title: Shechem

text: In the Amarna Letters of about 1350 BCE, "Šakmu" (i.e., Shechem) was the center of a kingdom carved out by Labaya (or Labayu), a Canaanite warlord who recruited mercenaries from among the Habiru. Labaya was the author of three Amarna letters (EA 252, EA 253, and EA 254), and his name appears in 11 of the other 382 letters, referred to 28 times, with the basic topic of the letter, being Labaya himself, and his relationship with the rebelling, countryside Habiru.


title: Shechem

text: Shechem may be identical to the "Sakama" mentioned in an account dated to the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt (around 1200 BCE). (See Papyrus Anastasi I).


title: Shechem

text: During the partial exile of the Kingdom of Judea by Nebuchadnezzar from 606 to 536 BCE, those Judeans who remained in Eretz Israel reestablished the altar at Shechem to keep the worship system of Judaism going when access to Jerusalem was cut off.


title: Shechem

text: During the Hellenistic and Roman periods, Shechem was the main settlement of the Samaritans, whose religious center stood on Mount Gerizim, just outside the town. In 6 CE, Shechem was annexed to the Roman Province of Judea. Of the Samaritans of Sichem not a few rose up in arms on Mt. Gerizim at the time of the Galilean rebellion (67 CE), which was part of the First Jewish–Roman War. The city was very likely destroyed by Sextus Vettulenus Cerialis


title: Shechem

text: In 72 CE, a new city, Flavia Neapolis, was built by Vespasian to the west of the old one. This city's name was eventually corrupted to the modern Nablus. Josephus, writing in about 90 CE ("Jewish Antiquities" 4.8.44), placed the city between Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal. Elsewhere he refers to it as Neapolis.


title: Shechem

text: Like Shechem, Neapolis had a very early Christian community, including the early saint Justin Martyr; we hear even of bishops of Neapolis. On several occasions the Christians suffered greatly at the hands of the Samaritans. In 474 the emperor, to avenge what Christians considered an unjust attack by the Samaritans, deprived the latter of Mt. Gerizim and gave it to the Christians, who built on it a church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin.


title: Shechem

text: The city of Nablus was Islamicized in the Abbasid and Ottoman periods. In 1903 near Nablus, a German party of archaeologists led by Dr. Hermann Thiersch stumbled upon the site called Tell Balata and now identified as ancient Shechem. Nablus is still referred to as Shechem by Israeli Hebrew speakers, even though the original site of Shechem lies east of the modern-day city.


title: Shechem

text: Shechem first appears in the Hebrew Bible in Genesis 12:6–8, which says that Abraham reached the "great tree of Moreh" at Shechem and offered sacrifice nearby. Genesis, Deuteronomy, Joshua and Judges hallow Shechem over all other cities of the land of Israel. According to Genesis (12:6–7) Abram "built an altar to the Lord who had appeared to him… and had given that land to his descendants" at Shechem. The Bible states that on this occasion, God confirmed the covenant he had first made with Abraham in Harran, regarding the possession of the land of Canaan. In Jewish tradition, the old name was understood in terms of the Hebrew word "shékém" – "shoulder, saddle", corresponding to the mountainous configuration of the place.


title: Shechem

text: On a later sojourn, two sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, avenged their sister Dinah's rape by "Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, the prince of the land" of Shechem. Shimon and Levi said to the Shechemites that, if "every male among you is circumcised, then we will give our daughters to you and take your daughters to ourselves." Once the Shechemites agree to the mass circumcision, however, Jacob's sons repay them by killing all of the city's male inhabitants.


title: Shechem

text: Following the settlement of the Israelites in Canaan after their Exodus from Egypt, according to the biblical narrative, Joshua assembled the Israelites at Shechem and asked them to choose between serving the GOD of Abraham who had delivered them from Egypt, or the false gods which their ancestors had served on the other side of the Euphrates River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land they now lived. The people chose to serve the GOD of the Bible, a decision which Joshua recorded in the Book of the Law of God, and he then erected a memorial stone "under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord" in Shechem. The oak is associated with the Oak of Moreh where Abram had set up camp during his travels in this area.


title: Shechem

text: Owing to its central position, no less than to the presence in the neighborhood of places hallowed by the memory of Abraham (Genesis 12:6, 7; 34:5), Jacob's Well (Genesis 33:18–19; 34:2, etc.), and Joseph's tomb (Joshua 24:32), the city was destined to play an important part in the history of Israel. Jerubbaal (Gideon), whose home was at Ophrah, visited Shechem, and his concubine who lived there was mother of his son Abimelech (Judges 8:31). She came from one of the leading Shechemite families who were influential with the "Lords of Shechem" (Judges 9:1–3, wording of the New Revised Standard Version and New American Bible Revised Edition).


title: Shechem

text: After Gideon's death, Abimelech was made king (Judges 9:1–45). Jotham, the youngest son of Gideon, made an allegorical speech on Mount Gerizim in which he warned the people of Shechem about Abimelech's future tyranny (Judges 9:7–20). When the city rose in rebellion three years later, Abimelech took it, utterly destroyed it, and burnt the temple of Baal-berith where the people had fled for safety. The city was rebuilt in the 10th century BC and was probably the capital of Ephraim (1 Kings 4). Shechem was the place appointed, after Solomon's death, for the meeting of the people of Israel and the investiture of his son Rehoboam as king; the meeting ended in the secession of the ten northern tribes, and Shechem, fortified by Jeroboam, became the capital of the new kingdom (1 Kings 12:1; 14:17; 2 Chronicles 10:1).


title: Shechem

text: After the kings of Israel moved, first to Tirzah () and later on to Samaria, Shechem lost its importance, and we do not hear of it until after the fall of Jerusalem (587 BC; ). The events connected with the restoration were to bring it again into prominence. When, on his second visit to Jerusalem, Nehemiah expelled the grandson of the high priest Eliashib (probably the Manasse of Josephus, "Antiquities", XI, vii, viii) and with him the many Jews, priests and laymen, who sided with the rebel, these betook themselves to Shechem; a schismatic temple was then erected on Mount Garizim and thus Shechem became the "holy city" of the Samaritans. The latter, who were left unmolested while the orthodox Jews were chafing under the heavy hand of Antiochus IV ("Antiquities", XII, v, 5, see also Antinomianism in the Books of the Maccabees) and welcomed with open arms every renegade who came to them from Jerusalem (Antiq., XI, viii, 7), fell about 128 BC before John Hyrcanus, and their temple was destroyed ("Antiquities", XIII, ix, 1).


title: Shechem

text: It is not known whether the Samaritan city of Sychar (, "Sykhar") in the Gospel of John ( refers to Shechem or to another nearby village: "So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph."


title: Shechem

text: Some of the inhabitants of Sychar were "Samaritans" who believed in Jesus when he tarried two days in the neighborhood (). Sychar and/or Shechem city must have been visited by the Apostles on their way from Samaria to Jerusalem ().(


title: Tai peoples

text: Tai peoples are the populations who speak (or formerly spoke) the Tai languages. There are a total of about 93 million people of Tai ancestry worldwide, with the largest ethnic groups being Dai, Thais, Isan, Tai Yai, Lao, Tai Ahom, and Northern Thai peoples.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Tai are scattered through much of South China and Mainland Southeast Asia, with some ("e.g." Tai Ahom, Tai Khamti, Tai Phake, Tai Aiton) inhabiting parts of Northeast India. Tai peoples are both culturally and genetically very similar and therefore primarily identified through their language.


title: Tai peoples

text: Speakers of the many languages in the Tai branch of the Tai–Kadai language family are spread over many countries in Southern China, Indochina and Northeast India. Unsurprisingly, there are many terms used to describe the distinct Tai peoples of these regions.


title: Tai peoples

text: According to Michel Ferlus, the ethnonyms Tai/Thai (or Tay/Thay) would have evolved from the etymon *k(ə)ri: 'human being' through the following chain: kəri: > kəli: > kədi:/kədaj (-l- > -d- shift in tense sesquisyllables and probable diphthongization of -i: > -aj). This in turn changed to di:/daj (presyllabic truncation and probable diphthongization -i: > -aj). And then to *daj (Proto-Southwestern Tai) > tʰaj (in Siamese and Lao) or > taj (in the other Southwestern and Central Tai languages by Li Fangkuei). Michel Ferlus' work is based on some simple rules of phonetic change observable in the Sinosphere and studied for the most part by William H. Baxter (1992).


title: Tai peoples

text: The ethnonym and autonym of the Lao people (lǎo 獠) together with the ethnonym Gelao (Gēlǎo 仡佬), a Kra population scattered from Guìzhōu (China) to North Vietnam, and Sino-Vietnamese 'Jiao' as in Jiaozhi (jiāo zhǐ 交趾), the name of North Vietnam given by the ancient Chinese, would have emerged from the Austro-Asiatic *k(ə)ra:w 'human being'.


title: Tai peoples

text: The etymon *k(ə)ra:w would have also yielded the ethnonym Keo/ Kæw "kɛːw", a name given to the Vietnamese by Tai speaking peoples, currently slightly derogatory. In fact, Keo/ Kæw "kɛːw" was an exonym used to refer to Tai speaking peoples, as in the epic poem of Thao Cheuang, and was only later applied to the Vietnamese. In Pupeo (Kra branch), "kew" is used to name the Tay (Central Tai) of North Vietnam.


title: Tai peoples

text: The name "Lao" is used almost exclusively by the majority population of Laos, the Lao people, and two of the three other members of the Lao-Phutai subfamily of Southwestern Tai: Isan speakers (occasionally), the Nyaw or Yaw and the Phu Thai.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Zhuang in China do not constitute an autonymic unity: in various areas in Guangxi they refer to themselves as "pow" "ɕu:ŋ", "pʰo" "tʰaj", "pow" "ma:n", "pow" "ba:n", or "pow" "law", while those in Yunnan use the following autonyms: "pu" "noŋ", "bu" "daj", or "bu" "jaj" (=Bouyei, bùyi 布依). The Zhuang do not constitute a linguistic unity either, because Chinese authorities include within this group some distinct ethnic groups such as the Lachi speaking a Kra language.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Nung living on both sides of the Sino-Vietnamese border have their ethnonym derived from clan name "Nong" (儂 / 侬), whose bearers dominated what are now north Vietnam and Guangxi in the 11th century AD. In 1038, a Nong general named Nong Quanfu established a Nung state in Cao Bang, however was quickly annexed by Annamite king Ly Thai Tong in the next year. In 1048, Quanfu's son Nong Zhigao revolted against Annamese rule, and then marched eastwards to besiege Guangzhou in 1052.


title: Tai peoples

text: Another name that's shared between the Nung, the Tay, and the Zhuang living along the Sino-Vietnamese border is "Tho", which literally means "autochthonous". However, this term was also applied to the Tho people, who are a separate group of indigenous speakers of Vietic languages, who have come under the influence of Tai culture


title: Tai peoples

text: Comparative linguistic research seems to indicate that the Tai people were a proto-Tai–Kadai-speaking culture of southern China. Like the Malayo-Polynesians, they may originally have been of Austronesian descent. Prior to living in mainland China, Tai-Kadai peoples are thought to have migrated from a homeland on the island of Taiwan, where they spoke a dialect of proto-Austronesian or one of its descendant languages. Unlike the Malayo-Polynesian group who later sailed south to the Philippines and other parts of maritime Southeast Asia, the ancestors of the modern Tai-Kadai people sailed west to mainland China and possibly traveled along the Pearl River, where their language greatly changed from other Austronesian languages under the influence of Sino-Tibetan and Hmong–Mien language infusion. Aside from linguistic evidence, the connection between Austronesian and Tai-Kadai can also be found in some common cultural practices. Roger Blench (2008) demonstrates that dental evulsion, face tattooing, teeth blackening and snake cults are shared between the Taiwanese Austronesians and the Tai-Kadai peoples of Southern China.


title: Tai peoples

text: James R. Chamberlain (2016) proposes that the Tai-Kadai (Kra-Dai) language family was formed as early as the 12th century BCE in the middle of the Yangtze basin, coinciding roughly with the establishment of the Chu state and the beginning of the Zhou dynasty. Following the southward migrations of Kra and Hlai (Rei/Li) peoples around the 8th century BCE, the Yue (Be-Tai people) started to break away and move to the east coast in the present-day Zhejiang province, in the 6th century BCE, forming the state of Yue and conquering the state of Wu shortly thereafter. According to Chamberlain, Yue people (Be-Tai) began to migrate southwards along the east coast of China to what are now Guangxi, Guizhou and northern Vietnam, after Yue was conquered by Chu around 333 BCE. There the Yue (Be-Tai) formed the Luo Yue, which moved into Lingnan and Annam and then westward into northeastern Laos and Sip Song Chau Tai, and later became the Central-Southwestern Tai, followed by the Xi Ou, which became the Northern Tai).


title: Tai peoples

text: The Tai peoples, from Guangxi began moving south – and westwards in the first millennium CE, eventually spreading across the whole of mainland Southeast Asia. Based on layers of Chinese loanwords in proto-Southwestern Tai and other historical evidence, Pittayawat Pittayaporn (2014) proposes that the southwestward migration of southwestern Tai-speaking tribes from the modern Guangxi to the mainland of Southeast Asia must have taken place sometime between the 8th–10th centuries. Tai speaking tribes migrated southwestward along the rivers and over the lower passes into Southeast Asia, perhaps prompted by the Chinese expansion and suppression. Chinese historical texts record that, in 726 AD, hundreds of thousands "Lǎo" (獠) rose in revolt behind Liang Ta-hai in Guangdong, but was suppressed by Chinese general Yang Zixu, which left 20,000 rebels killed and beheaded. Two years later, another Li chief named Chen Xingfan declared himself the Emperor of Nanyue and led a large uprising against the Chinese, but was also crushed by Yang Zixu, who beheaded 60,000 rebels. In 756, another revolt led by Huang Chien-yao and Chen Ch'ung-yu that attracted 200,000 followers and lasted four years in Guangxi. In the 860s, many local people in what is now north Vietnam sided with attackers from Nanchao, and in the aftermath some 30,000 of them were beheaded. In the 1040s, a powerful matriarch-shamaness by the name of A Nong, her chiefly husband, and their son, Nong Zhigao, raised a revolt, took Nanning, besieged Guangzhou for fifty seven days, and slew the commanders of five Chinese armies sent against them before they were defeated, and many of their leaders were killed. The Ahomese Tai chronicle relates the migrating event with the arrival of "9,000 Tai peoples, 8 noblemen, two elephants, and 300 horses" to Assam. Vietnamese scribers recorded groups of two- or three thousand "Mang savages" passing by. According to Baker, those migrants might have slowly exodused from their homeland via three routes. The early groups moved north to Guizhou. The second groups might have passed through the Red River Delta, crossing the Vietnamese cordillera into the Mekong Valley. The third and major migration direction crossed the valleys of the Red and Black River, heading west through the hills into Burma and Assam.


title: Tai peoples

text: As a result of these three bloody centuries, or with the political and cultural pressures from the north, some Tai peoples migrated southwestward, where they met the classical Indianized civilizations of Southeast Asia. Du Yuting and Chen Lufan from Kunming Institute Southeast Asian Studies claimed that, during the Western Han dynasty, ancestors of the Tai people were known as Dianyue (in today Yunnan). Tai peoples migrated far and wide: by the Tang and Song periods, they were present from the Red River to the Salween River, from Baoshan to Jingdong. Du & Chen linked the ancestors of Thai people in modern-Thailand, in particular, to a 2nd-century Shan kingdom ("Shànguó" 撣國) mentioned in the Book of Later Han, which located the Shan kingdom "at the end of the boundaries of what is now Baoshan and Deihong Prefectures" and stated that Shan ambassadors came to the Han court from "beyond Yongchang" and "beyond Rinan". Additionally, Du & Chen rejected the proposal that the ancestors of Tai people migrated en masse southwestwards out of Yunnan only after the 1253 Mongol invasion of Dali. However, Luo et al. (2000) proposed that Proto-Tais originated most likely from Guangxi-Guizhou, not Yunnan nor the middle Yangtze river.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Tai migrants assimilated and intermarried with the indigenous Austroasiatic peoples or pushing them off to marginal areas, but their full expansion was halted by the Indian-influenced kingdoms of the Mon, Khmer and Cham, although the Khmer were the primary power in Southeast Asia by the time of the Tai migrations. The Tai formed small city-states known as "mueang" under Khmer suzerainty on the outskirts of the Khmer Empire, building the irrigation infrastructure and paddy fields for the wet-rice cultivation methods of the Tai people. Tai legends of Khun Borom, shared among various Southwestern Tai peoples of Southeast Asia, Greater Assam and Yunnan, concerns the first ruler of "Meuang Thaen", whose progeny go on to find the Tai dynasties that ruled over the various Tai "mueang".


title: Tai peoples

text: The Tais from the north gradually settled in the Chao Phraya valley from the tenth century onwards, in lands of the Dvaravati culture, assimilating the earlier Austroasiatic Mon and Khmer people, as well as coming into contact with the Khmer Empire. The Tais who came to the area of present-day Thailand were engulfed into the Theravada Buddhism of the Mon and the Hindu-Khmer culture and statecraft. Therefore, the Thai culture is a mixture of Tai traditions with Indic, Mon, and Khmer influences.


title: Tai peoples

text: The formidable political control exercised by the Khmer Empire extended not only over the centre of the Khmer province, where the majority of the population was Khmer, but also to outer border provinces likely populated by non-Khmer peoples—including areas to the north and northeast of modern Bangkok, the lower central plain and the upper Ping River in the Lamphun-Chiang Mai region. The Tai people were the predominant non-Khmer groups in the areas of central Thailand that formed the geographical periphery of the Khmer Empire. Some Tai groups were probably assimilated into the Khmer population. Historical records show that the Tai maintained their cultural distinctiveness, although their animist religion partially gave way to Buddhism. Tai historical documents note that the period of the Khmer Empire was one of great internal strife. During the 11th and 12th centuries, territories with a strong Tai presence, such as Lavo (in what is now north-central Thailand), resisted Khmer control.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Tai, from their new home in Southeast Asia, were influenced by the Khmer and the Mon and most importantly Buddhist India. The Tai kingdom of Lanna was founded in 1259 (in the north of modern Thailand). The Sukhothai Kingdom was founded in 1279 (in modern Thailand) and expanded eastward to take the city of "Chantaburi" and renamed it to "Vieng Chan Vieng Kham" (modern Vientiane) and northward to the city of "Muang Sua" which was taken in 1271 and renamed the city to "Xieng Dong Xieng Thong" or “City of Flame Trees beside the River Dong,” (modern Luang Prabang, Laos). The Tai peoples had firmly established control in areas to the northeast of the declining Khmer Empire. Following the death of the Sukhothai king Ram Khamhaeng, and internal disputes within the kingdom of Lanna, both "Vieng Chan Vieng Kham" (Vientiane) and "Xieng Dong Xieng Thong" (Luang Prabang) were independent city-states until the founding of the kingdom of Lan Xang in 1354. The Sukhothai Kingdom and later the Ayutthaya kingdom were established and "...conquered the Khmers of the upper and central Menam valley and greatly extended their territory."


title: Tai peoples

text: During the Ming dynasty in China, attempts were made to subjugate, control, tax, and settle ethnic Han along the lightly populated frontier of Yunnan with Southeast Asia (modern-day Burma, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam). This frontier region was inhabited by many small Tai chieftainships or states as well as other Tibeto-Burman and Mon–Khmer ethnic groups.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Ming Shi-lu records the relations between the Ming court in Beijing and the Tai-Yunnan frontier as well as Ming military actions and diplomacy along the frontier.


title: Tai peoples

text: The first communication between the Ming dynasty and Yunnan was in a formal "letter of instruction" using ritual language. Submission to the Ming was described as part of the cosmological order:


title: Tai peoples

text: The Mongol prince Basalawarmi ruled Yunnan under the Yuan dynasty from the capital in Kunming. He ruled indirectly over an ethnically diverse collection of small polities and chieftainships. The most powerful of these states was controlled by the Duan family who ruled over the area surrounding Dali.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Ming Shi-lu reports that envoys were sent to instruct the inhabitants of Yunnan in 1371. In 1372 the famous scholar Wang Wei offered terms of surrender to Yunnan as an envoy. The envoy Wang Wei was murdered in 1374 and another mission was sent in 1375. Once again the mission failed. A diplomatic mission was sent to Burma in 1374, but because Annam was at war with Champa the roads were blocked and the mission was recalled. By 1380 the Ming were no longer wording their communications as if Yunnan was a separate country. Initial gentle promptings were soon to be followed by military force.


title: Tai peoples

text: Tai languages spoken today use incredibly diverse scripts, from Chinese Characters to Abugida scripts. The high diversity of Kra–Dai languages in southern China possibly points to the origin of the Kra–Dai language family in southern China. The Tai branch moved south into Southeast Asia only around 1000 AD.


title: Tai peoples

text: Chinese epigraphic materials from Chu texts show clear substrate influence predominantly from Tai-Kadai, and a few items of Austroasiatic and Hmong-Mien origin.


title: Tai peoples

text: In a paper published in 2004, Linguist Laurent Sagart hypothesized that the proto-Tai–Kadai language originated as an Austronesian language that migrants carried from Taiwan to mainland China. Afterwards, the language was then heavily influenced by local languages from Sino-Tibetan, Hmong–Mien, or other families, borrowing much vocabulary and converging typologically. Later, Sagart (2008) introduces a numeral-based model of Austronesian phylogeny, in which Tai-Kadai is considered as a later form of "FATK", a branch of Austronesian belonging to subgroup "Puluqic" developed in Taiwan, whose speakers migrated back to the mainland, both to Guangdong, Hainan and northern Vietnam around the second half of the 3rd millennium BCE. Upon their arrival in this region, they underwent linguistic contact with an unknown population, resulting in a partial relexification of FATK vocabulary. On the other hand, Weera Ostapirat supports a coordinate relationship between Tai-Kadai and Austronesian, based on a number of phonological correspondences. The following are Tai-Kadai and Austronesian lexical items showing the genetic connection between these two language families:


title: Tai peoples

text: Tai people tend to have high frequencies of Y-DNA haplogroup O-M95 (including its O-M88 subclade, which also has been found with high frequency among Vietnamese and among Kuy people in Laos, where they are also known as Suy, Soai, or Souei, and Cambodia), moderate frequencies of Y-DNA haplogroup O-M122 (especially its O-M117 subclade, like speakers of Tibeto-Burman languages), and moderate to low frequencies of haplogroup O-M119. It is believed that the O-M119 Y-DNA haplogroup is associated with both the Austronesian people and the Tai. The prevalence of Y-DNA haplogroup O-M175 among Austronesian and Tai peoples suggests a common ancestry with speakers of the Austroasiatic, Sino-Tibetan, and Hmong–Mien languages some 30,000 years ago in China (Haplogroup O (Y-DNA)). Y-DNA haplogroup O-M95 is found at high frequency among most Tai peoples, which is a trait that they share with the neighboring ethnic Austroasiatic peoples as well as Austronesian peoples in Mainland Southeast Asia ("e.g." Cham in Bình Thuận Province of Vietnam, Jarai in Ratanakiri Province of Cambodia, Giarai and Ede in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam), Malaysia, Singapore, and western Indonesia. Y-DNA haplogroups O-M95, O-M119, and O-M122 all are subclades of O-M175, a genetic mutation that has been estimated to have originated approximately 40,000 years ago, somewhere in China.


title: Tai peoples

text: A recent genetic and linguistic analysis in 2015 showed great genetic homogeneity between Kra-Dai speaking people, suggesting a common ancestry and a large replacement of former non-Kra-Dai groups in Southeast Asia. Kra-Dai populations are closest to southern Chinese and Taiwanese populations.


title: Tai peoples

text: The Tai practice a type of feudal governance that is fundamentally different from that of the Han Chinese people, and is especially adapted to state formation in ethnically and linguistically diverse montane environments centered on valleys suitable for wet-rice cultivation. The form of society is a highly stratified one. The Tai lived in the lowland and river valleys of mainland Southeast Asia. Assorted ethnic and linguistic group lived in the hills. The Tai village consisted of nuclear families working as subsistence rice farmers, living in small houses elevated above the ground. Households bonded together for protection from external attacks and to share the burden of communal repairs and maintenance. Within the village, a council of elders was created to help settle problems, organise festivals and rites and manage the village. Village would combine to form a Mueang (), a group of villages governed by a Chao () (lord).


title: Tai peoples

text: In Burma, there are also various Tai peoples that are often categorized as part of a larger Shan ethnicity ("see Shan people#Tai groups").


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Jamnalal Kaniram Bajaj (4 November 1889 – 11 February 1942) was an Indian industrialist. He founded the Bajaj Group of companies in the 1920s, and the group now has 24 companies, including six that are listed on the bourses. He was also a close and beloved associate of Mahatma Gandhi, who is known to have often declared that Jamnalal was his fifth son.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Jamnalal Bajaj was born in 1889 into a well to do Agarwal family, as the third son of Kaniram and Birdibai, in a village named Kashi Ka Bas, near Sikar, Rajasthan. While he was a child and was playing in the hot sun outside his home, he was spotted by c(bajaj) who was passing by in his stage coach. Who stopped as he was enamoured by this child. He was later adopted, as a grandson, by Seth Bachhraj(bajaj) and his wife Sadibai Bachhraj(bajaj), a rich Rajasthani merchant couple hailing originally from Rajasthan but settled in Wardha, Maharashtra. Seth Bachhraj(bajaj) was a distant relative on his father's side, and was a well-known and respected trader in the British Raj.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Upon coming of age, under the tutelage of Seth Bachhraj, Jamnalal got involved in the family business of his adoptive family. During this period, he acquired the skills of being a tradesman, rigorous book keeping and buying and selling commodities. He excelled in his work by the time Seth Bachhraj died. In 1926, Jamnalal founded what would become the Bajaj group of industries.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: During the First World War, the British government appeased and honoured native tradesmen, soliciting funds. They appointed Jamnalal an honorary magistrate. When he provided money for the war fund, they conferred on him the title of Rai Bahadur, a title he later surrendered during the non-co-operation movement of 1921.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Upon Mahatma Gandhi's return from South Africa, Jamnalal took in interest in Gandhi's way of life, his principles, such as Ahimsa (non-violence), and his dedication to the poor. He could understand Gandhi's vision that home-made goods were the answer to India's poverty. He considered that some British companies were importing cheap, raw cotton from India and sending back finished cloth. He was humbled by the simple life that Gandhi was leading at the Sabarmati Ashram. He was impressed by the Ashram's routine of prayer and physical work. He brought his wife Jankidevi and his children to live in the Ashram. However, this close relationship and his deep involvement in the independence movement did not leave Jamnalal Bajaj with much time to spend on his newly launched business venture.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: In 1920, Jamanalal was elected chairman of the reception committee for the Nagpur session of the Indian National Congress. He gave up the title of Rai Bahadur conferred on him by the British government and joined the non-co-operation movement in 1921. Later, in 1923, he participated in the flag satyagraha, defying a ban on flying the national flag in Nagpur, and was detained by British forces. This earned him national admiration.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: He wanted Gandhi to move to Wardha and make it the center of his activities. After the Dandi March in April 1930, Gandhi moved to Sevagram, a small village near Wardha, since he wanted to live close to the rural populace. Gandhi vowed not to return to Sabarmati Ashram until freedom was achieved.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Jamanalal was named the president of Gandhi Seva Sangha, a group of workers who dedicated their time to constructive work. He was later elected a member of the Congress Working Committee and as the treasurer of Congress in 1933.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Jamanalal Bajaj was interested in initiatives such as the removal of untouchability, promotion of Hindi, and Khadi and village Industries. He had toured across the country promoting Khadi. In 1925, he was chosen as the treasurer of the All India Spinners Association. He was also the president of the "All India Hindi Sahitya Sammelan" (literary convention) that promoted Hindi as the single language to unite all Indians. He was instrumental in publishing Hindi magazines and books. He initiated the Gandhi Hindi Pustak Bhandar (bookshop) in Bombay and started the "Sasta Sahitya Mandal" (publishing house).


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: He founded the Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha along with C. Rajagopalachari in hopes of spreading the learning of Hindi across the country.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: From 1927, he served as the first Treasurer of the Managing Committee of Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Later in 1928, he became a life member of the university, while still serving as the treasurer.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: With the intent of eradicating untouchability, he fought the non-admission of Harijans into Hindu temples in his home town of Wardha. As orthodox Hindu priests and Brahmins objected, he opened his own family temple, the Laxmi Narayan Mandir, in Wardha, for the Harijans in 1928. He began a campaign by eating a meal with Harijans and opening public wells to them. He opened several wells in his fields and gardens.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Due to his devotion, he was elected the chief of the Jaipur Rajya Praja Mandal in 1938. While chief, he negotiated a truce between the Maharajas of Sikar and Jaipur.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: In honour of his social initiatives the Jamnalal Bajaj Award has been instituted by the Bajaj Foundation. Past awardees include Nelson Mandela and Desmund Tutu.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Bajaj differed with Gandhi when he disagreed with Congress contesting the 1938 elections to the legislature. When the Congress Working Committee informally decided to make him the President of the Haripura Session of the Congress which Gandhi personally approved, he chose to pass the honour to Subhas Chandra Bose.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Besides Bajaj Auto Ltd, the other major companies in the group include Mukand Ltd, Bajaj Electricals Ltd and Bajaj Hindusthan Ltd. One of his grandsons, Rahul Bajaj, ran the family flagship company, Bajaj Auto.


title: Jamnalal Bajaj

text: Several institutions in India bear his name, including the Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies. A locality, JB Nagar, in the sub-urban Andheri in Mumbai has been named after him. Jamnalal Bajaj Award was established in 1978 by the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation and are given away each year on his birth anniversary.


title: Dev filmography

text: Dev is an Indian actor who works primarily in the Bengali film industry. He made his acting debut with the Bengali film "Agnishapath". He later signed up Ravi Kinnagi's Bengali film "I Love You".


title: Alex Price

text: Alex Price (born 8 May 1985) is a British actor who has appeared in various television programmes including "Being Human", "Merlin" and "Doctor Who". He starred in feature-length films, such as "A Horse with No Name", and in a variety of short films.


title: Alex Price

text: Since 2013, he has played Sid Carter, one of the main characters in the television series "Father Brown". Price was praised by critics for his performance of Proteus in the television series "Penny Dreadful". He has appeared in a vast number of stage productions like "Is Everyone OK?" (Nabokov Touring Project), "Colourings" (Old Red Lion), "The Duchess of Malfi" (National Theatre Studio), and "Birdland" (Royal Court Theatre). In 2016, he was cast as Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter play, "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child". Most recently he appeared in Capture. A BBC drama about deep fake technology.


title: Cybersex

text: Cybersex, also called computer sex, Internet sex, netsex and, colloquially, cyber or cybering, is a virtual sex encounter in which two or more people have long distance sex via electronic video communication (webcams, VR headsets, etc) and other electronics (such as teledildonics) connected to a computer network.


title: Cybersex

text: Cybersex can also mean sending each other sexually explicit messages without having sex, and simply describing a sexual experience (also known as "sexting"). Cybersex is a sub-type of technology-mediated sexual interactions. In one form, this is accomplished by the participants describing their actions and responding to their chat partners in a mostly written form designed to stimulate their own sexual feelings and fantasies. Cybersex often includes real life masturbation.


title: Cybersex

text: Environments in which cybersex takes place are not necessarily exclusively devoted to that subject, and participants in any Internet chat may suddenly receive a message of invitation.


title: Cybersex

text: Non-marital, adult, consensual paid cybersex counts as illegal solicitation of prostitution and illegal prostitution in multiple US states. Non-consensual cybersex sometimes occurs in cybersex trafficking crimes. There also has been at least one rape conviction for purely virtual sexual encounters.


title: Cybersex

text: Cybersex is commonly performed in Internet chat rooms (such as IRC, talkers or web chats) and on instant messaging systems. It can also be performed using webcams, voice chat, or online games and/or virtual worlds like "Second Life" or "VRChat".


title: Cybersex

text: The exact definition of cybersex—specifically, whether real-life masturbation must be taking place for the online sex act to count as cybersex—is up for debate. It is also fairly frequent in online role-playing games, such as MUDs and MMORPGs, though community attitudes toward this activity vary greatly from game to game. Some online social games like "Red Light Center" are dedicated to cybersex and other adult behaviors. These online games are often called AMMORPGs.


title: Cybersex

text: Cybersex may also be accomplished through the use of avatars in a multiuser software environment. It is often called mudsex or netsex in MUDs. In TinyMUD variants, particularly MUCKs, the term TinySex (TS) is very common.


title: Cybersex

text: Though text-based cybersex has been in practice for decades, the increased popularity of webcams has raised the number of online partners using two-way video connections to "expose" themselves to each other online—giving the act of cybersex a more visual aspect. There are a number of popular, commercial webcam sites that allow people to openly masturbate on camera while others watch them. Using similar sites, couples can also perform on camera for the enjoyment of others.


title: Cybersex

text: In online worlds like "Second Life" and via webcam-focused chat services, however, Internet sex workers engage in cybersex in exchange for both virtual and real-life currency.


title: Cybersex

text: Research reviews and surveys call for a balanced view of online sexual activities in general and cybersex in particular that acknowledges both advantages and disadvantages, positive and negative effects.


title: Cybersex

text: Several US states use very broad language in their criminal code for prostitution and prostitution related crimes. For example, the criminal code in multiple US states does not necessitate physical presence to be an element of prostitution. The role of physical presence in states with broad prostitution definitions has at times been debated in court.


title: Cybersex

text: California has one such broad law about prostitution, and the California supreme court ruled in "Wooten v. Superior Court" that physical contact is necessary for a prostitution conviction. However, this only protects long distance buyers of cybersex in that state and may not apply to all sellers of cybersex services.


title: Cybersex

text: Sellers of cybersex in California may still be convicted under existing prostitution laws. Court cases such as "Pryor v. Municipal Court" and "People v. Hill" determined that "touching of genitals, buttocks, or the female breast" is essential to a prostitution conviction. As a result, physical touching between two sellers of during a live cybersex service "for the purpose of sexual arousal", and coupled with "money or other considerations", may in fact qualify as prostitution.


title: Cybersex

text: Buyers of cybersex services have more criminal liability under solicitation of prostitution laws than act-of-prostitution laws. For example, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that illegal solicitation of prostitution can occur with a lack of physical contact. "Wisconsin v. Kittilstad" ruled that simply offering money to view people having in-person sex, even from a distance, counts as solicitation of prostitution.


title: Cybersex

text: Wisconsin also explicitly criminalizes offers or requests of non-marital sexual intercourse for anything of value. This allows for criminal prosecution of non-marital, paid cybersex acts where at least one party resides in Wisconsin and at least one party has physical sex as part of the cybersex act.


title: Cybersex

text: To reduce the potential of criminal liability in cybersex selling, VoyeurDorm.com, implemented a "no sex on camera" policy.


title: Cybersex

text: Cybersex trafficking is the live streaming of coerced sexual acts and or rape. Victims are abducted, threatened, or deceived and transferred to 'cybersex dens.' The dens can be in any location where the cybersex traffickers have a computer, tablet, or phone with internet connection. Perpetrators use social media networks, videoconferences, pornographic video sharing websites, dating pages, online chat rooms, apps, dark web sites, and other platforms. They use online payment systems and cryptocurrencies to hide their identities. Millions of reports of its occurrence are sent to authorities annually. "South China Morning Post" has stated that new laws and police procedures are needed to combat this type of cybercrime.


title: Cybersex

text: A man named Bjorn was the first person ever charged with rape-via-the-internet. This was because Bjorn blackmailed minors into performing sexual acts for him over a computer network, which would normally be prosecuted under other laws. He was charged by Swedish authorities and Swedish laws notably don't require physical penetration for a rape conviction.


title: Cybersex

text: Cybersex often attracts ridicule because the partners frequently have little verifiable knowledge about each other. For many the primary point of cybersex is the plausible simulation of sexual activity, and this knowledge of the other is not always desired, but this is also criticized as the emptying out of embodied relations.


title: Cybersex

text: Privacy concerns are a difficulty with cybersex, since participants may log or record the interaction without the other's knowledge, and possibly disclose it to others or the public.


title: Cybersex

text: There is disagreement over whether cybersex is a form of infidelity. While it does not involve physical contact, critics claim that the powerful emotions involved can cause marital stress, especially when cybersex culminates in an Internet romance. In several known cases, Internet adultery became the grounds for which a couple divorced. Therapists report a growing number of patients addicted to this activity, a form of both Internet addiction and sexual addiction, with the standard problems associated with addictive behavior.


title: Saumya Tandon

text: Saumya Tandon (born 3 November 1984) is an Indian actress and television presenter, best known for her portrayal of Anita Mishra in the Hindi sitcom television series "Bhabiji Ghar Par Hain!". She has been a host on various TV shows like "Dance India Dance", "Bournvita Quiz Contest" and "Entertainment Ki Raat".


title: Saumya Tandon

text: Tandon was born in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh on 3 November 1984. The family shifted to Ujjain where she did her schooling from St. Mary's Convent School. Her father, B.G. Tandon, is a writer and was a professor in a university in Ujjain.


title: Saumya Tandon

text: Tandon took up modelling assignments early in her career and was the "Femina Cover Girl First Runner Up" 2006 She also appeared in the Afghan serial "Khushi" in 2008 as part of the international project, where she played the lead of an Afghan woman doctor. She co-hosted "" (based on the "Wipeout" format) with Shah Rukh Khan in 2011. She has hosted "Dance India Dance" for 3 seasons, for which she got the Best Anchor award too. She co-hosted "Bournvita Quiz Contest", along with Derek O'Brien for three seasons. In Imtiaz Ali's "Jab We Met", starring Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor, she played the role of Kareena's character's sister Roop. She also hosted "LG Mallika-e-Kitchen" for three seasons.


title: Saumya Tandon

text: In 2015, Tandon started playing the role of Anita in the comedy serial "Bhabiji Ghar Par Hain!". She is also known as "gori mem" from the serial. In 2018, she hosted "Entertainment Ki Raat" Season 2 on Colors TV.


title: Saumya Tandon

text: Tandon is very reluctant to talk about her private life. In 2016, she married her boyfriend Saurabh Devendra Singh. Before marriage, she dated him for 10 years.


title: Saumya Tandon

text: Tandon started her career with TV serial Aisa Des Hai Mera and subsequently hosted a number of TV shows.


title: Keesha Sharp

text: Keesha Ulricka Sharp (née Fletch; born June 9, 1973) is an American actress and film / television director. She began her career appearing on television dramas, before her regular role as Monica Charles Brooks in the UPN/The CW comedy series, "Girlfriends" (2002–08), for which she received NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series nomination.


title: Keesha Sharp

text: Sharp later has appeared in films include "American Adobo" (2002), "Why Did I Get Married?" (2007), and from 2010 to 2013 co-starred in the TBS sitcom, "Are We There Yet?". In 2016, she played Dale Cochran, the wife of Johnnie Cochran, in the FX anthology drama series, "". From 2016 to 2019, Sharp starred as Trish Murtaugh in the Fox police comedy-drama series, "Lethal Weapon", for which she received NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series nomination.


title: Keesha Sharp

text: Sharp was born in Rochester, New York. After graduating "cum laude" from The Boston Conservatory, Sharp set her sights on the stage. She performed in the Broadway National Tour of "Carousel", debuted Off-Broadway in Michael Bradford's "Living in the Wind" and played eight different roles in the interactive comedy "Eat the Runt". Other theatre performances include "Abyssinia", "Aida", "Thunder Knockin", "Jitney", "The Producers", "Big Street", "Suburb" and "Joe Turner's Come and Gone". On television, she guest starred on "Welcome to New York", "Third Watch", and "", before moving to Los Angeles.


title: Keesha Sharp

text: In 2002, Sharp was cast on the CW comedy series "Girlfriends", which she played William Dent's (Reggie Hayes) girlfriend, and later wife, Monica. Her role garnered a nomination for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. The series ended in 2008. From 2005 to 2006, she also had the recurring role on "Everybody Hates Chris" as Sheila Ridenhour. Sharp also had roles in films "Malibu's Most Wanted", "", "Never Die Alone" and "Why Did I Get Married?".


title: Keesha Sharp

text: After "Girlfriends", Sharp had guest starring roles on "The Game", "Cold Case", "Melissa & Joey", "Elementary" and "The Exes". From 2010 to 2012, she was regular cast member on the TBS sitcom, "Are We There Yet?".


title: Keesha Sharp

text: In 2015, Sharp was cast as Dale Cochran, the wife of Johnnie Cochran (played by Courtney B. Vance), in the FX anthology drama series, "American Crime Story". In 2016, she was cast in a series regular role opposite Damon Wayans Sr. in the Fox series "Lethal Weapon" playing Trish Murtaugh (played by Darlene Love in the "Lethal Weapon" film series). Golden Brooks, her "Girlfriends" co-star originally was cast in the role, but was replaced by Sharp during filming of pilot episode. Later that year, she was cast as Thurgood Marshall's wife in the biographical film "Marshall" starring Chadwick Boseman.


title: Keesha Sharp

text: In 2018, Sharp has picked up rights to John Williams’ 2013 biography "America’s Mistress: The Life and Times of Eartha Kitt". She set to star as Kitt and will produce film alongside her husband, Brad Sharp.


title: Keesha Sharp

text: Sharp married actor and singer-songwriter Brad Sharp on August 1, 1997. The couple have been together since high school and have a son named Solomon.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon ( "") is a city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Muskegon County. Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, pleasure boating, and as a commercial and cruise ship port. It is a popular vacation destination because of the expansive freshwater beaches, historic architecture, and public art collection. It is the most populous city along the western shore of Michigan. At the 2020 United States Census the city population was 38,318. It is at the southwest corner of Muskegon Township, but is administratively autonomous.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon is the center of the Muskegon Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is coextensive with Muskegon County and had a population of 173,566 in 2019. It is also part of the larger Grand Rapids-Kentwood-Muskegon-Combined Statistical Area with a population of 1,433,288.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Human occupation of the Muskegon area goes back seven or eight thousand years to the nomadic Paleo-Indian hunters who occupied the area following the retreat of the Wisconsonian glaciations. The Paleo-Indians were superseded by several stages of Woodland Indian developments, the most notable of whom were the Hopewellian type-tradition, which occupied this area, perhaps two thousand years ago.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The Muskegon area was previously inhabited by various bands of the Odawa (Ottawa) and Pottawatomi Indian tribes, but by 1830 Muskegon was solely an Ottawa village. Perhaps the best remembered of the area's Native inhabitants was the Ottawa Chief, Pendalouan. A leading participant in the French-inspired annihilation of the Fox Indians of Illinois in the 1730s, Pendalouan and his people lived in the Muskegon vicinity during the 1730s and 1740s, until the French forced them to move their settlement to the Traverse Bay area in 1742.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The name "Muskegon" is derived from the Ottawa tribe term "mashkiigong", meaning "marshy river or swamp".


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The "Masquigon" River (Muskegon River) was identified on French maps dating from the late seventeenth century, suggesting French explorers had reached Michigan's western coast by that time. Father Jacques Marquette traveled northward through the area on his fateful trip to St. Ignace in 1675; and a party of French soldiers under La Salle's lieutenant, Henry de Tonty, passed through the area in 1679.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The county's earliest known Euro-American resident was Edward Fitzgerald, a fur trader and trapper who came to the Muskegon area in 1748 and who died there, reportedly being buried in the vicinity of White Lake. Between 1790 and 1800, a French-Canadian trader named Joseph La Framboise established a fur-trading post at the mouth of Duck Lake. Between 1810 and 1820, several French-Canadian fur traders, including Lamar Andie, Jean Baptiste Recollect, and Pierre Constant, had established fur-trading posts around Muskegon Lake.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Euro-American settlement of Muskegon began in earnest in 1837, which coincided with the beginning of the exploitation of the area's extensive timber resources. The commencement of the lumber industry in 1837 inaugurated what some regard as the most romantic era in the history of the region. Lumbering in the mid-nineteenth century brought many settlers, particularly from Germany, Ireland, and Canada.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Some Muskegon neighborhoods began as separate villages. Bluffton was founded as a lumbering village in 1862 in Laketon Township. It had its own post office from 1868 until 1892. Muskegon annexed it in 1889.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of , of which is land and is water. The city is next to Lake Michigan to the west and Muskegon Lake to the north. The Muskegon River empties into Muskegon Lake at the city's northeast end.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon has a humid continental climate (Dfa) with hot summers and cold winters. Precipitation is consistent year round. Muskegon receives heavy lake-effect snow from Lake Michigan during winter time.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: As of the census of 2010, there were 38,401 people, 13,967 households, and 7,895 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 16,105 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 57.0% White, 34.5% African American, 0.9% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 2.6% from other races, and 4.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.2% of the population.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: There were 13,967 households, of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 27.9% were married couples living together, 22.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 43.5% were non-families. 36.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.09.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The median age in the city was 34.1 years. 23.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 12.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.8% were from 25 to 44; 24.1% were from 45 to 64, and 11.6% were 65 years of age or older. The city's gender makeup was 52.1% male and 47.9% female.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: As of the census of 2000, there were 40,105 people, 14,569 households, and 8,537 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,794.5 per square mile (1,079.1/km). There were 15,999 housing units at an average density of 1,114.8 per square mile (430.5/km). The racial makeup of the city was 57.9% White, 31.7% African American, 2.3% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.69% from other races, and 3.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any origins were 6.4% of the population.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: There were 14,569 households, of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.2% were married couples living together, 20.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.4% were non-families. 34.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.13.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.8% under the age of 18, 11.6% from 18 to 24, 32.2% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 109.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.3 males.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The city's median household income was $27,929, and the median family income was $32,640. Males had a median income of $29,114 versus $22,197 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,283. About 16.8% of families and 20.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.6% of those under age 18 and 14.3% of those age 65 or over.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Downtown Muskegon serves as the hub for much of Muskegon County. Positioned along the southern shoreline of Muskegon Lake, it stretches for nearly two miles. Downtown is home to a number of hotels, a 25,000 square foot convention center completed in 2021, and the Historic Mercy Health Ice Arena. Downtown Muskegon is lauded for its walkability and ease of parking. The Muskegon Farmer's Market welcome more than 10,000 visitors every Saturday in the summer, and the boutique incubator shops and chalets on Western Avenue are a popular attraction for residents and tourists looking to support small local businesses.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: In May 2022, local environmental groups announced cleanup efforts along Muskegon Lake have officially been completed, leading the Environmental Protection Agency to begin its study to remove Muskegon Lake from the EPA's list of "Areas of Concern", which is expected to be finalized by the end of 2022 and brings the promise of additional new economic activity in the downtown and nearby lakefront neighborhoods.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Locally owned shops and a farmer's market are found in the historic downtown, with more shops along the Muskegon Lake waterfront and in neighborhoods. Regional shopping is found throughout the county, including several major retailers.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The Frauenthal Center for the Performing Arts includes two theaters (the main historic Frauenthal house and the smaller Beardsley Theater in the adjoining Hilt Building). It was refurbished in 1998 and again in 2021, and runs JAM Theatrical productions. Muskegon Civic Theatre productions, is home of the West Michigan Symphony Orchestra, was the venue for all Muskegon Community Concert Association events, and formerly home to the now-defunct Cherry County Playhouse. The Frauenthal was originally built as the Michigan Theater in 1929.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon has a growing collection of publicly owned and displayed art pieces. More than two dozen pieces are on permanent display, predominately in the downtown area. Notable pieces include Muskegon, Together Rising (Richard Hunt), The Arch (Stephen Urry), A City Built on Timbers (Erik and Israel Nordic), and various civil war statues in Hackley Park that date back to 1900 (Charles Niehaus and J. Massey Rhind).


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: For many years, Muskegon was home to a 10-day music festival known as Muskegon Summer Celebration. Typically scheduled around July 4, Summer Celebration was known for bringing in major artists for multiple days and providing the community with an affordable music festival experience. The event ended after the 2011 show.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Broadway at the Frauenthal (fall through spring) brings Broadway musicals to Muskegon. Muskegon is also home to Muskegon Museum of Art and West Michigan Symphony Orchestra. The Muskegon Community Concert Association provides concerts from September through May.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Lakeshore Museum Center (formerly known as Muskegon County Museum) and Hackley & Hume Historic Site: Mansions built by Muskegon's lumber barons themselves are restored to their old glory and open to the public. The Hackley & Hume mansions are part of downtown Muskegon's Heritage Village—two blocks from Muskegon Lake, and a National Register Historic District. The mansions are operated with the Lakeshore Museum Center, which details the grand, rich history of Muskegon County, from the Pottawatomi and Ottawa Native American tribes and lakeside fur traders to the Lumber Queen of the World to today. Also includes science and nature exhibits.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The Muskegon Museum of Art (formerly known as the Hackley Art Gallery) opened in 1912. The Muskegon Museum of Art, founded on a tradition of aesthetic excellence, is committed to fostering the life-long study and appreciation of the visual arts by strengthening, preserving, and exhibiting its collections; offering a wide range of traditional and contemporary exhibitions; stimulating learning and creativity through diverse public and educational programming; and enhancing community involvement and support in a safe, accessible, and welcoming environment. Among the highlights of its permanent collection is "Tornado Over Kansas", by John Steuart Curry (one of three leading painters, along with Grant Wood and Thomas Hart Benton, identified as Regionalists and known for their canvases celebrating the rural Midwest).


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon is also the home of the USS Silversides Submarine Museum which features , a World War II submarine; , a World War II tank landing ship; and USCGC "McLane", a Prohibition-era United States Coast Guard cutter.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: In addition, Muskegon also berths , a former passenger ship built in 1904 that traveled the same route as Lake Express does today. The ship (which is a National Historic Landmark) is in the middle of a process of being restored to its original form, but in the meantime is open for tours and hosts a museum aboard the vessel with information on both "Milwaukee Clipper", as well as the history of maritime in Muskegon, the Clipper is the last ship of its type. Muskegon is a historical port for commerce and lake travel. The lumbering era through World War II was its busiest historical use. Its image as a port the city has embraced with the local nickname 'The Port City'. It possesses a fine deep-water port and still functions delivering bulk cement, aggregate, and large cargoes to several lakeshore facilities, also coal to the B.C. Cobb power plant, an outdated coal-burning facility due to shut down.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The Seaway Run is run every year in late June. It features a 15k race, 5k race, 5k walk for fun, 15k wheelchair race.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon State Park has a Winter Sports Complex that features ice fishing, cross-country skiing, ice skating, and a luge track.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Pere Marquette Beach is the largest free public beach on the western shore of Lake Michigan. Windsurfing, kite boarding competitions, and professional volleyball tournaments are held there. Its quartz sand beach is a Clean Beaches Counsel-certified beach. The beach area is popular with cyclists, runners, and hikers, and sand dunes border the beach to the east.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon Lake is a first-class walleye fishery and has many other freshwater species, including lake perch. Lake Michigan hosts large numbers of coho and Chinook salmon, steelhead, brown trout, lake perch, and other game fish.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Sailing and recreational boating are major summer pastimes, with local services and marinas for boats of all sizes.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon Lakeshore Bike Trail allows for biking along the shores of Muskegon Lake to Lake Michigan, with two trails for bike paths, one on the east side of Muskegon and the other along the north side.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Michigan's Adventure, the largest amusement park in the state, is in Muskegon County, a few miles north of the city of Muskegon. Michigan's Adventure features a midway with roller coasters, other rides, amusements, and a full water park.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon Country Club was founded in 1908 and features a course design by Tom Bendelow and a course redesign by Donald Ross.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: The city operates under a Commission-Manager form of local government. The seven-member city commission consists of four commissioners elected via a ward system and two commissioners elected at large. The mayor is also elected at large and serves on the city commission. The city commission hires a city manager to manage the daily operations of the city.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon Public Schools was founded in 1860 and serves students from preschool through grade 12. Additionally, it runs the Muskegon Training and Education Center. Muskegon is also served by these private K-12 schools: Muskegon Catholic Central, Fruitport Calvary Christian, and Western Michigan Christian.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: In 2010, North Muskegon High School was noted as the top performing public school in the State of Michigan by the state Department of Education.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Grand Valley State University's Muskegon Campus is home to the Muskegon Innovation Hub (formerly MAREC) and Annis Water Resources Institute (AWRI) inside the Lake Michigan Center in downtown Muskegon.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Western Michigan University, Ferris State University, and Grand Valley State University all operate programs out of the Stevenson Center for Higher Education on Muskegon Community College campus. It is designed so an undergraduate at MCC may transfer to any of the above schools and complete a bachelors and/or master's degree without leaving Muskegon.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Public transportation is provided by the Muskegon Area Transit System (MATS – "The Shore Line"), which operates nine bus routes, three trolley routes, and a paratransit system. MATS and Greyhound serve the Herman Ivory Passenger Terminal.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: MATS operates the Muskegon Trolley Company. Three routes cover north side, south side, and downtown; each trolley stops at 11 locations, including Hackley and Hume Historic Site, USS Silversides, and Muskegon State Park. (Memorial Day through Labor Day, daily; no trips during special events.)


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Commercial air service is currently provided by United Express operating regional jet flights on behalf of United Airlines at Muskegon County Airport (MKG), with nonstop service to Chicago O'Hare Airport. Other airlines provide passenger service via the Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR) in Grand Rapids.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Muskegon is the eastern port of the Lake Express High Speed Car Ferry that crosses Lake Michigan to Milwaukee, Wisconsin offering three roundtrips a day in the summer, and two roundtrips in the fall. There are many bike paths being built around the area.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: CSX Transportation, along with the Michigan Shore Railway, provide rail service for many of Muskegon's industries. Rail passenger services ended in the 1960s. The nearest passenger rail available is via Amtrak in nearby Holland or Grand Rapids.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: Until 1971, the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway (successor to the Pere Marquette Railway) operated day and night trains from Union Station to Holland and Chicago. The Grand Trunk Western and the Pennsylvania Railroad had earlier operated passenger trains out of another Muskegon station to various points in Michigan.


title: Muskegon, Michigan

text: In 1937, the Grand Trunk Western began operating ferries that met up with train and carried passengers and automobiles across Lake Michigan to Milwaukee. Earlier, the GTW had operated the ferries out of Grand Haven. The GTW stopped operating the ferries in 1978. The last remaining ferries across the lake would be the ones launching from Ludington, Michigan until the Lake Express first came into service on June 1, 2004.


title: Commander (Royal Navy)

text: Commander (Cdr) is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. It is immediately junior to captain and immediately senior to the rank of lieutenant commander. Officers holding the junior rank of lieutenant commander are not considered to be commanders.


title: Commander (Royal Navy)

text: The title (originally 'master and commander') originated in around 1670 to describe Royal Navy officers who commanded ships of war too large to be commanded by a lieutenant, but too small to warrant the assignment of a post-captain, or (before about 1770) a sailing-master who was in charge of a ship's navigation. These ships were usually unrated sloops-of-war of no more than 20 guns, fireships, hospital ships and store ships. The commanding officer of this type of ship was responsible for both sailing and fighting the ship and was thus its 'master and commander'.


title: Commander (Royal Navy)

text: Before 1750, the rank was broadly considered as the limit of advancement for those without patronage, especially those who had been promoted from among a ship's crew. By contrast, those with Parliamentary supporters or family connections were more likely to spend only a nominal period as master and commander of a sloop, before being elevated to post-captain. From 1718, the Navy List began recording an officer's date of appointment to the rank of master and commander, with the intention of establishing seniority as a guide to promotion, but there is little evidence that this carried through into actual appointments.


title: Commander (Royal Navy)

text: Over the later eighteenth century, the rank evolved into a more regular stage of service between lieutenant and captain. The Royal Navy shortened 'master and commander' to 'commander' in 1794; however, the term 'master and commander' remained (unofficially) in common parlance for several years. The term 'master commanding' (abbreviated as 'master com.' or 'mast. com.') was still recognised in 1851, with the Navy List for that year listing 21 ships commanded by Masters with this appellation .


title: Commander (Royal Navy)

text: The rank of commander was a popular recognition of service during the Napoleonic Wars, resulting in promotion of more commanders than there were commands; in 1812 the Navy List recorded 586 commanders against 168 available vessels. Commanders unable to secure a ship were left ashore on half-pay, with limited prospects for future advancement. This promotions bottleneck was addressed from 1827 with the introduction of commanders as a second-in-command on larger vessels.


title: Commander (Royal Navy)

text: In the 20th and 21st centuries, the rank has been assigned the NATO rank code of OF-4, matching the army rank of lieutenant colonel.


title: Commander (Royal Navy)

text: A commander in the Royal Navy is senior to an officer holding the rank of lieutenant commander but junior to a captain. A commander may command a frigate, destroyer, submarine, mine countermeasures squadron, fishery protection squadron, patrol boat squadron, aviation squadron or shore installation, or may serve on a staff. Formerly equivalent to the Army rank of major, a commander is now equivalent in rank to a lieutenant colonel in the British Army or a wing commander in the Royal Air Force. The rank of wing commander was derived from the naval rank of commander via the usage in the World War I Royal Naval Air Service.


title: Mile run

text: The history of the mile run event began in England, where it was used as a distance for gambling races. It survived track and field's switch to metric distances in the 1900s and retained its popularity, with the chase for the four-minute mile in the 1950s a high point for the race.


title: Mile run

text: In spite of the roughly equivalent 1500 metres race, which is used instead of the mile at the World Championships and Olympic Games and is sometimes referred as the foremost middle-distance track event in athletics, the mile run is present in all fields of athletics, and since 1976, it is the only imperial distance for which World Athletics has on its books for official world records.


title: Mile run

text: Although the mile is not featured at any major championships, the Wanamaker Mile, Dream Mile, Emsley Carr Mile and Bowerman Mile races are among the foremost annual middle-distance races outdoors, respectively.


title: Mile run

text: The current mile world record holders are Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco with a time of 3:43.13 and Sifan Hassan of The Netherlands with the women's record of 4:12.33.


title: Mile run

text: The record for the fastest mile ever run on any terrain is held by Craig Wheeler, who ran a downhill mile in 1993 in a time of 3:24; Wheeler's time is not an officially recognized record due to the downhill grade of the course he ran.


title: Mile run

text: Although a statute mile today is equal to a length of 5,280 feet, the distance of the English mile gained its current definition of 1,760 yards through a statute of the Parliament of England in 1593. Thus, the history of the mile run began in England and it initially found usage within the wagered running contests of the 18th and 19th century. Such contests would attract large numbers of spectators and gamblers – so many that the activity became a professional one for its more-established participants.


title: Mile run

text: The mile run was at the heart of the divide between professional and amateur sports in the late 19th century, as running was beginning to gain popularity in the sports world. Separate world record categories were kept for amateurs and professionals, with professional runners providing the faster times. High-profile contests between Britons William Cummings and Walter George brought much publicity to the sport, as did George's races against the American Lon Myers. The mile run was also one of the foremost events at the amateur AAA Championships. Although the spotlight was shining on the running scene, the categories remained distinct but the respective rise in amateurism and decline of the professional sector saw the division become irrelevant in the 20th century.


title: Mile run

text: The mile run continued to be a popular distance in spite of the metrication of track and field and athletics in general, replacing the imperial distance for the metric mile (1500 meters). It was the 1500 metres – sometimes referred to as the metric mile – which was featured on the Olympic athletics programme. The International Amateur Athletics Federation formed in 1912 and confirmed the first officially recognised world record in the mile the following year (4:14.4 minutes run by John Paul Jones).


title: Mile run

text: The fact that the mile run was the only imperial distance to retain its official world record status after 1976 reflects its continued popularity in the international (and principally metric) era. Decades later, the distance is ubiquitous, whether run in high school gym classes or used for logging in miles for your average recreational runner.


title: Mile run

text: The top men's middle-distance runners continued to compete in the mile run in the first half of the 1900s – Paavo Nurmi, Jack Lovelock and Sydney Wooderson were all world record holders over the distance. In the 1940s, Swedish runners Gunder Hägg and Arne Andersson pushed times into a new territory, as they set three world records each during their rivalry over the decade.


title: Mile run

text: The goal of completing a sub-four-minute mile sparked further interest in the distance in the 1950s and to this day, many competitive runners are still chasing the ambitious barrier. Englishman Roger Bannister became the first person to achieve the feat in May 1954 and his effort, conducted with the help of Chris Brasher and Chris Chataway, was a key moment in the rise of the use of pacemakers at the top level of the sport – an aspect which is now commonplace at non-championship middle and long-distance races. In fact, pacemakers, if performing effectively, can earn generous sums of money for their performances and accurate pacing duties.


title: Mile run

text: The 1960s saw American Jim Ryun, considered one of the world's most decorated middle-distance runners, set world records near the 3:50-minute mark and his achievements popularised interval workout techniques which are still heavily used today, especially for collegiate distance runners. From this period onwards, African runners began to emerge, breaking the largely white, Western dominance of the distance; Kenya's Kip Keino won the mile at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games (which was among the last mile races to be held at a major multi-sport event as of 2021).


title: Mile run

text: Filbert Bayi of Tanzania became Africa's first world record holder over the distance in 1975, although New Zealander John Walker further broke Bayi's record a few months later to become the first man under 3:50 minutes for the event. The 1980s was highlighted by the rivalry between British runners Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett, who improved the record five times between them, including two records at the Oslo Dream Mile race. Noureddine Morceli brought the mile record back into African hands in 1993 and Morocco's Hicham El Guerrouj set the current record of 3:43.13, which has stood since 1999.


title: Mile run

text: Mile run contests remain a key feature of many annual track and field meetings, including recreational, high school, and collegiate meets, with long-running series such as the Wanamaker Mile at the Millrose Games, Dream Mile at the Bislett Games, the British Emsley Carr Mile, and the Bowerman Mile at the Prefontaine Classic being among the most prominent. Aside from track races, mile races are also occasionally contested in cross country running and mile runs on the road include the Fifth Avenue Mile in New York City. However, in high school and collegiate cross country running, races are often measured in kilometers, with 5K and 8K being the most common.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Gaël Dimitri Clichy (born 26 July 1985) is a French professional footballer who plays for Swiss Super League club Servette. He primarily plays as a left-back, being also capable of playing as an offensive-minded wing-back. He is predominantly left footed, but naturally right footed. Earlier in his career, he was described as a player who possesses "almost unrivaled stamina" that is "quick in the tackle and willing to drive forward".


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy was born in the city of Toulouse and began his football career playing for a host of amateur clubs in the Haute-Garonne département such as JS Cugnaux, AS Muret, and Tournefeuille. In 2001, he moved to the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region to play for professional club Cannes. Clichy made his professional debut for the club in the 2002–03 season while the club was playing in the Championnat National, the third level of French football. After three seasons with Cannes, in 2003, he was convinced by manager and countryman Arsène Wenger to join Arsenal in England.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: In Clichy's first season with the club, he was a member of the squad, dubbed the Invincibles, that went undefeated in the league season. As a result of the title, at 18 years and 10 months, Clichy became the youngest player to win a Premier League medal. After three seasons of backing up Ashley Cole, in the 2006–07 season, Clichy took over the starters' role permanently. In the 2007–08 season, he appeared in all 38 league matches. His performances during the season earned him an appearance on the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Team of the Year. Aside from the 2003–04 league title, he has also won the 2004 FA Community Shield in with Arsenal. Clichy moved on in 2011 to more success with Manchester City, adding two more Premier League titles (2011–12 and 2013–14) and two League Cups (2014 and 2016). He left England after 14 years for Turkish side İstanbul Başakşehir in 2017, with whom he won the national league in 2020.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy is a former French youth international and has represented his nation at every level for which he was eligible. Prior to playing for the senior team, he played on the under-17 team that finished runners-up to Switzerland at the 2002 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship. Clichy made his senior international debut in September 2008 in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Serbia. He made his first major international tournament appearance for France at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Clichy made one appearance in the competition against South Africa in the final group stage match. He additionally featured in the UEFA Euro 2012 squad, before making his last international appearance in 2013.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy was born and raised in Toulouse, in southwestern France. His mother, Jacqueline, is a medical nurse, while his father, Claude, was an educator in the city. While Clichy was beginning his football career, his father often served as a part-time coach and referee. At the age of 15 while playing for Cannes, Clichy nearly died. After climbing over a metal fence while crossing a ground at the club's facility, a ring he was wearing got caught in the fence, which resulted in the skin and tissue from the fourth finger of his right hand being completely torn off. During the seven-hour operation to repair the finger, Clichy's heart stopped beating due to a problem with his lungs. It restarted after 15 seconds. The doctor who led the operation described Clichy's survival as "a miracle", while the player himself admitted that the ordeal changed his attitude towards life stating "It made me realise that life can go quick. You could leave tomorrow so you have to enjoy it to the maximum so you don't regret anything the next day. You can look forward to the future but not too far ahead".


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy began his football career at the age of five playing for his hometown club AS Hersoise. He, initially, was a predominantly right-footed player, but through decisive coaching from his father, Clichy's left foot eventually became his primary. One such example of his father's coaching came during a regional youth cup match, which his father was refereeing. The younger Clichy was informed by his father that if he scored a goal with his right foot, he would disallow it. Following this, Clichy developed his left foot "to the point where he eventually forgot his right foot". After five seasons with Hersoise, Clichy joined JS Cugnaux, a local club based in nearby Cugnaux. He spent only one year at the club before moving to AS Muret.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: In 1998, Clichy joined AS Tournefeuille and began attending secondary at the Collège Leonardo da Vinci. During his stint at Tournefeuille, he was selected to attend the Pôle Espoirs de Castelmaurou, a regional academy located in the Midi-Pyrénées region that trained players similarly to the Clairefontaine academy in Île-de-France. Clichy spent three years at the center training there during the weekdays and playing with Tournefeuille on the weekends. In 2000, after developing at both Tournefeuille and Castelmaurou, Clichy was linked to a host of professional clubs, including Auxerre, Bordeaux, and Toulouse who were seeking to obtain his services. The young player ultimately decided to move to the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region to play for professional club Cannes.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy arrived to Cannes in 2000 while the club was playing in Ligue 2, the second division of French football. While at the club, Clichy primarily played as a central midfielder and was supervised by former French international and Saint-Étienne player Christian Lopez. He began his career with the club playing in its youth academy alongside Julien Faubert. During the latter part of the 2001–02 season, Clichy spent time playing on the club's reserve team in the Championnat de France amateur 2, the fifth level of French football. In the following season, with the club now playing in the Championnat National, the third level of French football, he was promoted to the senior team on a permanent basis by Lopez, who was now managing the club. Clichy later played under Robert Buigues following the sacking of Lopez and appeared in 15 matches with the team assisting on two goals.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger had noticed Clichy's talents when the player first arrived at Cannes at the age of 16. Following the 2002–03 season, Wenger contacted Clichy directly in an attempt to sign the player. In June 2003, the Arsenal manager visited the Clichy household in Tournefeuille and offered him a professional contract with the club. Wenger informed Clichy that "you'll play", which was enough to convince both the player and his family.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: As promised by Wenger, Clichy began the season on the club's senior team primarily as the backup to England international Ashley Cole. He made his club debut on 28 October 2003 alongside fellow débutant Cesc Fàbregas in a League Cup encounter with Rotherham United. Arsenal won the tie 9–8 on penalties with Clichy converting his spot kick. On 22 November, Clichy made his league debut in a 3–0 win over Birmingham City. Following an injury to Cole in December, Clichy appeared in nine straight matches; six of them as a starter. On 24 February 2004, he made his UEFA Champions League debut in the first leg of the team's 3–2 knockout round victory over Spanish club Celta de Vigo. Clichy finished the campaign appearing in seven more matches. On 9 May 2004, he appeared as a substitute in Arsenal's 1–0 league win over Fulham. A week later, Clichy appeared on the bench in the team's final league match of the season; a 2–1 win over Leicester City. The victory assured Arsenal an undefeated league season, which resulted in the club becoming the second first division team in English football history to finish a league season unbeaten. As a result of the title, at 18 years and 10 months, Clichy became the youngest player to win a Premier League medal.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy remained second-choice to Cole for the 2004–05 season. Wenger did install the young defender as first-choice for FA Cup matches. Clichy appeared as a starter for every round until Arsenal reached the semi-finals when he was replaced by Cole. The club ultimately won the competition defeating Manchester United 5–4 on penalties to give Clichy his first domestic cup honour. In the Premier League, Clichy appeared in 15 matches, seven as a starter. In the UEFA Champions League, he only made two appearances; a 5–1 group stage victory over Norwegian club Rosenborg and a 3–1 knockout round defeat to German outfit Bayern Munich. Clichy's season ultimately ended prematurely in April due to a recurring foot injury.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: In the 2005–06 season, Clichy was handed an opportunity to earn a regular place in the starting line-up after Cole suffered a fractured foot in October 2005. The injury seemed to signify that Clichy would earn some valuable first-team action during Cole's time out, however, after appearing six straight matches as a starter, Clichy suffered a similar injury in November, which ruled him out for four months. He returned to the team on 25 April 2006 in a Champions League semi-final tie against Spanish outfit Villarreal coming on as a substitute for the injured Mathieu Flamini. In the late stages of the match, Clichy was adjudged to have committed a foul in the box on striker José Mari, which resulted in a penalty taken by Juan Román Riquelme, which was saved by Jens Lehmann. Had Riquelme converted, the game would have gone to extra time. After appearing in a 3–0 win over Sunderland in the league the following week, Clichy suffered a re-occurrence of his foot injury. The relapse resulted in the player missing the 2006 Champions League final, sitting on the bench for the whole match. Arsenal lost the match 2–1 to Barcelona.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: During the 2006 off-season, Clichy struggled to rehab his foot injury. The injury became so agitating for the player that Wenger was forced to intervene on the rehabilitation process. Wenger, subsequently, recommended Clichy visit Dr. Mark Myerson, an orthopaedic and medical director for the Institute for Foot and Ankle Reconstruction at the Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland. Clichy visited Myerson in June 2006 and was forced to undergo another surgery. The operation resulted in the player missing the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, as well as three months of domestic football with Arsenal. In August 2006, Cole departed the club for rivals Chelsea, a transfer which paved the way for Clichy to take over as the permanent starter. In three seasons as Cole's understudy, Clichy made a total of 24 league appearances for Arsenal and 57 overall.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy made his return to the team on 14 October 2006 in a 3–0 league victory over Watford appearing as a substitute. He returned to the starting line-up ten days later playing the entire match in a League Cup win over West Brom. Clichy, subsequently, featured as a starter in the next 19 matches. On 3 March 2007, Clichy assisted on the game-winning goal scored by Júlio Baptista in a 2–1 win over Reading.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: In the 2007–08 season, Clichy had arguably the best season of his career. He appeared in a career-high and team-best 49 matches and was the only player in the team to appear in all 38 league matches. Clichy also posted a career-high in assists delivering six with two of them coming in back-to-back league wins over Everton and West Ham in December and January. On 28 April 2008, he assisted on two goals in a 6–2 hammering of Derby County. For his performances during the season, Clichy was named to the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Team of the Year alongside teammates Bacary Sagna, Emmanuel Adebayor, and Fàbregas. He also finished second in the Arsenal fans' poll for the club's Player of the Season. However, despite the impressive individual season, Arsenal, for the third consecutive season, failed to win any trophies. On 16 May 2008, Arsenal awarded Clichy with a two-year contract extension until June 2012.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: During Arsenal's pre-season campaign ahead of the 2008–09 season, Clichy captained the team for the first time in its 2–1 win over Barnet. He remained a fixture within the starting eleven during the season despite the emergence of youngster Kieran Gibbs. On 1 November 2008, Clichy scored his first professional goal in a 2–1 defeat to Stoke City. After consistently appearing with the team for the majority of the campaign, in April 2009, Clichy began missing matches due to an unspecified injury. After being sidelined for several weeks, it was announced in early May that the defender would miss the remainder of the 2008–09 season due to a back injury. Similar to his foot injury three seasons ago, during the high note of the 2009–10 season, Clichy's back injury relapse after it was revealed that the player suffered a stress fracture of the lower back in the team's 3–0 win over North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. Despite being initially ruled out for a month, Clichy missed ten weeks and returned to the team in January 2010. He appeared in all of the club's remaining matches excluding one.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: A healthy Clichy started the 2010–11 campaign as the starting left-back domestically and internationally for the first time. On 30 October, he assisted on the only goal scored by Alex Song in the team's league win over West Ham. Clichy scored his second career goal on 2 March 2011 in the team's 5–0 win over Leyton Orient in a FA Cup replay tie.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: On 4 July 2011, it was confirmed that Manchester City had completed the signing of Clichy from Arsenal for an undisclosed fee, believed to be around £7 million, on a four-year deal. Clichy made his first appearance for City on the club's US Tour. He then made his first competitive appearance against Manchester United in the 2011 FA Community Shield and his first Premier League appearance against Swansea City. He was sent off during a league game against Chelsea for picking up a second yellow card for a challenge on Ramires. Clichy established himself as first choice left-back after beginning the season as backup to Aleksandar Kolarov. On 13 May 2012, the final day of the Premier League season, Clichy started and played the full 90 minutes against Queens Park Rangers at the City of Manchester Stadium in a 3–2 victory, on his 37th appearance of the campaign which ultimately handed City the title at the expense of rivals Manchester United. Clichy collected the second Premier League winner's medal of his career having won the other one with Arsenal after an Invincible 2003–04 season.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy agreed a new four-year deal with City in May 2013 after penning a contract to keep him at the Etihad until 2017. "I'm really happy to have agreed a new deal with City and I'm already looking forward to next season", said Clichy. "Things didn't go the way we wanted them to this year but we'll come back stronger next season and learn from this experience."


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy won another Premier League winner's medal in May 2014 as Manchester City held off the challenge of Liverpool to regain the Premier League title on the final day of the season. Clichy scored his first goal for Manchester City on 30 November 2014 in a 0–3 victory against Southampton FC at St Mary's Stadium.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: On 7 July 2017, İstanbul Başakşehir announced that Clichy had passed the medical earlier that day, following which he signed a 3-year contract to play for the Turkish club.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: On 19 July 2020, Clichy helped Başakşehir secure their first ever league title, providing the assist for the game's only goal in the club's win over Kayserispor on the penultimate day of the season.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: On 2 December 2020, Clichy joined Servette of the Swiss Super League on a free transfer and a 18-month contract.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Clichy has earned caps with all of France's youth teams for which he was eligible. He was a late participant at under-15 level under coach Luc Rabat. Clichy made his youth international debut on 13 March 2001 in a 3–0 friendly win over Italy. He remained with the team for the rest of the campaign appearing in three matches at the 2001 edition of the Montaigu Tournament which France won. Clichy also played in all three matches at an international tournament in Salerno, Italy. At under-17 level, Clichy appeared in ten matches as France attempted to qualify for the 2002 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship. He made his debut with the team on 19 September 2001 in its opening league match of the season; a 1–0 win over Yugoslavia. In qualifying for the UEFA-sanctioned tournament, Clichy appeared in two of the three qualification matches. In the tournament, he appeared in all six matches as the starting left-back. France reached the final, but were defeated by a resilient Switzerland, who were led by future Arsenal teammate Philippe Senderos.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Due to increased playing time at his parent club Cannes, Clichy's stint with the under-18 team was uneventful appearing in only three matches. He returned to the team as a regular for under-19 duty as the team was attempting to qualify for the 2004 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship. In qualifying, France were surprisingly eliminated in the first round after finishing third in its first qualifying round group. Following the team's elimination, France only played in three more matches. Clichy played in the last two against Ukraine. He earned his first call up to the under-21 team under coach Raymond Domenech in the team's first match following the team's failure to qualify for the 2004 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship against Belgium, which was a 1–0 victory. Despite featuring in the team as a starter early on, which included playing in every match in the team's triumph at the 2004 Toulon Tournament, as the season wore on, Clichy lost his starting left-back spot to Lyon prospect Jérémy Berthod. His last appearance with the team came on 15 November 2005 in the team's first leg playoff round tie against England, which determined which team would earn a berth in the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship. Clichy started the first leg, but was substituted out for Berthod at half-time. France defeated England 3–2 on aggregate to earn a place in the tournament. However, due to his fractured foot injury suffered while playing with Arsenal, Clichy missed the competition.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: On 31 January 2008, Clichy was called up to the senior national team for the first time for the team's February 2008 match against Spain. However, he instead played for the B team in its friendly match against the Congo DR, held the day before the Spain friendly. After receiving several more call ups in 2008, Clichy finally earned his first cap on 10 September 2008 in a 2010 World Cup qualification match against Serbia. The following month, he appeared as a starter in 3–1 victories over Tunisia and Austria, the former match being a friendly and the latter being a World Cup qualifier. In the next year and a half, Clichy failed to represent France internationally. Despite this, he was named in Domenech's 30-man preliminary squad to participate in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Clichy was later named in the 23-man team to serve as the backup for the incumbent starter Patrice Evra. At the competition, France endured a disastrous campaign as the players went on strike in response to its disagreement over the expulsion of striker Nicolas Anelka from the team. In the team's final group stage match against hosts South Africa, with several veteran players missing from the squad, Clichy was inserted as a starter and played the entire match in the team's 2–1 loss, which resulted in its elimination from the competition. As a result of the players' mutiny, Clichy, along with the 22 other members of the team, were suspended for the team's friendly match against Norway.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: Due to the five-match suspension of Evra, new national team manager Laurent Blanc inserted Clichy as the starter. Following his first match since the World Cup against Belarus, Clichy was criticised for his defending; following a mix-up with Yann M'Vila, he failed to prevent Vyacheslav Hleb from providing the assist for the only goal of the match as France lost 1–0. Despite this setback, Clichy remained first-choice and featured in the team's next three matches. In November 2010, Clichy was benched in favour of Eric Abidal. Following Abidal's diagnosis of a tumor on his liver, Evra returned to the team and was given the starting left-back spot in his first match back. Clichy later admitted that he was frustrated by the decision, but respected the manager's choice. In June 2012, he was named in the 23-man France squad and given the number 22 shirt to compete at UEFA Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine as a substitute for Evra. He played the last two group matches against Ukraine and Sweden, as well as the 2–0 loss against Spain in the quarter final at the tournament.


title: Gaël Clichy

text: In 2012, Gaël Clichy signed a sponsorship deal with German sportswear and footwear supplier, Puma SE. He followed the likes of former teammates Sergio Agüero and Yaya Touré wearing the evoSPEED range of football boots. Clichy was formerly with British brand Umbro and its Stealth silo.


title: Automotive industry in Russia

text: Automotive production is a significant industry in Russia, directly employing around 600,000 people or 1% of the country's total workforce. Russia produced 1,767,674 vehicles in 2018, ranking 13th among car-producing nations in 2018, and accounting for 1.8% of the worldwide production. The main local brands are light vehicle producers AvtoVAZ and GAZ, while KamAZ is the leading heavy vehicle producer. Eleven foreign carmakers have production operations or are constructing their plants in Russia.


title: Automotive industry in Russia

text: The Russian Empire had a long history of progress in the development of machinery. As early as in the eighteenth century Ivan I. Polzunov constructed the first two-cylinder steam engine in the world, while Ivan P. Kulibin created a human-powered vehicle that had a flywheel, a brake, a gearbox, and roller bearings. One of the world's first tracked vehicles was invented by Fyodor A. Blinov in 1877. In 1896, the Yakovlev engine factory and the Freze carriage-manufacturing workshop manufactured the first Russian petrol-engine automobile, the Yakovlev & Freze.