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Possible definitions for oadal

Adal
Historic Islamic state, E Africa, southwest of the Gulf of Aden, with its capital at Harer (now in Ethiopia). Its rivalry with Christian Ethiopia began in the 14th cent. In the 16th cent. Adal launched a series of attacks, led by Ahmed Gran, who succeeded by 1533 in gaining control of most of central Ethiopia. Gran was killed in battle in 1543, and the Oromo invasions of the later 16th cent. ended Adal's power.


Ada
High-level computer programming language whose development was initiated in 1975 by the U.S. Dept. of Defense and standardized in 1983. Ada (named for the countess of Lovelace) was intended to be a common language for use on the department's computers, which were produced by many different manufacturers. It is similar to Pascal but contains many additional features convenient for the development of large-scale, multiplatform programs. The 1995 revision, called Ada 95, supports object-oriented design methodology (see object-oriented programming).


Adad
Babylonian and Assyrian god of weather, the son of Anu (sometimes called the son of Bel). He was known as the Lord of Abundance for rains that made the land bloom, but he sent death-dealing storms to his enemies. He was also the god of oracles and divination. Though widely worshiped, he was a minor god and appears to have had no cult center of his own.


Baal
God worshiped in many ancient Middle Eastern communities, especially among Canaanites, for whom he was a fertility deity. In the mythology of Canaan, he was locked in combat with Mot, the god of death and sterility; depending on the outcome of their struggles, seven-year cycles of fertility or famine would ensue. Baal was also king of gods, having seized the kingship from the sea god, Yamm. Baal worship was popular in Egypt from the later New Kingdom to its end (1400-1075 BC). The Aramaeans used the Babylonian pronunciation Bel; Bel became the Greek Belos, identified with Zeus. The Old Testament often refers to a specific local Baal or multiple Baalim.


basalt
Dark igneous rock that is low in silica content and comparatively rich in iron and magnesium. Some basalts are glassy (have no visible crystals), and many are very fine-grained and compact. Basaltic lavas may be spongy or pumice-like. Olivine and augite are the most common minerals in basalts; plagioclase is also present. Basalts may be broadly classified into two main groups. Calc-alkali basalts predominate among the lavas of mountain belts; the active volcanoes of Mauna Loa and Kilauea in Hawaii erupt calc-alkali lavas. Alkali basalts predominate among the lavas of the ocean basins and are also common in mountain belts.


canal
Artificial waterway built for navigation, crop irrigation, water supply, or drainage. The early Middle Eastern civilizations probably first built canals to supply drinking and irrigation water. The most ambitious navigation canal was a ...

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