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"Ogaden"

Hello,my friends,

This posting is about the region "Ogaden" from the story "My Father, the Englishman and I" . We can know from the story that this region is in Africa but we dont know where it actually is, big or small. Ogaden is the region of the Ogaden Somali, a sub-clan of the Darod. It was put into Ethiopia officailly by the British after the war, as far as I know. The map and regional flags are shown ,too. The references are below and enjoy reading. =)

>"Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled Ogadēn, Somali: Ogaaden) is a part of the Somali Region in Ethiopia. Sometimes known as "Abyssinian Somaliland," some locals refer to it as Ogadenia (Somali: Ogaadeeniya). The inhabitants are predominantly ethnic Somali and Muslim; most of these Somali inhabitants belong to the Ogaden Somali, a sub-clan of the Darod.
The region, which is around 150,000 to 200,000 square kilometres, borders Djibouti, Kenya, and Somalia, and has a population of 5,500,000 people.[citation needed] Important settlements include Kabri Dahar, Jijiga, Godey, Dhagah bur , Warder,and Shilabo.
The region is at the center of the volatile Horn of Africa."

>"It was colonized by Great Britain as a protectorate from the last quarter of the 19th century to the first half of the 20th century, before it was annexed by Ethiopia, although the boundary of British Somalia was one of the first to be fixed by treaty (June, 1897)."

source->http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogaden

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"Kimono"

Hi,everyone,

This posting is about the word "Kimono" from the strory "A Family Supper" . First, I thought of doing "Fugu" but I think it is done already by many.

The word "Kimono" is a familiar word for me since women in my country wear traditional dresses made of the same material as Kimono. But, I did not know the real defination of Kimono before though I knew it is a Japanese word. In Japanese, Kimono basically means clothing but is often refered to as Japanese traditional dress which is mostly worn in cultural festivals or ceremonies. Below is the reference. Hope you enjoied reading my blog.

>"Kimono (着物, Kimono? literally "something worn", i.e., "clothes") are the traditional garments of Japan. Originally kimono was used for all types of clothing, but it came to refer specifically to the full-length garment that is still worn by women, men, and children. Kimono are T-shaped, straight-lined robes that fall to the ankle, with collars and full-length sleeves. The sleeves are commonly very wide at the wrist, perhaps a half meter. Traditionally, on special occasions unmarried women wear kimono with extremely long sleeves that extend almost to the floor. The robe is wrapped around the body, always with the left side over the right, and secured by a wide belt tied in the back, called an obi. Kimono are generally worn with traditional footwear (especially geta, thonged wood-platform footwear; and zori, a type of thong-like footwear) and split-toe socks called tabi. Beneath the outer kimono, another shorter kimono is worn as underwear, called a nagajuban."

>"There are styles of kimono for various occasions, ranging from extremely formal to very casual. The level of formality of women's kimono is determined mostly by the pattern and fabric, and also the color. Young women's kimono have longer sleeves and tend to be more elaborate than similarly formal older women's kimono. Men's kimono are usually one basic shape and are mainxly worn in subdued colors. Formality is also determined by the type and color of accessories, the fabric, and the number or absence of kamon (family crests). Silk is the most desirable, and most formal, fabric. Cotton is more casual. These days there are polyester kimonbo as well; they are generally more casual."

source-> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimono

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Hello,everyone,

This is one of the class assignments. When I read the story "My Mother's Memoirs, My Father's Lie, and Other True Stories" by Russell Banks, I did not find anything interesting. But, I found the word 'pajamas' in it and wanted to post about it.

Though almost everyone in US and Europe wears pajamas, not every country has the tradition of wearing pajamas. For example, we dont wear pajamas in my country.When I tried to learn more about it, I was a little surprised to know that pajamas started from Asia, most likely from China, India and other Muslim countries.

Since the British and other Western countries had colonial presence in Asia, it is no wonder the design spread.Below is the refrence

History

"
The original pajamas — loose, lightweight drawstring trousers tied around the waist and worn in South and West Asia.[1]
A loose, two-piece garment derived from the preceding garment, worn as (especially men's and boys') sleepwear, in Britain, the United States, and other countries. Pyjamas in this sense consist of a jacket and trouser combination, made of a lightweight non-stretch material, similar to materials used in bed sheets, with the jacket closing down the front with buttons. These first appeared in Britain as a result of British colonial presence in South Asia in the 18th and 19th centuries, and by the early 20th century had replaced nightshirts as the dominant style of sleepwear for men and boys there. (In South Asia these are known as night suits.) "

"Such a garment is used by various persons in India e.g. by women of various classes, by Sikh men, and most by Mahommedans of both sexes. It was adopted from the Mahommedans by Europeans as an article of dishabille and of night attire ... It is probable that we English took the habit like a good many others from the Portuguese. Thus Pyarard (c. 1610) says, in speaking of Goa Hospital: "Ils ont force calsons sans quoy ne couchent iamais les Portugais des Indes" ... The word in now used in London shops. A friend furnishes the following reminiscence: "The late Mr. B—, tailor in Jermyn Street, some 40 years ago, in reply to a question why pyjammas had feet sewn on to them (as was sometimes the case with those furnished by London outfitters) answered: 'I believe, Sir, it is because of the White Ants."[4] "

>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pajamas

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"Valentine's Day"

Hi,

Just as the title suggests, this is about the valentine's day. Throught my research, I found out that it is named after the saint Valentine who was imprisoned. The legend has it that he was later sentenced to death. During his imprisonment, it is said that people sent prayer notes for him and the habit spread. Though it is a legend, it is accepted by most people as the source of the valentine's day. Below is a nice valentine's day poem the refrence-

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->From a Secret Admirer<-

(After Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening")

Whose gift this is you cannot know.

My heart is in your keeping though.

You will not mind my writing here

To tell you that I love you so.
I know that you must think it queer

For me to love and not come near

But linger by some frozen lake

This most romantic time of year.
I sometimes give my head a shake

And ask if there is some mistake.

It's lonely out here 'mid the sweep

Of bitter wind and icy flake.
My love for you is dark and deep,

But it's a promise I will keep

As from afar I watch and weep,

As from afar I watch and weep.

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>"Saint Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day is on February 14. It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other; sending Valentine's cards or candy. It is very common to present flowers on Valentine's Day. The holiday is named after two men, both Christian martyrs named Valentine. The day became associated with romantic love in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

History

Catholic Origins
The legend of St. Valentine is not absolutely clear, which is also why we refer to this history as "legend." One legend portrays him as a priest who refused the Roman Emperor Claudius II's law, ordering that young men remained single. It is argued that Claudius II did this to grow his army, believing that married men did not make for good soldiers. The priest Valentine, however, secretly performed marriage ceremonies for young Catholic men. When Claudius found out about this, he had Fr. Valentine arrested and thrown in jail.Claudius, and he sentenced Valentine to death. While imprisoned, one of the jailors had a blind daughter, whom he brought to the jail often, and she spoke at length to Fr. Valentine. Just before he was put to death, he sent her a small card and signed it, "From your Valentine."
Another story has it that while Fr. Valentine was imprisoned, people would leave him little notes, folded up and hidden in cracks in the rocks around his cell. He would find them and offer prayers for them."
Either way, the origin of the modern "Valentine Card" came from notes either to or from Fr. Valentine while he was in prison.
Fr. Valentine was put to death on February 14, 270 AD (some sources say 269, others 273 AD).History"<>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentine%27s_day

Hi, everyone,

My first posting is about the word " Pygmy ". It basically means an adult who is very short compared to a man of average height. Among different meanings and usages of the word, it usually refers to some specific tribes in Africa. One of the tribes is the Bambuti.

According to a book I read, it is said that the Bambuti hunters has a special metabolism that allows them to move so fast in the forests. In the Egyptian history records, they are even described as guardian spirits of the forests in Africa because it was impossible to capture or track them. Their agilty has confused the strangers to a level that people believed they could disappear into thin air. I will try to put more information resources about the word. Below is the data from Wikipedia.

"A Pygmy is a member of any human group whose adult males grow to less than 59 in. (150 cm) in average height. The name is also sometimes loosely applied to the Bushmen (San) of southern Africa and the so-called Negrito peoples of Asia (such as the Philippine Ilongot). Besides their short stature, Pygmies are notable in having the highest basal-metabolism rate in the world and a high incidence of sickle-cell anemia. The Bambuti of the Ituri Forest are a well-studied example."

>Wikipedia(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmy)