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 Abbas Mahmoud: Fondly called Abu Mazen, Abbas Asia Minor (), Armenia, Mesopotamia, Iran, won the election to Palestine president-ship as a , Gandhara including the borders of dur- candidate of Fatah party. He defeated Mustafa ing the period 336 to 323 BC, Barghouti in the election. died at Babylon.  Abdus Salam : Physicist, ’s only Nobel Prize  Alonso, Fernando: The winner. He won it for his work on Particle physics in Spanish race car driver became 1979. The Abdus Salam Award was instituted by Formula ones youngest ever the World Academy of Sciences in his memory. world champion at 24. He drives for Reneault. His main  Abdus Sattar Edhi (b. 1929): Pakistani social worker, contentor to title in 2005 was known as Father Teresa. He is the founder of the Mclaren’s Kimi Raikonnen. Youngest Formula one Edhi Foundation (1966). Champion  Ali, Muhammad (b. 1942):  Aesop (600 BC): Greek author of Aesop’s Fables Muhammad Ali was one of the greatest boxers of which are moral tales with animal protagonists. The the 20th century. He started his career in the early famous tales The Tortoise and the Hare, The Fox 1960s under his original name Cassius Clay. He was and the Grapes were his creation. the first man to win the world heavyweight title three  Akihito (b. 1933): ’s Emperor. Ascended the times. He was honoured with. The presidential medal Chrysanthemum Throne – the world’s oldest he- of Freedom called the nations highest civilian award. reditary throne – on November 12, 1990, after the  Amin, Idi (b. 1925): Idi Amin was the eccentric and death of his father, Emperor Hirohito. despotic dictator of from 1971 to 1979, when  Akram, Wasim: Pakistani cricketer and former cap- he was deposed by exiled Ugandans with the help tain. Highest wicket taker (502) in One-Day of the Tanzanian army. Internationals. Made the world record of maximum  Amundsen, Roald (1872-1928): Roald Amundsen number of sixes (12) in the Test match against Zim- was a Norwegian explorer, the first to reach the South babwe in his 257 runs. Besides, he has to his credit Pole (1911) and the first to navigate the North-West 414 wickets in Tests. He retired in 2003. Passage (1903-1906). He was lost in the Arctic.  Aldrin, Edwin: The US astronaut, who became only  Annan, Kofi (b. 1938): The seventh UN Secretary- the second man to land on the moon soon after Neil General. Shared the 2001 with the Armstrong on July 20, 1969. Dr. Edwin Aldrin has UN. Selected for the Peace Prize 1998 for his set up a non- profit organisation, Share Space Foun- contribution to world peace. He is from . He dation, dedicated to research on measures that is credited with creation of East Timor as an inde- would make space transportation affordable and pendent country. He got a unanimous support of safer. the UN in June 2001 for his second five - year term.  Alexander, the Great (356-323 BC): King of He completed his term in December, 2006. Macedonia. He conquered Egypt and founded Al-  Antony, Mark (c. 83-30 BC): Marcus Antonius, exandria. At the age of 20 (336 BC), he started his known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman campaign from . His conquests extended to statesman and soldier. His speech on the death of

82 8 his friend Julius Caesar caused the conspirators who  Attlee, Clement (1883-1967): Clement Attlee was murdered Caesar to flee from Rome. the Labour Prime Minister of England 1945-51. Dur-  Anwar, Saeed: The Pakistani Cricket opener who ing his tenure as Prime Minister, India won freedom blasted 194 against India in Chennai to become the in 1947. highest scorer in one-day cricket.  Atwood, Margaret (b. 1932): One of the most pro-  Arafat, Yasser (1929- 2004): Chairman of Palestine lific and well known authors in . She bagged Liberation Organisation since 1969. Co-founder of the Booker Prize for 2000 for her novel The Blind Al-fatah (1956). Signed agreements for Palestinian Assassin. self-rule in Gaza Strip, Jericho  Augustus Caesar (63 BC-AD 14): Founder of the and West Bank in May 1994 Roman Empire and one of the most outstanding men and September 1995. Recipient in history. His original name was Gaius Octavianus. of for  Aung San Suu Kyi (b. 1945): Daughter of International Understanding Myanmarese independence hero, General Aung San. and Award for Founded Myanmar’s National League for Democ- International Justice and Har- racy (NLD) of which she is the leader. While oppos- mony. Shared the 1994 Nobel ing the military junta she was forced to end her non- Spirit behind PLO Peace Prize with the then Is- violent Gandhian protest on July 29, 1998 when the raeli Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin, and Israeli For- Burmese military government took her back to Ran- eign Minister, Shimon Peres. He signed a revised goon against her will. Su Kyi was released by the Wye- River accord with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud ruling military junta after a 19 month arrest in May, Barak. Arafat died in 2004. 2002. Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (1991),  Archimedes (287-212 BC): Greek scientist and math- Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought (1991), Soli- ematician known for his discovery of the unique darity Prize of the City of Bremen, and Jawaharlal Principle of Buoyancy. Invented Archimedean Nehru Award for International Understanding Screw. (1993). She is also the winner of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America’s highest civilian  Aristotle (384-322 BC): The Father of Biology, was a Greek philosopher, the greatest of the ancient phi- honour. losophers. In 343 BC, Aristotle became tutor to Alex-  Bacon, Francis (1561-1626): Francis Bacon, Vis- ander the Great in Macedonia. count St. Albans, was an English statesman and  Armstrong, Neil (b. 1930): philosopher. Among his works are The Advance- American astronaut. First man ment of Learning and Novum Organum. His stress to set foot on the moon (July on inductive methods gave a strong impetus to sub- 21, 1969). Followed by Edwin sequent scientific research. Aldrin from Apollo 11.  Baden-Powell, Robert (1857-1941): Robert Baden-  Astor, Nancy (1879-1964): Powell, later Lord Baden-Powell, was a soldier and Nancy Astor was the first defender of Mafeking in the Boer War (1899-1990). He founded the Boy Scouts in 1908 and, with his woman to be elected to the The first man on British Parliament (1919). She Moon sister, Agnes, the Girl Guides in 1910. He is the au- remained an MP until 1945. thor of Scouting for Boys.  Atatürk, Kemal (1881-1938): Born in Salonika,  Baird, John Logie (1888-1946): John Logie Baird Greece. He was the founder and first President of was a British television pioneer from Scotland. In the Republic of Turkey. He served as President from 1926, he demonstrated the first ever television pic- 1923 until his death. ture. Three years later the British Broadcasting Cor- poration (BBC) broadcast a 30-line television pic-  Attenborough, Richard (b. 1923): British film actor ture. cum director. Best known for his film Gandhi, which won eight Oscars in 1983.  Baker, Laurie (b. 1917): Lawrence Wilfred Baker,

82 9 popularly known as Laurie Baker, is the British-born  Benenson, Peter: The founder of ‘Amnesty Indian architect who specialises in low-cost build- International’-the human right activist organisa-tion- ing. He married a Malayali and is now settled in passed away in 2005. Amnesty was started in 1961. Thiruvananthapuram. In 1989, he was granted In-  Benigni, Roberto (b. 1952): This Italian actor, writer dian citizenship. He celebrated his 90th birth recently. and director won the Oscar for Best Actor in 1999  Bancroft, Ann: First woman to reach the North Pole. for his film Life is Beautiful at the Academy Awards Was one of the six-members of the US-Canadian ceremony. He became the first star of a foreign film expedition which reached the North Pole on dog to win the Best Actor Award. sledges in April 1986.  Bentinck, Lord William (1738-1809): Lord  Bandaranaike, Sirimavo(1917-2000): World’s first Bentinck was the Governor-General of India famous elected woman Prime Minister (of Ceylon, now Sri for the Sati reforms (1829) and suppression of hu- Lanka) in 1960. Sworn in for man sacrifice, suppression of Thuggees and sup- the third time as Prime Minis- pression of female infanticide. ter in November 1994, when her  Bertolucci, Bernardo (b. 1940): I t a l i a n daughter, Chandrika film director. His film The Last Emperor won nine Kumaratunga, became the Oscars in 1978. Conferred the Lifetime Achievement President of the country. She Award at the 30th International Film Festival of In- has entered the 1999 Guinness dia at Hyderabad in January 1999. Book of Records for being the oldest Prime Minister in the World’s first woman  Bhutto, Benazir (b. 1955): world. Prime Minister Pakistan’s former Prime Min- ister. Was co-Chairperson of  Barnard, Christiaan (1922-2001): South African Pakistan People’s Party. Sworn surgeon. Performed the first human heart transplant in as Prime Minister for the sec- operation in Cape Town in 1967. ond time on October 9, 1993.  Banville, John: Irish novelist has been awarded First woman in the Muslim Booker Prize, 2005 for his book The Sea. world to be Prime Minister Daughter of the East  Beethoven, Ludwig van(1770-1827): Ludwig van twice. Presently in self-im- Beethoven was a German composer and musician. posed exile in the . He was the leader of the romantic movement in mu-  Bhutto, Z.A. (1928-79): Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was sic. Although stone deaf at the age of 50, he wrote President of Pakistan 1971-73 and subsequently many memorable symphonies (9), songs, sonatas Prime Minister 1973-77. He was deposed by an army and concertos. coup led by Zia Ul-Haq and was executed in 1979.  Bell, Alexander Graham (1847-922) : Alexander He was the father of Benazir Bhutto. If I Am Assas- Graham Bell was the Scottish-American scientist who sinated and The Great Tragedy are his books. invented the telephone in 1867.  Birna, Unnur: In the contest held in  Bellow, Saul: Famous American novelist and nobel Southern Chinese city of Sanya, Miss Unnur laureate. Adventures of Augie March, Humboldl’s Birna Vilhajalmsdotter was crowned the Miss World gift, Henderson and the rain king are his main 2006. novels. He received Nobel prize and Pulitzer prize  Bismarck, Otto von (1815-98): Otto von Bismarck for Humboldt’s gift. He died on 2005. was a German statesman known as the Iron Chan-  Benedict XVI, Pope: After the demise of Pope John cellor for his ‘blood and iron’ policies. By uniting Paul II, the College of Cardinal selected Cardinal (mostly by force) all the tiny kingdoms in , Joseph Ratzinger of Germany as the new pope. He he founded the German Empire in 1870. took the title ‘Benedict XVI’. He is second German  Blair, Tony (b. 1953):The Labour Party leader who, to become pope after victor II. in 1997, led his party to a landslide victory over the

83 0 Conservatives to become Prime Minister of Britain -appointed Commission on Environ- in 2005. He won his third term as Prime Minister. ment and Development. Recipient of the Indira Gan-  Blavatsky, Helena Petrovna (1831-91): Helena dhi Peace Prize and also the Third World Prize (1988) Petrovna Blavatsky, known as Madame Blavatsky, for her contribution to the field of environmental was a Russian theosophist. She helped to found protection and for the concept of ‘sustainable de- the Theosophical Society in New York (1875). Later velopment’. First woman Director-General of World she set up the Theosophical Society in India which Health Organisation (WHO). Annie Besant joined and enlarged.  Buck, Pearl S. (1892-1973): Pearl S. Buck was an  Bolivar, Simon (1783-1830): US writer who won the 1938 Nobel Prize for Litera- Simon Bolivar was a South ture for The Good Earth, which she wrote in 1931. American revolutionary, called Letter from Peking, The Patriot, Death in the Castle, ‘The Liberator’. He is the na- The Mother, All Under Heaven and Child Who tional hero of , Bo- Never Grew are her books. livia, , and  Bush, George W. (b. 1946): George Walker Bush is . the 43rd President of USA, sworn in on January 20,  Booth, John Wilkes (1839- The Liberator 2001. Son of 41st President, George Bush. Previ- 65): John Wilkes Booth was the assassin of US Presi- ously Governor of Texas. It is the second time in the dent Lincoln. history of USA that both father and son have be- come president of the country, after John Adams  Booth, William (1829-1912): William Booth was (1797-1801) and John Quincy Adams (1825-29). Bush the British founder of the Salvation Army (1865). dethroned Taliban and installed an interim Govern- The main aim of Booth’s Salvation Army was to ment under in as a re- save people from alcoholism through prayer. prisal to September 11, 2001 World Trade Centre  Borlaug, Norman Ernest (b. attack. Bush government attacked Iraq and toppled 1914): He is the world’s only Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003. George W. Bush agricultural scientist to win a re-elected for a second term in the presidental elec- Nobel Prize for Peace, which tion held in 2004. was awarded to him in 1970. He  Byron, Lord (1788-1824): George, 6th Baron Byron is the brain behind the im- of Rochdale, known as Lord Byron, was one of the mensely successful Green greatest of English poets. Among his works are Revolution. He established Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage and Don Juan. World Food Prize in 1986 Father of the GreenRevolution  Caesar, Julius (c. 100-44 BC): Julius Caesar was a  Botha, P.W. (b. 1916): P.W. Roman general and statesman. He took the title Botha was President of 1984-89. He is ‘dictator for life’ in 44 BC. However he was mur- considered the last of the leaders of South dered by a group of trusted friends, led by Brutus, Africa. who thought he was over-ambitious.  Bradman, Donald (1908-2001): ’s  Campbell, Kim (b. 1946): First woman Prime Minis- cricketing knight. World famous test batsman. Re- ter of Canada (1993).A former lecturer in Political tired from active cricket in the late forties, scoring as Science. many as 117 centuries. Cricket’s finest batsman, Sir Donald Bradman scored three figures 29 times at  Camus, Albert (1913-60): French existentialist test level and finished his career with 6,996 runs in writer, winner of the 1957 Nobel Prize for Literature. 90 test innings at the extraordinary average of 99.94. Earned an international reputation with his He died in Adelaide on February 25, 2001 when he L’Etranger (‘The Outsider’, 1942). Other works in- was 92. clude The Plague and The Fall.  Brundtland, Gro Harlem (b. 1939): Twice Prime  Canning, Lord (19th Century): Lord Canning was Minister of and the first Chairperson of the last Governor-General of East India Company

83 1 and first Viceroy of British India. a comedian, film actor, director, producer and com-  Carlyle, Thomas (1795-1881): British writer, most poser. His famous films are Making a Living, The famous for his The French Revolution. Kid, The Champion, The Pilgrim, City Lights, Lime- light, The Gold Rush, The Great Dictator, The Cir-  Carroll, Lewis (1832-98): Pseudonym of Charles cus etc. My Life in Pictures is his autobiography. Dodgson, author of Alice Through the Looking Glass and Alice in Wonderland.  Chaucer, Geoffrey (1345-1400): One of the earliest English poets who helped the language into a liter-  Carter, Jimmy (b. 1924): 39th President of United ary channel. He is considered the Father of English States (1977-81). His major contributions includes Poetry. Romance of the Rose is his first work (trans- the Camp David Accords between Isreal and Egypt, lation). His Canterbury Tales is a classic both for peace in Haiti etc. He won the Nobel Peace Prize for lovers of literature and scholars of English language. 2001 for his effort to find peaceful solutions in inter- Another famous work is Troilus and Criseyde. national conflicts. His most significant work has been through the Carter Center, an Atlanta based  Chaudhry, Mahendra: Mahendra Chaudhry was the think tank and activity policy center founded by Prime Minister of Fiji. He is of Indian ethnic origin. him and his wife Rosalynn in 1982. He was awarded In July 2000 he was ousted from power by a coup the 1997 Indira Gandhi Prize. led by George Speight, a desperate businessman.  Castro, Fidel (b. 1926): Prime  Chavez, Hugo: Chavez is the 53rd and Minister of Cuba (1959-78), current President of Venenzuela. As the leader to President of Cuba since 1979. the ‘Bolivarian revolution’. Chavez is known for his Was Chairman of NAM (1979- democratic socialistic governance, his promotion of 83). Under his leadership, Latin American integration and his radical criticism Cuba emerged as the first full- of neoliberal globalisation and foreign fledged socialist state in Cen- policy. tral America. After undergoing  Chekhov, Anton (1860-1904): Russian playwright a major surgery in 2006 he Longest Served Head and master of the short story. His masterpieces are of state transferred the responsiblities The Seagull, The Three Sisters and The Cherry Or- to his brother Raul Castro. chard.  Cavendish, Henry (1731-1810): Henry Cavendish  Chelmsford, Lord: Lord Chelmsford was the Vice- was a British physicist and chemist. In 1760 he stud- roy of India during 1916-21. ied ‘inflam-mable air’, now known as hydrogen gas.  Chiang Kai-shek (1887-1975): Chiang Kai-shek,  Cerman, Eugene A: The last moon walker whose was a Chinese revolutionary leader. He was the last voyage was in December 1972 as Commandor effective head of the Nationalist Republic (1928-49) of Apollo-17 Mission. and thereafter the head of the Nationalist Party in  Chadwick, Sir James (1891-1974): Sir James was Taiwan. In 1918, he joined the forces of Sun Yat-sen the British physicist who discovered neutrons. He and in 1925 launched an expedition against the was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1935. Beijing government and in 1928 entered Beijing. But his supporters steadily moved to the Communists  Chappel, Greg: Former Aus- and in 1949 he was forced to flee to Taiwan. tralian captain was appointed the new coach of Indian  Chirac, Jacques (b. 1932): cricket team. Cricket, the Mak- Current French President. He ing of Champions is written by was elected in 1995 and re- him. elected in 2002 and his current term expires in 2007.  Chaplin, Charlie (1889 -  Chomsky, Noam (1928-): 1977): Sir Charles Spencer Indian Cricket coach Chaplin, born in London, was American Linguis who origi- nated Transformational Gen- French President

83 2 erative Grammer Chomsky claims the every human  Coetzee, J.M. (b. 1940): The South- African novel- being known the general principles at birth. He thinks ist won the 2003 Nobel Prize for Literature. He is a these principles make up a universal grammar. South African writer and Professor of English Lit- Chomsky’s books include Syntactic structures, erature in Cape Town University. He won the 1999 Language and Mind and Language and Problems Booker Prize for his novel Disgrace. He also won of Knowledge. the 1983 Booker Prize for his novel The Life and  Chou En-lai (1898-1975): Chinese statesman. Also Times of Michael K. He is the only author to win known as Zhou Enlai. Was one of the leaders of the this award twice. Communist Party of . He was Prime Minister  Coleridge, Samuel Taylor (1772-1834): Samuel of the People’s Republic from its founding in 1949 Taylor Coleridge was a British poet, the founder of a to his death. He and Nehru signed the Panchasheel new literary style with William Wordsworth known Agreement for peace between their two countries. as romanticism which was a reaction against neo-  Christie, Agatha (1891-1976): Agatha Christie was classic artificiality. Among his works are The An- one of the most popular writers of crime stories this cient Mariner and Christabel. century and the author of over 70 novels. Her two  Collins, Col. Eileen (b. 1956): most famous creations are the characters of Miss This US astronaut became the Marple and Hercule Poirot. Her play, The Mouse- first woman in space history trap, has been running continuously in London to command a space mission, since it opened in 1952, the longest-ever run of a when the American space play. shuttle Columbia was  Churchill, Sir Winston (1874-1965): British states- launched from Kennedy man and wartime leader. Prime Minister during World Space Center, Cape Canaveral, Florida on July 23, 1999 carry- First woman to War II (1940-45), and again in 1951-55. He was also command an accomplished writer. His publications Memories ing Chandra X-ray observa- a space mission of the Second World War (in 6 volumes) became tory. very famous and earned him the Nobel Prize for Lit-  Collins, Larry: American writer in collaboration with erature in 1953. He resigned as Prime Minister in French writer Dominique Lapierre has written best 1955. sellers likeIs Parris Buring O Jeruslem and Free-  Clarke, Arthur C. (b. 1917): Famous science fic- dom at Midnight. He passed away in 2005. tion writer living in . He was made a honor-  Collins, Michael (b. 1930): Michael Collins was the ary citizen of Sri Lanka in 2005. His book, 2001 – A American astronaut who remained on board the Space Odyssey, was made into a successful film. Apollo 11 spacecraft while Neil Armstrong became the first man (and Edwin Aldrin became the second  Cleopatra (69-30 BC): Queen of Egypt 51-30 BC. After the defeat of her ally, Mark Antony, she com- man) to set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969. mitted suicide by clutching an asp, a highly poison-  Colt, Samuel (1814-62): Samuel Colt was the Ameri- ous snake, to her breast. can inventor who invented the revolver type of pis-  Clinton, Bill (b. 1946): William Jefferson Clinton. tol. He patented the Colt revolver in 1835, when he America’s Democratic Party leader and was the 42nd was only 21. President of United States.  Columbus, Christopher (1451-1506): Christopher  Clive, Robert (1725-74): Robert Clive became Com- Columbus was an Italian explorer, the first European mander-in-Chief in 1755 and fought against the to discover America, in 1492. French in India. He defeated Siraj-ud-Daula in the  Confucius (551-479 BC): A great Chinese philoso- Battle of Plassey in 1757. In 1758, Robert Clive was pher. He set up a school of pupils to propagate his appointed the first Governor of Bengal by the En- ideologies. His teachings are recorded in the Con- glish East India Company. He ultimately committed fucian Analects (conversation), the base of Chinese suicide in 1774. philosophy.

83 3  Conrad, Pete (b. 1930): Charles P. “Pete” Conrad years (1982-1991). Recipient of the 1987 Jawaharlal Jr., the American astronaut who was the third man Nehru Award for International Understanding. Now to walk on the moon, died following a motorcycle he is Prime Minister of Peru. accident.  Curie, Marie (1867-1934):  Cook, Thomas (1808-92): Thomas Cook was a pio- Madame Marie Curie was a neer of railway tourism. His travel agencies are in Polish chemist known for her every major city of the world. Father of modern tour- discovery of radium (1898). ism. She won two Nobel Prizes.  Copernicus, Nicolas (1473-1543): Nicolas  Dalton, John (1766-1844): Copernicus was a Polish astronomer. His theory John Dalton was the English was that planets moved round the sun and that the chemist who postulated the Won two Nobel Prizes sun was the centre of the universe. His book was atomic theory and defined atomic weight. He is also De Revolutionbus Orbitum Coelestium (‘On the famous for Dalton’s Law. Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres’). It was soon  Dante (1265-1321): Dante Alighieri, known simply accepted that he was the first to understand the as Dante, was the greatest Italian poet. By far his orbital movements of the planets. best known work is The Divine Comedy, a penetrat-  Corbusier, Le (1887-1965): Le Corbusier, pseud- ing vision of hell, purgatory and heaven. onym of Charles Edward Jeanneret, was a Swiss ar-  Darwin, Charles (1809-82): Charles Robert Dar- chitect and city planner. He planned the city of win was a British naturalist who put forward his Chandigarh in India (1951). Theory of Revolution based on natural selection.  Cornwallis, Lord (1738-1805): Lord Cornwallis was His famous work Origin of Species (1859) is consid- Governor-General of India for two terms (1786-1793) ered as the bible of modern theory of evolution. and is well known for his land reforms. The most  Davy, Sir Humphry (1778-1829): Sir Humphry Davy memorable achievement of Lord Cornwallis was the was a renowned British chemist who invented the Permanent Settlement of Bengal (1793). He founded safety lamp for miners. the British Civil Service in India.  Defoe, Daniel (1660-1731): Daniel Defoe was an  Crichton, Michael: American writer. Author of Ju- English author. He wrote many books but is princi- rassic Park, Rising Sun and Disclosure, books pally remembered for his Robinson Crusoe. which have been made into films.  Diaz, Bartolomeu (c.1450-1500): Bartolomeu Diaz  Cripps, Sir Stafford (1889-1952): Sir Stafford was a Portuguese navigator and was the first Euro- Cripps was a British Labour statesman. In March pean to sail round the Cape of Good Hope (the south- 1942 he came to India and met Congress leaders to ern tip of the African continent). discuss Dominion Status for India after World War II had finished.  Dickens, Charles (1812-70): Famous English nov- elist. Some of his best known fictional works are  Crompton, Samuel (1753-1827): Samuel Crompton Pickwick Papers (1837), Oliver Twist (1838), David was the British inventor of the spinning-mule. Copperfield (1850), Great Expectations (1861) and  Cromwell, Oliver (1599-1658): Oliver Cromwell A Tale of two Cities. was an English soldier and statesman, England’s  Diesel, Rudolph (1858-1913): only dictator. Rudolph Diesel was the Ger-  Cudjoe, Harrison (b. 1956): Nigerian poet. Was man engineer who invented declared International Poet of the Year, 1995, by the the diesel engine. International Society of Poets. His award-wining  Disney, Walt (1901-66): Walt poem is HIV and AIDS War. Disney was a US film producer  Cuellar, Javier Perez de (b. 1920): Peruvian diplo- famous for his cartoon char- mat. Was Secretary-General United Nations for ten acters Mickey Mouse and Founder of Disney Land

83 4 Donald Duck. Atomic Energy Agency, which he is heading. In 2005,  Dostoevsky, Fyodor (1821-81): Fyodor Dostoevsky he won his third term as the head of IAEA. was one of the greatest Russian authors. His most  Eliot, George (1819-80): George Eliot was the pseu- famous book is Crime and Punishment. His other donym of Mary Ann Evans, a British novelist who important books are The Brothers Karamazov and became the centre of a literary circle. Her novels The Idiot. include Adam Bede, The Mill on the Floss, Silas  Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan (1859- 1930): Sir Arthur Marner and Middlemarch. Conan Doyle was a British author. He was the crea-  Eliot, T.S. (1888-1965): T.S. Eliot (Thomas Stearns tor of the detective hero Sherlock Holmes and his Eliot) was an American-born British poet, critic and companion Dr. Watson. dramatist. His books of poetry include Prufrock  Dumas, Alexandre (1802-70): Alexandre Dumas and Other Observations, The Waste Land, The Hol- was a French novelist and playwright. His best low Men and The Four Quartets. He was awarded known works are The Count of Monte Christo and the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1948. The Three Musketeers.  Elizabeth II, Queen of England (b. 1926):  Dunant, Henri (1828-1910): Henri Dunant was born Elizabeth II, the daughter of George VI, the last King- in and was a famous philanthropist. He Emperor of India, is currently England’s Queen and established the International Red Cross Society in Head of State. She is also Head of the Common- 1863 after the Battle of Solferino. He shared the first wealth of Nations. Nobel Peace Prize in 1901.  Engels, Friedrich (1820-95): Friedrich Engels was  Ebadi, Shirin: Iranian lady lawyer, a human rights a German socialist philosopher, the founder of ‘sci- and democracy activist, won the 2003 Nobel Peace entific socialism’. He collaborated with Karl Marx Prize. She is the first Muslim woman as also the first on the Communist Manifesto (1848). Iranian to win the honour in the Prize’s 102 year  Epicurus (c.341-270 BC): Greek philo-sopher. He history. She attended the World Social Conference, founded Epicurean philosophy, which means lead- 2004, held in Mumbai. ing a life free from pain and anxiety.

 Edison, Thomas Alva (1847-1931): Thomas Alva  Euclid (c.350-c.300 BC): Greek mathematician. His Edison was a US inventor with more than 1,300 US important contribution was the use of deductive prin- and foreign patents to his credit, most of them con- ciples of logic as the basis of geometry. He is con- cerned with electricity. He was called the Wizard of sidered the father of Geometry. Menlow Park. Some of his important inventions are  Fahien (5th century AD): He was the first Buddhist the electric light bulb (1879), phonograph (gramo- pilgrim from China to visit India. He came during phone) (1876), the movie projector (1893), printing the reign of Chandragupta Vikramadithya. telegraph (1871), carbon telephone transmitters, mi- crophone etc.  Falk, Leon Lee: Leon Lee Falk was the creator of world-famous comic strips Mandrake the Magi-  Eiffel, Alexandre Gustave (1832-1923): Alexandre cian and The Phantom. He died recently, aged 87. Gustave Eiffel was the French civil engineer who built the Eiffel Tower in 1889.  Faraday, Michael (1791-1867): Michael Faraday It was constructed to celebrate was the British scientist who discovered electro 100th anniversary of the French magnetism and invented the dynamo. Revolution. Eiffel also de-  Federer, Roger: Highly talented Swiss tennis player signed the framework of the who won three out of four Grandslam in 2005 and is Statue of Liberty. considered most dominant active player of his era.  Elberadi, Mohammed: The He is currently the World No.1. Egyptian lawyer won the  Fermi, Enrico (1901-54): Enrico Fermi was an Ital- Nobel Prize for Peace, 2005 Shared Nobel Prize for ian nuclear physicist. In 1934, he split a number of along with International Peace 2005 with IAEA nuclei by bombardment with neutrons, for which he

83 5 won the 1938 Nobel Prize for Physics. was the US statesman who promoted the American  Fleming, Sir Alexander Declaration of Independence (1776) and worked on (1881-1955): Sir Alexander the drafting of the Constitution of America. Fleming was the Scottish bac-  Freud, Sigmund (1856-1939): teriologist who discovered Sigmund Freud was the re- penicillin in 1928. He shared nowned Austrian psycholo- the 1945 Nobel Prize for Medi- gist who developed the Theory cine. of Psychoanalysis. He pub-  Fischer, Bobby: Regarded as lished The Interpretation of Discovered Pencilin Dreams and The Ego and the the greatest chess player ever, in 1928 he became the first American Id. Father of to win the World Chess championship title by  Frost, Robert (1874-1963): Psychology beating Boris Spasky. In 2004-05, he had to undergo Robert Frost was the US poet 9 months in Japanese prison due to US arrest warrant who won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1924, 1931, against him. 1937 and 1943. Among his poems are Stopping by  Fleming, Ian (1908-64): Ian Fleming was an im- Woods on a Snowy Evening, Birches, Mending Wall mensely successful British writer of popular litera- and The Death of the Hired Man. ture. His most memorable creation was the sophisti-  Gadhafi, Col. Muammar (b. 1942): President of cated British secret agent James Bond. Libya since 1969. Leader of the Great Revolution of  Ford, Gerald (b. 1913): 38th President of USA (1974- September 1, 1969. His theories and ideas are con- 76). Only President not to have been elected as tained in his Green Book. either President or Vice-President. He was ap-  Gagarin, Yuri (1934-68): Yuri Gagarin was a Rus- pointed Vice-President in 1973 when Spiro Agnew sian cosmonaut. In 1961, he became the first man to resigned that post, then became president when travel in space on the spacecraft Vostok-1. Nixon resigned following the Watergate scandal.  Galbraith, J.K. (b. 1908): John Kenneth Galbraith  Ford, Henry (1863-1947): Henry Ford was selected was a Canadian-born US economist, the author of Fortune Magazine’s “Businessman of the Century”. The Affluent Society. He was US Ambassador to He invented the assembly line to produce afford- India 1961-63 and adviser to Presidents Kennedy able cars for ordinary people. and Johnson.  Forster, E.M. (1879-1970): Edward Morgan Forster  Gao Xingjian (b. 1940): He is the Chinese novelist was a famous British writer who wrote numerous and playwright who won the 2000 Nobel Prize for books, many on India. He was the author of Where Literature, the first Chinese person to win the prize. Angels Fear to Tread, Two Cheers for Democracy, He left China for and now lives in Paris. His The Longest Journey, A Room with a View, Howards best known novel is Soul Mountain. End, Maurice and his masterpiece, A Passage to  Gates, Bill (b. 1957): He is the India. chief founder and Chairman of  Fosset, Steve: The business magnate-adventurer Microsoft Corporation and created world record by flying solo around the globe was named the richest man of (37,000 km) in 67 hours non stop. the world with a net worth of  Franco, Francisco (1892-1975): Francisco Franco $90 billion by Forbes. He do- was the Spanish dictator who ruled from 1936 nated $ 200 million for AIDS to 1975. In 1936, he joined a conspiracy against the control in India through his $ 24 billion “Bill & Belinda Foun- The richest man in Popular Front government and became Generalis- Universe simo (literally ‘biggest general’) of the rebel forces. dation” created to cater to health care world wide. The Gates couple was se-  Franklin, Benjamin (1706-90):Benjamin Franklin lected was the Time Person of the Year 2005.

83 6  Gayoom, M. Abdul: President of Maldives. Chair- erature for his novel The Tin man of SAARC (1990-1991 and 1996-97). Drum. His book Mein  Ghali, Boutros Boutros (b. 1924): First Afro-Arab Jahrhundert (‘My Century’) who became Secretary-General of United Nations published in 1999, is an attempt (1992-96) succeeded Javier Perez de Cuellar. Was to summarise and make sense earlier Egypt’s Deputy Prime Minister. He was suc- of the entire 20th century. He ceeded by as UN Secretary-General. was an active member of Group 47 which was formed for  Glenn, John (b. 1921): The 77 year old veteran as- Won Nobel Prize for the promotion of German lit- Literature in 1999 tronaut and Ohio Senator is the oldest person to erature after the Nazi period. orbit Earth, which he did aboard Discovery on Oc- tober 29, 1998. He was also the first American to  Gundert, Dr. Herman (1814-93): Dr. Herman orbit Earth (aboard Friendship-7 on February 20, Gundert was a German linguist who came to India as 1962). a missionary. He learned 18 Indian languages. He complied the first Malayalam dictionary in 1872, and  Goh Chok Tong: Prime Minister of and started the first Malayalam newspaper, leader of the People’s Action Party. Rajyasamacharam.  Gooch, Graham (b. 1954): England’s cricket star.  Gusmao, Xanana: Xanana Gusmao is the rebel leader First Englishman and second batsman after West of East Timor who fought for autonomy for his coun- Indian Brian Lara to score 1,000 first class runs. He try. He became the first President of East Timor after reached the milestone by scoring 188 for Essex winning poll held on April 14, 2002. against Worcestershire. Only cricketer in the world to post a triple century (333) and a century (123) in  Guttenberg, Johannes (1400-68): Johannes the same test (against India at Lord’s in 1990). Guttenberg was the German printer who invented the printing process with moveable type and intro-  Goodyear, Charles (1800-60): Charles Goodyear duced printing books in 1450. was the inventor of vulcanised rubber which is used in tyres. He invented it in 1844 and the company he  Hadlee, Richard (b. 1951): ’s cricket founded to produce tyres still thrives today. star. First bowler to capture 400 test wickets. Re- tired from test cricket with 431 wickets in 86 tests.  Gorbachev, Mikhail (b. 1931): The first and last Ex- ecutive President of the erstwhile USSR. Resigned  Hahn, Otto (1879-1968): Otto on December 25, 1991, formally ending the exist- Hahn was a German physicist. ence of the once mighty super power. Known for In 1938 he created the first his policies of ‘Glasnost’ and ‘Perestroika’. Won chemical evidence of nuclear Nobel Peace Prize in 1990. fission by bombarding uranium with neutrons. He won the  Graf, Steffi (b. 1969): Former World No. 1 woman 1944 Nobel Prize for Chemis- tennis player from Germany. Graf won 22 Grand Slam try. singles titles. In 1988, she became the only player to Discovered Nuclear achieve the “Golden Slam” – capturing all four Grand  Haily, Arthur: British novelist Fusion Slam titles and the Olympic Gold Medal in the same passed away in 2005. He wrote many best sellers of year. She was ranked the Women’s Tennis thriller genere including Airport, Flight into danger’ Association’s No. 1 player for a record 377 weeks ‘The final diagnosis’. (the longest of any player, male or female, since  Halley, Edmund (1656-1742): Edmund Halley was rankings began) and is the only player, male or fe- the British astronomer who discovered Halley’s male, to have won all four Grand Slam tournaments Comet, and it is named after him. He also calculated (Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open and its orbit. the Australian Open) at least four times each.  Hanniman, Samuel (1755-1843): Samuel Hanniman  Grass, Gunter (b. 1927): Gunter Grass is the Ger- was the German physician who is considered the man novelist who won the 1999 Nobel Prize for Lit- Father of Homeopathy.

83 7  Hardy, Thomas (1840-1928): Thomas Hardy was a onym of William Sydney Porter, a US writer and British novelist and poet. He found recognition with master of the short story. his first novel, Far From the Madding Crowd.  Herodotus (c.485-c.425 BC): Greek historian who Other novels are The Return of the Native, The was called by Cicero the Father of History. Mayor of Casterbridge, Tess of the D’Urbervilles and Jude. His epic drama was The Dynasts.  Hillary, Edmund (1919-1998): A New Zealander and conqueror of Everest (with Tenzing Norgay). Was  Hasina, Sheikh Wajed: Daughter of Bangabandhu leader of joint Indo-New Zealand ‘Ocean to Sky’ ex- Sheikh Mujib-ur-Rehman. Selected for the 1998 Ma- pedition on jet-propelled boats upstream Ganga from hatma Gandhi World Peace Award. Defeated by the Bay of Bengal to its source high in the Himalayas. Khalida Zia in October 2001 election. Was New Zealand’s Ambassador to India.  Hastings, Warren (1732-1818): Warren Hastings  Hingis, Martina (b. 1981): Switzerland’s tennis mar- was the first Governor-General of India, who suc- vel became the youngest Wimbledon champion of ceeded Robert Clive as Governor of Bengal in 1772. this century when she beat Jana Navotna of the Hastings was impeached in the British Parliament in the women’s singles final on July for his dereliction of duty as well as for corruption 5, 1997. but later he was freed from all charges.  Hitchcock, Alfred (1899-  Havel, Vaclav (b. 1936): First President of the Czech 1980): Sir Alfred Hitchcock Republic. Poet and play-wright. Received the 1993 was a British film director, Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and De- known as the Master of Sus- velopment. He has been conferred the Gandhi Peace pense. Among his many films Prize 2003 in recognition of his contribution to world are Psycho, The Thirty-nine peace and upholding human rights. Steps, The Lady Vanishes, The  Hawking, Stephen (b. 1942): Stephen Hawking is a Birds and North by North- British theoretical physicist and a professor at Cam- West. Most of his films were the Master of Suspence bridge University. His work is concerned with cos- made in Hollywood, USA. mology, black holes and the Big Bang theory of the  Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945): Adolf Hitler was the origin of the universe. His famous book is A Brief Austrian-born German dictator who influenced the History of Time. He suffers from multiple sclerosis course of history in the 20th century. In 1933 he and is so severely handicapped that he can only became Chancellor of Germany. With the defeat of Ger- talk through his computer. many in the second world war, he committed suicide.  Healy, Ian: Australian wicket keeper who recorded He is the author of Mein Kampf (‘My Struggle’). the highest number of dismissals when Pakistan’s  Hiuen-tsang (7th Century AD): A Chinese Buddhist Wasim Akram became his 356th victim. Broke the pilgrim. He came to India to study Buddhism. His record of his compatriot Rodney Marsh. book which gives an account of the India of his time  Hemingway, Ernest (1899-1961): Ernest Hemingway is Si-Yu-Ki. became the second most translated author of Eng-  Homer (9th century BC): A Greek poet, the author lish, after Agatha Christie, with masterpieces such of the classic epics, the Iliad (the story of the Ten as The Sun Also Rises, For Whom the Bell Tolls, A Years War) and the Odyssey (the tale of the ten years Farewell to Arms and The Old Man and the Sea, of wandering of the Greek commander, Odysseus). which won him a Nobel Prize in 1954. He committed suicide in 1961.  Horta, Jose Ramos: The foreign coordinator of the East Timorese resistance is the co-recipient of the  Henry VIII (1491-1547): England’s King Henry VIII Nobel Peace Prize for his tireless efforts in promot- is famous for having had six wives. The Pope was ing human rights along with Bishop Belo. angered by his divorces and excommunicated him, which made him, and England, Protestant.  Howard, John (b. 1939): Is the Australian politician and the country’s 25th Prime Minister. He was  Henry, O. (1862-1910): O. Henry was the pseud-

83 8 elected in 1996 and is now on his fourth term as the  Isenbayeva, Yelena: The olympic champion from Prime Minister of Australia. has become the first woman pole vaulter to  Hugo, Victor (1802-85): Victor Hugo was a French break the five metre barrier at London Grand Prix. author, the most prolific writer of the 19th century. She broke her own record. The best known of his books are The Hunchback of  Jackson, Michael (b. 1958): Notre Dame and Les Miserables. Black American pop icon. Cre-  Hume, John: Nobel Peace Prize Winner of 1998 and ator of the Heal the World renowned Irish & Civil rights champion. He was the Foundation – an international main architect of the Northern Ireland peace pro- organisation to call attention cess. He shared Nobel Prize with David Trimble for to channel resources towards resolving conflict in N. Ireland. He has been con- children in need. His popular ferred the of 2001. albums are Thriller and Dan- gerous. Pop Singer  Hunter, Bob: One of the founders of ‘Green peace’ the environment organi-sation, passed away. It was  Jahangir, Asma: Pakistani lawyer who founded the Hunter who gave the name ‘Rainbow warriors’ to Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. She won green peace activists. 1995 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service.  Hussein, Saddam (b. 1937):  Jefferson, Thomas (1743-1826): Thomas Jefferson Leader of Ba’ath Socialist was an American statesman. He was the third Presi- Party. President of Iraq from dent of USA, 1801-09. He was the author of the 1979-2003. He was ousted in Declaration of Independence. 2003 after the US invasion. He  Jelinek, Elfriede: Austrian feminist playwright and was executed on December 30, novelist. She was awarded Nobel Prize for Litera- 2006. ture 2004. The Piano Teacher, Lovers, Lust etc. are  Ibsen, Henrik (1828-1906): her major works. Executed in 2006 Henrik Johan Ibsen was the  Jenner, Edward (1749-1823): He was the British Norwegian dramatist known as the Father of Mod- physician who discovered the vaccination for small- ern Drama. His two masterpieces are The Master pox. Builder and Hedda Gabler.  Jinnah, Mohammed Ali  Imran Khan (b. 1952): Pakistani cricketer. After his (1876-1948): Mohammed Ali retirement from cricket he started a cancer hospital Jinnah was the founder of the – Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital – in Lahore separate Muslim state of Paki- in his mother’s memory. He entered politics by stan. He was the Governor- launching his Tehreek-e-Insaf (Movement of Jus- General of Pakistan after the tice) Party. partition of India in 1947.

 Imamura, Shohei: The 70 year old ace Japanese  Jintao Hu: He is the current Father of Pakistan film director won the Golden Palme Award for his and fourth Chinese President film Unagi (The Zel) dealing with the subject of sui- and Chairman of the central military commission. He cide. His Film The Ballad of Narayama has won the succeeds Jiang Zemin. award in 1983. He died on 2006.  Joan of Arc (c.1412-31): French girl, also known as  Irving, Washington (1783-859): Washington Irv- the Maid of Orleans, who led the French against the ing was the US writer known as the Father of Ameri- English in the siege of Orleans (1429). She was ulti- can Literature. Tales of a Traveller, Columbus, The mately captured and sold to the English (1430) by Adventures of Captain Bourneville, Conquest of Burgundians and was burned at the stake in Roven Granada, Mohamed and His Successors and (1431). She was about 19 when she died. She was George Washington are his major works. canonised in 1920.

83 9  John Paul II (b. 1920): Head of Roman Catholic Lenin during the Soviet era Church and influential global leader passed away. and ‘Service to the Fatherland’ He was pope for the last 26 years. His real name was decoration during the present Karol Voijtiva. His recent books were Come up, Let’s Yeltsin-era and designer of the be on ourway, Memory and identity, Gift and AK-47 assault rifle. He pro- Mistery, Threshold of Hope. duced the Avtomat  Johnson, Ben (1572-1637): Ben Johnson, full name Kalashnikov (AK-47) rifle in 1947. Benjamin Johnson, was an English dramatist. Among Mikhail Kalashnikov his plays are Volpone, The Silent Woman, The Al-  Kane, Bob: Bob Kane was the designed it chemist and Bartholomew Fair. creator of the comic strip hero Batman. He died  Johnson, Lyndon B. (1908-73): Lyndon Baines recently. Johnson was the 36th President of USA 1963-69.  Karzai, Hamid: Karzai was elected as the Afghan He was Vice-President under John F. Kennedy and President for 5 years after an election conducted in became President when the latter was assassinated. October 2004. He previously served as interim Presi-  Johnson, Michael: The American athlete who dent after the fall of Taliban. bagged the 4,000 and 200 metre events at amazing  Kasparov, Gary (b. 1963): Soviet Grandmaster. timings of 43.49 and 19.3 respectively, at the Cen- World Chess Champion 1993. tennial Olympics in Atlanta in 1996.  Kaunda, Kenneth (b. 1924): Architect of the inde-  Johnson, Samuel (1709-84): He is best known for pendence of , and its first President (1964- his Dictionary of the English Language, the first 91). Recipient of Jawaharlal Nehru Award for Inter- compre-hensive dictionary in the world. national Understanding (1970).  Jones, Sir William (1746-94): Sir William Jones  Keats, John (1795-1821): John Keats was an En- was a famous Indologist. He was master of 28 lan- glish poet. His works include La Belle Dame Sans guages – oriental and European. He translated Merci, Endymion, The Eve of St. Agnes and Ode to Abhinjana Shakuntalam into English in 1789. a Nightingale.  Jordan, Michael (b. 1963): Michael Jordan is a US  Keller, Helen (1880-1968): Helen Adams Keller was basketball player, one of the world’s most popular the US deaf and blind author and educator. She was sportsmen, twice Olympic gold medallist. He is a distinguished lecturer and writer. known as Air Jordan.  Kelvin, William (1824-1907): William Thomson  Joule, James (1818-89): James Joule was a British Kelvin was a British mathematician and physicist. physicist. He proved that heat is a form of energy, He researched Thermodynamics, helping to develop established the mechanical equivalent of heat and the law of conservation of energy, and the absolute formulated the absolute scale of temperature. The temperature scale. The Kelvin scale of absolute tem- joule, SI unit of energy, work done and quantity of perature is named after him. heat, is named after him.  Kennedy, John F. (1917-63):  Kadare, Ismail: The Albanian born author was John Fitzgerald Kennedy was awarded Man Booker Prize. The General of the dead the 35th President of USA. He Army The Palace of Dreams etc are his famous works. was the first Roman Catholic The Successor his latest novel was nominated for President and the youngest Nobel Prize. American to be elected Presi-  Kagge, Erling: Norwegian lawyer. First person to dent of USA. He was assassi- have skied to both the Poles and climbed the world’s nated on November 23, 1963 by Assassinate in 1963 highest mountain peak, Mount Everest, in 1994. Lee Harvey Oswald.  Kalashnikov, Mikhail (b. 1919): The 80 year old  Khan, Dr. Abdul Qadeer: retired Major General, a recipient of three Orders of Khan, considered the father of Pakistan’s nuclear

84 0 programme, confessed last year that he sold nuclear Kissinger to enquire into the September 11 (2002) technology to Iran, North and Libya. The terrorist attacks in the U.S. But, he later relinquished presidential pardon and denial of access to IAEA the post. officials to Khan suggests involvement of Pakistani  Klerk, F.W. de (b. 1936): Former President of South government in the whole fiasco. Africa. Along with Chairman of African National  Kim Dae Jung (b. 1925): President of . Congress, Nelson Mandela, was conferred the 1992 He won the 2000 Nobel Prize for Peace. He insti- Nobel Peace Prize. tuted a ‘Sunshine Policy’, a programme of reconcili-  Koch, Robert (1843-1910): Heinrich Hermann Rob- ation with North Korea, which culminated in a his- ert Koch was a German bacteriologist. He won the toric meeting between him and Kim Il-jung, the North 1905 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. In Korean leader, in June 2000 in Pyong Yang. 1882 he discovered the tuberculosis bacillus and  King, Billie Jean (b. 1943): Billie Jean King is a US the following year, the cholera bacillus. tennis player. In her career she won a record of 20  Kohl, Helmut (b. 1930): German Chancellor 1982- Wimbledon titles, including the Singles 1966-68, 98. Architect of German re-unification (1990). Re- 1972-73 and 1975. cipient of 1990 Jawaharlal Nehru Award for Interna-  King, Martin Luther (1929-68): Martin Luther King tional Understanding. was a black American clergyman and civil rights  Kubrick, Stanley (1928-99): Stanley Kubrick was leader. He led the non-violent movement to obtain a talented but controversial film maker. He achieved full civil rights for American Negroes and became a world fame through his internationally acclaimed martyr in his cause. He was awarded the Nobel films which include 2001: A Space Odyssey, Dr. Prize for Peace in 1964. He was assassinated on Strangelove, A Clockwork Orange etc. Eyes Wide April 5, 1968 by a white fanatic, James Earl Ray. His Shut was his last film, released in 2000. most famous quote comes from his speech in Wash- ington “I have a dream”  Kumaratunga, Chandrika (b. 1945): Sri Lanka’s eleventh Prime Minister (1994). First woman Chief  Kingsley, Ben (b. 1944): Ben Kingsley is the British Minister of the country (Western Province) and actor who played the role of Gandhiji in Richard leader of Peoples’s Alliance. Her father and mother Attenborough’s film, Gandhi. He won an Oscar for – S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike and Sirimavo Bandaranaike Best Actor for the role in 1982. – both served as Prime Ministers. On November 10,  Kipling, Rudyard (1865-1936): Rudyard Kipling 1994, she became the first woman executive Presi- was a British writer, born in India. His major works dent of Sri Lanka. portray contemporary British life in the British Raj  Kurosawa, Akira (1910-98): Akira Kurosawa was in India. Among his works are The Jungle Book, a celebrated Japanese film director. His films, The Kim, The Light that Failed, Barrack Room Bal- Seven Samurai, Rasho-mon and Kagemusha were lads, Just So Stories etc. He won the 1907 Nobel among the finest works of the world cinemato- Prize for Literature. graphic heritage.  Kissinger, Henry (b. 1923):  Laden, Osama bin: Saudi dis- The former US Secretary of sident multimillionaire who fi- State whose ‘Shuttle Diplo- nanced most of the fundamen- macy’ during the West Asian talist Islamic movements in- crisis in 1973 contributed to cluding Taliban in Afghanistan the normalisation of the vola- and Sudan. He is also thought tile situation, broke his long si- to be behind the attacks on lence by recognising India’s USA on September 11, 2001 Terrorist Leader known for shuttle need for a deterrent against deplomacy when the World Trade Center was destroyed. China. A committee was ap- pointed by President George Bush, under Henry  Laennec, R.T.H.: R.T.H. Laennec was the French physician who invented the stethoscope.

84 1  Lahiri, Jumpa (b. 1967): Indian origin Jumba Lahiri cricket (400 not out). He also holds the record for won the Pulitzer Prize (2000) for her debut. Born in the highest total number of runs in a Test career, London, the daughter of Kolkata-based parents, she after overtaking Allan Border in November 2005. He grew up at Rhode Island in USA. is the only man to have reclaimed the highest Test  Lama, Dalai (Tenzin Gyatso): record score. He also completed 10,000 runs in OD1s. The exiled spiritual leader of  Lavoisier, Antoine (1743-94): Antoine Laurent Tibet Established Government Lavoisier was the man who first established that air -in-exile at Dharmashala contains two gases: oxygen and nitrogen. He was (Himachal Pradesh) in 1959. called the Father of Modern Chemistry. Recipient of 1989 Nobel Peace  Lawrence, D.H. (1885-1930): David Herbert Law- Prize for his non- violent rence was a British poet and novelist. His books struggle to free his Himalayan Won Peace Nobel Prize include Sons and Lovers, Women in Love and The 1989 nation from Chinese rule. He Plumed Serpent. He was prosecuted for obscenity has authored My Land and People, Freedom in Ex- for his The Rainbow and his Lady Chatterley’s Lover ile, etc. was banned and later, thirty years after his death,  Lamarck, Jean Baptiste (1744-1829): Chevalier was the subject of a sensational law case when it Jean Baptiste Lamarck was a French naturalist and was republished. pre-Darwinian evolutionist. His major work was  Lawrence, T.E. (1888-1935): T.E. Lawrence, also Natural History of Invertebrate Animals, published known as Lawrence of Arabia, was a British soldier 1815-22, forty years before Charles Darwin published and author. The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, has be- his On the Origin of Species. come a classic and he himself has become a legen-  Lambert, Johann Heinrich (1728-77): Johann dary figure. His life was the subject of the hugely Heinrich Lambert was a German mathematician. The successful film by David Lean, Lawrence of Arabia unit of light intensity is named after him. In 1760 he (1962). discovered a means to measure the intensity of light  Lawton, Maxwell: South African painter. Himself scientifically. an AIDS patient, his painting Christ Child with  Lamy, Pascal: The former European Union trade AIDS and Man of Sorrows depict Christ as on AIDS negotiator was appointed as Director General of sufferer. World Trade Organisation. The Frenchman takes  Lenin, Vladimir (1870-1924): Vladimir Lenin was charge in August, 2005, in place of Supachi the founder of Communist Russia. On November 7, Panichpakdi. 1917 a new socialist government was formed in Rus-  Land, Edwin (1909-91): Edwin Herbert Land was a sia under his leadership. US inventor and physicist. In 1947 he invented the  Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519): A great Italian ‘Land Polaroid’ camera, a camera which could take painter, sculptor and architect. He has been described pictures and print them instantly with developing as a universal genius of the Renaissance. His mas- agents incorporated into the film itself. terpiece is Mona Lisa (painted in 1504). The Last  Landsteiner, Karl (1868-1943: Karl Landsteiner Supper is also one of his creative paintings. was the US scientist who discovered the Rh blood  Lewis, Edward: American biologist. Co-recipient of factor. He won the 1930 Nobel Prize for Physiology the 1995 Nobel Prize in Medicine, with Christiane for his discovery of the main types of human blood. Nuesslein-Volhard (Germany) and Eric Wieschaus  Lao-tze (c. 6th century BC): He was the Chinese (USA) for discoveries concerning “the genetic con- philosopher who founded Taoism, ‘The Path to Vir- trol of early embryonic development”. tue’.  Libby, William (1908-80): William Frank Libby was  Lara, Brian (b. 1969): The left-handed batting hero a US chemist. In 1960 he won the Nobel Prize for of . He has the highest individual score Chemistry for his part in the invention of Carbon-14 in both first-class cricket (501 not out) and Test dating.

84 2  Lincoln, Abraham (1809-65): Abraham Lincoln was  Madonna (b. 1959): The the 16th President of USA, 1861-65. In 1863, he pro- world’s top female pop star, her claimed the freedom of the slaves. The American full name is Madonna Louise Civil War (1861-65) broke out during his presidency Ciccone. In 1986 she became due to his plans to emancipate slaves. He was as- the first woman to top both the sassinated in a theatre on April 14, 1865 by John album and singles charts. Her Wilkes Booth. most popular album is True Blue (1986). She wrote a book  Lister, Joseph (1827-1912): Joseph Lister was the Pop Singer British surgeon who discovered the cause of sepsis called Sex. and introduced an antiseptic into the operating the-  Magellan, Ferdinand (c.1480- atre to prevent it. 1521): Ferdinand Magellan was a Portuguese navi-  Livingstone, David (1813-73): David Livingstone gator. He sailed around the bottom of South America was the first European to explore many parts of cen- to the Ocean he named the Pacific. He made first tral and eastern Africa. He discovered the origin of circumnavigation of the world. The Strait of the River Nile in 1866. He disappeared in 1869 and Magellan is named after him. was found by Sir Henry Stanley in 1871.  Magsaysay, Ramon: Ramon Magsaysay was Presi-  Lucas Jr., Robert E. (b. 1937): American econo- dent of the 1953-57. The Magsaysay mist. Professor at the University of Chicago. Re- Award, known as Asia’s Nobel Prize, is given in his cipient of 1995 Nobel Prize in Economics for his work memory. on ‘how rational expectations have transformed  Malthus, Thomas Robert (1766-1834): Thomas macro-economic analysis and helped understand Robert Malthus was a British economist. He is the economic policy’. author of Essay on the Principle of Population.  Lucid, Shannon: The 35 year old celebrity astro-  Mandela, Nelson (b. 1918): Leader of African Na- naut, who spent a record 188 days in space in 1996, tional Congress, and South Africa’s first black Presi- became the first woman to be awarded the Con- dent (1994-1999). The former saboteur and political gressional Space Medal of Honour (Washington, prisoner (for 27 years from 1964 to 1990), was the December 2, 1996). Her mission to the Russian space only nominee to succeed F.W. de Klerk, with whom station Mir was the longest ever by a woman or an he shared the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize for negotiat- American. She returned to Earth in September 1996. ing the end of apartheid. Recipient of Third World  Lumière, Auguste (1862-1954): Auguste Lumière Award (1986), Jawaharlal Nehru Award for Interna- was the French inventor of photographic equipment. tional Understanding (1979), (1990), With his brother, Louis Jean Lumière, he invented and Jamnalal Bajaj Award (1990). He is one of the the cine-camera in 1893. only three people to receive an honorary degree from Harvard at a time other than the university’s  Luther, Martin (1483-1546): Martin Luther was a commencement. He resigned as President in June German religious reformer and the founder of the 1999 and retired from politics. In 2000, he shared the Protestant form of Christianity. Gandhi Peace Prize with Rural Devel-  Lutyens, Sir Edwin (1869-1944): Sir Edwin Lutyens opment Bank amounting Rs.1 crore. A Long Walk to was a British architect. He planned Freedom is his autobiography which was published Rashtrapti Bhavan, Liverpool Roman Catholic Ca- in 1994. thedral, the British Embassy in Washington and  Mao Tse-tung (1893-1976): Mao Tse-tung, also many other buildings. spelt Mao Zedong, was the founder of Communist  Macaulay, Thomas (1800-59): Thomas Babington China. He was a founding member of the Chinese Macaulay, was an Indian Civil servant. He played a Communist Party (1921) and proclaimed the Peo- significant role in introducing English as a medium ple’s Republic of China in 1949 and became its Presi- of instruction and education. He is the author of dent, as well as being Chairman of the Communist History of England and Lays of Ancient Rome. Party, until his death.

84 3  Maradona, Diego (b. 1962): Argentinian soccer star. First musician to receive the peace prize of German He led to world cup victory in 1986. He booksellers. Recipient of Jawaharlal Nehru Award had up’s and down’s in his career due to addiction for International Understanding. to drugs. In 2005 he kicked the habit to become a TV  Merkel, Angela: The Christian democrat candidate, show host. Ms Merkel has been appointed eighth post-war  Marconi, Guglielmo (1874-1937): Guglielmo Mar- Chancellor of Germany. She was elected as the coni was the Italian physicist who invented the ra- Chancellor after an agreement was concluded dio and wireless system. He shared the 1909 Nobel between Christian democrats and Social democrat’s, Prize in Physics with Ferdinand Braun of Germany due to an inconclusive election on Septem-ber 18. for developing the wireless.  Michelangelo (1475-1564): Full name Michelangelo  Marco Polo (1254-1323): The Italian traveller who di Ludovico Buonarroti Simoni : Italian painter, was the first European to visit China. He also vis- sculptor and architect. His finest painting is The ited coastal areas of India. He wrote an account of Last Judgement. his journeys to China and the Far East which is en-  Miller, Arthur: The pulitzer winning, playwright titled The Book of Marco Polo. passed away. Death of a salesman, The Crucible,  Marcos, Ferdinand (1917-89: Ferdinand Marcos etc... are his famous plays. was the President of the Philippines 1965-89.  Milosevic, Slobodan (1941-  Marx, Karl (1818-83): Karl 2006): He was President of Marx is the Father of Commu- Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000. nism. His form of Communism Faced charges of genocide of is known as Marxism. He is the ethnic Albanians in interna- author of Das Kapital (1848). tional criminal court after be- In collaboration with Friedrich ing ousted by NATO Engels he published The Com- intervension. He died in munist Manifesto (1840). prison. Balkan Butcher Father of Communism  Mathai, Wangari Muta: The  Milton, John (1608-74): John Milton was the En- Kenyan environmentalist became the first African glish poet known as the Epic Poet. His major works woman to receive Nobel Peace Prize, 2004. Dr. Mathai include Paradise Lost (1667), Paradise Regained is also the Assistant Minister for the Environment (1671) and Samson Agonistes (1671). and Natural Resources in the present Kibaki Gov-  Mittal, Laxmikanth: Expatricate Indian steel tycoon ernment. was selected the 3rd richest man in the world by  Mbeki, Thabo (b. 1942): Thabo Mbeki is the Presi- Forbes magazine and is one of richest in the UK. dent of South Africa. The Company Mittal Industries merged with Arcelor and became biggest steel industry.  McKinnon, Don: The Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Don McKinnon, was elected to the  Monroe, Marilyn (1926-62): Marilyn Monroe was post in November 1999. The New Zealander had a US film star. She specialised in portraying inno- previously served as his country’s Foreign Minister cently provocative blondes or ‘dumb blondes’ with and Deputy Prime Minister. comic genius. She committed suicide in 1962 fol- lowing a romantic relationship with the then US Presi-  McEwan, Ian (b. 1948): The 50 year old British writer dent, John F. Kennedy. won the Booker Prize in 1998 for his book, Amsterdam.  Montessori, Maria (1870-1952): She was the Italian educationist and founder of the Montessori system of  Mendez, Sam: Sam Mendez is a director of British education. The Montessori system stresses the devel- plays. He won five Oscar awards for his maiden film, opment of a child’s own initiative and natural abilities, American Beauty (1999). especially through practical play and individual guid-  Menuhin, Yehudi (1916-99): American violinist. ance rather than through strict control.

84 4  Moore, Henry (1898-1986): Henry Moore was a Fascism, a philosophy in which the State’s needs British sculptor. His major work is Madonna and take priority over the individual’s. Child in St. Matthew’s Church, Northampton.  Myrdal, Gunnar (1898-1987): Karl Gunnar Myrdal  More, Sir Thomas (1478-1535): Sir Thomas More was the Swedish economist, politician and civil serv- was an English statesman. His main principle was ant who won the 1974 Nobel Prize for Economics. Ideal State which he expounded in his masterpiece He is the author of American Dilemma and Asian Utopia. Drama.  Morrison, Toni (b. 1935): Black American writer.  Naipaul, V.S. (b. 1932): A Trinidadian novelist of Recipient of 1993 Nobel Prize for Literature. Author Indian origin, winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize for Lit- of six novels, won 1988 Pulitzer Prize for her book, erature. Received a knighthood in the British Gov- Beloved. ernment’s New Year honours list. Won 1971 Booker  Mountbatten, Lord (1900-79): Lord Mountbatten Prize for In a Free State. Won Nobel prize for litera- was the last Viceroy of India. He was assassinated ture in 2001. A Bend in the River, Half a Life, Magic in 1979 by a bomb placed on his yacht by the IRA Seeds etc. are other major works. off the coast of Ireland.  Napoleon (1769-1821): Napo-  Mubarak, Hosni (b. 1928): He has been the fourth leon Bonaparte was a French President of the Arab republic of Egypt for twenty- statesman, Emperor of France, four years, since 14 October 1981. and the most brilliant general of his time. He was nicknamed  Mueller, Max (1823-1900): Max Mueller was a Ger- the Little Corporal. man Sanskrit scholar and philosopher. His works include The Science of Languages and India – What  Nasser, Colonel (1918-70): Can It Teach Us? Col. Gamal Abdel Nasser was Little Corporal Prime Minister of Egypt (1954-  Mugabe, Robert (b. 1924): The anti-apartheid cru- 6) and President (1956-70). In 1956 he nationalised sader and now the President of Zimbabwe. Has been the Suez Canal which passes through Egypt and is accused of humanrights violation by commonwealth. the lifeline between Asia and Europe.  Murdoch, Rupert (b. 1931):  Nathan, S.R. (b. 1925): Sellapan Rama Nathan is an Australian-born American me- ethnic Indian, born in Singapore, who is a veteran dia proprietor who is the ma- diplomat, was sworn in as the sixth elected Presi- jority shareholder and manag- dent of Singapore on September 1, 1999, succeed- ing director of News Corpora- ing Ong Teng Cheong. tion., one of the world’s larg- est and most influential media  Navratilova, Martina (b. 1956): Czechoslovakian- corporations. In India he owns born tennis player of United States. In her 20 year Star group of satelite channels. Owns Star TV career she won 167 singles titles, the highest by any player male or female. In November 1994, she bade  Murray, Jennifer (b. 1942): Jennifer Murray of Brit- farewell to tennis. ain was the first woman to pilot a helicopter around the world.  Nazreen, Taslima: The controversial Bangladeshi writer of books like ‘Lajja’, ‘Ka’, ‘Dwikhandito’ had  Musharraf, Gen. Pervez: Gen. Pervez Musharraf is sought Indian citizenship in March 2005. She has the self-styled Chief Executive of Pakistan who been living in Europe and united state since leaving staged a coup in October 1999 and ousted the Prime Bangladesh in 1994. Minister, Nawaz Sharif. Earlier he was Chief of Army Staff. I 2002 through an ordinance Mushraff ap-  Nejad, Ahmedi: The newly elected hardliner Presi- pointed himself president of Pakistan until 2007. dent of Iran. Ahmadi Nejad is Iran’s first non-cleric President in 24 years. He was previously Teheran  Mussolini, Benito (1883-1945): Benito Mussolini Mayor. was dictator of 1922-43. He was the founder of

84 5  Nelson, Lord (1758-1805): Lord Nelson, Horatio, President of on May 29, 1999 after winning Viscount Nelson, was a British admiral and hero. an election that was marred by irregularities. His most famous victory was the Battle of Trafalgar.  Olson, Gregory: The American millionaire was the  Newton, Sir Isaac (1642-1727): Sir Isaac Newton third space tourist after Dennis Tito and Mark was an English mathematician and physicist famous Shuttleworth. He took the journey in Russia’s Soyuz for his discovery of the Law of Gravitation, three Space Shuttle. laws of motion, differential calculus, composition of  Omar Khayyám (c.1050-.1123): Persian astronomer light etc. His greatest discovery is the gravitational and one of the greatest poets in the Arabian pull of Earth.He is the author of Mathematical Prin- language. His famous work is Rubáiyát. ciples of Natural Philosophy.  O’Neill, Eugene (1888-1953): Eugene O’Neill was  Nicholas II (1868-1918): Last Tsar of Russia, 1895- a US playwright, the first US dramatist to win the 1917. He was forced to abdicate during the Russian Nobel Prize for Literature, in 1936. Revolution and, with his family, was murdered by the Bolsheviks.  Ondieki, Yobes (b. 1963): Kenyan athlete. First man to break the 27 minutes barrier for 10,000 metres run  Niepce, Joseph (1765-1833): Joseph Nicephore (1993). Broke Chelimo’s record by covering the Niepce was the French scientist who invented the distance in 26 minutes 58.38 secs. camera. It was he who invented the first photographic technique, heliography, i.e. taking pictures with the  Oppenheimer, J. Robert sun’s light. (1904-67): Julius Robert Oppenheimer was a US nuclear  Nightingale, Florence (1820- physicist. He is known as the 1910): She was a devoted Brit- Father of the Atomic Bomb. ish nurse, who, during the Crimean War (1854-56), re-  Orwell, George (1903-50): formed the nursing profession. George Orwell was a British She was known as the Lady novelist and essayist. His real Father of Atom Bomb with the Lamp. She was the first name was Eric Blair. Among woman to receive the Order of his works were Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty- Merit (1907). Lady with the Lamp Four.  Nixon, Richard M. (1913-94): Richard Milhous  Owens, Jesse (b. 1913-80): American athlete, real Nixon was the 37th President of USA, 1969-74. He name John Cleveland Owens. Only man to win four resigned in 1974 before being impeached. Victory track and field gold medals (100 m, 200 m, long jump, Without War and Beyond Peace are books by him. 4 x 100 m relay) in a single Olympics (1936).  Nkrumah, Kwame (1909-72): Kwame Nkrumah was  Palyakav, Valery (b. 1943): Russian cosmonaut. the Prime Minister of Ghana 1957-60 and President Has the record of 438 days in space. 1960-66. He was the leader of Ghana’s independ-  Parkinson, C. Northcote (1909-93): Cyril Northcote ence movement. He is known as the Gandhi of Af- Parkinson was a British writer, historian and political rica. scientist. He is especially known for his Parkinson’s  Nobel, Alfred (1833-96): Alfred Bernhard Nobel has Law – that work expands to fill the time available for acquired immense fame as the inventor of dynamite its completion. His famous book is Parkinson’s and as the founder of the Nobel Prize. Law: The Pursuit of Progress.  Oba, Mitsuro: 45 year old Japanese adventurer who  Pasternak, Boris (1890-1960): Boris Pasternak was undertook a solo trek across Antarctica in October a Russian poet and writer. He is best known for his 1998. First person to undertake a solo trek across panoramic novel, Dr. Zhivago, set immediately frozen Antarctica in June 1997. before, during and after the Russian Revolution.  Obasanjo, Olusegun (b. 1937): He took office as  Pasteur, Louis (1822-95): Louis Pasteur was the French scientist who discovered that germs existed

84 6 and are the cause of infection. a celebrated disciple of Socrates.  Paz, Octavio (1914-98): ’s literary giant, who  Pol Pot (1926-98): The man who unleashed the won a Nobel Prize for his enchanting poetry and reign of terror in Cambodia, whom the Cambodians essays, passed away on April 19, 1998, aged 84, in would remember as the worst war criminal in their Mexico City. He had also been Mexican Ambassador history, died of a heart attack in his sleep on April to India 1962-68. 15, 1998 in his northern jungle stronghold of Anlong  Peary, Robert E. (1856-1920): Robert E. Peary was Veng. an American explorer of the Arctic, the first to reach  Pope, Alexander (1688-1744): Alexander Pope was the North Pole overland (in January 1910). a British satirical poet and master of the heroic  Pele, Edson A.D.N. (b. 1940): Soccer player from couplet. His works include The Rape of the Lock, . Played in all four World Cup Championship The Duncaid, and The Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot. tournaments, a world record. Scored 1,281 goals in  Pressler, Larry: US Republican Senator. His 1985 1,363 games. Presently Sports Minister of Brazil. amendment, known as Pressler Amendment, led to  Peres, Shimon (b. 1923): Former Prime Minister of a cut in US military and economic aid to Pakistan in (after Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated on 1990. November 5, 1995). Shared 1994 Nobel Peace Prize  Priestley, Joseph (1733- with Rabin and Yasser Arafat. 1804): Joseph Priestley was  Picasso, Pablo (1881-1973): the British chemist who Pablo Picasso was a Spanish discovered oxygen, the artist, the greatest of the 20th life-giving gas. century. He is best  Prodi, Romano: Italian politi- remembered for his two- cian and the former president dimensional illusory paintings. of European Commission. He Discovered Oxygen He introduced cubism. His is the leader of opposition most famous painting is against Silvio Berlusconi’s rightwing government. Introduced Cubism Guernica, done in ‘synthetic  Pulitzer, Joseph (1847-1911): Joseph Pulitzer was cubism’, depicting his horror of the bombing of a Hungarian-born US newspaper proprietor. In his Guernica, a town in the Basque region of Spain, in will he established annual Pulitzer Prizes for literature, the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). drama, music and journalism for American writers.  Pierre, DBC: A little known Australian - Mexican  Putin, Vladimir Vladimirovich (b. 1952): Vladimir author with murky past, DBC Pierre won the Booker Putin is the President of Russia; he was sworn-in in Prize for his debut novel “ Vernon God Little” .DBC May 2000. He took his law degree from the Pierre, whose name stands for “Dirty But Clean” University of Leningrad and joined the KGB in 1975. (real name Finlay Peter) has confessed to having betrayed friends as a drug addict and gambler.  Puzo, Mario (1921-99): Mario Puzo was a US best- selling author. He was the creator of the fictional  Pinter Harold: British playwright and theatre direc- Corleone crime family and winner of two Oscars for tor. He was awarded Nobel Prize for literature for the his screen adaptations of his book The Godfather. year 2005. The Birthday Party, The Home Coming, His last book was Omertà. No Man’s Land are major works.  Rabin, Yitzhak (1922-95): Yitzhak Rabin was a  Planck, Max (1858-1947): Max Planck was a former Prime Minister of Israel. He was German theoretical physicist and the winner of the assassinated in 1995 by Yigal Amir. He shared 1918 Nobel Prize for Physics. He formulated the the 1994 Nobel Prize for Peace with Shimon Peres quantum theory, called Planck’s Constant. and Yasser Arafat.  Plato (c.427-347 BC): Athenian philosopher known  Rajpakse, Mahinda: The former Prime Minister and as the Father of Western Political Thought. He was Head of United Peoples Freedom Alliance was sworn

84 7 in as the fifth executive President of Sri Lanka. He single mother, Ms. Rowling is one of the wealthiest defeated Ranil Vikram Singhe. authors of all time.  Rato, Rodrigo: A former Spanish Finance Minister  Rushdie, Salman (b. 1947): who on the the basis of consensus and backing of Mumbai-born controversial Europe and several Latin American Countries was British writer. Honoured with appointed Managing Director of IMF on May 4, 1993 Booker of Bookers, 2004, succeeding Koehler of Germany. recipient of 1981 Booker Prize  Reagan, Ronald (b. 1911): 40th President of USA for Midnight’s Children. His (1981-88). Was Governor of (1967). He had 1989 book Satanic verses been a film star and television artiste. He suffered invited wrath of Muslim clerics and was banned in many Won Booker Prize in from Alzheimer’s disease and died in 2004. 1981 countries. Other works include  Rice, Condoleeza: The current American Secretary Shame, The Moore’s Last Sigh the Ground Beneath of state has topped the Forbes Magazines list of Her Feet, Shalimar the Clown etc... most powerful women. Ms. Rice becomes the first black women to be appointed US Secretary of State  Ruskin, John (1819-1900): John Ruskin was a is a close confidante of President Bush. British author and art critic. His critical works Modern Painters and The Stones of Venice established him  Robinson, Mary (b. 1944): The first woman and 7th as the leading critic of his time. who was succeeded by another woman President, Mary McAlleese.  Russell, Bertrand (1872-1970): Bertrand Russell was the British philosopher and mathematician who  Ronaldinho: The Brazillian footballer who was won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950. His awarded the first ‘FIFA player of the year’. He was famous books are Principia Mathematics, An also the ‘European Player of the year’ in 2005. Enquiry into Meaning and Truth, Human  Rontgen, Wilhelm K. (1845- Knowledge, History of Western Philosophy, 1923): Wilhelm Konrad von Analysis of Mind, Impact of Science on Society, Röntgen (or Roentgen) was a Mamape and Morals and Problems of Philosophy. German physicist. He was the  Rutherford, Ernest (1871-1937): Ernest Rutherford, discoverer of X-rays and was 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, was a New Zealand- the recipient of the first Nobel born British pioneer of modern atomic science. He Prize in Physics in 1901. was the first to split the atom and obtain nuclei of  Rogge, Dr. Jacques: An Ortho- hydrogen. He won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in paedic Surgeon of Discovered X-ray 1908. He is known as the Father of Nuclear Physics. who was elected as the new President of Interna-  Sampras, Pete (b. 1971): Former World No. 1 Greek- tional Olympic Committee for an 8 year term suc- American tennis player. He is considered by many ceeding Juan Antonio Samaranch. to be the greatest male tennis player of all time,  Roosevelt, Franklin D. (1882-1945): Franklin having won a record 14 Grand Slam men’s singles Dwight Roosevelt, known as FDR, was the 32nd titles and finished the year as No. 1 on the ATP President of USA, 1933-45. He is the only American world rankings for a record six consecutive years. to hold the US presidency three times. He won the men’s singles title at Wimbledon a record seven times. He also won the US Open five times  Ross, Ronald (1857-1932): Ronald Ross was a and the Australian Open twice. However, the one British physician and bacteri-ologist. He discovered major championship which eluded him was the the malarial parasite, which won him the Nobel Prize French Open. He retired from professional tennis in in 1902. 2003.  Rowling, JK: Famous children fiction writer who  Saramago, Jose (b. 1924): Jose Saramago is the created ‘Harry potter’ the child wizard. Her books in Portuguese novelist and outspoken non-conformist Harry potter series have been global best sellers. A who has a soft corner for the common man. He won

84 8 the 1998 Nobel Prize for Literature. His major signed in December 2005 to form a new party breakthrough came in 1982, with his novel Baltasar ‘Kadima’ and to fight election in March 2006. Dur- and Blimunda, on which the Italian composer ing his rule Israel pulled back from Gaza and con- Corghi based his opera Blimunda. structed a controversial security wall. He retired from  Savitskaya, Svetlana (b. 1949): Soviet cosmonaut. active politics in March 2007. First woman to walk in space. As test pilot, she  Shaw, Bernard (1856-1950): George Bernard Shaw mastered 20 types of aircraft, and won the title ‘Miss was the Irish-born British dramatist, essayist and Sensation’. pamphleteer. Among his many successes are  Schroeder, Gerhard (b. 1944): Former Chancellor Caesar and Cleopatra, Arms and the Man, of Germany, leading a coalition of the Social Candida, The Devil’s Disciple, Man and Superman, Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and the Greens Major Barbara, The Doctor’s Dilemma, Pygmalion from 1998 to 2005. He ended the 16 year long rule of and Saint Joan. Helmut Kohl.  Shelley, Percy Bysshe (1792-1822): Percy Bysshe  Schumacher, Micheal: Ger- Shelley was a British poet, one of the most man formula one driver who distinguished in the history of English literature. He won a record seven World wrote many poems, including Queen Mab, The Drivers championship titles. Skylark, Ode to the West Wind, Prometheus One of the well paid figures in Unbound and Adonais. sports worldwide, he is the most successful F1 driver ever.  Shuttleworth, Mark: The South African He retired from race driving in Retired from businessman became the second space tourist in 2006. car race in 2006 another step to make space tourism a booming  Sethi, Najam: Najam Sethi is the editor of the industry. Pakistani newspaper The Friday Times.  Shoemaker, Eugene (1928-97): Eugene Shoemaker  Shakespeare, William was a renowned US astronomer, who shared the (1564-1616): William discovery of the comet Shoemaker-Levy-9 with Carol Shakespeare was an English Levy. dramatist and poet, considered  Sinatra, Frank (1915-98): Frank Sinatra was an the greatest literary figure in American singer, the most popular of his generation. English literature. Important plays of Shakespeare are All’s  Spielberg, Steven (b. 1947): Film director. His famous Well That Ends Well, Antony films are Jaws (1975), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1978), Raiders of the Last Ark (1982), ET–the and Cleopatra, As You Like It, The Bard of Avon Comedy of Errors, Julius Extra Terrestrial (1983), Jurassic Park (1993). Caesar, The Merchant of Venice, A Midsummer  Spock, Benjamin (1903-98): Dr. Benjamin Spock was Night’s Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, Romeo the author of the famous book Baby and Child Care. and Juliet, The Tempest, Twelfth Night etc. Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth and Othello are his great  Stalin, Joseph (1879-1953): Joseph Stalin was a tragedies. Russian from , the dictator of USSR He was known as the Iron Man of the USSR.  Sharif, Nawaz (b. 1950): Twice elected as Prime Minister of Pakistan, serving two non-consecutive  Steinbeck, John (1902-68): John Steinbeck was the terms from 1993 to 1999. His party is the Pakistan US author who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in Muslim League N (Nawaz group). His rule came to 1962. His best-known book is The Grapes of Wrath. an abrupt end following the overthrow of his  Stephenson, George (1781-1848): George government by a military coup in 1999 months after Stephenson was the British inventor of the steam the Kargil War. locomotive.  Sharon, Ariel: Former Israeli Prime Minister. He re-  Stevenson, Robert Louis (1850-94): Robert Louis

84 9 Stevenson was a British writer of highly readable and Nile, Cities on the Move, Civilisation on Trial adventure stories, born in Edinburgh, Scotland. and the 10 volume History of the World. Among his books are Treasure Island, Kidnapped,  Turner, Ted (b. 1938): Creator The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. of CNN (Cable News Network)  Sullivan, Kathy: American astronaut who became and former husband of actress America’s first woman space-walker on October 11, Jane Fonda. 1994, when she floated outside the shuttle  Tutu, Desmond (b. 1931): Challenger. Bishop Desmond Tutu is the  Swaraj Paul (b. 1931): The noted non-resident former Archbishop of Cape Indian (NRI) and Vice Chancellor of Wolver hampton Town. He won the Nobel Prize Owns CNN University, England. In 1996, he became a life peer for Peace in 1984. He also won Gandhi Peace Prize. and is known as Lord Swaraj Paul.  Twain, Mark (1835-1910): Mark Twain was the  Talabani, Jalal: The Kurdish leader of the patriotic pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, He is union of Kurdistan party was elected as the best known for his two masterpieces, Tom Sawyer President of ‘liberated’ Iraq after emerging as and Huckleberry Finn. consensus candidate supported by United Iraqi  Tyson, Mike (b. 1967): Heavyweight boxing Alliance. champion. In 1986 he was the youngest man ever to  Taylor, Elizabeth (b. 1932): Elizabeth Taylor is a win the heavyweight crown. He was expelled from British film actress now living in USA. the boxing profession for biting the ears of the  Tereshkova, Valentina (b. 1937): Soviet cosmonaut. champion Evander Holyfield during a boxing First woman to make a space flight aboard Vostok- championship. VI (June 1963).  Van Gogh, Vincent (1853-90):  Thant, U (1909-74): Third Secretary-General of the Vincent van Gogh was a Dutch United Nations, 1962-71. He was from Myanmar. painter, probably the greatest of Impressionist artists. His  Thatcher, Margaret (b. 1925): Sunflowers is considered the Prime Minister of Britain 1979- best painting of the genre. 1990. Known as ‘The Iron Lady’ for her strong policies ,  Vaz, Keith: Keith Vaz is a particularly for her military British Labour politician of Dutch Painter victory against Argentina in Indian origin. In May 1999, he the Falkland Islands. Author was appointed to the British Council of Ministers, of The Path to Power, My the first Asian MP to be so. Downing Street Years. The Iron Lady  Verne, Jules (1828-1905): Jules Verne was a French  Tito (1892-1980): President of Yugoslavia 1953-80. novelist, the founder of the science fiction novel. He was a co-founder of the Non-Aligned Movement. His best known books are Around the World in Eighty Days, Journey to the Centre of the Earth  Tito, Dennis (b. 1941): Dennis Tito is the US and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. businessman who, in April 2001, became the world’s first ‘space tourist’.  Vespucci, Amerigo (1454-1512): Amerigo Vespucci was an Italian navigator. He explored Venezuela and  Tolstoy, Leo (1828-1910): Count Leo Nikolayevich the Gulf of Mexico (1507). Tolstoy was a great Russian literary figure. His work includes War and Peace, Anna Karenina and  Volcker, Paul: In April, 2004 UN assigned him to Resurrection. study about Iraqi Oil for food programme, on whose report Indian Foriegn Minister Natwar Singh had to  Toynbee, Arnold (1889-1975): Arnold Toynbee was resign. a famous British historian. His works include A Historian’s Approach to Religion, Between Nigar  Voltaire (1694-1778): French writer whose real

85 0 name was François Marie Arouet. Among his works two-volume American Dictionary of the English are Lettres Philosophiques, Dictionnaire Philoso- Language has been a major influence on US phique and Candide. dictionary practice.  Waldheim, Kurt (b. 1918): Fourth Secretary-General  Wellington, Duke of (1769-1852): Arthur of United Nations,1972-81.He later became President Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, was a British of Austria (1986-92). national hero and Prime Minister 1828-30.  Walesa, Lech (b. 1943): Polish  Whittakar, Tom: The handicapped US climber, who trade union leader and lost his right foot in a car accident 19 years ago, politician. President of became the first disabled person to scale Mount 1990-95. Earlier he had been Everest in his third attempt on May 27, 1998. the leader of the trade union  Wilde, Oscar (1854-1900): Oscar Wilde was a Solidarity which did much to Dublin-born British poet, writer and playwright. He overthrow communist was known for his wit, and his plays were among authoritarianism in Poland. the greatest hits of the Victorian era. His plays include 1983 Nobel Peace Prize Won the 1983 Nobel Peace Winner The Importance of Being Earnest, and Lady Prize. Windermere’s Fan. His books include The Picture of Dorian Gray, De Profundis, The Portrait of W.H.  Walsh, Courtney: Courtney and The Happy Prince (for children). Walsh, nicknamed the Silent Killer of the Cricket World, is a  Wilmut, Ian (b. 1947): The embryologist at the Jamaican cricketer. He has Roslin Institute in Scotland is the laboratory father surpassed India’s Kapil Dev of Dolly the sheep, history’s first cloned adult and become the highest wicket mammal. taker in test cricket. He has  Wilson, Woodrow (1856-1924): Thomas Woodrow taken 435 wickets. Retired from Wilson was the 28 President of USA (1913-21), the first class cricket in 2001. Silent Killer of the President who brought USA into World War I, and Cricket World the virtual founder of the League of Nations.  Warne, Shane: The 35 year old Australian spin wizard became the first player to  Wolfowitz, Paul: Former take 600 test wickets in August, 2005 against American Deputy Secretary, England. The controversial cricketer is considered for defense and neo- the best leg spinner the game has ever produced. conservative ideologue He became the first bowler (spinner) to take 700 behind the Iraqi invasion was appointed as President of wickets in Test Cricket. He retired from first class World Bank in place of cricket in January 2007. Wolfenson.  Washington, George (1732-99): First President of  Woods, Tiger: American golfer President of World Bank USA (1789-97). He comman-ded the victorious considered on of the greatest American forces against the British in the American golfers of all time. In 2005, at the age of 29, he won Revolution. his tenth major golf championship, placing him third  Watson, James (b. 1928): US geneticist. He helped in all time list. He is currently the world No.1 and is to discover the molecular structure of DNA, for the highest paid professional. which he shared the 1962 Nobel Prize for Physiology  Wordsworth, William (1770-1850): William or Medicine. Wordsworth was an English poet. He was the leader  Watt, James (1736-1819): British inventor. He of the romantic movement in literature. invented the steam engine in 1774. The electrical  Yanni: The Greek-born American composer and unit ‘watt’ is named after him. keyboard player, mesmerised his Indian audience at  Webster, Noah (1758-1843): US lexicographer. His the Taj Mahal with his scintillating performance.

85 1  Yeltsin, Boris (b. 1931): Russian President 1991- for opposing the 1989 military 99. First popularly elected leader of Russia. He was crack down on prodemocracy re-elected as President in 1996 and resigned, due to protests at Tianamen square, ill health, on New Year’s Eve 1999. passed away. He was in house  Yudhoyono, Susilo Bombang: arrest after 1989. Indonesian retired military gen-  Zola, Emile (1840-1902): eral and statesman, is the sixth Emile Zola was a French President of , and novelist. Among his books is French Novelist the first to be directly elected a 20-volume series called Les by voters. Rougon Raquin, a family saga. Another famous  Yunus, Mohammed: book is The Beast in Man.He is also remembered for Mohammed Yunus won the espousing the cause of Dreyfus, who was falsely President of 1998 Indira Gandhi Prize for Indonesia accused of espionage, in an open letter entitled Peace, Disarmament and J’accuse (‘I accuse’), in 1898. Development. He founded  Zoroaster (6th century BC): He was the celebrated of Dhaka in Persian prophet and religious leader who lived in Bangladesh. Won Nobel Prize the 6th century BC. He was the founder of for Peace 2006. Zoroastrianism whose followers are the Parsees who  Yuschenko, Victor: He was settled in India. He saw the world as a struggle elected as the President of between good end evil. His teachings are collected defeating Victor as Zend-Avesta. The place of worship of Yanukovitch, the former Founder of Zoroastrians is the Fire Temple. Grameen Bank President. He won the re-  Zulekya Rivera Mendoza (Puertorica): She is the election after months of 2006. The 19 year old was the fifth turbulence. Puerto Rican to win the title.  Zia, Begum Khaleda: The housewife-turned-politi- cian and Chairperson of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party who became the first woman Prime Minister of Bangladesh. She resigned from the Prime Ministership in March 1996. Was defeated in the 1996 elections by Wajed of Awami League. She was elected Prime Minister for the sec- ond time in October 2001.  Zidane, Zinedine (b. 1973): This French footballer was named European Footballer of the Year for an eventful 1998 when he helped France to win the World Cup. Zinedine Zidane also won the Reuters Sports Personality of the Year Award, beating Aus-tralian World Cup Football 2006 Golden ball award skier Hermann Maier and American sprinter Marion Jones into second and third places respectively.  Ziyang, Zhao: The Chinese leader who introduced market reform and capitalism to china, was onsted

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