Néstor Kirchner was an Argentine lawyer and politician, who was president of Argentina from 2003 to 2007. Kirchner studied law at the National University of La Plata, where he was a member of the Peronist Youth organization. In 1975 he married Cristina Fernández, a fellow law student. Following

Freda Kirchwey was an American editor and publisher, remembered for her long association with the liberal magazine The Nation. Kirchwey was the daughter of a Columbia University Law School professor and dean and later (1915–16) warden of Sing Sing State Prison (now Ossining Correctional Facility).

Jacob Kirkman was an Alsatian-born British harpsichord maker and member of a large family of instrument builders active into the 19th century. Kirkman was trained as a cabinetmaker and went to England in the early 1730s to work for an obscure immigrant Flemish harpsichord maker in London. He

Cameroon: Cultural life: …used as containers), and the Kirdi and the Matakam of the western mountains produce distinctive types of pottery. The powerful masks of the Bali, which represent elephants’ heads, are used in ceremonies for the dead, and the statuettes of the Bamileke are carved in human and animal figures. The Tikar…

Ivan Vasilyevich Kireyevsky was a philosopher, critic, and writer who was one of the leading ideologists of the Slavophile intellectual movement in Russia. Born into an aristocratic family, Kireyevsky studied metaphysics in Germany in 1830. Upon his return to Russia he founded in 1832 a literary

Lena River: Physiography: …as far as the tributary Kirenga River. Below the mouth of the Kirenga, water depth in the pools increases to 30 feet (9 metres), and the decreasing gradient reduces the rate of flow. In the middle course, from the mouth of the Vitim to the Aldan, the Lena becomes a…

Ivan Vasilyevich Kireyevsky was a philosopher, critic, and writer who was one of the leading ideologists of the Slavophile intellectual movement in Russia. Born into an aristocratic family, Kireyevsky studied metaphysics in Germany in 1830. Upon his return to Russia he founded in 1832 a literary

Russia: Education and intellectual life: the brothers Ivan and Pyotr Kireyevsky, the brothers Konstantin and Ivan Aksakov, and Yury Samarin—were men of deep European culture and, with one exception, bitter opponents of serfdom. Indeed, as landowners they knew more about the problems and sufferings of the serfs than did many Westernizers. The leading Westernizers—Aleksandr

Kyrgyz, Turkic-speaking people of Central Asia, most of whom live in Kyrgyzstan. Small numbers reside in Afghanistan, in western China, and in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkey. The Kyrgyz language belongs to the Northwestern, or Kipchak, group of the Turkic languages, a subfamily of

Kyrgyz language, member of the Turkic subfamily of Altaic languages. It is spoken in Kyrgyzstan and in the Pamir Mountains on the border between Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and China. The language belongs to the northwestern, or Kipchak, division of the Turkic languages and is closely related to

Kyrgyzstan, country of Central Asia. It is bounded by Kazakhstan on the northwest and north, by China on the east and south, and by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on the south and west. Most of Kyrgyzstan’s borders run along mountain crests. The capital is Bishkek (known from 1862 to 1926 as Pishpek and

Kyrgyz, Turkic-speaking people of Central Asia, most of whom live in Kyrgyzstan. Small numbers reside in Afghanistan, in western China, and in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkey. The Kyrgyz language belongs to the Northwestern, or Kipchak, group of the Turkic languages, a subfamily of

Kyrgyz language, member of the Turkic subfamily of Altaic languages. It is spoken in Kyrgyzstan and in the Pamir Mountains on the border between Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and China. The language belongs to the northwestern, or Kipchak, division of the Turkic languages and is closely related to

Kyrgyz Ala Range, mountain range in Central Asia. A western spur of the Tien Shan (“Heavenly Mountains”) system, the range extends westward for approximately 230 miles (370 km) from the Chu River to the Talas River, just east of the city of Taraz, Kazakh. It rises to a height of 15,994 feet (4,875

Kyrgyzstan, country of Central Asia. It is bounded by Kazakhstan on the northwest and north, by China on the east and south, and by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on the south and west. Most of Kyrgyzstan’s borders run along mountain crests. The capital is Bishkek (known from 1862 to 1926 as Pishpek and

Kyrgyzstan, country of Central Asia. It is bounded by Kazakhstan on the northwest and north, by China on the east and south, and by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on the south and west. Most of Kyrgyzstan’s borders run along mountain crests. The capital is Bishkek (known from 1862 to 1926 as Pishpek and

Noh theatre: …and the fifth type, the kiri or kichiku (“final” or “demon”) play, features devils, strange beasts, and supernatural beings. A typical Noh play is relatively short. Its dialogue is sparse, serving as a mere frame for the movement and music. A standard Noh program consists of three plays selected from…

Kiriath-sepher, ancient town of Palestine, located near Hebron in the West Bank. According to the Bible, the town was taken from the Canaanites either by Caleb’s son-in-law Othniel or by Joshua himself. Tall Bayt Mirsham (Tell Beit Mirsim) was excavated (1926–32) by W.F. Albright, who uncovered

Kiribati, island country in the central Pacific Ocean. The 33 islands of Kiribati, of which only 20 are inhabited, are scattered over a vast area of ocean. Kiribati extends 1,800 miles (2,900 km) eastward from the 16 Gilbert Islands, where the population is concentrated, to the Line Islands, of

national flag consisting of six wavy horizontal stripes of white and blue beneath a red field bearing a yellow bird and sun. The flag’s width-to-length ratio is 1 to 2.The British acquired extensive colonies and protectorates in the Pacific Ocean during the 19th century, including the Gilbert

history of Kiribati, a survey of notable events and people in the history of Kiribati (an island country in the central Pacific Ocean). The 33 islands of Kiribati, of which only 20 are inhabited, are scattered over a vast area of ocean. Kiribati extends 1,800 miles (2,900 km) eastward from the 16

Kiribati, island country in the central Pacific Ocean. The 33 islands of Kiribati, of which only 20 are inhabited, are scattered over a vast area of ocean. Kiribati extends 1,800 miles (2,900 km) eastward from the 16 Gilbert Islands, where the population is concentrated, to the Line Islands, of

Crete, island in the eastern Mediterranean Sea that is one of 13 administrative regions (periféreies) of Greece. Crete is the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean and the largest of the islands forming part of modern Greece. It is relatively long and narrow, stretching for 160 miles (260 km)

Sri Lanka: Relief: … at 8,281 feet (2,524 metres), Kirigalpotta at 7,858 feet, and Adam’s Peak (Sri Pada) at 7,559 feet—are found in this area. The highlands, except on their western and southwestern flanks, are sharply defined by a series of escarpments, the most spectacular being the so-called World’s End, a near-vertical precipice of…

Martyrs of Uganda: …June 3, 1886: Ambrose Kibuka, Anatole Kiriggwajjo, Achilles Kiwanuka, Mugagga, Mukasa Kiriwawanvu, Adolphus Mukasa Ludigo, Gyavira, and Kizito. The soldiers and officials Bruno Serunkuma, James Buzabaliawo, and Luke Banabakintu

crazy quilt: Sixteenth-century Japanese kirihame kimonos include crazy piecing. An 1839 cotton crazy-pieced Kaleidoscope quilt is owned by the Maryland Historical Society; like other early cotton crazies, including an 1872 example in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, it features little or no embroidery.

kirikane, in Japanese art, decorative technique used for Buddhist paintings and wooden statues and for lacquerwork. The technique used for paintings and statues employs gold or silver foil cut into thin strips or minute triangular or square pieces, which are laid on designs painted in with glue.

Kırıkkale, town, central Turkey. It lies on the rail line between Ankara and Kayseri, near the Kızıl River. Kırıkkale, which was formerly a village, owes its rapid rise in population mainly to the establishment of steel mills in the 1950s. Those works, among the largest in the country, specialize

Kirill I is the Russian Orthodox Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia from 2009. Gundyaev took the monastic name Kirill in 1969 while a seminarian. He graduated in 1970 from Leningrad Theological Academy, where he served as lecturer in dogmatic theology for one year. In 1971 Kirill was appointed

Saint Sergius of Radonezh was a Russian Orthodox monk whose spiritual doctrine and social programs made him one of Russia’s most respected spiritual leaders. His monastery of the Trinity became the Russian centre and symbol of religious renewal and national identity. He was tonsured a monk in 1337

Jilin, city, central Jilin province (sheng), northeastern China. It is a prefecture-level municipality (shi) whose territory was enlarged in the early 1970s to encompass the former Yongji prefecture. Situated on the left bank of the upper Sungari (Songhua) River, it lies among surrounding hills

Jilin, sheng (province) of the Northeast region of China (formerly called Manchuria). It borders Russia to the east, North Korea to the southeast, the Chinese provinces of Liaoning to the south and Heilongjiang to the north, and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to the west. The capital is

Kyrenia, city, situated along the northern coast of Cyprus, in the Turkish Cypriot-administered area. Founded by the Achaeans, ancient Greek colonists, and fortified by the Byzantines, Franks, and Venetians, the city was the administrative headquarters of the Kyrenia district of the Republic of

Mount Kenya, volcano, central Kenya, lying immediately south of the Equator. It is the second highest mountain in Africa after Kilimanjaro, which is located some 200 miles (320 km) to the south. The Mount Kenya area was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1997. The base of the mountain lies at

Kirishima-Yaku National Park, national park in southern Kyushu island, Japan, centring on the Kirishimayama volcanic group, consisting of 23 volcanoes, 15 craters, and 10 caldera lakes. The two major peaks are the volcanic Karakunidake (5,578 feet [1,700 m]) and Takachihonomine (5,164 feet [1,574

Kirishima-Yaku National Park, national park in southern Kyushu island, Japan, centring on the Kirishimayama volcanic group, consisting of 23 volcanoes, 15 craters, and 10 caldera lakes. The two major peaks are the volcanic Karakunidake (5,578 feet [1,700 m]) and Takachihonomine (5,164 feet [1,574

Kirishitan, (from Portuguese cristão, “Christian”), in Japanese history, a Japanese Christian or Japanese Christianity, specifically relating to Roman Catholic missionaries and converts in 16th- and 17th-century Japan. Modern Japanese Christianity is known as Kirisuto-kyō. Christian missionaries

Kiritimati Atoll, coral island in the Northern Line Islands, part of Kiribati, in the west-central Pacific Ocean. It is the largest island of purely coral formation in the world, having a circumference of about 100 miles (160 km). Kiritimati Atoll was sighted on Christmas Eve in 1777 by the English

Martyrs of Uganda: Achilles Kiwanuka, Mugagga, Mukasa Kiriwawanvu, Adolphus Mukasa Ludigo, Gyavira, and Kizito. The soldiers and officials Bruno Serunkuma, James Buzabaliawo, and Luke Banabakintu were martyred with them.

Oceanic art and architecture: The Massim area: …Kiriwina, the largest of the Trobriand Islands.

Trobriand Islands, coral formations in the Solomon Sea of the southwestern Pacific, Papua New Guinea, 90 miles (145 km) north of the southeasternmost extension of the island of New Guinea. The low-lying group of 28 islands, all of coralline limestone and many fringed by coral reefs, comprises four

Kırklareli, city, northwestern (European) Turkey. It lies in the foothills of the Yıldız (Istranca) Mountains. Formerly called Kırk Kılıse (“Forty Churches”), it developed chiefly because of its position on the shortest route over the mountains from the north to Istanbul, 100 miles (160 km)

Kirk Range, plateau in southwestern Malaŵi, extending in a north-south direction and skirting the southwestern shore of Lake Nyasa and the western border of the Shire River valley. The northern scarp overlooks the Central Region Plateau, while the southern limits merge into the lower Shire

dik-dik: Kirk’s dik-dik (M. kirkii), the best-known dik-dik, is a common resident of acacia savannas in Kenya and Tanzania. Guenther’s and Kirk’s dik-diks overlap in Kenya. An isolated population of Kirk’s dik-dik, different enough genetically to be considered a different species, inhabits Namibia.

Alan Goodrich Kirk was a U.S. naval officer who commanded successful amphibious landings in Sicily and Normandy during World War II; he later served in important diplomatic posts. Early in World War II, Kirk, a graduate (1909) of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md., became chief of staff for

Kansas City style: Young; bassist-bandleader Walter Page; saxophonist-bandleader Andy Kirk; and pianist-bandleaders Bennie Moten, Jay McShann, and Count Basie.

myth: Folktales: …taken by the British Classicist Geoffrey S. Kirk, who in Myth: Its Meaning and Functions in Ancient and Other Cultures (1970) uses the term myth to denote stories with an underlying purpose beyond that of simple story-telling and the term folktale to denote stories that reflect simple social situations and…

Leonard Nimoy: James T. Kirk (played by William Shatner). Though Star Trek ran only from 1966 to 1969, the show developed an extraordinarily devoted following.

Mark Kirk is an American politician who was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate in 2010 and represented Illinois from 2011 to 2017. He previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives (2001–10). Kirk attended the National Autonomous University of Mexico in Mexico City before graduating

Mark Kirk is an American politician who was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate in 2010 and represented Illinois from 2011 to 2017. He previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives (2001–10). Kirk attended the National Autonomous University of Mexico in Mexico City before graduating

Norman Eric Kirk was the prime minister and minister of foreign affairs of New Zealand (1972–74). A cabinetmaker’s son, Kirk ended his formal education in primary school and held such jobs as apprentice fitter and turner and as foreman with the Railways Department. He joined the New Zealand Labour

libertarianism: Criticism: The American philosopher Russell Kirk, for example, argued that libertarians “bear no authority, temporal or spiritual,” and do not “venerate ancient beliefs and customs, or the natural world, or [their] country, or the immortal spark in [their] fellow men.” Libertarians respond that they do venerate the ancient traditions…

Sir John Kirk was a Scottish physician, companion to explorer David Livingstone, and a British administrator in Zanzibar. The son of a clergyman, Kirk studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh, served on the civil medical staff in the Crimean War, and was appointed in February 1858 physician

William Kirkcaldy was a Scottish soldier, a leader of Scotland’s Protestants in the reign of the Roman Catholic queen Mary Stuart. Kirkcaldy was one of the Protestant conspirators who murdered the powerful cardinal David Beaton at St. Andrews Castle in May 1546. From 1550 to 1556 he served in

Thomas Story Kirkbride: …be known collectively as the Kirkbride Plan, called for a main central building with wings, arranged in a linear manner, projecting from it. The plan also called for size limitations of no more than 250 residents (a principle later largely disregarded), with an ample, open campus surrounded by a large…

Thomas Story Kirkbride was an American psychiatrist and administrator best known for his influential ideas about the design and construction of hospitals for the mentally ill. Kirkbride was born to a Quaker family. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School in 1832. For a year

Kirkcaldy, town and seaport, Fife council area and historic county, eastern Scotland, on the north shore of the Firth of Forth. First developed by Dunfermline Abbey nearby, Kirkcaldy was a flourishing port during the later Middle Ages. It was designated a royal burgh in 1450, and the royal charter

William Kirkcaldy was a Scottish soldier, a leader of Scotland’s Protestants in the reign of the Roman Catholic queen Mary Stuart. Kirkcaldy was one of the Protestant conspirators who murdered the powerful cardinal David Beaton at St. Andrews Castle in May 1546. From 1550 to 1556 he served in

William Kirkcaldy was a Scottish soldier, a leader of Scotland’s Protestants in the reign of the Roman Catholic queen Mary Stuart. Kirkcaldy was one of the Protestant conspirators who murdered the powerful cardinal David Beaton at St. Andrews Castle in May 1546. From 1550 to 1556 he served in

Kirkcudbrightshire, historic county, southwestern Scotland. It lies entirely within Dumfries and Galloway council area. Kirkcudbrightshire forms the eastern portion of the historic province of Galloway. It encompasses the shores of the Solway Firth and Irish Sea between the Rivers Nith and Cree and

Kirkcudbright, town and royal burgh (1455), Dumfries and Galloway council area, historic county of Kirkcudbrightshire, southwestern Scotland, 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Dumfries in the Galloway region. It guards the lowest crossing of the River Dee, 6 miles (10 km) from the Irish Sea, and is a

Kirkcudbrightshire, historic county, southwestern Scotland. It lies entirely within Dumfries and Galloway council area. Kirkcudbrightshire forms the eastern portion of the historic province of Galloway. It encompasses the shores of the Solway Firth and Irish Sea between the Rivers Nith and Cree and

Canada: The Company of New France: …gave a pretext for the Kirke brothers, English adventurers who had connections in France with Huguenot competitors of the Hundred Associates, to blockade the St. Lawrence in 1628 and to capture Quebec in 1629. For three years the fur trade was in the hands of the Kirkes and their French…

Ferryland: Sir David Kirke, count palatine of the island, took over the village (1638) and established his headquarters there. Ferryland now is a quiet fishing community and a government fish-bait depot, catering to visitors who are attracted by its historic past, including the ruins of its…

Mountstuart Elphinstone: …against British rule at the Battle of Kirkee (November 1817), though the residency at Pune and Elphinstone’s notes for future literary works were burned.

Icelandic literature: Prose: Cot”); Gunnar Gunnarsson, whose Kirken på bjerget (1923–28; “The Church on the Mountain”) was written in Danish; and Guðmundur G. Hagalín, known for such novels as Kristrún í Hamravík (1933; “Kristrún in Hamravík”). The outstanding modern prose writer was Halldór Laxness, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature…

N.F.S. Grundtvig: …church controversy when in his Kirkens gienmæle (“The Church’s Reply”) he accused the theologian H.N. Clausen of treating Christianity as merely a philosophical idea. Grundtvig maintained that Christianity was a historical revelation, handed down by the unbroken chain of a living sacramental tradition at baptism and communion. His writings were…

canals and inland waterways: Boat lifts: …lift locks were constructed at Kirkfield and Peterborough in Ontario, Canada; the latter, completed in 1904, has a lift of nearly 20 metres (65 feet). Float lifts were constructed in 1899 at Henrichenburg, Germany, for 600-ton vessels and in 1938 at Magdeburg, Germany, for 1,000-ton vessels, and in 1962 a…

Fylde: Kirkham, an old market town in the centre of the borough, contains the ruins of an abbey founded in 1125 for Augustinian canons by Walter L’Espec, Henry I’s itinerant justice in the north. Kirkham was formerly a centre of the flax industry, and sails made…

Kirkintilloch, burgh (town), East Dunbartonshire council area, historic county of Dunbartonshire, west-central Scotland, on the northeastern periphery of the metropolitan area of Glasgow. It is situated on the Forth and Clyde Canal, and the River Kelvin flows past the town. There was a Roman fort

Kirkland Lake, town, Timiskaming district, eastern Ontario, Canada. It is situated 125 miles (200 km) north-northwest of North Bay. Since the discovery of gold in the vicinity in 1911, at the time of the construction of the Ontario Northland Railway, the town has grown to become one of Canada’s

Joseph Kirkland was an American novelist whose only work, a trilogy of Midwestern pioneer life, contributed to the development of realistic fiction. Kirkland, who readily acknowledged his indebtedness to the English realist Thomas Hardy, was also affected by his own personal experiences as a

Lane Kirkland was an American labour union leader who was president of the American Federation of Labor–Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) from 1979 to 1995. Kirkland graduated from the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 1942 and then served as an officer on American merchant

Lane Kirkland was an American labour union leader who was president of the American Federation of Labor–Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) from 1979 to 1995. Kirkland graduated from the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 1942 and then served as an officer on American merchant

Samuel Kirkland was a Congregational minister to the Iroquois Confederacy and negotiator of the Oneida Alliance with the colonists during the American Revolution (1775–83). While still a student at Princeton, Kirkland began his wilderness treks on snowshoes to preach to the Indians. Gradually he

Kırklareli, city, northwestern (European) Turkey. It lies in the foothills of the Yıldız (Istranca) Mountains. Formerly called Kırk Kılıse (“Forty Churches”), it developed chiefly because of its position on the shortest route over the mountains from the north to Istanbul, 100 miles (160 km)

Kirklees, metropolitan borough, metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, historic county of Yorkshire, northern England. It takes its name from Kirklees Hall (17th century), whose estate houses a small Cistercian priory (1155) and the reputed grave of Robin Hood. The borough includes the towns of

combinatorics: BIB (balanced incomplete block) designs: Kirkman as a recreational problem. There are υ girls in a class. Their teacher wants to take the class out for a walk for a number of days, the girls marching abreast in triplets. It is required to arrange the walk so that any two girls march abreast in…

Jacob Kirkman was an Alsatian-born British harpsichord maker and member of a large family of instrument builders active into the 19th century. Kirkman was trained as a cabinetmaker and went to England in the early 1730s to work for an obscure immigrant Flemish harpsichord maker in London. He

combinatorics: BIB (balanced incomplete block) designs: …century by the British mathematician T.P. Kirkman as a recreational problem. There are υ girls in a class. Their teacher wants to take the class out for a walk for a number of days, the girls marching abreast in triplets. It is required to arrange the walk so that any…

Slim Dusty was an Australian country music singer and songwriter who epitomized an idealized image of rural Australia—a working stockman with his trademark cowboy hat, acoustic guitar, and vast repertoire of Aussie “bush ballads”—and came to be regarded as a cultural icon. He grew up on a dairy

Jeane Kirkpatrick was an American political scientist and diplomat, who was a foreign policy adviser under U.S. Pres. Ronald Reagan and the first American woman to serve as ambassador to the United Nations (1981–85). Kirkpatrick took an associate’s degree from Stephens College, Columbia, Missouri

Ralph Kirkpatrick was an American musicologist and one of the most influential harpsichordists of the 20th century. Kirkpatrick studied piano from age six and began to play harpsichord in 1930. He graduated from Harvard University in 1931 and then went to Paris to continue his studies. His teachers

Ralph Kirkpatrick was an American musicologist and one of the most influential harpsichordists of the 20th century. Kirkpatrick studied piano from age six and began to play harpsichord in 1930. He graduated from Harvard University in 1931 and then went to Paris to continue his studies. His teachers

Kirksville, city, seat of Adair county, northeastern Missouri, U.S., about 90 miles (145 km) north of Columbia, near the Chariton River. Founded about 1841 as the county seat, it was known as Long Point and Hopkinsville before being renamed for Jesse Kirk, an early resident. A minor American Civil

Kirkūk, city, capital of Kirkūk muḥāfaẓah (governorate), northeastern Iraq. The city is 145 miles (233 km) north of Baghdad, the national capital, with which it is linked by road and railway. Kirkūk is located near the foot of the Zagros Mountains in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The oldest part of

Virginia Kirkus: …original book review for booksellers, Kirkus Reviews.

Virginia Kirkus was an American critic, editor, and writer, remembered for her original book review for booksellers, Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus attended private schools and in 1916 graduated from Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York. After taking courses at Columbia University Teachers College, New

Kirkwall, royal burgh (town), seaport, and chief town of the Orkney Islands, Scotland, off the northern tip of the Scottish mainland. It was designated a royal burgh in 1486. Early Norse influence persisted as late as the building of the 12th-century red sandstone St. Magnus Cathedral, a dominant

Kirkwood gaps, interruptions that appear in the distribution of asteroid semimajor axes where the orbital period of any small body present would be a simple fraction of that of Jupiter. Several zones of low density in the minor-planet population were noticed about 1860 by Daniel Kirkwood, an

Kirkwood gaps: …were noticed about 1860 by Daniel Kirkwood, an American mathematician and astronomer, who explained the gaps as resulting from perturbations by Jupiter. An object that revolved around the Sun in one of the gaps would be disturbed regularly by Jupiter’s gravitational pull and eventually moved to another orbit. Some of…

James Kirkwood was an American librettist, actor, author, and playwright who, together with Nicholas Dante, wrote the text for the Broadway musical A Chorus Line (1975), which in 1983 became the longest-running musical in the history of Broadway. It held the record until 1997, when it was surpassed

Kermān, city, provincial capital, and ostān (province), southeastern Iran. The city lies on a sandy plain, 5,738 feet (1,749 metres) above sea level, under barren rocky hills. Surrounded by mountains on the north and east, it has a cool climate and frequent sandstorms in the autumn and spring. The

Kermān carpet, floor covering handwoven in or about the city of Kermān in southern Iran, which has been the origin since the 16th century of highly sophisticated carpets in well-organized designs. To this city is now generally attributed a wide variety of 16th- and 17th-century carpets, including

Kirov, oblast (region), western Russia. The oblast occupies almost the entire basin of the Vyatka River. It is a rolling morainic plain rising from the broad, central valley of the Vyatka to the dissected limestone uplands of the Severnye Hills in the north and the Vyatsky Hills and Verkhne (Upper)

Kirov, city and administrative centre of Kirov oblast (region), western Russia, on the Vyatka River. The city was founded as Khlynov in 1181 by traders from Novgorod and became the centre of the “Vyatka Lands,” settled by Russians in the 14th to the 15th century. In 1489 it was captured by Moscow.

Mariinsky Ballet, prominent Russian ballet company, part of the Mariinsky Theatre of Opera and Ballet in St. Petersburg. Its traditions, deriving from its predecessor, the Imperial Russian Ballet, are based on the work of such leading 19th-century choreographers as Jules Perrot, Arthur Saint-Léon,

Mariinsky Theatre, Russian imperial theatre in St. Petersburg. The theatre opened in 1860 and was named for Maria Aleksandrovna, wife of the reigning tsar. Ballet was not performed there until 1880 and was presented regularly only after 1889, when the Imperial Russian Ballet became its resident

Mariinsky Theatre, Russian imperial theatre in St. Petersburg. The theatre opened in 1860 and was named for Maria Aleksandrovna, wife of the reigning tsar. Ballet was not performed there until 1880 and was presented regularly only after 1889, when the Imperial Russian Ballet became its resident

Sergei Kirov was a Russian Communist leader whose assassination marked the beginning of the Great Purge in the Soviet Union (1934–38). A Bolshevik Party member and organizer, Kirov was arrested several times for his revolutionary activities before the October Revolution (1917) placed the Bolsheviks