Special Sub-Topic: 20th Century Politics Authored by: flem-ish Sub-topic of: Government

Which country was created early in the 20th century and calls its' Prime Minister the Taoiseach ('teeshe')?

Republic of Ireland. The present Taoiseach is Bertie Aherne (since June 1997).

Who was the founder(-died in 1904-) of the Zionist movement that played such an important role in 20th century politics?

Theodor Hertzl. Theodor Hertzl, 1860-1904, was a Hungarian-born journalist, dramatist and Zionist leader. He founded the Zionist movement in 1897. Heinrich Rudolf Herz, 1857-94, was a German physicist and pioneer of radio-communication. He died of blood poisoning. Meir Kahane was born Aug.1, 1932, in New York. He was shot by a naturalized American of Egyptian descent. He had formed the Jewish Defense League and later the Kach Party. Abraham Herzen was born in Moscow April 6, 1812, and died in Paris Jan 21, 1870. He was the illegitimate son of Ivan Alekseyevitch Yakovlev and a German woman of humble origin. He was an admirer of the Dezembrists and became a political philosopher. He never came to grips with his hesitation between the views of the Russian liberals and the Russian socialists.

Every body is always talking about the tensions between the Hutus and Tutsis in Rwanda, but only rarely is the third group of Rwandans mentioned, the pygmies. What is their name?

The Twa. the Twa are the pygmy people in Burundi, Rwanda and Zaire. The San are the aboriginal Bushmen of Southern Africa. The Bushmen is the former name used for the group who should be called the Khoikhoi of Southern Africa.

In what country did the Frelimo operate?

Mozambique. The Frente de Libertasao de Mozambique was founded in 1962. They took over in 1975, and accepted a multi-party system in 1990.

What is the correct name of the Spanish Parliament, which in 1981 was the scene of an attempted coup d'etat ?

The Cortes. Cortes literally means Court. Parlamento is used in Spanish for the Parliaments of other countries. Senado is only the Upper House. The Duma is the name of the Russian Parliament that was introduced by Tsar Nicholas II in response to popular unrest in the early 20th century.

One of the political problems that has survived into the 21st century, is the Palestinian problem. Which of these towns is NOT in the Israeli-occupied 'Westbank'?

Nazareth. Nazareth is in lower Galilee in present-day Northern Israel. It has a population of 53,500. The 'Home of Jesus' is now a mainly Arab town. Nearby Upper Nazareth is a Jewish community. Hebron's Arab name is Al Khalil. It has a population of 120,000. The town of Nablus in Hebrew is known as Sechem. It was the ancient capital of the Samaritans and has a population of 120,000. Jericho's Arab name is Ariha and has a population of 15,000.

What's the name that Palestinians themselves gave to the country they see as theirs?

Filasteen. Al Quts is the Arab name for Jerusalem. Philistines is the name used in the Bible for the Palestinians. The Holy Land is the diplomatic phrasing a number of tourist guides use for the country. Dodging the problem, Filasteen is the name the Palestinian Authority uses.

Tamils and Sinhalese have not always been at peace in the 20th century. Which of these towns in the Tamil area of Sri Lanka is the nearest to the Tamil Nadu area in India?

Jaffna. Jamabalaya is a Creole recipe, Trincomalee is a port and Colombo is the name of the capital.

Apart from having had a few quislings in WW2, Norway seems to be happy with their political institutions. Which of these is not the name of either the Norwegian Parliament or any part of it?

Riksting. Storting means 'big' meeting house. Odelsting is the meeting house of the aristocracy. Lagting literally means 'Lower House' or House of Commons. Riksting is the name used in Iceland for Parliament.

What country did the Dalmatian Coast become a subpart of after the disintegration of Tito's Yugoslavia?

Croatia. The Dalmatian Coast includes interesting places such as Rijeka(It Fiume), Dubrovnik, Split, Zadar and Sibenik.