People and Peoples (T-Z)


Tagalog
The Tagalog are the majority ethnic group living around
Manila on the island of Luzon, in the
Philippines, who number about 10 million. The Tagalog live by fishing and trading. In
its standardized form, known as Pilipino, Tagalog is the official language of the Philippines,
and belongs to the Western branch of the Austronesian family. The Tagalog religion is a
mixture of animism, Christianity, and Islam.

Tai
The Tai are the groups of south east Asian peoples who speak Tai languages, all of which
belong to the Sino-Tibetan language family. There are over 60 million speakers, the majority
of whom live in
Thailand. Tai peoples are also found in SW China, north west Myanmar (Burma),
Laos, and north Vietnam.

Talapoin
A talapoin is a Buddhist priest or
monk.

Tamerlane
Tamerlane (Timur) was
King of Samarkland. He was born in 1336 and died in 1405. He extended the Mongol empire through Persia, Georgia, Armenia and Russia.

Tamil
The
Tamils are the majority ethnic group living in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
Tamils retain a distinct culture. They possess an ancient literary tradition and have developed
their own court arts. The majority of Tamils are farmers, cultivating rice in irrigated fields. They
are also known for their handicrafts, including pottery.

Tamils
The Tamils are an indigenous people of southern
India and Sri Lanka.

Tancred
Tancred was a
hero of the first Crusade. He was born in 1078 of Marquis Odo the Good and Emma. He died in 1112 of a wound received at Antioch.

Tasaday
The Tasaday are an indigenous people of the rainforests of
Mindanao in the Philippines.

Tatian
Tatian was a heresiarch of the 2nd century. He was born in
Ethiopia around 120 and died around 172. He became a disciple of Justin, after whose martyrdom he left Rome and travelled the Middle East preaching. He taught abstinence from wine, meat and marriage and disbelieved the divinity of Christ.

Tauregs
see "
Tuareg"

Tauri
The Tauri were the earliest known inhabitants of the
Crimea.

Tenessee Williams
Tenessee
Williams (Thomas Lanier) is an American playwright. He was born in 1914. He wrote "A Street Car Named Desire" and "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof".

Thales
Thales was a
Greek philosopher. He was born in 636BC and died in 546 BC.

Thane
In
English history, a thane was someone who was awarded land by the King or another superior as a reward for military service. Thanes ranked between ordinary freemen and hereditary nobles.

Theodore Dreiser
Theodore Dreiser was an American writer born in 1871. He died in 1945.

Theodore Gericault
Theodore Gericault was a French painter. He was born in 1791 at Rouen and died in 1824. He introduced the idea of painting directly onto canvas.

Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt was
president of the USA. He was born in 1858, dying in 1919.

Theophile Delcasse
Theophile Delcasse was a
French statesman. He was born in 1852 and died in 1923. As Foreign Minister he effected in 1904 the Franco-British Treaty regarding Morocco and Egypt, which so aroused german resentment that he was forced to resign.

Theophile Gautier
Theophile
Gautier was a French poet and novelist. He was born in 1811 at Tarbes and died in 1872.

Theophrastus
Theophrastus of
Lesbos was a Greek naturalist. He was born in 368BC and died in 284BC. He wrote A History of Plants.

Thomas Bowdich
Thomas Edward Bowdich was an
African explorer. He was born in 1790 and died in 1824 of disease in the Gambia.

Thomas Carew
Thomas Carew was a British poet. He was born in 1595 and died in 1639.

Thomas Chatterton
Thomas Chatterton was an
English poet. He was born in 1752 and died in 1770.

Thomas Chippendale
Thomas Chippendale was one of
England's most famous furniture makers. He was born in 1718 in Yorkshire and died in 1779.

Thomas Clarkson
Thomas Clarkson was an English anti-slavery advocate. He was born in 1760 and died in 1846. He published a Latin essay on slavery in 1786 and organised a campaign for the abolition of slavery in Africa. In 1823 he assisted in founding the Anti-Slavery Society for the suppression of slavery in the West Indies.

Thomas Coram
Thomas Coram was a Dorset seaman. He was born in 1668 and died in 1751. He established the Foundling Hospital, which was chartered in 1739 and intended as a refuge for the numerous unwanted children of London. He spent all his money on charities, and towards the end of his life was reduced to poverty, when an annuity was raised for him by public subscription.

Thomas Coutts
Thomas Coutts was a British banker. He was born in 1735 at Edinburgh and died in 1822. He founded the London banking house of Coutss and Co., becoming the sole partner on his brother's death in 1778. He acted as banker to George III.

Thomas Cranmer
Thomas Cranmer was archbishop of
canterbury under Henry VIII. He was born in 1489, dying in 1556 when he was burnt at the stake for refusing to revert his religion under Mary.

Thomas Cromwell
Thomas Cromwell was Earl of Essex and an English administrator. He was born in 1485 and died in 1540. He was secretary and chief minister to Henry VIII and directed the divorce proceedings against Catherine of Aragon. He promoted the Act of Supremacy in 1534 to try to get absolute power for the King.

Thomas Day
Thomas Day was an English author. He was born in 1748 and died in 1789. He wrote "The History of Sandford and Merton".

Thomas De Quincey
Thomas De Quincey was an
English writer. He was born in 1785 and died in 1859.

Thomas de Torquemada
Thomas de Torquemada was a Dominican
monk and founder of the Spanish Inquisition. He was born in 1420 and died in 1498.

Thomas Dekker
Thomas Dekker was an
English dramatist and writer. He was born in 1570 and died in 1641. He wrote plays which provide a view of contemporary life in London.

Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva
Edison was an American scientist. He was born in 1847 and died in 1931. He invented the carbon filiament electric lamp and the phonograph.

Thomas Erastus
Thomas Erastus was a German-Swiss student of medicine and theology. He was born in 1524 and died in 1583. He was Professor of Medicine at Heidelberg, and he advicated the teaching of Zwingli as opposed to Calvin in 1560.

Thomas Faed
Thomas Faed was a Scottish painter. He was born in 1826 and died in 1900.

Thomas Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough was an
English painter. He was born in 1727 at Sudbury and died in 1788. He is remembered for his portraits and landscapes.

Thomas Girtin
Thomas Girtin was an
English watercolour artist. He was born in 1775 and died in 1802.

Thomas Gray
Thomas Gray was an
English writer. He was born in 1716 at London and died in 1771.

Thomas Heywood
Thomas Heywood was a British dramatist. He lived during the 17th century and wrote 'A Woman Killed with Kindness".

Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes was a British philosopher. He was born in 1588 at Malmesbury and died in 1679. He wrote Leviathan which was the first British political philosophy book.

Thomas Huxley
Thomas Henry
Huxley was an English biologist. He was born in 1825 at Ealing and died in 1895. He was an outspoken supporter of Darwin.

Thomas Jackson
Thomas Jonathan
Jackson was an American Confederate general. He was born in 1824 and died in 1863. He was nicknamed "stonewall".

Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the third
President of the USA. He was born in 1743 and died in 1826.

Thomas Kyd
Thomas Kyd was a British dramatist. He was born in 1558 and died in 1594. He wrote "The Spanish Tragedy".

Thomas Lanier
see "
Tenessee William"

Thomas Lodge
Thomas Lodge was a British poet. He was born in 1558 and died in 1625.

Thomas Macaulay
Thomas Babington Macaulay was a British historian and politician. He was born in 1800 at
Leicestershire and died in 1859. He entered parliament in 1830. He became Secretary for War in 1839.

Thomas Malthus
Thomas Robert Malthus was an
English economist. He was born in 1766 near Guildford and died in 1834. He wrote The Essay on Population.

Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann was a
German novelist. He was born in 1875 at Lubeck and died in 1955. He won the Nobel prize for literature in 1929.

Thomas Masaryk
Thomas Garrigue Masaryk was the founder and first
President of Czechoslovakia. He was born in 1850 at Moravia and died in 1937.

Thomas Middleton
Thomas Middleton was an
English dramatist. He was born in 1570 and died in 1627. He is know for his realistic comedies and romantic plays.

Thomas Morley
Thomas Morley was an
English composer of madrigals. He was born in 1557, dying in 1603.

Thomas Newcomen
Thomas Newcomen was an
English engineer. He was born in 1663 at Dartmouth and died in 1729. He developed the steam engine.

Thomas Otway
Thomas Otway was an
English dramatist. He was born in 1652 at Trotton in Sussex and died in 1685. He is renowned for his work "Venice Preserved".

Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine was an
English writer on politics and religion. He was born in 1737 in Norfolk and died in 1809.

Thomas Rowlandson
Thomas Rowlandson was an
English caricaturist. He was born in 1756 and died in 1827.

Thomas Sheraton
Thomas Sheraton was the last of the great English cabinet-makers of the 18th century. He was born in 1751 and died in 1806. Sheraton continued the pursuit of lightness combined with strength which had been started by Hepplewhite. The influence of the Louis XVI period is seen in his general avoidance of curves. Sheraton also used carving very sparingly and was more partial to inlay.

Thucydides
Thucydides was an Athenian historian. He was born in 460BC and died in 399BC. He wrote a history of the Peloponnesian
War.

Thug
The thugs were a
Hindu sect who strangled their victims as sacrifices to Kali.

Thuringian
The Thuringian were an ancient tribe of central
Germany. They were conquered by the Franks in the 6th century.

Tigro
The Tigro are a people of north
Ethiopia. The Tigro language is spoken by about 2.5 million people; it belongs
to the south east Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic family. Tigrinya is a closely related language
spoken slightly to the south.

Tintoretto
Jacopo Robusti (Tintoretto) was an Italian
painter. He was born in 1518 in venice and died in 1594.

Titian
Tiziano Vecellio (Titian) was an Italian
painter. He was born in 1477 and died in 1576.

Tlingit
The Tlingit are a North American Indian people of the north west
coast, living in south Alaska and north British
Columbia. They used to carve wooden poles representing their family crests, showing such
animals as the raven, whale, octopus, beaver, bear, wolf, and the mythical "thunderbird".
Their language is related to the Athabaskan languages.

Tobias Smollett
Tobias Smollett was a British novelist. He was born in 1721 at Dalquhurne and died in 1771.

Toltec
The Toltecs were a prehistoric people of
Central America to whom the Aztecs and the Mayas ascribed all their arts and ancient monuments.

Toltecs
see "
Toltec"

Torquato Tasso
Torquato Tasso was an Italian poet. He was born in 1544 at
Sorrento and died in 1595.

Tory
Originally, a Tory was an
Irish outlaw and robber (from the Irish word meaning to pursue for the sake of plunder). The term was applied to the Royalist party at the time of the Popish Plot but had acquired a political significance as early as 1654 when it was applied by the principal of Glasgow University to the forces maintaining the cause of Charles II, as the political counterpart of Whig. Today the term is applied to the Conservatives in Britain with ironic accuracy to the original Irish meaning, many poorer Britains would say.

Trajan
Trajan was a
Roman emperor. He was born in 53 and died in 117. He became emperor in 98. He was a soldier, and fought many campaigns in Dacia, Armenia, Mesopotamia and Ctesiphon.

Troglodyte
Troglodyte is a
Greek term for a cave dweller, designating certain peoples in the ancient world. The
troglodytes of south Egypt and Ethiopia were a pastoral people.

Trouveres
The Trouveres were the
court poets of north and central France in the Middle Ages. Their invariable theme was the trials undergone by a lover at the hands of his lady, who is already married to another.

Tswana
The Tswana are the majority ethnic group living in
Botswana. The Tswana are divided into four subgroups: the
Bakwena, the Bamangwato, the Bangwaketse, and the Batawana. Traditionally they are rural-
dwelling farmers, though many now leave their homes to work as migrant laborers in South
African industries. The Tswana language belongs to the Bantu branch of the Niger-Congo
family.

Tuareg
The Tuareg are a nomadic
Berber people of the west and central Sahara.

Tuaregs

Tukano
The Tukano are an indigenous South American Indian people of the Vaupos region on the
Colombian-Brazilian
border, numbering approximately 2,000. An estimated 12,000 speak
languages related to Tukano. The other main Tukanoan groups are Bara, Barasana, Cubeo,
Desana, and Makuna.

Tunguses
The Tunguses are a Mongolo-Tata people of east
Siberia. They live in small groups and are primarily fishers, hunters, trappers and shepherds.

Tuscarora
The Tuscarora are a North American indian tribe. They originated from
North Carolina and are now a member of the Iroquois confederacy.

Tutankhamen
Tutankhamen (Tutenkhamon) was an
Egyptian Pharaoh around 1400BC. He reigned for around 6 years and died at the age of 18. His tomb was excavated in 1922 by Howard Carter and found to be intact and containing a large store of domestic furniture and objets d'art.

Tutsi
The Tutsi are the minority ethnic group living in
Rwanda and Burundi.
They are traditionally farmers.

Twa
The Twa are an ethnic group comprising 1% of the populations of
Burundi and Rwanda. The
Twa are the aboriginal inhabitants of the region. They are a pygmoid people, and live as
nomadic hunter-gatherers in the forests.

Uigur
The Uigur are a Turkic people living in north west
China and Kazakhstan; they form about 80% of the population of the Chinese province of Xinjiang Uygur. There are about 5 million speakers of
Uigur, a language belonging to the Turkic branch of the Altaic family; it is the official language of the province.

Umpire
An umpire is someone to whose
sole decision a matter in dispute between two parties is refered.

Ursula Southill
see "
Mother Shipton"

Ursulines
The Ursulines are a female monastic order which was formed in 1535 with the purpose of educating girls and tending for the sick and needy. It was declared a religious order under the
rule of Saint Augustine.

Uzbeg
The Uzbegs are a Turki people of
Uigur stock who migrated from Kashgaria to west Turkestan in the 14th century.

Uzbegs
see "
Uzbeg"

Uzbek
The Uzbek are a town-dwelling Turkic people of Turkestan and
Uzbekistan.

Vaishnava
The Vaishnava are a Bhakti sect devoted to Vishnu.

Vandals
The Vandals were a war-like Germanic tribe who between the 5th and 6th centuries invaded Gaul,
Spain and North Africa. In 455 they sacked Rome. They were renowned for wantonly destroying art treasures and books.

Vasco da Gama
Vasco Da Gama was a Portugese explorer. He discovered the sea-route from
Europe to India.

Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan
Williams was an English composer. He was born in 1872 at Down Ampney and died in 1958.

Vedda
The Vedda are the aboriginal peoples of
Sri Lanka, who occupied the island before the arrival of the Aryans about 550 BC. Formerly cave-dwelling hunter-gatherers, they have now almost
died out or merged with the rest of the population. They speak a Sinhalese language, belonging to the Indo-European family.
They live mainly in the central highlands, and many practise shifting cultivation.

Veddahs
The Veddahs are a tribe of
Sri Lanka, the last remaining remnants of the aboriginal people of Sri Lanka.

Vergil
Publius Vergilius Maro (Vergil) was a Roman poet. He was born in 70BC near Mantua and died in 19BC.

Vicar
A vicar is a church of
England priest.

Vicente Barrantes
Vicente Barrantes was a Spanish publicist and author. He was born in 1829 and died in 1898.

Viceroy
A viceroy is someone who
acts as governor of a country or province by authority of the ruler.

Victor Amadeus II
Victor Amadeus II was
Duke of Savoy and the first King of Sardinia. He was born in 1666 and died in 1732.

Victor Cousin
Victor Cousin was a French educationalist and philosopher. He was born in 1792, dying in 1867. He founded the eclectic school.

Victor Emmanuel II
Victor Emmanuel II was King of Sardinia and of Italy. He was born in 1820 and died in 1878. Through his diplomacy he united Italy and was in 1871 crowned the first king of a united Italy.

Victor Hugo
Victor Marie Hugo was a French poet and novelist. He was born in 1802 at Besancon and died in 1885. His first poems were published in 1822.

Victoria
Victoria was
Queen of Great Britain and Ireland and Empress of India. She was born in 1819 and died in 1901. She succeeded to the throne in 1837 at the age of 18 and reigned until her death in 1901.

Victorien Sardou
Victorien Sardou was a
French dramatist. He was born in 1831, dying in 1908.

Vidkun Quisling
Vidkun Quisling was a
Norwegian traitor and puppet minister. He was born in 1887 and died in 1945 when he was executed following the liberation of Norway.

Vikings
The Vikings were the inhabitants of
Scandinavia, and more particularly Norway from about the 8th to the 11th century. They were also called Norsemen, and Danes. They were great explorers and set up colonies in Ireland, France, and England as well as reaching Iceland, Greenland and Nova Scotia. In 912 they were granted the duchy of Normandy, and these Vikings became known as Normans.

Vilhjalmur Stefansson
Vilhjalmur Stefansson was an
Arctic explorer. He was born in 1879 in Manitoba of Icelandic parents and studied theology and anthropology at Harvard.

Villa
Francisco Villa was a Mexican revolutionary leader. He was born in 1877 and died in 1923 when he was assassinated.

Vincent Van Gogh
Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch painter. He was born in 1853 at Brabant and died in 1890 after shooting himself.

Vinova Bhave
Vinova Bhave is an Indian reformer and leader of the sarvodaya movement. He was born in 1895. He was a follower of Ghandi and campaigned for help for landless peasants.

Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf was an English novelist. She was born in 1882 and died in 1941.

Viscount
A Viscount was a
sheriff who acted as deputy for the count or lord-lieutenant of a county. The title was first bestowed upon John Beaumont in 1440 by Henry VI. The term later developed into a rank of nobility between earl and baron. In Jersey a Viscount is an officer of the crown similar to an English coroner.

Visigoths
see "
Goths"

Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi was an Italian composer. He was born in 1680 and died in 1743.

Vlachs
The Vlachs are a group of Romanian peoples living mainly in the region of the lower
Danube.

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a
Russian revolutionary. He was born in 1870 at Simbirsk and died in 1924.

Vladimir Nabokov
Vladimir Nabokov is a Russian-born
American author. He was born in 1899. He wrote Lolita.

Vladimir Pachmann
Vladimir Pachmann was a
Russian pianist and interpreter of Chopin. He was born in 1848.

Volsci
The Volsci were a people living in
Italy during the period of the Roman Republic. They dwelt in the southern part of Latium and were the most persistent foes of the early Republic.

Voltaire
Voltaire was a
French writer. He was born in 1694 in Paris and died in 1778.

W. B. Yeats
William Butler Yeats was an
Irish poet and dramatist. He was born in 1865 in Dublin and died in 1939.

W. T. Sherman
W. T.
Sherman was an American soldier of the American civil war. An American tank of the second world war was named after him.

Wahabis
The Wahabis were a
Muslim sect founded in the middle of the 18th century in Nejd Arabia by Mohammed Abdul Wahab, who attempted to restore the primitive simplicity of Islam and established a militant church at issue both with the infidel and with other forms of Islam. In 1818 the temporal power of the Wahabis in Arabia was crushed.

Wai-Wais
The Wai-Wais are a South American indian tribe still found in
Guyana.

Waldenses
The Waldenses were a religious community founded by Peter Waldo in 1170 when he renounced his possessions and wandered as a preacher of voluntary poverty. The group established themselves in the valleys of the Cottian Alps and denounced the authority of the Church of
Rome. As a result they were persecuted by the Duchess of Savoy in 1475 who ordered a war of extermination against them. In 1487 the Pope announced a Crusade against them. In 1686 the Duke of Savoy exiled to Geneva those he failed to forcibly convert. Three years later a small band returned and in 1848 were granted full religious and political rights.

Walloon
The Walloon are a French-speaking people of south east
Belgium and adjacent areas of France. The name Walloon is etymologically linked to Welsh.

Walt Disney
Walt Disney was an
American artist and film producer. He was born in 1901 and died in 1967. He is best remembered for his animations. His first successful animated film was Mickey Mouse which was released in 1928.

Walt Whitman
Walt
Whitman was an American poet. He was born in 1819 at Long Island and died in 1892.

Walter Crane
Walter Crane was an English painter and decorative artist. He was born in 1845 at Liverpool and died in 1915.

Walter Landor
Walter Savage Landor was an English poet. He was born in 1775 at Warwick and died in 1864. He raised a private regiment to fight against Napoleon in Spain.

Walter Ouless
Walter William Ouless was an
English portrait painter. He was born in 1848 at St Helier on Jersey.

Walter Pater
Walter Pater was an English critic. He was born in 1839 and died in 1894.

Walter Sickert
Walter Richard Sickert was an English artist. He was born in 1860 and died in 1942.

Walter Skeat
Walter Skeat was the first great English philologist. He was born in 1835 and died in 1912. He wrote The Principles of English Etymology and the Etymological English Dictionary. He was the founder and later President of the English Dialect Society.

Wapisiana
The Wapisianas are a South American indian tribe still found in
Guyana.

Warraus
The Warraus are a South American indian tribe still found in
Guyana.

Warren Hastings
Warren Hastings was governor general of India. He was born in 1732 and died in 1818. In 1788 he was tried for high crimes and misdemeanors. The trial lasted 7 years until he was acquitted in 1795.

Wassily Kandinsky
Wassily Kandinsky was a
Russian artist. He was born in 1866 at Moscow and died in 1944.

Wat Tyler
Wat
Tyler was the leader of the English peasant's revolt of 1381.

Whig
Whig was a nickname applied to the Covenanters in
Scotland and later generally to the Presbyterian party in Scotland and the opponents of the monarchy in England. In the early 19th century the term was replaced with "liberal".

Wilbur Wright
Wilbur Wright was the brother of Orville Wright. He was born in 1867 and died in 1912.

Wilhelm Ostwald
Wilhelm Ostwald was a
German chemist. He was born in 1853 at Riga and died in 1932. He was appointed Professor of Chemistry in Leipzig in 1887 and conducted research into physical chemistry and solutions.

William Barents
Willem Barents was a Dutch navigator who discovered Spitzbergen on his third voyage to find a north east passage to
Asia in 1594. He died in 1597.

William Beveridge
William Henry Beveridge was the first
baron beveridge. He was born in 1879, dying in 1963. He was an economist who designed the present British social Security service.

William Blackwood
William Blackwood was a Scottish publisher. He was born in 1776 in
Edinburgh and died in 1834. He started publishing "Blackwood's Magazine" in 1817.

William Blake
William Blake was an
English poet and artist. He was born in London in 1757. He died in 1827.

William Bligh
William Bligh was the
commander of the ship "Bounty" when the crew mutinied in the South Seas. He was born in 1753 in Plymouth and died in 1817 in London. The mutiny occured while the Bounty was on course for Jamaica. Bligh and 18 men were cast adrift in a boat not far from Tonga. After a journey of 4000 miles they reached Timor and made it back to England. The mutineers sailed to Pitcairn Island where their ancestors still live.

William Bowles
William Lisle Bowles was an
English poet. He was born in 1762 at King's Sutton and died in 1850.

William Bowyer
William Bowyer was an
English printer. He was born in 1699 in London and died in 1777. In 1729 he became printer of the votes of the House Of Commons. In 1767 he was nominated printer of the journals of the House of Lords.

William Caxton
William Caxton was the first
English printer. He was born in 1422 and died in 1491. He established a press in Westminster in 1477 and from there he issued about 80 books.

William Clifford
William Clifford was an English philosopher and mathematician. He was born in 1845 and died in 1879. He was professor at University College London. His mathematical works include treatises and lectures on elliptic functions and non-Euclidean geometry, bi-quaternions and Riemann's surface. His philosophical works deal mainly with the relations between the individual and society, especially in ethics.

William Cobett
William Cobett was a British author and journalist. He was born in 1763 at
Surrey and died in 1835.

William Cody
William Fredk Cody was an American scout and showman. He was born in 1846 and died in 1917. He coined the nickname "Buffalo Bill" when in 1867 - 1868 he supplied 4000 buffaloes as food to the employees on the Kansas Pacific railway. He toured America and Europe with his famous Wild West Show between 1883 and 1887 and in 1904 wrote The Adventures of Buffalo Bill.

William Collins
William Wilkie Collins was an
English novelist. He was born in 1824 and died in 1889. William Collins was an English landscape painter.

William Congreve
William Congreve was an
English playwright. He was born in 1670 at Leeds and died in 1729. He was educated in Ireland. He went to London when he was in his early twenties. He wrote comedy plays.

William Cowper
William Cowper was an
English poet. He was born in 1731 and died in 1800.

William Dampier
William Dampier was an
English explorer. He was born in 1652. He died in 1715.In 1699 he was sent to explore the coast of Australia and New Guinea.

William Duell
William Duell was executed for murder at Tyburn in 1740, but whilst undergoing
dissection at Surgeons' Hall he came back to life.

William Elphinstone
William Elphinstone was a Scottish prelate and statesman. He was born in 1435 and died in 1514. He was envoy of Scotland to France on behalf of James III and became Bishop of Aberdeen in 1484. He founded Aberdeen University.

William Faulkner
William Harrison Faulkner was an
American author. He was born in 1897 and died in 1962.

William Gilbert
William Gilbert was an
English physician and physicist. He was born in 1544 at Colchester and died in 1603. He coined the word electricity to describe the property of amber for attracting light objects. He also pioneered work into magnetism.

William Gladstone
William Ewart
Gladstone was an English Liberal member of parliament. He was born in 1808 and died in 1898. He was Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1852 until 1855 and Prime Minister from 1868 until 1874 and again from 1880 until 1885 and yet again from 1892 until 1894.

William Godwin
William Godwin was an
English political writer and philosopher. He was born in 1756, dying in 1836.

William Harvey
William Harvey was an
English physician. He was born in 1578 at Folkestone and died in 1657. He discovered the circulation of the blood.

William Heath Robinson
William Heath Robinson was an
English cartoonist renowned for his humorous drawings of machines. He was born in 1872, dying in 1944.

William Hogarth
William Hogarth was an
English artist. He was born in 1697 at London and died in 1764.

William Hunt
William Holman Hunt was an
English painter. He was born in 1827 at London and died in 1910.

William I
William I was King of Scotland from 1165 to 1214.

William James
William James was an
American psychologist. He was born in 1842 and died in 1910

William Janszoon
William Janszoon was a Dutch explorer. He discovered
Australia in 1606.

William Kelvin
William Thomson
Kelvin was a professor of Natural Philosophy at Glasgow. He was born in 1824 at Belfast and died in 1907. He determined the absolute zero of temperature.

William Langland
William Langland was probably an
English priest. He was born in 1332 and died in 1400. He is remembered for his poem The Visions of Piers The Plowman which gives a detailed account of English life at the time.

William Laud
William Laud was an
English churchman. He was born in 1573 at Reading and died in 1645. He was made Archbishop of Canterbury in 1633.

William Morris
William Morris was an English poet, craftsman and socialist. He was born in 1834, dying in 1896. He founded the socialist league and the kelmscott press.

William Nuffield
William Richard
Morris Nuffield was a British industrialist and philanthropist. He was born in 1877 at Worcester and died in 1963.

William Paley
William Paley was an
English theologian. He was born in 1743 and died in 1805. In 1782 he became archdeacon of Carlisle. He wrote "Evidences of Christianity" in 1794.

William Penn
William Penn was an
English quaker and the founder of Pennsylvania. He was born in 1644, dying in 1718.

William Pitt
William Pitt was a
Whig politician. He was born in 1708 and died in 1778.

William Pulteney
William Pulteney was 1st
Earl of Bath. He was born in 1684 and died in 1764. He led the opposition against Walpole, and became prime minister in 1741.

William Rossetti
William Michael Rossetti was the brother of Dante Gabriele Rossetti. He was an
English author. He was born in 1829 and died in 1919.

William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English dramatist and poet. He was born in stratford upon avon in 1564, dying in 1616.

William Somerset Maugham
William Somerset Maugham was an
English novelist. He was born in 1874 at Paris and died in 1965.

William Tell
William Tell was a Swiss hero. He lived during the 14th century.

William Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray was an
English novelist. He was born at calcutta in 1811, dying in 1863. He wrote vanity fair.

William Tyndale
William Tyndale was a British translator and tract writer. He was born in 1492 and died in 1536. He translated the New Testament.

William Wilberforce
William Wilberforce was an
English statesman. He was born in 1759 at Hull and died in 1833. His life was dedicated to the abolition of slavery.

William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was an
English poet. He was born in 1770 at Cockermouth and died in 1850.

William II
William II was a son of William The Conqueror and
King of England from 1087 to 1100.

William III
William III was
King of England from 1689 to 1702.

William IV
William IV was
King of England from 1830 to 1837.

Wolfgang Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was an Austrian composer. He was born at
Salzburg in 1756, dying in 1791. He began his career at the age of 4 and toured Europe when he was 6. In 1781 he settled in vienna and became friends with haydn.

Wolof
The Wolof are the majority ethnic group living in
Senegal. There is also a Wolof minority in Gambia. There are about 2 million speakers of Wolof, a language belonging to the Niger-
Congo family. The Wolof are predominantly arable farmers, and some also raise cattle.

Xenophanes
Xenophanes was a
Greek poet and philosopher. He lived around 500BC.

Xerxes
Xerxes was
King of Persia. He was born in 519bc, dying in 465bc. He invaded Greece and defeated the spartans at thermopylae but he in turn was defeated at salamis.

Xhosa
The Xhosa are a Bantu people of southern
Africa, living mainly in the Black National State of Transkei. Traditionally, the Xhosa were farmers and pastoralists, with a social structure based on a monarchy.

Yao
The Yao are a people living in south
China, north Vietnam, north Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar (Burma), and numbering about 4 million. The Yao language may belong to either the Sino-Tibetan or the Thai language family. The Yao incorporate elements of ancestor worship in their animist religion.
The Yao are generally hill-dwelling farmers practising shifting cultivation, growing rice, vegetables, and also opium poppies. Some are nomadic.

Yardie
see "
Yardy"

Yardy
Yardy is a Jamaican slang expression for someone (Jamaican or foreign) who knows their way around the island, and especially the ghettoe. The expression is often misused in
England to describe an imaginary gang of organised Jamaican criminals (the yardies). Infact, no such Jamaican mafia exists.

Yi
The Yi are a people living in south
China; there are also Yi populations in Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam, totaling about 5.5 million. The Yi are farmers, producing both crops and
livestock. Their language belongs to the Sino-Tibetan family; their religion is animist.

Yorkist
A Yorkist was a member or supporter of the
Royal House of York. The term especially applies to the Yorkshire faction of the War Of The Roses.

Yorkists
see "
Yorkist"

Yoruba
The Yoruba are the majority ethnic group living in south west
Nigeria; there is a Yoruba minority in east Benin. They number approximately 20 million in all, and their language belongs to the Kwa
branch of the Niger-Congo family. The Yoruba established powerful city-states in the 15th century, known for their advanced culture which includes sculpture, art, and music.

Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Gagarin was a
Russian cosmonaut and the first man to go into space in 1961.

Zapotec
The Zapotec are a North American Indian people of south
Mexico, now numbering approximately 250,000, living mainly in Oaxaca. The Zapotec language, which belongs to the Oto-Mangean family, has nine dialects

Zoltan Kodaly
Zoltan Kodaly was a Hungarian composer. He was born in 1882 and died in 1967.