HISTORICAL AND GEOGRAFICAL PLACES

LAKSHADWEEP
Lakshadweep is a group of islands in the Laccadive Sea, 200 to 440 kilometres (120 to 270 mi) off
the south western coast of India. The archipelago is a Union Territory and is governed by the Union
Government of India. They were also known as Laccadive Islands, although geographically this is
only the name of the central subgroup of the group. Lakshadweep comes from "Lakshadweepa",
which means "one hundred thousand islands" in Sanskrit as well as many Indian languages like
Hindi, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu and others.[3][4] The islands form the smallest Union Territory of
India: their total surface area is just 32 square kilometres (12 sq mi).2 The lagoon area covers about
4,200 square kilometres (1,600 sq mi), the territorial waters area 20,000 square kilometres
(7,700 sq mi) and the exclusive economic zone area 400,000 square kilometres (150,000 sq mi).
The region forms a single Indian district with ten sub divisions. Kavaratti serves as the capital of the
Union Territory and the region comes under the jurisdiction of Kerala High Court. The islands are
the northernmost of the Lakshadweep-Maldives-Chagos group of islands, which are the tops of a
vast undersea mountain range, the Chagos-Laccadive Ridge.

As the islands do not have any aboriginal

groups, different views have been
postulated by the scholars about the
history of habitation on these islands.
Archaeological evidence support the
existence of human settlement in the
region around 1500 BC. The islands have
long been known to sailors, as indicated by
an anonymous reference from the first
century AD to the region in Periplus of the
Erythraean Sea. The islands were
referenced also in the Buddhist Jataka
stories of the 6th century BC. The arrival of
Muslim missionaries around 7th century
led to the advent of Islam in the region.
During the medieval period the region was
ruled by the cholas and Kingdom of Cannanore. The Portuguese arrived around 1498 and were
upstaged by 1545. The region was then ruled by the Muslim house of Arakkal, followed by Tipu
Sultan. On his death in 1799 most of the region passed on to the British and with their departure
the Union Territory was formed in 1956.

Ten of the islands are inhabited. At the 2011 Indian census the population of the Union Territory
was 64,429. The majority of the indigenous population is Muslim and most of them belong to the
Shafi School of the Sunni Sect. The islanders are ethnically similar to the Malayali people of the
nearest Indian state of Kerala. Most of the population speaks Malayalam with Mahi (or Mahl) being
the most spoken language in Minicoy island. The islands are served by an airport on the Agatti
island. The main occupation of the people is fishing and coconut cultivation, with tuna being the
main item of export.
 The mariana trench
The Mariana Trench or Marianas Trench is the deepest part of the world's oceans. It is located in
the western Pacific Ocean, to the east of the Mariana Islands. The trench is about 2,550 kilometres
(1,580 mi) long but has an average width of only 69 kilometres (43 mi). It reaches a maximum-
known depth of 10.911 km (10,911 ± 40 m) or 6.831 mi (36,069 ± 131 ft) at the Challenger Deep, a
small slot-shaped valley in its floor, at its southern end, although some unrepeated measurements
place the deepest portion at 11.03 kilometres (6.85 mi).

At the bottom of the trench the water column above exerts a pressure of 1,086 bars (15,750 psi),
over 1000 times the standard atmospheric pressure at sea level. At this pressure the density of
water is increased by 4.96%, making 95 litres of water under the pressure of the Challenger Deep
contain the same mass as 100 litres at the surface. The temperature at the bottom is 1 to 4 °C.

The trench is not the part of the seafloor closest to

the center of the Earth. This is because the Earth is
not a perfect sphere: its radius is about 25 kilometres
(16 mi) less at the poles than at the equator. As a
result, parts of the Arctic Ocean seabed are at least
13 kilometres (8.1 mi) closer to the Earth's center
than the Challenger Deep seafloor.

Xenophyophores have been found in the trench by

Scripps Institution of Oceanography researchers at a
record depth of 10.6 km (6.6 mi) below the sea
surface. On 17 March 2013, researchers reported
data that suggested microbial life forms thrive in the
Mariana Trench.Other researchers reported related
studies that microbes thrive inside rocks up to 1900
feet below the sea floor under 8500 feet of ocean off
the coast of the northwestern United States.
According to one of the researchers,"You can find
microbes everywhere — they're extremely adaptable
to conditions, and survive wherever they are."

The deepest part of the trench is known as the Challenger Deep. It is named after the British Royal
Navy survey ship HMS Challenger, whose expedition of 1872–76 made the first recordings of its
depth.

The most recent (1 June 2009) sonar mapping of the Challenger Deep from the Kilo Moana, has
found a spot with a depth of 10,971 m (35,994 ft) (6.82 miles). The sonar system has an accuracy of
better than 0.2% of water depth (this is an error of about 22 m (72 ft) at this depth).[2][3]

The Challenger Deep has been reached four times by submersibles, namely the manned
bathyscaphe Trieste on 23 January 1960, the unmanned robotic deep-sea probes Kaiko (Japanese)
in 1995 and Nereus (U.S.) in 2009, and by James Cameron in the Deepsea Challenger on 26 March,
2012.[4] Cameron was able to film a 3D movie of the bottom of the trench.
 Mount everest

Mount Everest (Tibetan: ཇོ་མོ་གླང་མ, Wylie: jo mo glang ma; Chomolungma; Nepali: सगरमाथा,
Sagarmāthā[4][5] /ˈtʃoʊmoʊˌlɑːŋmə/[6] "Holy Mother"; Chinese: 珠穆朗玛峰; pinyin: Zhūmùlǎngmǎ
Fēng;[7]) is the Earth's highest mountain, with a peak at 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) above sea level and
the 5th tallest mountain measured from the centre of the Earth.[8] It is located in the Mahalangur
section of the Himalayas. The international border between China and Nepal runs across the
precise summit point. Its massif includes neighboring peaks Lhotse, 8,516 m (27,940 ft); Nuptse,
7,855 m (25,771 ft) and Changtse, 7,580 m (24,870 ft).

In 1856, the Great Trigonometric Survey of British

India established the first published height of Everest,
then known as Peak XV, at 29,002 ft (8,840 m). In
1865, Everest was given its official English name by
the Royal Geographical Society upon a
recommendation by Andrew Waugh, the British
Surveyor General of India. Waugh named the
mountain after his predecessor in the post, Sir George
Everest. Although Tibetans had called Everest
"Chomolungma" for centuries, Waugh was unaware of this because Tibet and Nepal were closed to
foreigners.

Mount Everest attracts many highly experienced mountaineers as well as capable climbers willing
to hire professional guides. While not posing substantial technical climbing challenges on the
standard route, Everest presents dangers such as altitude sickness, weather and wind.

Mount Everest is the largest and highest mountain in the world. Mount Everest is in the Himalayas.
It is about 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) high.[1]

Its peak is on the border of Nepal and Tibet. It is above the Death Zone where the air is too thin for a
human being, so usually extra oxygen is used when climbing. The Death Zone refers to the parts of
Mount Everest that are above 25,000 ft above sea level.

Two other mountains also can be named as "highest" mountains - the volcano Mauna Kea on Hawaii
island is the highest mountain measured from the base underwater to the summit (more than 11
kilometres), and the summit of Chimborazo is the fixed point on Earth which is the greatest
distance from the center - because of the modified ball shape of the planet Earth which is "thicker"
around the Equator than measured around the poles.
 Sun temple
Built in the thirteenth century, it was conceived as a gigantic solar chariot with twelve pairs of
exquisitely-ornamented wheels dragged by seven rearing horses. The temple comprised a sanctum
with a lofty (presumably over 68 m. high) sikhara, a jagamohana (30. m. square and 30. m. high)
and a detached nata-mandira (hall of dance) in the same axis, besides numerous subsidiary shrines.
The sanctum and the nata-mandira have lost their roof. The nata-mandira exhibits a more balanced
architectural design than that of other Orissan temples. The sanctum displays superb images of the
Sun-god in the three projections which are treated as miniature shrines. The sanctum and the
jagamohana together stand on a common platform studded with an intricate wealth of decorative
ornaments and sculptures, often of a highly erotic type.

The roof of the jagamohana, made of horizontal tiers

grouped in three stages with life-size female sculptures of
matchless charm and delicacy adorning each stage, the
whole surmounted by two stupendous crowning members,
produces a picturesque contrast of light and shade and is
unparalleled for its grandeur and structural propriety.
Majestic in conception, this temple is indeed one of the
sublimest monuments of India, notable as much for its
imposing dimensions and faultless proportions as for the
harmonious integration of architectural grandeur with

Mayadevi Temple :- To the west of the main temple are the

remains of temple no.2 popularly called the temple of
Mayadevi, believed to have been one of the wives of Lord Surya. But the presence of the sun images
as parsvadevata in-situ indicate its dedication to the sun god, built earlier than the main Sun
temple. The temple facing east, consists of a sanctum (deul) and a porch (Jagamohana) standing
over a raised platform, façade of which is relieved with ornamentation. The superstructures of the
sanctum and porch are missing. The interior of the porch is notable for their sculptural treatment
while the sanctum is devoid of any deity. Stylistically, the temple is assignable to circa late eleventh
century AD.

Vaishnava Temple:- The small brick temple facing east in south-west corner of the compound was
discovered in 1956 during the sand clearance. Also called temple no.3 is pancharatha on plan. It
consists of a deul and a Jagamohana but with the superstructure is missing and devoid of any
exterior decoration. Images of Balarama and two parsvadevatas of Varaha and Trivikrama were
unearthed (now displayed in Archaeological Museum, Konark) proving its Vaishnava affiliation. The
temple is datable to circa eleventh century A.D.plastic elegance.
 Basilica

canhedral of our lady of pillar

The Basilica–Cathedral of Our Lady of the Pillar (Spanish: Catedral-Basílica de Nuestra Señora del
Pilar) is a Roman Catholic church in the city of Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain. The Basilica venerates
Blessed Virgin Mary, under her title Our Lady of the Pillar[1] praised as Mother of the Hispanic
Peoples by Pope John Paul II. It is reputed to be the first church dedicated to Mary in history.

Local traditions take the history of this basilica to the dawn of Christianity in Spain attributing to an
apparition to Saint James the Great, the apostle who is believed by tradition to have brought
Christianity to the country. This is the only reported apparition of Mary to have occurred before her
supposed Assumption.

Many of the kings of Spain,

many other foreign rulers
and saints have paid their
devotion before this statue
of Mary. Saint John of the
Cross, Saint Teresa of Avila,
Saint Ignatius of Loyola, and
Blessed William Joseph
Chaminade are among the
most outstanding ones.[5]
The Basilica of Our Lady of
the Pillar is one of two
minor basilicas in the city of
Zaragoza, and is co-
cathedral of the city
alongside the nearby La Seo
Cathedral. The architecture
is of Baroque style, and the present building was predominantly built between 1681 and 1872.

According to ancient local tradition, soon after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, Saint James
was preaching the Gospel in Spain, but was disheartened because of the failure of his mission.
Tradition holds that on 2 January 40 AD, while he was deep in prayer by the banks of the Ebro, the
Mother of God appeared to him and gave him a small wooden statue of herself and a column of
jasper and instructed him to build a church in her honor:]