Nasnas
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Nasnas
In Arab folklore, the Nasnas ( ar, النَّسْنَاس ''an-nasnās'') is a monstrous creature. According to Edward Lane, the 19th century translator of ''The Thousand and One Nights'', a nasnas is "half a human being; having half a head, half a body, one arm, one leg, with which it hops with much agility". In Somali folklore there is a similar creature called "xunguruuf" or "Hungruf". It's believed it can kill a person by just touching them and the person would be fleshless in mere seconds. It was believed to be the offspring of a jinn called a Shiqq ({{lang, ar, الشق) and a human being. A character in "The Story of the Sage and the Scholar", a tale from the collection, is turned into a nasnas after a magician applies kohl to one of his eyes. The nasnas is mentioned in Gustave Flaubert's '' The Temptation of Saint Anthony''. See also * Fachan *Monopod (creature) Sources * Robert Irwin ''The Arabian Nights: a Companion'' (Penguin, 1994) * Jorge Luis Borges J ...
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Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and the western Indian Ocean islands (including the Comoros). An Arab diaspora is also present around the world in significant numbers, most notably in the Americas, Western Europe, Turkey, Indonesia, and Iran. In modern usage, the term "Arab" tends to refer to those who both carry that ethnic identity and speak Arabic as their native language. This contrasts with the narrower traditional definition, which refers to the descendants of the tribes of Arabia. The religion of Islam was developed in Arabia, and Classical Arabic serves as the language of Islamic literature. 93 percent of Arabs are Muslims (the remainder consisted mostly of Arab Christians), while Arab Muslims are only 20 percent of the ...
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Fachan
In Scottish folklore the fachan (or fachin, fachen, Direach Ghlinn Eitidh or Dithreach (dwarf of Glen Etive)) is a monster or giant described by John Francis Campbell in ''Popular Tales of the West Highlands'' as having a single eye in the middle of its face, a single hand protruding from its chest instead of arms, and a single leg emerging from its central axis. It has a single tuft of hair on the top of its head, regarding which Campbell says "it were easier to take a mountain from the root than to bend that tuft." Campbell draws attention to the possible influence of creatures from Arabic tradition such as the Nesnas or Shikk, described as "half of a human being" and hopping about on one leg with great agility.Campbell, John Francis (1893) 862 ''Popular Tales of the West Highlands''. Vol. 4 (New ed.). Alexander Gardner. pp. 297–98. Douglas Hyde quotes Campbell's description in his collection of Irish folklore ''Beside the Fire'' and refers to an Irish manuscript in which a s ...
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Monopod (creature)
Monopods (also called sciapods, skiapods, skiapodes) were mythological dwarf-like creatures with a single, large foot extending from a leg centred in the middle of their bodies. The names ''monopod'' and ''skiapod'' (σκιάποδες) are both Greek, respectively meaning "one-foot" and "shadow-foot". Ancient Greek and Roman literature Monopods appear in Aristophanes' play '' The Birds'', first performed in 414 BC. They are described by Pliny the Elder in his '' Natural History'', where he reports travelers' stories from encounters or sightings of Monopods in India. Pliny remarks that they are first mentioned by Ctesias in his book ''Indika'' (India), a record of the view of Persians of India which only remains in fragments. Pliny describes Monopods like this: Philostratus mentions Skiapodes in his ''Life of Apollonius of Tyana'', which was cited by Eusebius in his ''Treatise Against Hierocles''. Apollonius of Tyana believes the Skiapodes live in India and Ethiopia, and ask ...
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Muhammad Ibn Muhammad Shakir Ruzmah-'i Nathani - A Camel And Three Strange Single-handed And Single-legged Creatures - Walters W659143A - Full Page
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد;  570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. He is believed to be the Seal of the Prophets within Islam. Muhammad united Arabia into a single Muslim polity, with the Quran as well as his teachings and practices forming the basis of Islamic religious belief. Muhammad was born approximately 570CE in Mecca. He was the son of Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib and Amina bint Wahb. His father Abdullah was the son of Quraysh tribal leader Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim, and he died a few months before Muhammad's birth. His mother Amina died when he was six, leaving Muhammad an orphan. He was raised under the care of his grandfather, Abd al-Muttalib, and paternal uncle, Abu Talib. In later years, he would periodically seclude himsel ...
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Folklore
Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging from traditional building styles common to the group. Folklore also includes customary lore, taking actions for folk beliefs, the forms and rituals of celebrations such as Christmas and weddings, folk dances and initiation rites. Each one of these, either singly or in combination, is considered a folklore artifact or traditional cultural expression. Just as essential as the form, folklore also encompasses the transmission of these artifacts from one region to another or from one generation to the next. Folklore is not something one can typically gain in a formal school curriculum or study in the fine arts. Instead, these traditions are passed along informally from one individual to another either through verbal instruction or demonstr ...
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Edward William Lane
Edward William Lane (17 September 1801 – 10 August 1876) was a British orientalist, translator and lexicographer. He is known for his ''Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians'' and the '' Arabic-English Lexicon,'' as well as his translations of ''One Thousand and One Nights'' and ''Selections from the Kur-án''. During his lifetime, Lane also wrote a detailed account of Egypt and the country's ancient sites, but the book, titled ''Description of Egypt,'' was published posthumously. It was first published by the American University in Cairo Press in 2000 and has been republished several times since then. Early years Lane was born at Hereford, England, the third son of the Rev. Dr Theopilus Lane, and grand-nephew of Thomas Gainsborough on his mother's side. After his father's death in 1814, Lane was sent to grammar school at Bath and then Hereford, where he showed a talent for mathematics. He visited Cambridge, but did not enrol in any of its colleges. Instead, Lane joi ...
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The Thousand And One Nights
''One Thousand and One Nights'' ( ar, أَلْفُ لَيْلَةٍ وَلَيْلَةٌ, italic=yes, ) is a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the ''Arabian Nights'', from the first English-language edition (), which rendered the title as ''The Arabian Nights' Entertainment''. The work was collected over many centuries by various authors, translators, and scholars across West, Central and South Asia, and North Africa. Some tales trace their roots back to ancient and medieval Arabic, Egyptian, Sanskrit, Persian, and Mesopotamian literature. Many tales were originally folk stories from the Abbasid and Mamluk eras, while others, especially the frame story, are most probably drawn from the Pahlavi Persian work ( fa, هزار افسان, lit. ''A Thousand Tales''), which in turn relied partly on Indian elements. Common to all the editions of the ''Nights'' is the framing device of the story o ...
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Demon
A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, anime, and television series. Belief in demons probably goes back to the Paleolithic age, stemming from humanity's fear of the unknown, the strange and the horrific. ''A Dictionary of Comparative Religion'' edited by S.G.F. Brandon 1970 In ancient Near Eastern religions and in the Abrahamic religions, including early Judaism and ancient-medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered a harmful spiritual entity which may cause demonic possession, calling for an exorcism. Large portions of Jewish demonology, a key influence on Christianity and Islam, originated from a later form of Zoroastrianism, and was transferred to Judaism during the Persian era. Demons may or may not also be considered to be devils: minions of the Devil. In ma ...
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Kohl (cosmetics)
Kohl ( ar, كُحْل, kuḥl), kajal or kajol is an ancient eye cosmetic, traditionally made by grinding stibnite (Sb2S3) for use similar to that of charcoal in mascara. It is widely used in the Middle East, Caucasus and North Africa, South Asia, West Africa, and the Horn of Africa as eyeliner to contour and/or darken the eyelids and as mascara for the eyelashes. It is worn mostly by women, but also by some men and children. The content of kohl and various ways to prepare it differ based on tradition and country. Several studies have questioned the safety of kohl due to the dangers of lead poisoning. Name The Arabic name formed the Arabic root ''k-ḥ-l, “to apply kohl”''. Transliteration variants of Arabic dialectal pronunciation include ''kohl'' or ''kuhl''. The Arabic word cognates with Syriac-Aramaic word ܟܘܚܠܐ/כוחלא ''kuḥla''. Both words derived from Akkadian 𒎎𒋆𒁉𒍣𒁕 ''guẖlu(m)'' meaning stibium. The English word ''alcohol'' is a loan ...
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Gustave Flaubert
Gustave Flaubert ( , , ; 12 December 1821 – 8 May 1880) was a French novelist. Highly influential, he has been considered the leading exponent of literary realism in his country. According to the literary theorist Kornelije Kvas, "in Flaubert, realism strives for formal perfection, so the presentation of reality tends to be neutral, emphasizing the values and importance of style as an objective method of presenting reality". He is known especially for his debut novel ''Madame Bovary'' (1857), his ''Correspondence'', and his scrupulous devotion to his style and aesthetics. The celebrated short story writer Guy de Maupassant was a protégé of Flaubert. Life Early life and education Flaubert was born in Rouen, in the Seine-Maritime department of Upper Normandy, in northern France. He was the second son of Anne Justine Caroline (née Fleuriot; 1793–1872) and Achille-Cléophas Flaubert (1784–1846), director and senior surgeon of the major hospital in Rouen. He began writ ...
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The Temptation Of Saint Anthony (Flaubert)
''The Temptation of Saint Anthony'' (French ''La Tentation de Saint Antoine'') is a dramatic poem in prose (often referred as a novel) by the French author Gustave Flaubert published in 1874. Flaubert spent his whole adult life working fitfully on the book. Origin In 1845, at age 24, Flaubert visited the Balbi Palace in Genoa, and was inspired by a painting of the same title, then attributed to Bruegel the Elder (now thought to be by one of his followers). Flaubert worked at the subject in three versions, completed in 1849, 1856 (with extracts published at that time) and 1872, before publishing the final version in 1874. It takes as its subject the famous temptation faced by Saint Anthony the Great, in the Egyptian desert, a theme often repeated in medieval and modern art. It is written in the form of a play script, detailing one night in the life of Anthony the Great, during which he is faced with great temptations. The work was illustrated by the French painter Odilon Red ...
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Robert Graham Irwin
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honour, praise, renown" and ''berht'' "bright, light, shining"). It is the second most frequently used given name of ancient Germanic origin. It is also in use as a surname. Another commonly used form of the name is Rupert. After becoming widely used in Continental Europe it entered England in its Old French form ''Robert'', where an Old English cognate form (''Hrēodbēorht'', ''Hrodberht'', ''Hrēodbēorð'', ''Hrœdbœrð'', ''Hrœdberð'', ''Hrōðberχtŕ'') had existed before the Norman Conquest. The feminine version is Roberta. The Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish form is Roberto. Robert is also a common name in many Germanic languages, including English, German, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish, Scots, Danish, and Icelandic. It can be use ...
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