On Cultural Rights: The Equality of Nations and the Minority Legal Tradition

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The Astrolabe

An ancient instrument for solving problems of location and distance, as well as time

Astrolábon órganon is the word used in Ptolemaeus Syntaxis 5.1 to describe a form of armillary sphere consisting of both fixed and rotating rings for determining the ecliptic co-ordinates of stars. Also called astrolabe were two-dimensional representations of the celestial sphere: over fixed disks with a representation of the horizon of the earth (in each case for a specific geographic latitude) and its parallels up to the zenith lies a rotating representation of the heavens (called ‘spider’ or ‘net’) with zodiac and indicators for some of the brightest stars. On the back is an indicator (‘alidade’) with visor plates for calculating the height of the stars. The astrolabe allows its user to determine the hours of day and night, the positions of stars, and the height and depth of objects on earth (mountains, buildings, wells). The oldest extant descriptions of the flat, planispheric astrolabe come from Iohannes Philoponus, 6th century AD, and (in Syrian) from Severus Sebokht, c. 660 AD. Indirect references may date back as early as Theon (4th cent.). Between the 8th and the 9th centuries the Arabs appropriated the knowledge of the astrolabe. At the end of the 10th century and again in the 12th century, they passed it on to Western Europe, where astrolabes were constructed up until the 17th cent. Today, one Byzantine astrolabe (from 1062) is extant, as are some 750 Arabic-Islamic astrolabes and approximately the same number of European astrolabes.

This information is abstracted from Brill's New Pauly, the English edition of the authoritative Der Neue Pauly, Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World. The encyclopaedic coverage and high academic standard of the work, the interdisciplinary and contemporary approach and clear and accessible presentation have made the New Pauly the unrivalled modern reference work for the ancient world. For more information see www.brillsnewpauly.com or visit our website catalog: www.brill.nl/bnp
Brill’s New Pauly and the complete original Der Neue Pauly, the recognized standard reference works for students and scholars of the ancient world are also available online. This dual-language edition offers basic and advanced search facilities and is fully browsable. New English translations are added as they become available. See www.paulyonline.brill.nl for more information and a demo version.

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Publications & Services> Books> Book Series> On Cultural Rights: The Equality of Nations and the Minority Legal Tradition

On Cultural Rights: The Equality of Nations and the Minority Legal Tradition

William Kurt Barth

Books

Available
Publication year: 2008


ISBN-13 (i)The ISBN (International Standard Book Number) has been changed from 10 to 13 digits on 1 January 2007:	978 90 04 16842 8
ISBN-10:	90 04 16842 7

Cover:	Hardback
Number of pages:	xiv, 258 pp.

List price:	€ 105.00 / US$ 148.00

Table of contents

Section I. The Minority Legal Tradition: 1. On Cultural Rights: Introduction, Research Methodology, and Literature Review; Section II. History of the Minority Regime: 2. History of the Minority Question; 3. Minority Protection in the Era of Human Rights; Section III – Minority Group Case Studies: 4. The Minority Regime and the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada; 5. Minority Rights and the Roma of Europe; Section IV. Conclusions: 6. Conclusion; Bibliography; Appendix; Charts; Examples of Cultural Protection; Aboriginal-Canadian Groups;Canadian Residential Schools;Illustration of Bill C-31; Europe’s Roma Population; Romani Lexical Comparisons; Roma Poverty Rates; Roma Household Characteristics;
Table of Abbreviations.

Readership

For researchers, jurists, students, and readers as well as governments, non-profit organisations, and NGO’s interested in the poltical theory of multiculturalism or minority protection as a subject within international law.

About the author(s)

William K. Barth, DPhil (2007) University of Oxford, is Associate Fellow at the University's Rothermere American Institute.

This work addresses the question: how has the evolution of a legal regime within the United Nations and regional organisations influenced state behaviour regarding recognition of minority groups? The author assesses the implications of this regime for political theorists’ account of multiculturalism. This research bridges a gap between normative questions in political theory on multiculturalism and the international law on minorities. It does so by means of case studies of legal challenges involving two groups, namely, the Aboriginal peoples of Canada, and the Roma peoples in Europe. The author concludes by discussing the normative implications of the minority regime for helping to resolve conflicts that arise out of state treatment of minority groups.

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