MET Column
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019!
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Happy Birthday to the countries!
Happy Birthday to Cameroon!
School children in Cameroon *Photo from Wikipedia January 1 is Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Cameroon from France in 1960. Portuguese explorers reached the coast in the 15th century and named the area Rio dos Camarões (“Shrimp River”), which became Cameroon in English. Cameroon became a German colony in 1884 known as Kamerun. After World War I, the territory was divided between France and the United Kingdom as League of Nations mandates. The Union des Populations du Cameroun (UPC) political party advocated independence, but was outlawed by France in the 1950s, leading to the Cameroonian Independence War. In 1960,
Happy Birthday to the countries!
Happy Birthday to Sudan!
Sudanese women *Photo from Wikipedia January 1 is Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Sudan from United Kingdom in 1956. he early history of the Kingdom of Kush located in what is now northern Sudan along the Nile is intertwined with the history of ancient Egypt, in which it was united politically over several periods. By virtue of its proximity to ancient Egypt, the Sudan participated in the wider history of the Near East inasmuch as it was Christianized by the 6th century and Islamized in the 7th. The modern Republic of Sudan was formed in 1956 and inherited its
Happy Birthday to the countries!
Happy Birthday to Haiti!
A market in Cap Haitien, a commune (the third-level divisions of Haiti) on the north coast of Haiti. *Photo from Wikipedia January 1 is Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Haiti from France in 1804. Originally inhabited by the indigenous Taíno people, Europeans first became aware of the island on December 5, 1492 during the first voyage of Christopher Columbus across the Atlantic. When Columbus first landed in Haiti, he had thought he had found India or Asia. The island was named Hispaniola and claimed by Spain, which ruled until the early 17th century. Competing claims and settlements by the
Happy Birthday to the countries!
Happy Birthday to Slovenia!
View of Ljubljana, the capital and largest city of Slovenia. *Photo from Wikipedia December 26 is Independence and Unity Day of Slovenia, commemorates the official proclamation of the Slovenian independence referendum on December 26, 1990. Historically, the current territory of Slovenia was part of many different state formations, including the Roman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire, followed by the Habsburg Monarchy. In October 1918, the Slovenes exercised self-determination for the first time by co-founding the internationally unrecognized “State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs”, which merged that December with the Kingdom of Serbia into the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and
Happy Birthday to the countries!
Happy Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day!
View of the old city in Macau. *Photo from Wikipedia December 20 is Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day. The first recorded Chinese inhabitants of the region now called Macau were people seeking refuge in the area from invading Mongols during the Southern Song (1127–1279). Under the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), fishermen migrated to Macau from Guangdong and Fujian. The Macau native people were Tanka (疍家 or 蜑家) boat people. Macau did not develop as a major settlement until the Portuguese arrived in the 16th century. Portuguese traders first settled in Macau in the 1550s. In 1557, Macau was rented to
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Happy Bhutan’s National Day!
A classroom in a school in Thimph, the capital and largest city of Bhutan. *Photo from Wikipedia December 17 is Bhutan’s National Day. The date marks the coronation of Ugyen Wangchuck as the first Druk Gyalpo (the head of state of Bhutan) of modern Bhutan. Bhutan is one of only a few countries which have been independent throughout their history, never conquered, occupied, or governed by an outside power. Although there has been speculation that it was under the Kamarupa Kingdom (one of the historical kingdoms of Assam, a state in northeastern India) or the Tibetan Empire in the 7th
Happy Birthday to the countries!
Happy Birthday to Bahrain!
Bahrainis observing public prayers in Manama, the capital and largest city of Bahrain. *Photo from Wikipedia December 16 is Bahrain’s National Day. The United Kingdom recognizes Bahrain’s independence in 1971. Bahrain was one of the earliest areas to convert to Islam in 628 AD. Following a period of Arab rule, Bahrain was occupied by the Portuguese in 1521, who in turn were expelled in 1602 by Shah Abbas I of the Safavid dynasty under the Persian Empire. In 1783, the Bani Utbah clan captured Bahrain from Nasr Al-Madhkur and has since been ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family, with
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Happy Birthday to Kazakhstan!
Ak Orda (“the white horde”) Presidential Palace, located in the capital city of Astana. *Photo from Wikipedia December 16 is Republic Day of Kazakhstan, celebrating the independence of the country from the Soviet Union. The territory of Kazakhstan has historically been inhabited by nomadic tribes. This changed in the 13th century, when Genghis Khan occupied the country as part of the Mongolian Empire. Following internal struggles among the conquerors, power eventually reverted to the nomads. By the 16th century, the Kazakh emerged as a distinct group, divided into three jüz (main territorial and tribal division in the Kypchak Plain area
Happy Birthday to the countries!
Happy Birthday to Kenya!
Kenyan women. *Photo from Wikipedia December 12 is Jamhuri Day, celebrates the independence of Kenya from Britain in 1963. Throughout the centuries, the Kenyan Coast has played host to many merchants and explorers. In 1414, the Chinese trader and explorer Zheng He (鄭和) representing the Ming Dynasty visited the East African coast. Also Malindi (important Swahili settlement since the 14th century) authorities welcomed the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama in 1498. The colonial history of Kenya dates from the establishment of a German protectorate over the Sultan of Zanzibar’s coastal possessions in 1885, followed by the arrival of the Imperial British