the sixth century, forts were built in Toke and Ekdala which continued to be used as late as the Mughal Period. Chinashkhania was the capital of the Chandalas and Shishu Pal had his capital in modern-day Sreepur, which the ruins of can still be seen today. Another fort was built in Dardaria in 1200. Under Islamic rule, the centre moved to the historic district of Sonargaon, the regional administrative hub of the Delhi and the Bengal Sultanates.

At the end of the Karrani Dynasty (1564–1575), the nobles of Bengal became fiercely independent. Sulaiman Khan Karrani carved out an independent principality in the Bhati region comprising a part of greater Dhaka district and parts of Mymensingh district. During that period Taj Khan Karrani and another Afghan chieftain helped Isa Khan to obtain an estate in Sonargaon and Mymensingh in 1564. By winning the grace of the Afghan chieftain, Isa Khan gradually increased his strength and status and by 1571, the Mughal Court designated him as the ruler of Bhati. Mughal histories, mainly the Akbarnama, the Ain-i-Akbari and the Baharistan-i-Ghaibi refers to the low-lying regions of Bengal as Bhati. This region includes the Bhagirathi to the Meghna River is Bhati, while others include Hijli, Jessore, Chandradwip and Barisal Division in Bhati. Keeping in view the theatre of warfare between the Baro-Bhuiyans and the Mughals, the Baharistan-i-Ghaibi mentions the limits of the area bounded by the Ichamati River in the west, the Ganges in the south, the Tripura to the east; Alapsingh pargana (in present Mymensingh District) and Baniachang (in greater Sylhet) in the north. The Baro-Bhuiyans rose to power in this region and put up resistance to the Mughals, until Islam Khan Chisti made them submit in the reign of Jahangir. Throughout his reign Isa Khan put resistance against Mughal invasion. It was only after his death, when the region went totally under Mughals. Isa Khan was buried in the village of Bakhtarpur.

Dhaka became the capital of the Mughal province of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa in 1610 with a jurisdiction covering modern-day Bangladesh and eastern India, including the modern-day Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. This province was known as Bengal Subah. The city was founded during the reign of Emperor Jahangir. Emperor Shah Jahan visited Dhaka in 1624 and stayed in the city for a week, four years before he became emperor in 1628. Dhaka became one of the richest and greatest cities in the world during the early period of Bengal Subah (1610-1717). The prosperity of Dhaka reached its peak during the administration of governor Shaista Khan (1644-1677 and 1680–1688). Rice was then sold at eight maunds per rupee. Thomas Bowrey, an English merchant sailor who visited the city between 1669 and 1670, wrote that the city was 40 miles in circuit. He estimated the city to be more populated than London with 900,000 people.

Bengal became the economic engine of the Mughal Empire. Dhaka played a key role in the proto-industrialisation of Bengal. It was the centre of the muslin trade in Bengal, leading to muslin being called "daka" in distant markets as far away as Central Asia. Islam Khan I was the first Mughal governor to reside in the city. Khan named it "Jahangir Nagar" (The City of Jahangir) in honour of the Emperor Jahangir. The name was dropped soon after the English conquered. Dhaka became home to one of the richest elites in Mughal India.

Under the Nawabs of Bengal, the Naib Nazim of Dhaka was in charge of the city. The Naib Nazim was the deputy governor of Bengal. He also dealt with the upkeep of the Mughal Navy. The Naib Nazim was in charge of the Dhaka Division, which included Dhaka, Comilla, and Chittagong. Dhaka Division was one of the four divisions under the Nawabs of Bengal. The Nawabs of Bengal allowed European trading companies to establish factories across Bengal. The region then became a hotbed for European rivalries. The British moved to oust the last independent Nawab of Bengal in 1757, who was allied with the French. Due to the defection of Nawab's army chief Mir Jafar to the British side, the last Nawab lost the Battle of Plassey.

In the northern part of the Dhaka division, Bhawal Estate was a large zamindari in Bengal (in modern-day Gazipur, Bangladesh) until it was abolished according to East Bengal State Acquisition and Tenancy Act of 1950. In the late 17th century, Daulat Ghazi was the zamindar of the Ghazi estate of Bhawal. Bala Ram was Diwan of Daulat Ghazi. In 1704, as the consequence of change in the policy of revenue collection, Bala Ram's son Sri Krishna was installed as the zamindar of Bhawal by Murshid Quli Khan. Since then, through acquisitions the zamindari expanded. The family turned into the proprietor of the whole Bhawal pargana after purchasing the zamindari of J. Wise, an indigo grower for Rs 4,46,000. In 1878, British Raj conferred Raja title to Zamindar Kalinarayan Roy Chowdhury who oversaw the Bhawal estate. At its peak, the estate comprised over 1,500 square kilometer, which included 2,274 villages and around 55,000 villagers.

On the southern side the notable township was Fatehabad located by a stream known as the Dead Padma, which was 20 mi from the main channel of the Padma River. Sultan Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah established a mint in Fatehabad during his reign in the early 15th century. Fatehabad continued to be a mint town of the Bengal Sultanate until 1538. In Ain-i-Akbari, it was named as Haweli Mahal Fatehabad during the reign of Emperor Akbar in the Mughal Empire. The Portuguese cartographer João de Barros mentioned it as Fatiabas. The Dutch map of Van den Brouck described it as Fathur. By the 19th century, the town was renamed as Faridpur in honour of the Sufi saint Shah Fariduddin Masud, a follower of the Chishti order of Ajmer. Haji Shariatullah and Dudu Miyan led the conservative Faraizi movement in Faridpur during the early 19th century. The Faridpur District was established by the British in 1786. The Faridpur Subdivision was a part of Dacca Division in the Bengal Presidency established by the East India Company. The municipality of Faridpur was established in 1869. The subdivision covered modern day Faridpur, Rajbari, Madaripur, Shariatpur and Gopalganj districts (collectively known as Greater Faridpur). It was included in Eastern Bengal and Assam during the British Raj between 1905 and 1912.

During the Indian mutiny of 1857, Dhaka witnessed revolts by the Bengal Army. Direct rule by the British crown was established following the successful quelling of the mutiny. It bestowed privileges on the Dhaka Nawab Family, which dominated the city's political and social elite. In 1885, the Dhaka State Railway was opened with a 144 km metre gauge (1000 mm) rail line connecting Mymensingh and the Port of Narayanganj through Dhaka. The city later became a hub of the Eastern Bengal State Railway. The electricity supply began in 1901.

Dhaka's fortunes changed in the early 20th century. British neglect of Dhaka's urban development was overturned with the first partition of Bengal in 1905, which restored Dhaka's status as a regional capital. The city became the seat of government for Eastern Bengal and Assam, with a jurisdiction covering most of modern-day Bangladesh and all of what is now Northeast India. The partition was the brainchild of Lord Curzon, who finally acted on British ideas for partitioning Bengal with a view to improving administration, education, and business. Dhaka became the seat of the Eastern Bengal and Assam Legislative Council. Dhaka was the seat of government for 4 administrative divisions, including the Assam Valley Division, Chittagong Division, Dacca Division, Rajshahi Division, and the Surma Valley Division. There were a total of 30 districts in Eastern Bengal and Assam, including Dacca, Mymensingh, Faridpur and Backergunge in Dacca Division; Tippera, Noakhali, Chittagong and the Hill Tracts in Chittagong Division; Rajshahi, Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri, Rangpur, Bogra, Pabna and Malda in Rajshahi Division; Sylhet, Cachar, the Khasi and Jaintia Hills, the Naga Hills and the Lushai Hills in Surma Valley Division; and Goalpara, Kamrup, the Garo Hills, Darrang, Nowgong, Sibsagar and Lakhimpur in Assam Valley Division. The province was bordered by Cooch Behar State, Hill Tipperah and the Kingdom of Bhutan.

The development of the "real city" began after the partition of India. After partition, Dhaka became known as the second capital of Pakistan. This was formalized in 1962 when Ayub Khan declared the city as the legislative capital under the 1962 constitution. The economy began to industrialize. On the outskirts of the city, the world's largest jute mill was built. The mill produced jute goods which were in high demand during the Korean War. The Intercontinental hotel, designed by William B. Tabler, was opened in 1966. Estonian-American architect Louis I. Kahn was enlisted to design the Dhaka Assembly, which was originally intended to be the federal parliament of Pakistan and later became independent Bangladesh's parliament. The East Pakistan Helicopter Service connected the city to regional towns.

The Dhaka Stock Exchange was opened on 28 April 1954. The first local airline Orient Airways began flights between Dhaka and Karachi on 6 June 1954. The Dhaka Improvement Trust was established in 1956 to coordinate the city's development. The first master plan for the city was drawn up in 1959. The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization established a medical research centre (now called ICDDR,B) in the city in 1960.

After independence, Following the independence of Bangladesh in 1971, the country had four divisions: Chittagong Division, Dacca Division, Khulna Division, and Rajshahi Division. In 1982, the English spelling of the Dacca Division (along with the name of the capital city) was changed into Dhaka Division to more closely match the Bengali pronunciation. The post-independence period witnessed rapid growth as Dhaka attracted migrant workers from across rural Bangladesh. In the 1990s and 2000s, Dhaka experienced improved economic growth and the emergence of affluent business districts and satellite towns. Between 1990 and 2005, the city's population doubled from 6 million to 12 million. There has been increased foreign investment in the city, particularly in the financial and textile manufacturing sectors.

Administrative divisions
Dhaka Division consisted before 2015 of four city corporations, 13 districts, 123 upazilas and 1,248 union parishads. However, four of the most northerly of the 17 districts were removed in 2015 to create the new Mymensingh Division, and another five districts (those situated to the south of the Ganges/Padma River) are in the process of being removed to create a new Faridpur Division.

Note: * revised area and its population after excluding the districts transferred to the new Mymensingh Division.

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

title: Dhaka Division


text:
Talk:U.S. Southern States

Untitled
The "Missouri is sometimes considered part of the South." line is redundant and should be removed. Also, this article needs to mention the mason dixon line as a boundary.

 * Reid 06:58, 16 Dec 2003 (UTC)

title: Talk:U.S. Southern States


text:
2003 loya jirga

A 502-delegate loya jirga convened in Kabul, Afghanistan, on December 14, 2003, to consider the proposed Afghan Constitution. Originally planned to last ten days, the assembly did not endorse the charter until January 4, 2004. As has been generally the case with these assemblies, the endorsement came by way of consensus rather than a vote. Afghanistan's last constitution was drafted for the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan in November 1987.

Drafting the Constitution
The Bonn Agreement of December 2001 required Afghanistan to draft and adopt a new constitution within two years. In October 2002, Interim President Hamid Karzai appointed a nine-member Constitutional Drafting Commission, chaired by Vice-President Nematullah Shahrani. Over the next six months, this body drafted a new constitution, based largely on the 1964 Afghan constitution. The initial draft, written primarily by Abdul Salam Azimi (who would become Chief Justice of Afghanistan's Supreme Court in 2006) was not the subject of in-depth political consultation. In April 2003, Interim President Karzai passed a decree appointing a new 35-member Constitutional Commission and laying out a public consultation process. This commission travelled widely throughout the country and reworked the draft, which was not released to the public until November 2003, only weeks before the Constitutional Convention (Loya Jirga) was scheduled to begin. This process was supported by several international institutions that provided funding, mostly through the UN, and expertise.

Selecting the Loya Jirga delegates
In July 2003, a Presidential Decree outlined the process for delegate selection for the Constitutional Loya Jirga (CLJ), stating that there would be 500 delegates, 344 elected by caucus at the district level, 64 women elected by caucus at the provincial level, 42 delegates from refugee, nomad, and minority communities, and 50 people (25 men, 25 women) appointed by President Karzai. The delegates included activists such as Shukria Barakzai, who campaigns for women's rights.

Issues addressed
Issues involving substantial debate included whether Afghanistan should have a presidential or parliamentary system, whether Dari or Pashto should be the official language, and whether other local languages would be recognized, whether former king Mohammed Zahir Shah should maintain the title "father of the nation," how to address women's rights, whether Afghanistan should be a free market economy, and whether higher education should be free.

The heaviest debate surrounded the question of the presidential vs. parliamentary system. Interim President Hamid Karzai supported a draft constitution the created a presidential system, which would provide one nationally elected figure who could effectively direct the executive branch. Others argued that for an ethnically diverse country coming out of years of conflict - a power-sharing model with a strong President presented the best hope for national unity and reconciliation. At one point President Karzai threatened that he would not run for the office in 2004 if a parliamentary system or semi-presidential system was created. Members of the Tajik-dominated Northern Alliance accused Karzai of buying off opponents with promises of influential positions in a post-election government. On January 1, the loya jirga broke down when close to half of the assembly, consisting mostly of Uzbek, Tajik, Hazara and Turkmen minorities, boycotted the only ballot, forcing chairman Sibghatullah Mojaddedi to call for a 2-day adjourning.

Following the highly restrictive regime of the Taliban, some rights including those related to entertainment were legalized again. However, liberals in the loya jirga were strongly challenged by conservatives, many of whom supported conservative policies such as the ban of music and dancing on public television.

Election of chairman, committees
The Loya jirga was convened on 14 December, beneath a large tent at the newly refurbished technical university in Kabul. In the opening ceremonies, a dozen children in various traditional costumes waved Afghan flags and sang songs of peace, including "We are doves, waiting for peace, we are tired of fighting." Former king Mohammad Zahir Shah addressed the assembly. Then Mojaddedi was elected chairman, winning 252 votes, over Abdul Hafiz Mansoor's 154. Deputies were elected, but excluded women. Many of the 114 female delegates protested at not being represented in the secretariat. To assuage their concerns, Mojaddedi appointed Safia Sediqi to the fourth deputy position and two other women as deputies' assistants.

Members of constitutional commissions, supreme court and other government officials, and members of legal and human rights commissions were allowed to attend, but not vote. Provincial governors and top-ranking police, administration, and military officials were barred from the proceedings. Delegates were divided among ten committees to consider amendments to the draft constitution, which were submitted to a reconciliation council. Powerful militia leaders had been among the groups, often dominating the process.

On the third day, Malalai Joya, a female delegate from Farah Province, was temporarily evicted, having complained that the warlords would still be in charge of the new government. Her microphone was turned off when she suggested that some of the leaders should be tried in an international court. She remained under U.N. protection for several days because of death threats. Ms. Joya aroused controversy when she condemned the allocation of positions of influence at the council to certain faction leaders, including former president Burhanuddin Rabbani and Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, a deeply conservative Islamist.

Malalai Joya's historic speech
On December 17, 2003, Malalai Joya, 25, from Farah Province delivered the following speech which received wide coverage in the media internationally:

"My name is Malalai Joya from Farah Province. By the permission of the esteemed attendees, and by the name of God and the colored-shroud martyrs of the path of freedom, I would like to speak for couple of minutes.

My criticism on all my compatriots is that why are they allowing the legitimacy and legality of this Loya Jerga come under question with the presence of those felons who brought our country to this state.

I feel pity and I feel very sorry that those who call Loya Jerga an infidel basis equivalent to blasphemy after coming here their words are accepted, or please see the committees and what people are whispering about. The chairman of every committee is already selected. Why do you not take all these criminals to one committee so that we see what they want for this nation. These were those who turned our country into the nucleus of national and international wars. They were the most anti-women people in the society who wanted to [makes pause] who brought our country to this state and they intend to do the same again. I believe that it is a mistake to test those already being tested. They should be taken to national and international court. If they are forgiven by our people, the bare- footed Afghan people, our history will never forgive them. They are all recorded in the history of our country."

Name controversy
Delegates collected more than the necessary 151 signatures calling for the word "Islamic" to be removed from the draft constitution, suggesting "Republic of Afghanistan" instead. Despite enough signatures, the jirga's chairman Sibghatullah Mojaddedi refused to hold a vote and publicly called the delegates "infidels", causing concern on freedom of speech.

Ratification
After weeks of contentious debate, a walkout by the chair and hundreds of delegates, and dozens of amendments, the loya jirga ratified the constitution without taking a vote, but by consensus, on January 4, 2004.

Many delegates complained that the process had no specific criteria, that the rules of procedure were not followed, and that delegates were not properly prepared or educated about the issues. There were also complaints that many of the most important decisions were made by militia and party leaders, Karzai's favorites, and international representatives, such as U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, behind the scenes.

A documentary film, "Hell of a Nation", produced and directed by Tamara Gould, Bonnie Cohen, and John Schenk, and aired on PBS's "Wide Angle" series covered the Afghan constitutional process in detail.

title: 2003 loya jirga


text:
Wacht am Rhein

Wacht am Rhein (English: The watch/guard on the Rhine) may refer to:

 * "Die Wacht am Rhein", German patriotic song
 * Unternehmen: Wacht am Rhein, German codeword for the operation known to the Allies as the Battle of the Bulge.
 * Wacht am Rhein (game), a 1977 board wargame that simulates the Battle of the Bulge

title: Wacht am Rhein


text:
Greater short-toed lark

The greater short-toed lark (Calandrella brachydactyla) is a small passerine bird. The current scientific name is from Ancient Greek. The genus name, Calandrella, is a diminutive of kalandros, the calandra lark, and brachydactila is from brakhus, "short", and daktulos, "toe".

It breeds in southern Europe, north-west Africa, and across the Palearctic from Turkey and southern Russia to Mongolia. During migration they form large, tight flocks that move in unison; at other times they form loose flocks.

Taxonomy and systematics
The greater short-toed lark was described by the German naturalist Johann Leisler in 1814 and given the binomial name Alauda brachydactila. This lark is now placed in the genus Calandrella that was established by another German naturalist, Johann Jakob Kaup, in 1829. The specific name brachydactyla is from the Ancient Greek βραχυδακτυλος brakhudaktulos "short-toed" from brakhus "short" and daktulos "toe". The alternate name short-toed lark may also be used for three other species in the genus Calandrella. The Mongolian short-toed lark was formerly considered as a subspecies of the greater short-toed lark (as C. b. dukhunensis) until split in 2016 by the IOC. Formerly, some authorities also considered the red-capped lark to be either conspecific (as C. cinerea) with or a subspecies (as C. b. cinerea) of the greater short-toed lark.

Subspecies
Eight subspecies are recognized: The syntypes of Calandrella hermonensis Tristram (Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1864, p.434), 3 adult males and a juvenile, are held in the vertebrate zoology collection of National Museums Liverpool at World Museum, with accession numbers NML-VZ T15738, NML-VZ T17770, NML-VZ T17771 and NML-VZ T17773. The specimens were collected at the foot of Mount Hermon, Lebanon in June 1864 by Canon Henry Baker Tristram. The specimens came to the Liverpool national collection through the purchase of Tristram's collection by the museum in 1896.
 * European greater short-toed lark (C. b. brachydactyla) or Palestine short-toed lark - (Leisler, 1814) : Found in southern Europe, on Mediterranean islands and in north-western Africa.
 * Hungarian greater short-toed lark (C. b. hungarica) - Horváth, 1956 : Found in Hungary and northern Serbia
 * North African greater short-toed lark (C. b. rubiginosa) - Fromholz, 1913 : Found in northern Africa
 * Levant greater short-toed lark (C. b. hermonensis) - Tristram, 1865 : Originally described as a separate species. Found from southern Turkey and Syria to north-eastern Egypt.

 * BIrelandcik greater short-toed lark (C. b. woltersi) - Kumerloeve, 1969 : Found in southern Turkey and north-western Syria
 * Transcaucasian greater short-toed lark (C. b. artemisiana) - Banjkovski, 1913 : Found from central Turkey and Transcaucasia to north-western Iran
 * Steppe greater short-toed lark (C. b. longipennis) - (Eversmann, 1848) : Originally described as a separate species in the genus Alauda. Also known as Eastern short-toed lark (a name also used by the Asian short-toed lark) or Yarkand short-toed lark. Found from Ukraine and southern Russia to south-central Siberia and southern Mongolia
 * C. b. orientalis - Sushkin, 1925 : Found in central Siberia, northern Mongolia and northern China

Description
Several subspecies have been named but there is considerable geneflow and the species itself forms part of a larger complex. This is a small pale lark, smaller than the skylark. It is dark-streaked greyish-brown above, and white below, and has a strong pointed bill that is pinkish with a grey culmen. It has a pale supercilium, dark patches on each side of its neck and a dark tail. Some birds in the west of the range have a rufous crown. The sexes are similar. The greater short-toed lark is paler than the Mongolian short-toed lark which also has a shorter bill. In winter they fly in large and compact flocks that swing in synchrony. Care must be taken to distinguish this species from other similar Calandrella larks, such as the Mediterranean short-toed lark.

The nominate form breeds in Europe (Iberia, France, Italy, the Balkans and Romania) and winters in Africa. Subspecies hungarica breeds in the eastern parts of Europe while rubiginosa breeds in north-western Africa. Subspecies hermonensis (sometimes including woltersi) breeds in Turkey, Syria and Egypt. Subspecies artemisiana (considered by some to be synonymous with longipennis ) breeds in Asia Minor and winters in southern west Asia. Subspecies longipennis breeds in Ukraine, Mongolia and Manchuria and winters in South Asia mainly in the drier zone of north-western India.

The song varies between a dry twittering and a more varied and imitative melody. Flocks will often fly together to water in the mornings at favourite spots. In the evenings they roost in open ground, with each bird squatting in a small depression made in the soil.

Distribution and habitat
All but some southernmost populations are migratory, wintering south to the southern edge of the Sahara and India. This species is a fairly common wanderer to northern and western Europe in spring and autumn. Populations breeding in the Iberian Peninsula winter south of the Sahara in Africa. Here they prefer crop land and dry pastures with short shrubs while the syntopic Mediterranean short-toed larks (Calandrella rufescens) prefer drier areas.

This is a common bird of dry open country and cultivation. It nests on the ground, laying two to three eggs. Its food is seeds and insects, the latter especially in the breeding season.

In colonial India, they were hunted for food as ortolans.

They visit parts of South Asia in large flocks during winter and are sometimes attracted to short grass areas along aerodromes and become a bird strike risk to aircraft.

title: Greater short-toed lark


text:
Short-toed lark

Short-toed lark refers to a number of species of lark:

 * Asian short-toed lark (Alaudala cheleensis), found from south-central to eastern Asia
 * Greater short-toed lark (Calandrella brachydactyla), found in Europe, northern Africa and Asia
 * Hume's short-toed lark (Calandrella acutirostris), found in south-central Asia
 * Mediterranean short-toed lark (Alaudala rufescens), found in Europe, northern Africa and Asia
 * Turkestan short-toed lark (Alaudala heinei), found in Europe, northern Africa and Asia
 * Mongolian short-toed lark (or, Syke's short-toed lark; Calandrella dukhunensis), found in India and western China
 * Rufous short-toed lark, alternate name for Red-capped lark (Calandrella cinerea), found in eastern and southern Africa

title: Short-toed lark


text:
John Heinz

Henry John Heinz III (October 23, 1938 – April 4, 1991) was an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from Pennsylvania from 1977 until his death in 1991. An heir to the Heinz family fortune, Heinz entered politics in 1971 when he won a special election to replace Robert Corbett to represent Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district. In 1976, Heinz ran to replace retiring Senate Minority Leader Hugh Scott. Heinz narrowly won in the primary over future Senator Arlen Specter, and defeated William Green III. Heinz won re-election in 1982 and 1988 by large margins. On April 4, 1991, Heinz was killed when his plane, facing mechanical problems, collided with a helicopter inspecting the plane, killing all involved in the crash.

Early life, education and early career
Henry John Heinz III was born on October 23, 1938, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the only child of Joan (Diehl) and H. J. "Jack" Heinz II, heir to the H. J. Heinz Company. His parents divorced in 1942. Heinz moved to San Francisco, California, with his mother and stepfather, U.S. Navy Captain Clayton Chot "Monty" McCauley. Although he was raised and primarily resided in San Francisco throughout his childhood, Heinz often spent the summer months with his father in Pittsburgh.

In 1956, Heinz graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy. He then attended and graduated from Yale University, where Theodore Stebbins was his roommate, in 1960, majoring in history, arts and letters. Heinz subsequently graduated from Harvard Business School in 1963. It was during his years at Harvard, during summer break, that he met his future wife, Teresa Simões Ferreira, who attended the University of Geneva. Upon graduating from Harvard Business School in 1963, Heinz served in the United States Air Force Reserve and was on active duty during the same year. He remained in the Air Force Reserve until 1969.

Before entering politics, Heinz served as an assistant to Pennsylvania Republican U.S. Senator Hugh Scott and played an active role as assistant campaign manager during Scott's campaign for re-election. Heinz then worked in the financial and marketing division of the H. J. Heinz Company between 1965 and 1970, after which he taught business at the Carnegie Mellon University's Graduate School of Industrial Administration until 1971.

U.S. House of Representatives
In 1971, Heinz entered politics after Representative Robert Corbett, who represented Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district, died in office. After winning the Republican primary, Heinz won the special election on November 2, 1971, to fill the vacancy created by Corbett's death. Heinz was re-elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1972 and 1974. During his tenure, he cultivated a moderate record in the vein of Pennsylvania's two Republican senators Hugh Scott and Richard Schweikert. Also in 1974, he declined to challenge Democratic governor Milton Schapp.

U.S. Senate
Heinz opted not to run for re-election to his seat in the House of Representatives, announcing on December 10, 1975 to run for Pennsylvania's open United States Senate seat created by the retirement of incumbent Hugh Scott. In the primary, Heinz faced opposition from Arlen Specter. During the campaign, the Supreme Court issued a ruling in Buckley v Valeo, allowing candidates to spend with few restrictions, benefitting Heinz. During the campaign, Heinz came under fire for having accepted illegal donations totaling $6,000 from Gulf Oil, which Heinz returned, claimed was an accident and denied legal culpability. Heinz would defeat Specter in the primary, performing strongly in western Pennsylvania. In the general election, and faced congressman William Green III in the general election. Heinz was criticized by Green for his wealth and spending. Heinz defeated Green in November. He was subsequently re-elected in 1982 and in 1988.

In the Senate, Heinz was a moderate-to-liberal Republican. He was a member of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Committee on Finance, the National Commission on Social Security Reform, the National Commission on Health Care Reform, the Northeast Coalition, and the Steel Caucus. He also served as chairman of the Subcommittee on International Finance and Monetary Policies, the Special Committee on Aging, and the Republican Conference Task Force on Job Training and Education.

Heinz voted in favor of the bill establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday and the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987 (as well as to override President Reagan's veto). Heinz voted in favor of the Robert Bork Supreme Court nomination.

He was elected chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee for two terms, 1979–1981 and 1985–1987.

The New York Times noted that Heinz built a solid record in the Senate as "a persistent defender of the nation's growing elderly population and of the declining steel industry", that he was "instrumental in pushing through legislation that put the Social Security system on sounder financial footing", and "played a major role in strengthening laws regulating retirement policies, pension plans, health insurance and nursing homes", and "pushed successfully for trade laws that encourage American exports and protect American products, like steel, from foreign imports".

In 1991, Heinz began looking at a gubernatorial bid, with advisors thinking it was a move towards a future bid for the White House.

Death
On April 4, 1991, Heinz and six other people, including two children, were killed when a Sun Co. Aviation Department Bell 412 helicopter and a Piper Aerostar, with Heinz aboard, collided in mid-air above Merion Elementary School in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. All aboard both aircraft, as well as two children at the school, were killed. The helicopter was attempting to investigate a problem with the landing gear of Heinz's plane, and while moving in for a closer look, collided with the plane, causing both aircraft to lose control and crash. The subsequent NTSB investigation attributed the cause of the crash to poor judgment by the pilots of the two aircraft involved.

Following a funeral at Heinz Chapel in Pittsburgh and a Washington, D.C. memorial service that was attended by President George H. W. Bush and Vice President Dan Quayle, Senator Heinz's remains were interred in the Heinz family mausoleum in Homewood Cemetery, located in the Point Breeze neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Heinz's long time friend, Senator Tim Wirth of Colorado, remarked: "He really believed he could make the world a better place, such a contrast to the jaded resignation of our time. He could send the Senate leadership up a wall faster than anyone I've seen." Heinz's son André said at the services: "Dad, I am so grateful for the time we had, and I miss you and I love you."

In 1995, Teresa, Heinz's widow, married Heinz's Senate colleague and future Secretary of State and presidential nominee John Kerry.

Legacy
The Tinicum Wildlife Preserve was renamed to the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum in Heinz's honor following his death. The 1,200 acre (4.9 km2) refuge includes the largest remaining freshwater tidal marsh in Pennsylvania, as well as other habitats that are home to a variety of plants and animals native to Southeastern Pennsylvania.

Heinz was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1991.

In 1993, his family established the Heinz Awards, which honors individual innovation in five categories. One of the Jefferson Awards for Public Service annual awards, for "Greatest Public Service by an Elected or Appointed Official", is named in his honor.

Several institutions bear his name, including:
 * Senator H. John Heinz III Archives at the Carnegie Mellon University Libraries
 * H. John Heinz III College at Carnegie Mellon University
 * H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment
 * Senator John Heinz History Center
 * H. J. Heinz Campus of the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System

title: John Heinz


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List of desk forms and types

This is a list of different types and forms of desks.

Desk forms and types

 * Armoire desk
 * Bargueño desk
 * Bench desk
 * Bible box
 * Bonheur du jour
 * Bureau à gradin
 * Bureau brisé
 * Bureau capucin
 * Bureau Mazarin
 * Bureau plat, see Writing table
 * Butler's desk
 * Campaign desk
 * Carlton house desk
 * Carrel desk
 * Cheveret desk
 * Computer desk
 * Credenza desk
 * Cubicle desk
 * Cylinder desk
 * Davenport desk
 * Desk and bench
 * Desk on a chest
 * Desk on a frame
 * Drawing table
 * Ergonomic desk
 * Escritoire
 * Fall-front desk
 * Field desk
 * Fire screen desk
 * Games table desk
 * Lap desk
 * Lectern desk
 * Liseuse desk
 * Mechanical desk
 * Metamorphic library steps
 * Moore desk
 * Partners desk
 * Pedestal desk
 * Plantation desk
 * Portable desk
 * Rolltop desk
 * School desk
 * Secrétaire à abattant, see Fall-front desk
 * Secretaire en portefeuille
 * Secretary desk
 * Shtender
 * Slant-top desk
 * Spinet desk
 * Standing desk
 * Student desk
 * Tambour desk
 * Tanker desk, see Pedestal desk
 * Telephone desk
 * Treadmill desk
 * Trestle desk
 * Typewriter desk
 * Wooton desk
 * Writing armchair
 * Writing desk
 * Writing table

title: List of desk forms and types


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Chucho Avellanet

Armando Hipólito Avellanet González, nicknamed "Chucho", is a Puerto Rican singer and comedic actor of Spanish-Catalan descent. Avellanet was involved with the Nueva ola movement in the 1960s.

title: Chucho Avellanet