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Terri Nunn

Terri Kathleen Nunn (born June 26, 1961) is an American singer and actress. She is known as the vocalist of the 1980s new wave and synth-pop band Berlin.

Biography
Nunn was born in Los Angeles, California on June 26, 1961. Her father Larry Nunn (1925–1974) was a painter and a former contract child actor for MGM (Men of Boys Town, The Major and the Minor). He was an alcoholic and died by suicide in 1974 when she was 13 years old. Her mother Joy appeared in her music video for "Sex (I'm a ...)".

In 1976, Nunn auditioned for the role of Princess Leia in Star Wars, but the role went to Carrie Fisher.

In late 1976, she posed nude for Penthouse magazine, convincing the magazine that she was legally an adult, with the pictorial appearing in 1977 under a pseudonym. For many years, Nunn denied her participation, because the photos were taken when she was a minor.

She joined Berlin in 1978 and temporarily left the group the following year to pursue an acting career. Nunn acted in numerous television shows in the 1970s and 1980s, including Family, T.J. Hooker, Lou Grant, Vega$ and James at 15. Nunn also appeared in the 1978 ensemble film Thank God It's Friday.

In 1981, she rejoined Berlin as the lead vocalist and soon forged her recording career in the band. Her greatest success in Berlin was the top-selling 1986 single "Take My Breath Away", the theme song for the film Top Gun. It reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100. She sang other popular songs with Berlin, including "Sex (I'm a ...)," "The Metro," "You Don't Know," "No More Words," and "Masquerade."

In 1985, Nunn briefly dated Michael Hutchence, whom she met at an INXS concert in London while Berlin were recording the album Count Three & Pray. The relationship ended when INXS returned to Australia.

In 1985, Nunn left Berlin and recorded the song "Dancing in Isolation" for the film Better Off Dead. In 1989, she performed a duet with Paul Carrack called "Romance", which was included on the soundtrack to the film Sing.

In 1991, she recorded and released a solo album entitled Moment of Truth, in association with David Z, Prince's Paisley Park producer.

In 1993, she approached lead singer Andrew Eldritch of The Sisters of Mercy with a recording of her vocal on a Billie Hughes song which led to their collaboration and ultimately became The Sisters of Mercy single "Under the Gun."

Nunn obtained usage rights to the band name "Berlin" in 1996, and reformed that band with new members, who began recording and touring. Berlin released two EPs Fall into Heaven and Fall into Heaven 2 in 1999, followed by Live: Sacred and Profane in 2000, their first live album. Voyeur hit shelves in 2002. 4Play (2005) contains original songs and cover versions of some of the band's songs.

In 2003, Berlin’s original lineup reunited for the VH1 series "Bands Reunited".

In 2008, Nunn contributed sex and dating advice to Carrie Borzillo-Vrenna's book Cherry Bomb.

Nunn sang across the United States on the 2009 Regeneration Tour, which also featured Martin Fry of ABC, Wang Chung, and Cutting Crew.

In 2010, Nunn appeared as a guest judge on season two of RuPaul's Drag Race, mentoring the contestants in a rock-themed singing challenge.

Nunn co-hosts Between the Sheets, a popular podcast on webcast media station Hottalkla.com.

In January 2012, Nunn debuted her radio show on KCSN-FM. It features interviews and live performances.

Nunn performed at a 2020 New Year's Eve party at Mar-a-Lago, later expressing regret for performing at the event. Some fans expressed loud discontent towards Terri Nunn (including ex band members) after this performance. They stated that it was outrageous to perform at a Trump-owned resort, and that his blatant disregard for mask mandates should have been taken into account, and should have been grounds for her to refuse playing the show.

Personal life
Nunn is married to attorney Paul Spear. In 2004, she adopted a baby who had been born in Russia and named her Natalie Joy. She also has two stepsons from her husband. The family has lived in Santa Rosa Valley, California, since 2012. Her cousin is Pamela Moore, also a singer, who has performed with Queensrÿche.

Nunn is a vegan. She became a vegetarian at age 19, then began eating fish in her 20s, before becoming a vegan in her 40s.

Studio albums

 * Moment of Truth (1991)

Studio albums (with synth-pop band Berlin)

 * Information (1980)
 * Pleasure Victim (1982)
 * Love Life (1984)
 * Count Three & Pray (1986)
 * Voyeur (2002)
 * 4Play (2005)
 * Animal (2013)
 * Transcendance (2019)
 * Strings Attached (2020)

Live albums

 * Live: Sacred and Profane (2000)
 * Terri Nunn & Berlin – All the Way In (2009)
 * Sweet Surrender (Live 1984) (2019)

title: Terri Nunn


text:
Together (Golden Earring album)

Together is an album by Dutch rock band Golden Earring, released in 1972. The album was not issued in the U.S.

Track listing
All songs written by Kooymans except where noted.

 * 1) "All Day Watcher" – 4:49
 * 2) "Avalanche of Love" – 4:14
 * 3) "Cruisin' Southern Germany" (Hay) – 3:00
 * 4) "Brother Wind" – 7:54
 * 5) "Buddy Joe" – 3:48
 * 6) "Jangalene" – 5:08
 * 7) "From Heaven from Hell" – 6:06
 * 8) "Thousand Feet Below You" – 4:11

Personnel

 * George Kooymans - guitar, vocals
 * Rinus Gerritsen - bass guitar, keyboards
 * Barry Hay - flute, guitar, saxophone, vocals
 * Cesar Zuiderwijk - drums

Production

 * Producer: Fred Haayen
 * Engineer: Frank Owen
 * Mastering: Hans Brethouwer
 * Photography: Frits Van Swoll

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

title: Together (Golden Earring album)


text: Talk:Together (Golden Earring album)

title: Talk:Together (Golden Earring album)


text:
Skagerrak (power transmission system)

Skagerrak is the name of a 1,700 MW high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission facility between Tjele (Denmark) and Kristiansand (Norway). It is owned and operated by Statnett in Norway, and Energinet in Denmark. The lines connect the hydroelectric-based Norwegian grid and the wind and thermal power-based Danish grid. In operation it enables more renewable energy in the energy mix, and more efficient use of electricity.

Technical features
The 240 km Skagerrak 1–3 scheme consists of a 113 km overhead line and a 127 km underwater cable. It has a capacity of 1,050 megawatts (MW). Both land parts in Denmark and in Norway uses overhead lines from the cable landing point to the converter stations. The overhead lines in Denmark are set to be renovated in 2016 for increased lifespan. The towers were originally constructed for four poles, but were rebuilt for three conductors (three poles) when Skagerrak 3 was established. Near Aggersund HVDC Skagerrak crossed Aggersund strait overhead on 70 m towers with a 470 m span, but were later converted to underground cables. The pylons of this span were the tallest electricity pylons of an HVDC line in Europe.

For such a long submarine cable, an AC transmission scheme would not be feasible since too much of the cable's capacity would be consumed by the capacitance of the cable itself, and the power systems in Norway and Jutland are not synchronous.

The transmission has a loss rate of 4%.

The waste heat of the transformers is enough to supply district heating economically for 1,000 homes in nearby towns, but taxes prevent that project. The adjacent Apple Datacenter (supplied in part by the Skagerrak cables via Tjele) was expected to work around the tax issue when supplying district heat to Viborg.

Skagerrak 1 and 2
Skagerrak went in service in 1977 as a bipolar HVDC scheme. This facility was built with thyristor valves. When installed this underwater cable was the world's longest and deepest underwater HVDC power cable. The cable, manufactured by Alcatel, is laid in a maximum water depth of 530 m.

Both cables have a capacity of 250 MW at 250 kV.

Skagerrak 3
In 1993 the scheme was extended by HVDC Skagerrak 3. Skagerrak 3 is a monopolar line for a voltage of 350 kV with a capacity of 440 MW at 350 kV. In installing Skagerrak 3, the old poles Skagerrak 1 and Skagerrak 2 were converted to monopolar HVDC schemes, which run with opposite polarity to Skagerrak 3. In 1999, the full 1,000 MW capacity was reserved by large power companies.

Skagerrak 4
In November 2009, Statnett and Energinet.dk signed the agreement to construct Skagerrak 4. The capacity of Skagerrak 4 is approximately 700 MW with a DC voltage of 500 kV. It had been in a test phase since 1 October 2014 and became operational at the end of 2014, when strong winds created negative prices despite the new connection. It was officially inaugurated by Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark and Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway on 12 March 2015. As for the existing Skagerrak 1-3, the grid connection points are Kristiansand and Tjele. Differently from Skagerrak 1–3, for Skagerrak 4 a cable solution is chosen for the complete route length. The 300 million DKK Prysmian land cable on the Danish side is approximately 90 km, while the 137 km subsea cable and the 12 km Norwegian land cable is to be made by Nexans for 638 million DKK. Converter stations were built by ABB, as for Skagerrak 1–3. The combined budget is 2.8-3.2 billion DKK.

The technology used was VSC, capable of black start. Although thyristor-based converters have a loss of only 0.7%, the IGBTs of VSC get close with a loss of 0.8 to 1%. Skagerrak 1 and 2 previously used Skagerrak 3 as a return cable, but 1 and 2 were again coupled so that Skagerrak 4 can use number 3 for returns. The cable also supplies 110 MW of reserve power. Some of the 24 fiber pairs may be rented for business by telecommunications companies.

Waypoints

 * Overhead line in Denmark
 * 56.47932°N, 9.56589°W
 * 56.48115°N, 9.55627°W
 * 56.52213°N, 9.49068°W
 * 56.55832°N, 9.47295°W
 * 56.58203°N, 9.46827°W
 * 56.60034°N, 9.4732°W
 * 56.62117°N, 9.47572°W
 * 56.63706°N, 9.51262°W
 * 56.6518°N, 9.51844°W
 * 56.66917°N, 9.5193°W
 * 56.69005°N, 9.5334°W
 * 56.70589°N, 9.52957°W
 * 56.763°N, 9.49103°W
 * 56.78292°N, 9.482°W
 * 56.82255°N, 9.42367°W
 * 56.8741°N, 9.37195°W
 * 56.91365°N, 9.33784°W
 * 56.93102°N, 9.33972°W
 * 56.96599°N, 9.3305°W
 * 56.98704°N, 9.30899°W
 * 56.99708°N, 9.30609°W
 * 57.00639°N, 9.29339°W
 * 57.02508°N, 9.27257°W
 * 57.05909°N, 9.16609°W
 * 57.12002°N, 9.07251°W
 * 57.12235°N, 9.0689°W
 * 57.12619°N, 9.06613°W

 * Underground cable in Denmark
 * 57.12621°N, 9.06618°W
 * 57.13304°N, 9.05179°W
 * 57.13811°N, 9.0472°W
 * 57.1435°N, 9.04791°W
 * 57.15295°N, 9.05442°W

 * Overhead line in Norway
 * 58.12917°N, 8.16771°W
 * 58.13036°N, 8.16722°W
 * 58.13082°N, 8.16197°W
 * 58.13325°N, 8.15797°W
 * 58.13699°N, 8.15762°W
 * 58.14203°N, 8.15705°W
 * 58.15921°N, 8.1545°W
 * 58.17828°N, 8.1619°W
 * 58.186°N, 8.15701°W
 * 58.19414°N, 8.14594°W
 * 58.21747°N, 8.12913°W
 * 58.22505°N, 8.12753°W
 * 58.23194°N, 8.10102°W
 * 58.23023°N, 8.08526°W
 * 58.22734°N, 8.0735°W
 * 58.22395°N, 8.03749°W
 * 58.21969°N, 8.02064°W
 * 58.21898°N, 8.00663°W
 * 58.2225°N, 7.97073°W
 * 58.22824°N, 7.938°W
 * 58.23248°N, 7.91994°W
 * 58.24828°N, 7.91391°W
 * 58.25548°N, 7.91184°W
 * 58.25859°N, 7.90615°W
 * 58.26079°N, 7.90323°W
 * 58.26102°N, 7.90072°W

 * Electrode line in Norway
 * 58.16718°N, 8.26591°W
 * 58.16811°N, 8.26414°W
 * 58.16916°N, 8.26389°W
 * 58.17093°N, 8.26363°W
 * 58.174°N, 8.25922°W
 * 58.17672°N, 8.25382°W
 * 58.18067°N, 8.24769°W
 * 58.18311°N, 8.24183°W
 * 58.18941°N, 8.21218°W
 * 58.19107°N, 8.1987°W
 * 58.18921°N, 8.19032°W
 * 58.18749°N, 8.16849°W
 * 58.18546°N, 8.16623°W
 * 58.18444°N, 8.16592°W
 * 58.18272°N, 8.166°W
 * 58.18607°N, 8.1567°W

title: Skagerrak (power transmission system)


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Lexicon (game)

Lexicon is a computer-assisted role-playing game invented by Neel Krishnaswami and popularised by the indie role-playing game community. As originally proposed, it is played online using wiki software. Players assume the role of scholars who write the history and background of a particular fictitious time, setting, or incident. As the game goes on, the players collaboratively create an elaborately interwoven account.

Each game is a series of 26 turns, keyed to the letters of the alphabet from A to Z. On the first turn, each player must write an Encyclopedia-style entry beginning with the letter A, citing and linking to two entries that are not yet written. These are called "undefined" entries. Undefined entries must begin with a letter later in the alphabet.

The 25 subsequent turns proceed consecutively through the letters of the alphabet, one letter per turn. In a turn, each player writes one entry that begins with the turn's specified letter. If one or more undefined entries are available that begin with the letter, a player must choose and write an undefined entry before any new entries can be created under that letter. A new entry must create and link to two undefined entries, and must also link to an entry written on a previous turn. Near the endgame, when sufficient undefined entries exist to occupy all players for the remainder of the game, no new undefined entries may be created.

Many variants exist, such as covering two or three letters per turn, or starting each player on a different letter. Some games permit other players to post comments or expansions of earlier entries. The optional "Rule of X" treats X (or any other appropriate letter) as a wild card; entries for the X turn may begin with any letter. "Telephone pad" is a shorter variant with 8 turns (corresponding to the letters on a telephone keypad) instead of 26 turns (one per letter of the alphabet).

title: Lexicon (game)


text:
Buster Olney

Robert Stanbury "Buster" Olney III (born 1964 (age 46))  is an American sports journalist for ESPN,  ESPN: The Magazine, and ESPN.com. He previously covered the New York Giants and New York Yankees for The New York Times. He is also a regular analyst for the ESPN's television program Baseball Tonight and hosts ESPN's Baseball Tonight daily podcast.

Early life and education
Olney was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up on a dairy farm in Randolph Center, Vermont. He was educated at Northfield Mount Hermon School in Gill, Massachusetts, and Vanderbilt University, where he majored in history. As a child Olney was an avid baseball fan. At age eight, he developed an affinity for the Los Angeles Dodgers after reading a book about Sandy Koufax. Olney would later attribute his fanship as a reason for his journalistic career.

Print
After graduation, Olney began covering baseball in 1989, as the Nashville Banner ' s beat reporter assigned to the Triple-A Nashville Sounds. While in Nashville, he formed a close relationship with Don Meyer, head coach of the men's basketball program at David Lipscomb University. He later worked at the San Diego Union-Tribune and The Baltimore Sun. He arrived at the New York Times in 1997 and in his first year won an Associated Press award.

During one of his first assignments in Nashville, the Sounds hosted the Columbus Clippers who, at the time, were the AAA affiliate of the New York Yankees. Olney almost had a minor confrontation with a Yankee prospect at the time known more for his football play, Deion Sanders. Olney had attempted to do a piece on Sanders, but was blown off. In return, Olney wrote what he called later in his career an unflattering piece on Sanders. Sanders replied to Olney by writing on a baseball "Keep writing like that your whole life and you'll always be a loser."

The Last Night of the Yankees Dynasty
In 2004, Olney published The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty, ISBN 0-06-051506-6, a nonfiction account of the Yankees' run of championships in the 1990s. The book also considered why the team lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2001 World Series and why it didn't win a championship between 2001 and 2003. Since leaving the Times, Olney has become a constant on the ESPN family of networks.

How Lucky You Can Be: The Story of Coach Don Meyer
In 2010, Olney wrote How Lucky You Can Be: The Story of Coach Don Meyer, an account of how a car crash and cancer diagnosis affected the life of the highly accomplished college basketball coach. In 2013, Olney delivered the May commencement speech at Northern State University, where Meyer coached until 2010, and was still a member of the faculty until his death on May 18, 2014.

Personal life
Olney resides in Yorktown Heights, New York.

title: Buster Olney


text: User:Cheese Dreams

title: User:Cheese Dreams


text:
User talk:Cheese Dreams

 * This user is a sock puppet of User:CheeseDreams.

title: User talk:Cheese Dreams


text:
Talk:Physalis

Physalis angulata
I'm looking for Physalis angulata L., which is mentioned in the Carolus Linnaeus article. I can't find any reference to its being removed from Physalis, but I'm grossly unfamiliar with botanical literature. Where is this species now? We need a redirect, because P. angulata even if obsolete is very widely used. —Tkinias 17:51, 14 Dec 2004 (UTC)

 * ITIS doesn't think it's moved... this article is missing most of the 80-odd species. Stan 16:25, 17 Dec 2004 (UTC)

 * I wasn't going to trust ITIS... I thought perhaps the other species ITIS shows might be somewhere else now. —Tkinias 19:10, 17 Dec 2004 (UTC)

 * Heh - unless an article actually lists its own authorities, ITIS is almost always more accurate than what we have. There are two conflicting styles for genus articles, one to only list "interesting" species, the other to list all known, and often no annotation saying which was done. Stan 21:11, 17 Dec 2004 (UTC)

 * Ah, I was approaching from the fish perspective; ITIS is often incomplete or obsolete in its species lists (FishBase being preferred), and the fish genera should always list all species. —Tkinias 21:25, 17 Dec 2004 (UTC)

 * I agree, all species is the right way to go, but not everybody agrees - or is up to building the 800-species lists required for many plant genera! :-) Stan 07:15, 18 Dec 2004 (UTC)

 * Yrch. And I was kvetching to myself about the 100-odd species in Hyphessobrycon...  I'll stick to my pisces I think! :) —Tkinias 09:26, 18 Dec 2004 (UTC)

strawberry groundcherry

 * 1) Physalis alkekengi L. -- Chinese lantern plant is as far as i know the only european physalis.

i think the strawberry tomato (or groundcherry) is P. pruinosa.(inserted link) m.20050516

a physalis is a tropica fruit called UCHUVA where is grown (most of them come from Colombia, as i saw in tesco n sainbury's)with a yellowish orange color not biger than a grape, very luquid, not too much flavor. ahve a bit of an earthy flavor, because comes from a bush which is in most of the cases in rural areas where animal are around. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Tenemeaqui (talk • contribs) 06:32, 13 January 2009 (UTC)

toxicity
Various places on the web say that all parts of the plant, excepting the ripe fruits, are toxic, i.e. includes the husks (calyces) and unripe fruits. There's some doubt as to whether even the ripe fruits of some species are safe. Lavateraguy 22:54, 4 August 2007 (UTC)

Are these species reproductively isolated?
Does anyone know whether or not these species would cross?

 * Physalis philadelphica (P. ixocarpa)
 * Physalis peruviana
 * Physalis alkekengi
 * Physalis pruinosa

I'm approaching them from an alternative foodcrop / food security angle. (Please leave a message on my talk page if possible. Just say hello if you're interested in the subject.) Thank you.Heavenlyblue (talk) 18:56, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Physalis physalis utriculus La Martinniere
Physalis physalis utriculus La Martinniere is a dangerous jelly fish, called Portuguese Man-of-war. Hakluyt recorded in 1979 at first. It is distributed in the warm sea all over the world.--Tossh eng (talk) 12:37, 2 November 2008 (UTC)
 * It's Physalia, not Physalis, and it's a siphonophore, not a jellyfish. Etc. Lavateraguy (talk) 15:09, 2 November 2008 (UTC)
 * Confirmed, thank you. The book I referred to had the mispelling. That was a reason why I searched in the Wikipedia gave "No article title matches" output.--Tossh eng (talk) 00:02, 3 November 2008 (UTC)

Husk tomato
Where does husk tomato fit into this welter of different species and common names, is it P. peruviana? Is that the (only) variety in (Western) culinary use? The typology at http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Physalis seems to say it's something different (and also says that P. Peruviana has purple fruits, which doesn't seem right). Flapdragon (talk) 20:38, 27 September 2009 (UTC)

 * I think the tomatillo (P. ixocarpa) is sometimes considered to be part of the general category of husk tomatos. I don't know whether the (somewhat) commonly cultivated "ground cherry" is P. peruviana or P. pruinosa or either.  This is based on the seed catalog at ; I haven't researched other sources or attempted to verify their species names. Kingdon (talk) 11:24, 30 September 2009 (UTC)

needs to be merged with golden berry article
needs to be merged with golden berry article — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.130.46.152 (talk) 17:37, 13 October 2021 (UTC)
 * This is an article about the genus; there are separate articles about the various species in the genus. --JBL (talk) 20:35, 13 October 2021 (UTC)

taxonomic updates to Physalis
I would like to gather some links to information on recent taxonomic updates to Physalis. It's an active area of research, but consensus has been emerging in several areas. I will add any other sources that seem useful for other editors.

'''(In Press) Physalis (Solanaceae). In Flora of North America Editorial Committee. Flora of North America north of Mexico, Vol. 14''' Sullivan, J.R. Oxford Univ. Press, New York, New York, U.S.A., and Oxford, U.K.

(2020) Karyotype asymmetry shapes diversity within the physaloids (Physalidinae, Physalideae, Solanaceae). Julieta Rodriguez, Rocio Deanna, Franco Chiarini. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/biorxiv/early/2020/04/23/2020.04.21.053181.full.pdf Note: This paper incorporates sections that summarize recent taxonomic research into Physalis; that summary and the bibliography may be useful for Wikipedia editors.

(2020) Typifications and nomenclatural notes in Physalis (Solanaceae) from the United States Chelsea Pretz, Rocío Deanna https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/tax.12159

(2016) Proposal to conserve the name Physalis (Solanaceae) with a conserved type Maggie Whitson https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/tax.602047

(2012) Calliphysalis (Solanacea): A New Genus From the Southeastern USA Maggie Whitson https://www.jstor.org/stable/23314732

(2008) Keys to the Flora of Florida 19:, Physalis (Solanaceae) Daniel B. Ward

(2005) Untangling Physalis (Solanaceae) from the Physaloids: A Two-Gene Phylogeny of the Physalinae Maggie Whitson and Paul S. Manos https://www.jstor.org/stable/25064051

MarkWKidd (talk) 08:21, 23 August 2022 (UTC)

title: Talk:Physalis


text:
Islam in Saudi Arabia

Sunni Islam is the state religion of Saudi Arabia. The kingdom is called the "home of Islam"; it was the birthplace of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, who united and ruled the Arabian Peninsula. It is the location of the cities of Mecca and Medina, where Prophet Muhammad lived and died, and are now the two holiest cities of Islam. The kingdom attracts millions of Muslim Hajj pilgrims annually, and thousands of clerics and students who come from across the Muslim world to study. The official title of the King of Saudi Arabia is "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques"—the two being Al-Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and Al-Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina—which are considered the holiest in Islam.

In the 18th century, a pact between Islamic preacher Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab and a regional emir, Muhammad bin Saud, brought a new form of Islam (Salafism) of Sunni Islam first to the Najd region and then to the Arabian Peninsula. Referred to by supporters as "Salafism" and by others as "Wahhabism", this interpretation of Islam became the state religion and interpretation of Islam espoused by Muhammad bin Saud and his successors (the Al Saud family), who eventually created the modern kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932. The Saudi government has spent tens of billions of dollars of its petroleum export revenue throughout the Islamic world and elsewhere on building mosques, publishing books, giving scholarships and fellowships, hosting international Islamic organisations, and promoting its form of Islam, sometimes referred to as "petro-Islam".

The Wahhabi mission has been dominant in Najd for two hundred years, but in most other parts of the country—Hejaz, the Eastern Province, Najran—it has dominated only since 1913–1925. Most of the 15 to 20 million Saudi citizens are Sunni Muslims, while the eastern regions are populated mostly by Twelver Shia, and there are Zaydi Shia in the southern regions. According to a number of sources, only a minority of Saudis consider themselves Wahhabis, although according to other sources, the Wahhabi affiliation is up to 40%, making it a very dominant minority, at the very least using a native population of 17 million based on "2008–09 estimates". In addition, the next largest affiliation is with Salafism, which encompasses all of the central principles of Wahhabism, with a number of minor additional accepted principles differentiating the two.

Public worship and proselytising by non-Muslims, including the distribution of non-Muslim religious materials (such as the Bible), is illegal in Saudi Arabia.

Starting in 2017, under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, dramatic changes have been made in religious policy, including the elimination of the power of the religious police, the lifting of bans on amusement parks, cinemas, concert venues, and driving of motor vehicles by women.

In a 2014 survey, conducted for the Boston Consultancy Group report on Saudi youth, it was found that 97% of the young Saudis consider Islam "as the main influence that shapes their identity."

History
The Islamic prophet, Muhammad, was born in Mecca in about 570. From the early 7th century, Muhammad united the various tribes of the peninsula and created a single Islamic religious polity under his rule. Following his death in 632, his followers rapidly expanded the territory under Muslim rule beyond Arabia and conquered many parts of Asia, Africa and Europe conquering huge swathes of territory. Although Arabia soon became a politically peripheral region as the focus shifted to the more developed conquered lands, Mecca and Medina remained the spiritually most important places in the Muslim world. The Qur'an requires every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it, as one of the five pillars of Islam, to make a pilgrimage, or Hajj, to Mecca during the Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah at least once in his or her lifetime.

From the 9th century, a number of Shia sects developed particularly in the eastern part of Arabia. These included the Qarmatians, a millenarian Ismaili sect led by Abū-Tāhir Al-Jannābī who attacked and sacked Mecca in 930.

Al Saud and ibn Abd al-Wahhab
In 1744, in the desert region of Nejd, Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Al Saud dynasty, joined forces with the religious leader Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab was the founder of the Wahhabi movement, a strict puritanical form of Sunni Islam. This alliance formed in the 18th century provided the ideological impetus to Saudi expansion and remains the basis of Saudi Arabian dynastic rule today. The first "Saudi state" established in 1744 in the area around Riyadh, rapidly expanded and briefly controlled most of the present-day territory of Saudi Arabia, but was destroyed by 1818 by the Ottoman viceroy of Egypt, Mohammed Ali Pasha. In 1824, a much smaller second "Saudi state", located mainly in Nejd, was established in 1824, but by 1891 its Al Saud rulers were driven into exile in Kuwait.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a third attempt was made to conquer this territory by another Al-Saud, Abdulaziz Ibn Saud. He gained the support of the Ikhwan, a tribal army inspired by Wahhabism and led by Sultan ibn Bijad and Faisal Al-Dawish, which had grown quickly after its foundation in 1912. With the aid of the Ikhwan, Ibn Saud captured al-Hasa from the Ottoman Empire in 1913.

Ibn Saud defeated a rival ruling family and took the title Sultan of Nejd in 1921. By this time the Ottomans had been defeated in World War I, and Ottoman suzerainty and control in Arabia was no more. With the help of the Ikhwan, the Hejaz was conquered in 1924–25. Following this victory however the Ikhwan clashed with Ibn Saud. He opposed their raiding the British protectorates of Transjordan, Iraq and Kuwait, to expand of the Wahhabist realm, and they opposed his policies of allowing some modernization and some non-Muslim foreigners in the country. The Ikhwan were defeated and their leaders executed in 1930 after a two-year struggle. In 1932 the two kingdoms of the Hejaz and Nejd were united as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Era of oil exports
Commercial quantities of oil were discovered in the Persian Gulf region of Saudi Arabia in 1938, and the kingdom's oil wells eventually revealed the largest source of crude oil in the world. For the king, oil revenues became a crucial source of wealth since he no longer had to rely on receipts from pilgrimages to Mecca. This discovery would alter Middle Eastern political relations forever.

During the 1960s and '70s, religious authorities allowed some practices that had previously been forbidden (haram). At the urging of the government and after vigorous debate, religious authorities allowed the use of paper money in 1951, abolished slavery in 1962, permitted the education of females in 1964, and use of television in 1965.

By the 1970s, as a result of oil wealth and government modernization policies, economic and social development progressed at an extremely rapid rate, transforming the infrastructure and educational system of the country; in foreign policy, close ties with the US were developed.

By 1976, Saudi Arabia had become the largest oil producer in the world. The power of the ulema was in decline.

However, in the 1980s and 1990s, this trend was reversed. In 1979, the modernizing monarch of Iran, despite his oil revenues and apparently formidable security apparatus, was overthrown by an Islamic revolution. The new revolutionary Islamic Republic was across the Persian Gulf from Saudi oil fields and across from where most of Saudi Arabia's minority Shiites—co-religionists of Iran who also often worked in the oil industry—lived. There were several anti-government uprisings in the region in 1979 and 1980.

Also alarming to the government was the seizure of the Grand Mosque in Mecca by Islamist extremists. The militants involved were in part angered by what they considered to be the corruption and un-Islamic nature of the Saudi government, proclaimed the return of the Mahdi. The takeover and siege of the mosque lasted for nearly two weeks, during which the mosque was severely damaged and several hundred militants, soldiers, and hostages were killed.

In response, the royal family enforced much stricter observances of traditional religious and social norms in the country and gave the Ulema a greater role in government. At first, photographs of women in newspapers were banned, then women on television. Cinemas and music shops were shut down. School curriculum was changed to provide many more hours of religious studies, eliminating classes on subjects like non-Islamic history. Gender segregation was extended "to the humblest coffee shop". The religious police became more assertive.

Greater emphasis was put on religion in the media (increased religious programming on television and radio, and an increase in articles about religion in newspapers), in individual behavior, in government policies, and in mosque sermons. In 1986 King Fahd replaced his title "His Majesty" with "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques". The ulema's powers and financial support were strengthened in particular, they were given greater control over the education system and allowed to enforce stricter observance of Wahhabi rules of moral and social behaviour. These policies did not succeed in dampening the growth and strength of religious conservatives dissatisfied with the royal family.

Saudi Islamism gained momentum following 1991 Gulf War. The presence of U.S. troops on Saudi soil from 1991 onwards was deeply unpopular with conservative Saudis and one of the major issues that has led to an increase in Islamist terrorism by Saudis inside and out of Saudi Arabia, (the 9/11 attacks in New York being the most prominent example).

Islamist terrorist activity increased dramatically in 2003, with the Riyadh compound bombings and other attacks, which prompted the government to take much more stringent action against terrorism. The king (Abdullah) has also taken steps to rein back the powers of the ulema, for instance transferring their control over girls' education to the Ministry of Education. Some have complained that the king's dominance over the ulema has weakened the traditional Islamic legitimacy of Saudi throne.

Role in the state and society
Islam plays a central role in Saudi society. It has been said that Islam is more than a religion, it is a way of life in Saudi Arabia, and, as a result, the influence of the ulema, the religious establishment, is all-pervasive. Article one of the 1992 Saudi "Basic Law of Governance" states, "The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a sovereign Arab Islamic State. Its religion is Islam. Its constitution is Almighty God's Book, The Holy Qur'an, and the Sunna (Traditions) of the Prophet (PBUH). Arabic is the language of the Kingdom."

Unlike most Muslim countries, Saudi Arabia gives the ulema direct involvement in government, and fields a specifically "religious" police force, called the Haia. (Iran gives the ulema much more influence and also has a religious police. ) According to Robert Baer, this power is only over certain sectors of governance. The founder of Saudi Arabia, Ibn Saud, established a division of power (according to Baer) with the Wahhabi religious establishment in 1932. In "return for allowing it control of the mosques, culture, and education", the ulema or religious establishment "would never go near core political issues, such as royal succession, foreign policy, and the armed forces." This agreement has "been more or less respected" since 1932. Historians note that in his alliance with the House of Saud, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab called for the state to have an "imam" (religious leader, himself) and an "emir" (military leader, Ibn Saud). However, the third head of the House of Saud used the title "Imam", and Saudi kings have served in this role since.

A Council of Senior Scholars, appointed and paid by the government advises the king on religious matters. The ulema have also been a key influence in major government decisions, have a significant role in the judicial and education systems and a monopoly of authority in the sphere of religious and social morals. Not only is the succession to the throne subject to the approval of the ulema, but so are all new laws (royal decrees).

The religious police or Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice numbers 3,500-4,000. Members patrol the streets enforcing dress codes, strict separation of men and women, salat prayer by Muslims during prayer times, investigating reports of witchcraft, and other behavior it believes to be commanded or forbidden by Islam.

Daily life in Saudi Arabia is dominated by Islamic observance. Five times each day, Muslims are called to prayer from the minarets of mosques scattered throughout the country. Because Friday is the holiest day for Muslims, the weekend begins on Thursday. In accordance with Salafi doctrine, only two religious holidays are publicly recognized, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. Celebration of other Islamic holidays, such as the Prophet's birthday and Day of Ashura are tolerated only when celebrated locally and on a small scale. Public observance of non-Islamic religious holidays is prohibited, with the exception of 23 September, which commemorates the unification of the kingdom. Conformity of behavior is highly valued as part of religion, apparent in sameness of dress. Almost all women wear a loose-fitting black abaya cloak covering all but their eyes and hands, almost all men wear a white thawb with a red and white checkered headdress.

Sharia, or Islamic law, is the basis of the legal system in Saudi Arabia. It is unique not only compared to Western systems, but also compared to other Muslim countries, as (according to its supporters) the Saudi model is closest to the form of law originally developed when Islam became established in the Arabian peninsula in the 7th century.

The Saudi courts impose a number of severe physical punishments. The death penalty can be imposed for a wide range of offences including murder, rape, armed robbery, repeated drug use, apostasy, adultery, witchcraft and sorcery and can be carried out by beheading with a sword, stoning or firing squad, followed by crucifixion.

Wahhabism
Many of the strict and unique practices in Saudi Arabia mentioned above come from Wahhabism, (formerly) the official and dominant form of Sunni Islam in Saudi Arabia, named after the preacher and scholar Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. (Proponents consider the name derogatory, preferring the term Salafiyya, after the early Muslims known as the Salaf.) This interpretation is often described as 'puritanical', 'intolerant' or 'ultra-conservative', however proponents believe its teachings seek to purify the practise of Islam of any innovations or practices that deviate from the seventh-century teachings of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his companions. According to one anti-Wahhabi source (Stephen Schwartz), "no more than" 40% of Saudi nationals consider themselves Wahhabis.

The message of the school was the essential oneness of God (tawhid). The movement is therefore known by its adherents as ad dawa lil tawhid (the call to unity), and those who follow the call are known as ahl at tawhid (the people of unity) or muwahhidun (unitarians). The school puts an emphasis on following of the Athari school of thought. Ibn Abd-al-Wahhab, was influenced by the writings of Ibn Taymiyya and questioned the philosophical interpretations of Islam within the Ash'ari and Maturidi schools, claiming to rely on the Qur'an and the Hadith without speculative philosophy so as to not transgress beyond the limits of the early Muslims known as the Salaf. Ibn Abd-al-Wahhab attacked a "perceived moral decline and political weakness" in the Arabian Peninsula and condemned what he perceived as idolatry, the popular cult of saints, and shrine and tomb visitation.

In the 1990s, Saudi leadership did not emphasize its identity as inheritor of the Wahhabi legacy as such, nor did the descendants of Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahhab, the Al ash Shaykh, continue to hold the highest posts in the religious bureaucracy. Wahhabi influence in Saudi Arabia, however, remained tangible in the physical conformity in dress, in public deportment, and in public prayer. Most significantly, the Wahhabi legacy was manifest in the social ethos that presumed government responsibility for the collective moral ordering of society, from the behavior of individuals, to institutions, to businesses, to the government itself.

New MbS era (2017–present)
Under the rule of Muhammad bin Salman (MbS), (who became Crown Prince in June 2017 and is the de facto ruler of the Kingdom), dramatic changes have been made whereby activities once allowed are now forbidden and others forbidden in the name of religion (i.e. Wahhabism) are allowed.

Secular policy changes
The formerly powerful religious police, who busied themselves enforcing strict rules on everything from hijab (which in Saudi Arabia meant covering all of the body except the hands and eyes), segregation of the sexes, and daily prayer attendance; to preventing the sale of dogs and cats, Barbie dolls, Pokémon, and Valentine's Day gifts,  are now banned "from pursuing, questioning, asking for identification, arresting and detaining anyone suspected of a crime". The punishments of flogging and the death penalty for crimes committed by minors are no longer allowed.

Among the bans lifted are on women driving motor vehicles (June 2018), (some) activities by women without the permission of male-guardians (August 2019), cinemas, musical performances—including public concerts by female singers, admission of women to sports stadiums, employment of women in many parts of the workforce, and international tourism.

Theology
MbS has stated, "in Islamic law, the head of the Islamic establishment is wali al-amr, (Arabic:ولي الأمر) the ruler." While the ruling kings (and Crown Princes) of Saudi Arabia "have historically stayed away from religion", and "outsourced" issues of theology and religious law to "the big beards", (traditionally conservative and orthodox religious scholars), MbS has "a law degree from King Saud University". He is "probably the only leader in the Arab world who knows anything about Islamic epistemology and jurisprudence", according to (secular) scholar of Islamic law, Bernard Haykel. In an interview televised in Saudi Arabia on April 25, 2021, MbS criticized the devotion of Saudi religious leaders to Wahhabism (i.e. to the doctrines based on 18th century preacher Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab) "in language never before used by a Saudi monarch", saying, "there are no fixed schools of thought and there is no infallible person."

But MbS has gone beyond criticism of Wahhabism to question the basis of orthodox Islamic law. Fatwas (legal rulings on points of Islamic law), he says "should be based on the time, place and mindset in which they are issued", rather than regarded as immutable. In interviews with Wood, MbS "explained that Islamic law is based on two textual sources: the Quran and the Sunnah, or the example of the Prophet Muhammad, gathered in many tens of thousands of fragments from the Prophet's life and sayings. Certain rules—not many—come from the unambiguous legislative content of the Quran, he said, and he cannot do anything about them even if he wants to. But those sayings of the Prophet (called Hadith), he explained, do not all have equal value as sources of law," According to Chiara Pellegrino, "MBS specified that in the Kingdom 'a punishment must be applied only in the presence of a clear Qur'anic stipulation or a mutawātir hadīth,' i.e., a saying of the Prophet of Islam, transmitted over the centuries through an uninterrupted and numerically significant chain of transmitters. As the prince explains, these hadīths are binding, unlike ahādī hadīth (i.e., transmitted by single narrators), which become binding only when they are corroborated by Qur'anic verse, and khabar hadīth (stories whose core is identical across different versions but that vary in their details and formulation), whose authenticity is doubtful and which therefore cannot be invoked as sources of law, even if they can be useful for personal edification." Wood estimates that this will mean "about 95 percent" of traditional Islamic law is "chuck[ed] into the sandpit of Saudi history", and leave MbS free to use his discretion "to determine what is in the interest of the Muslim community." According to Haykel this short-circuits centuries of Islamic legal tradition, but is done "in an Islamic way."

One part of the fallout is in legal code. Unlike most countries, Saudi "does not have any penal and civil code" and "judges rule on the basis of Islamic jurisprudence with a high level of discretion in some contexts". But as of early 2021, MbS has "ordered a codification of Saudi laws" that would take this power away from judges.

Reactions
The policies of MbS have been called a "sidelining of Islamic law" that will "drastically" change the Kingdom.

According to David Ottaway of the Wilson Center, MbS has sidelined Saudi Arabia's Wahhabi scholars and preachers "who still command millions of followers in the country and beyond", and this presents a "particularly risky" move. Journalist Graeme Wood who traveled in Saudi Arabia and interviewed MbS, noted that Salman al-Ouda, "a preacher with a massive following", appears to have originally been imprisoned for expressing the relatively benign hope that MbS and the ruler of Qatar (Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani), reconcile—"May God harmonize between their hearts, for the good of their people." al-Ouda remains in prison facing execution despite the fact that MbS and Al Thani did reconcile.

Many conservative clerics strongly appear to have taken heed, succumbing to "good old-fashioned intimidation", reversing their religious positions and supporting the government line on issues such as "the opening of cinemas and mass layoffs of Wahhabi imams". But it also "isn't clear how quickly" the modernization of MbS "is catching on", and that in some instances ordinary police "have stood up" to take the place of religious police, while in at least the very conservative parts of the country, genders still spontaneously segregate themselves in large gatherings.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic
As a result of mass shutdowns on in-person business triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, merchants and buyers of Islamic animal sacrifice livestock in the Kingdom shifted much of their business to new emerging online e-commerce platforms, in preparation for Eid al-Adha in July 2021.

Non-Salafi Islam
The Wahhabi mission has been dominant in most of the central region of Najd—its "heartland"—for two hundred years, but in most other parts of the country it has dominated only since 1913–1925. The eastern region has many Twelver Shias, the southern regions of Saudi Arabia has many Zaydi Shias. The hijaz region has long had a more pluralistic tradition. The southwest region of Asir is known for its followers of a local leader, Idris, revered by many as a Sufi saint, a concept which Wahhbism opposes. Two critics of Wahhabism (Ali Al-Ahmed and Stephen Schwartz), also give a relatively high estimate of the non-Wahhabi population of Saudi Arabia—over 60%.

Sunni Islam
Although Wahabism is a strand of Sunni Islam, the promotion of non-Salafi-Sunnism is somewhat restricted but not by the law.

Shi'ism
An estimated 5–10% of citizens in Saudi Arabia are Shia Muslims, most of whom are adherents to Twelver Shia Islam. Twelvers are predominantly represented by the Baharna community living in the Eastern Province, with the largest concentrations in Qatif, and half the population in al-Hasa. In addition there is a small Twelver Shia minority in Medina (called the Nakhawila). Sizable and Isma'ili communities also live in Najran along the border with Yemen.

Shia, human rights groups and other observers have complained of "systematic discrimination" of Shia in Saudi Arabia "in religion, education, justice, and employment". Unlike other countries with sizable Shia populations (such as Iraq and Lebanon), Saudi Arabia has no Shia cabinet ministers, mayors or police chiefs. Shia are kept out of "critical jobs" in the armed forces and the security services, and not one of the three hundred Shia girls schools in the Eastern Province has a Shia principal. In the Eastern provinces of Saudi Arabia there are Shia courts who deal with cases such as marriage, divorce and inheritance. Shia demonstrations in Qatif have sometimes led to conflict with Sunni Saudi religious authorities who disapprove of Shia commemorations marking the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali by Yazid I. There also Shias living in Southern Saudi Arabia, who are mostly from the Zaydi branch.

Islamic pilgrimage
Saudi Arabia, and specifically Mecca and Medina, in Hejaz are the cradle of Islam, and the pilgrimage destinations for large numbers of Muslims from across the Islamic world. One of the King's titles is Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, the two mosques being Al-Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, which contains Islam's most sacred place (the Kaaba) and Al-Masjid an-Nabawi in Medina which contains Muhammad's tomb.

The Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, occurs annually between the first and tenth days of the last month of the Muslim year, Dhul Hajj. The Hajj represents the culmination of the Muslim's spiritual life. For many, it is a lifelong ambition. From the time of embarking on the journey to make the Hajj, pilgrims often experience a spirit of exaltation and excitement; the meeting of so many Muslims of all races, cultures, and stations in life in harmony and equality moves many people deeply. Certain rites of pilgrimage may be performed any time, and although meritorious, these constitute a lesser pilgrimage, known as umrah.

The Ministry of Pilgrimage Affairs and Religious Trusts handles the immense logistical and administrative problems generated by such a huge international gathering. The government issues special pilgrimage visas that permit the pilgrim to visit Mecca and to make the customary excursion to Medina to visit the Prophet's tomb. Care is taken to assure that pilgrims do not remain in the kingdom after the Hajj to search for work.

An elaborate guild of specialists assists the Hajjis. Guides (mutawwifs) who speak the pilgrim's language make the necessary arrangements in Mecca and instruct the pilgrim in the proper performance of rituals; assistants (wakils) provide subsidiary services. Separate groups of specialists take care of pilgrims in Medina and Jiddah. Water drawers (zamzamis) provide water drawn from the sacred well.

Since the late 1980s, the Saudis have been particularly energetic in catering to the needs of pilgrims. In 1988, a US$15 billion traffic improvement scheme for the holy sites was launched. The improvement initiative resulted partly from Iranian charges that the Saudi government was incompetent to guard the holy sites after a 1987 clash between demonstrating Iranian pilgrims and Saudi police left 400 people dead. A further disaster occurred in 1990, when 1,426 pilgrims suffocated or were crushed to death in one of the new air-conditioned pedestrian tunnels built to shield pilgrims from the heat. The incident resulted from the panic that erupted in the overcrowded and inadequately ventilated tunnel, and further fueled Iranian claims that the Saudis did not deserve to be in sole charge of the holy places. In 1992, however, 114,000 Iranian pilgrims, close to the usual level, participated in the Hajj.

Islamic legitimacy
The religious establishment in Saudi Arabia, led by the Al ash-Sheikh, which influences almost every aspect of social life, is deeply involved in politics. It has long been fractured into at least two distinct groups, with the senior ulema closely tied to the political agenda of the House of Saud. A younger generation of ulema, who are less firmly established and more radical in tone, have openly criticized the senior ulema and the government in the past. "Fractures between the government and this younger generation deepened in May 2003, when Riyadh fired or suspended thousands of them. Many were to be 're-educated,' while others were simply ousted from the religious establishment. The move did little to endear the government to an already frustrated and religiously radical cadre of clerics."The Islamic legitimacy of the modern Saudi state has been questioned by many radical Islamist groups and individuals including Al-Qaeda.

Saudi Arabia's grand mufti, Sheikh Abdul-Aziz ibn Abdullah Al ash-Sheikh, has defended the religious establishment's legitimacy in a public forum, while responding to mounting criticism of the religious leadership's close political alliance with the ruling House of Saud. During a question-and-answer session with members of the public and the media, Al Al-Sheikh denied that the government influenced fatwas (religious rulings) and said accusations to the contrary within the media were false:

Both the criticism and the public response to it indicate a deepening level of dissent, not only within the kingdom's religious establishment, but also among the public. It is significant that the question was asked and answered in a public forum, and then reprinted in the media—including the Arabic and English language newspapers. Similar questions of legitimacy will arise in coming months, with the kingdom's religious, political and perhaps military leaderships becoming the focal points for increasingly intense criticism.

That Al Al-Sheikh answered the question about government influence over fatwas so openly is a clear indicator that the public has growing concerns about the legitimacy of religious leaders. Also, that the statements were reprinted in the press signals that the Saudi government—which wields enormous influence over the local press—is moving to respond to the charges of undue influence and corruption and illegitimacy.

title: Islam in Saudi Arabia


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Inga–Shaba HVDC

The Inga–Shaba EHVDC Intertie (officially: The Inga–Shaba Extra High Voltage D.C. Intertie; nickname: Inga–Shaba and also referred to as Inga–Kolwezi) is a 1700 km-long high-voltage direct current overhead electric power transmission line in the Democratic Republic of Congo, linking the Inga hydroelectric complex at the mouth of the Congo River to mineral fields in Shaba (Katanga). It was primarily constructed by Morrison-Knudsen International, an American engineering company, with the converter equipment supplied by ASEA. Construction was completed in 1982 and it cost US$900 million. The scheme was, for many years, the longest HVDC line in the world.

History
The Inga–Shaba HVDC represented one of the United States' most important third world commitments of the 1970s and 1980s. However, construction progress was plagued by rebel insurgency in Southern Zaire, massive logistical challenges, large cost overruns, and financing delays.

By utilizing the hydroelectric potential of the Inga Dam and by constructing one switching station near Kinshasa at Selo, the Government of Zaire under Mobutu Sese Seko was theoretically able to control the flow of power to secession-prone Katanga, then Shaba, province, but never actually exercised this option. It was reported in La Libre Belgique, a Brussels newspaper, that Tractionel, a Belgian electrical contractor, had argued that more economical alternatives were available nearer Shaba, using low-head generator plants, but had been overlooked in favor of the American consortium, consisting of Morrison-Knudsen International as a prime contractor, and Swedish ASEA, Italian Sadelmi-Cogepi and Irish GE subsidiary as sub-contractors.

The project was initially conceived as a US$250 million contract - but cost overruns, partly due to unanticipated armed conflict in Shaba Province, pushed the final price up over US$1 billion, with unofficial estimates ranging as high as US$1.3 billion, inclusive of a comprehensive Operations and Maintenance Contract.

Construction of the Inga–Shaba Project provided the Ministry of Energy and the Société nationale d'électricité (SNEL), with the means to promote further development activity throughout Zaire, by attracting potential investors and overseas firms; however, there have been suggestions that well-placed officials in the Mobutu government may have accepted gratuities at various critical junctures during the construction phase. As the Republic became more indebted to overseas financial entities, the Inga–Shaba Project ultimately accounted for approximately 20% of the former Zaire's debt burden, the total amount of which was $5 billion at the time, according to a variety of credible sources.

Route
The ten-year project entailed design and construction of a 1700 km electrical transmission line from Inga (-5.52417°N, 13.61083°W) at the mouth of the Congo River, specifically from the Inga Dam, one of Africa's three largest hydroelectric complexes, to the distant copper mining region then known as Shaba, today Katanga. It featured switching stations at Selo (near Kinshasa) (-4.71194°N, 15.29472°W), Kikwit (-5.11083°N, 18.785°W), Kananga (-5.99056°N, 22.44778°W) and Kamina (-8.74528°N, 24.875°W), prior to delivering power to the Kolwezi Inverter Station(-10.6575°N, 25.45222°W).

Electrodes
The electrode for the Inga static inverter plant is situated 39 kilometres away from the station at -5.335°N, 13.65583°W and designed as linear ground electrode with a resistance of 0.24 ohm, while the electrode of Kolwezi static inverter plant, which is situated 11 kilometres away from the station at -10.6075°N, 25.53889°W is designed as three-legged ground star electrode with a resistance of 0.14 ohm.

Technology
This scheme, equipped from the outset with thyristor valves provided by Swedish subcontractor ASEA, was designed to transmit 560 megawatts, in the first phase, at a symmetrical bipolar voltage of ±500 kilovolts. Although not the first 500 kV HVDC project in operation (the ±533 kV Cahora Bassa scheme having been completed in 1977) it was the first such scheme to use only a single twelve-pulse bridge per pole. Consequently, its thyristor valves were the highest-rated in the world (in terms of voltage) at the time and remained so until the completion, in 2007, of the ±450 kV, single-converter NorNed scheme. The thyristor valves for Inga Shaba had 258 thyristors in series in each valve and were air-insulated and air-cooled.

Inga Shaba was the longest HVDC transmission line in service until 2010, when it was overtaken by the 2071 km, ±800 kV, 6400 MW HVDC link from Xiangjiaba Dam to Shanghai in China. Because the line runs through relatively inaccessible terrain, an unusually broad right-of-way was cleared, at considerable expense, to ensure tower integrity.

The line operated initially at only 10% of capacity. In the 1990s, prior to major social unrest, the line increased its power transmission to 200 MW, still considerably below design capacity. As of 2000, reliability had been poor with many thyristor failures at the inverter station. As of 2010, the line was still functional as far as Bandundu, the capital of Bandundu province, approximately 400 km northeast of Kinshasa. In 2009 ABB was awarded a contract to refurbish and modernise the converter equipment. This upgrade is due to be completed in 2013.

title: Inga–Shaba HVDC


text: File:Golden Earring - Moontan.jpg

title: File:Golden Earring - Moontan.jpg


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File:Golden Earring - Moontan US.jpg

US album cover for Moontan by Golden Earring

Fair use rationale for

 * It is believed that the use of this image on the English-language Wikipedia to illustrate an article on the audio recording in question falls under the "Non-profit educational" clause of the Fair Use doctrine currently upheld by United States law. (17 U.S.C. § 107)
 * The image is irreplaceable; a free analogue is impossible to produce as the original will be covered by copyright for the foreseeable future
 * Owing to the limited web-resolution of the image, only a small portion of a copyrighted work is used
 * For the same reasons, the portion of the copyrighted work used is of inherently lower quality than the original, reducing the risk of competitiveness and therefore the effects of this copy on the market for or value of versions held by the owner of the copyright

title: File:Golden Earring - Moontan US.jpg


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Central Region

Central Region, Center Region, Centrale Region, or Centre Region can refer to:

Africa

 * Centre Region, Burkina Faso, one of 13 administrative regions
 * Centre Region, Cameroon, one of ten semi-autonomous regions
 * Maekel Region or Central Region, Eritrea, one of six regions
 * Central Region, Ghana, one of ten regions
 * Central Region, Malawi, one of three regions
 * Central Region, Uganda, one of four regions into which the districts are grouped
 * Central Regions State, Somalia
 * Centrale Region, Togo, one of five regions
 * Middle Belt, the central region of Nigeria.

Americas

 * AAA Central Region, a high school sports region in the U.S. state of Virginia
 * Center Region, Argentina, one of several geographical regions
 * Central Region, Venezuela
 * Central Region (Boy Scouts of America)

Asia

 * Central Region, Nepal, one of five development regions
 * Central Region, Singapore, one of five regions
 * Central Region within the Yuan dynasty governed by the Zhongshu Sheng
 * Madhyadesha (lit. 'middle country/land'), historical region of northern and central India
 * Madhya Pradesh (lit. 'middle region'), a state in central India

Europe

 * Centre region, Hainaut, an informal region in the province of Hainaut, which is part of the region of Wallonia, Belgium
 * Centre-Val de Loire, before 2015 Centre, France
 * Central Region, Malta, one of five regions of Malta
 * Central Region, Portugal, a region of Portugal
 * Central Region, Scotland, one of nine former local government regions
 * Central Region, Serbia, a former statistical region, now part of Šumadija and Western Serbia statistical region

title: Central Region


text:
Talk:Amharic

Phonology
I know very little about Amharic, but in the following religious song or hymn I clearly notice a voiceless uvular stop. I don't know if it's also ejective, but it's definitely uvular. Listen here at about 2:41 a word or sequence that sounds like qari or so:. Which phoneme is that? And is this uvular pronunciation common? Thanks a lot.

PS: Ge'ez language also says that emphatic "velars" may be uvular. I don't know if this means a secondary articulation, i.e. that the ejective was pronounced more back than the plain consonant, or if it means an uncertainty about whether the phoneme was an ejective at all in Ge'ez.

Proportion
The proportion of the original Semitic vocabulary still used in Amharic should be mentioned. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2A00:23C0:FCF6:4801:E8F1:D1B:B2C2:46E7 (talk) 08:36, 16 March 2018 (UTC)
 * In general, this is lower in the Semitic part of Ethiopia than in the Middle East. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2A00:23C0:FCF6:4801:E8F1:D1B:B2C2:46E7 (talk) 08:45, 16 March 2018 (UTC)

Paragraph in the lead
The lead currently has this paragraph: "Amharic language is conjecturally originated as result of a pidginization process to create a common means of communicating with an Amharic and Semitic to enable communication between people who spoke a mix of different languages .[clarification needed] This pidginization of the new language had enabled the soldiers to create communication means independent of the church which used the Geʽez language."

I was about to copyedit this (it's either from Google translate, or written by somebody without strong English skills), but I realised that I don't actually know what it is trying to say in "create a common means of communicating with an Amharic and Semitic". Has anybody got access to the reference and can check?

My suggestion would be

"The Amharic language is conjectured to have originated as a pidgin ... to enable communication between people who spoke a mix of different languages"

but I don't know what (if anything) should go in place of ... in the middle. (The second sentence is fine as it stands). --ColinFine (talk) 11:01, 18 January 2020 (UTC)

Background
The second sentence of Background begins with "Amharic has been the official working language of Ethiopia..." and ends in "...since the late 12th century". The use of "official working language" as something that has started in the 12th century is a bit of an anachronism; the necessity of using such a bureaucratic-sounding term is related to the political turmoil of the recent years and decades. For more clarity, I suggest to change the two sencences:

into something like: This would also mean to remove the sentence "Until 2020 Amharic was in fact the only other official Ethiopian language on the federal level, alongside English" (what's this about the status of English?).
 * Amharic has been the official working language of Ethiopia, language of the courts, the language of trade and everyday communications and of the military since the late 12th century. It is one of the official languages of Ethiopia, together with Oromo, Somali, Afar, and Tigrinya.
 * Amharic has been the dominant language of Ethiopia since the late 12th century, as language of the courts, the language of trade and everyday communications and of the military. It was the sole official language at the national level until 2020, and is currently the working language of Ethiopia, sharing official language status with Oromo, Somali, Afar, and Tigrinya.

The phrasing is probably not ideal yet; the word "dominant" carries a load we should better avoid here, but I can't think of a better adjective at the moment. I have taken "the working language of Ethiopia" from the lead, although it's not really clear from the sources whether Amharic has "primus inter pares" status. Thoughts? –Austronesier (talk) 14:41, 16 July 2021 (UTC)

 * @Austronesier i agree with your sugesstion. ●As for the word dominant, it's accurate in the sense of what is described above of the courts, military, trade and everday communications(of the borders controlled by the Solomonic dynasty which were fluid under different emperors, the dynasty is also called a Amhara Dynasty and a Amharic dynasty). Maybe replace it with predominant? Don't known exactly why this carries a load. ●Amharic is the the working language of the Federal government, and federal institutions and military, because these are multi-ethnic institutions and Amharic is more widely spoken among other ethnic groups. It's also the working language of another 20% of population the SNNPR region and Gambela region. Don't know if that makes it primus inter parus.●English is not a offical language, but is for obvious reasons a popular language in school instruction especially oriented towards business, trade, tourism.    Dawit S Gondaria (talk) 17:24, 16 July 2021 (UTC)
 * I think the de-facto status of being the most prominent among the official/working languages is clear, but I couldn't read from the sources if this is so de jure. These sources always mention that the four languages were "added" as official/working languages, which is ambiguous with regards to their status relative to Amharic. Maybe an official source (there should be one, no?) can bring more clarity here. –Austronesier (talk) 09:50, 17 July 2021 (UTC)

 * @Austronesier Not by de jure anymore. By law Amharic shares now equal status with four working languages on the federal/national level, but in practice only Amharic is used in the parliament, federal courts & military since the policy introduced is very recent, and they will have to figure when and where to use Afaan Oromo, Tigrinya, Somali & Afar. My attempts to get official source through the Ethiopian government portal failed, the website crashed several times today xd, don't they have this in webarchive or somewhere? Otherwise i would have to try again at a later date, tomorrow or next few days. ●Will this source do for now >> https://www.africanews.com/2020/03/04/one-to-five-ethiopia-gets-four-new-federal-working-languages/ ? However this source is incorrect about English being a official language though you can occasionely find parliament members who are not strong in Amharic or forget words, they often supplement speeches with English. Who knows maybe in the future it will become a official language. Dawit S Gondaria (talk) 19:27, 17 July 2021 (UTC)
 * De facto English has been an official language for decades, as all federal laws are published by the Government in the official Negarit Gazeta in both Amharic and English, although it is also made clear that in case of conflict the Amharic version prevails. LandLing 20:07, 17 July 2021 (UTC)
 * @LandLing You are right my mistake. Dawit S Gondaria (talk) 21:09, 18 July 2021 (UTC)

Status
The lede says 'The language serves as the  official working language of the Ethiopian federal government' (emphasis mine), but the background section says 'Until 2020 Amharic was in fact the only other official Ethiopian language on the federal level, alongside English'. This suggests that Amharic is no longer the  official working language of the Ethiopian federal government, but just an official working language of the Ethiopian federal government (one of many). Or is the difference that the other 'official' languages aren't also 'working' languages? 87.126.21.225 (talk) 21:52, 5 December 2022 (UTC)

 * De jure, Amharic was joined by four other languages as official languages, as the article correctly states, giving a source. But de facto, still things happen exclusively through Amharic on the federal level, and it may be some years until the new law takes effect in the sense that all federal functions happen equally in Oromo, Tigrinya, Somali and Afar. How to put that situation in words, particularly given the lack of sources, beats me. LandLing 20:35, 6 December 2022 (UTC)

 * Well, the word 'official' can be removed from the first sentence so that it becomes 'The language serves as the  working language of the Ethiopian federal government'.--87.126.21.225 (talk) 09:26, 15 July 2023 (UTC)
 * I wouldn't object to that. LandLing 12:06, 15 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Well, the choice is yours, whether you're gonna be objectable or not. 177.105.90.22 (talk) 16:11, 24 April 2024 (UTC)

title: Talk:Amharic