History.

Native Americans.

The first known people to live in the area were ancient and Plains Woodland peoples. Utes, Arapaho, and Cheyenne were in the area by the 1800s. They were all hunter-gatherers who established seasonal camps to acquire food. Nearby rock shelter, Franktown Cave, shows evidence of habitation beginning in the early Archaic period about 6,400 BC and continuing through each of the remaining cultural periods to 1725 AD.

Pine Grove.

Stage roads were established on historic Cherokee and Trapper's Trails through present-day Denver. In 1864, Alfred Butters established the Pine Grove Way Station in a small one-room building (south of the current Parker United Methodist Church) to sell provisions, handle mail and messages, and provide respite for travelers. The area was then within the Territory of Colorado (1861–1876). Butters became a state senator and representative. His house is on the National Register of Historic Places listings in downtown Denver. George Long and his wife purchased the building, moved it to its present location on Main Street, and expanded it to include ten rooms, a ball room and outbuildings. Built at the junction of stage routes, it was called Twenty Mile House for its distance to Denver. The stage station offered provisions, meals, and lodging, as well as protection for early settlers against attacks by Native Americans.  Initially, there were peaceful interactions with Native Americans. Chiefs Washington and Colorow led their tribes along Sulphur Gulch, passing and sometimes visiting cabins of early settlers, like John and Elizabeth Tallman. During one visit, Chief Washington offered up to 20 ponies in trade for their red-headed son. They occasionally heard the sounds of celebration and mourning from nearby encampments. Tension between settlers and Native Americans began to build in the 1860s due to broken treaties, aggression, and cultural misunderstanding. People became especially fearful following the Hungate massacre of 1864 in present-day Elbert County, which may have been started by Nathan Hungate shooting a Native American who stole his horse. It may have been a precipitating factor in the Sand Creek massacre led by General John Chivington later that year. John Tallman was one of the first to arrive at the scene of the Hungate Massacre and he served under Chivington during the Sand Creek massacre. The citizens of Parker became quite concerned and closed the school for a brief time after the massacres. In 1870, Jonathan Tallman (John's brother) was killed by Native Americans while out riding his mule. In 1869, Twenty Mile House was owned by Nelson and Susan Doud. In 1870, the Douds purchased the Seventeen Mile House in what is now Centennial and sold the Twenty Mile House to James S. Parker, an American Civil War veteran from Illinois who came to Colorado in 1865. He added a blacksmith shop and mercantile store. In December 1870, or 1873, a post office was established for the Pine Grove settlement; James Parker was the postmaster. He built a schoolhouse and provided lodging and the first year's salary for the teacher. George Parker, James' brother, homesteaded and built a saloon on land east of Parker Road. George owned most of the land that ultimately became the town of Parker. He encouraged settlers and business development by "parceling out his spread" to newcomers.

Parker.

The name of the settlement was changed to Parker in 1882. It was first called Parkers' for the two brother and largest landowners, but the apostrophe was later dropped. That year, the Denver and New Orleans Railroad completed the initial railroad route that provided service between Denver, Parker, and Colorado Springs. To ensure that the railroad came through the center of town, rather than along Cherry Creek, James Parker sold his right-of-way for $1 and his brother George sold his right-of-way to bring the railroad into the center of town to Parker station. James donated three acres for Parker Cemetery around 1884, at which time it held the graves of his two sons. It holds the graves of early settlers, the earliest known death was in 1870. Parker (died 1910) and his wife Mattie (died 1887) are also buried there. In the mid-1880s, gold was found at Newlin Gulch (site of the current Rueter–Hess Reservoir.) More businesses were added, including a dry goods store, two more general mercantile stores, another blacksmith shop, a livery stable, barber shop, creamery, stockyard, hotel, church, and a brickworks. Many of these were added by 1900. Victorian architectural style houses were built along Pikes Peak Drive in the 1910s. The Parker station of the Colorado and Southern Railway, which was renamed as it expanded its route, closed in 1931. At least through the 1930s, there were dances the first Saturday of each month at Pikes Peak Grange, located north of Franktown. The dances were attended by teenagers from Parker and Elizabeth.  The Parker City Land Company began development of a "modern western town" in the 1960s, but they did not complete the housing projects due to financial short-falls and pressure from their Mafia connections. The developer skipped town in 1971. About 1980 or 1981, the development was completed by another builder. Dean Salibury advocated for Parker's incorporation to protect its landowners. The town was incorporated in 1981, and Salisbury was Parker's first mayor. Parker grew exponentially in the mid-1990s and mid-2000s, during the growth of Denver's southern suburbs. In 1981 there were 285 people in Parker and by 2014 48,000 people resided in the town.

Historic places.

The Twenty Mile post office, originally the Pine Grove post office building, was restored by the Parker Area Historical Society. It is located on Mainstreet, just west of Parker Road. Ruth Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The town of Parker was given a grant by the History Colorado State Historical Fund a restoration project for the Parker Consolidated School at the Mainstreet Center. The Hood House, one of two houses that did not sustain any damage during the flood of Tallman Gulch in 1912, is located in Preservation Park. Some of the other historic sites include Tallman–Newlin Cabin and Parker Cemetery.

Geography.

Parker is located in northeastern Douglas County. Its northernmost border follows the Arapahoe County line, and the city of Aurora touches the town's northeast border. The center of Parker is southeast of downtown Denver. Castle Rock, the Douglas County seat, is to the southwest. Unincorporated communities that border Parker are Dove Valley to the northwest, Stonegate to the west, and The Pinery to the south.  According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of, of which, or 0.08%, is water. Cherry Creek flows through Parker on its way north toward Denver.

Climate.

This climate type is usually found in the outskirts of true deserts in low-latitude, semiarid regions. It has a cooler, wetter winter resulting from the higher latitude and mid-latitude frontal cyclone activity. Annual precipitation totals are greater than in tropical and subtropical desert climates. Yearly variations in amount are not as extreme as in the true deserts but are nevertheless large. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is "BSk". (Tropical and Subtropical Steppe Climate).

Demographics.

As of the census of 2000, there were 23,558 people, 7,929 households, and 6,525 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,615.2 people per square mile (623.4/km2). There were 8,352 housing units at an average density of 572.6 per square mile (221.0/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 92.60% White, 1.71% Asian, 1.01% Black, 0.45% Native American, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.88% from other races, and 2.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.80% of the population.  There were 7,929 households out of which 52.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 71.8% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.7% were non-families. 13.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.27.  In the town, the population was spread out with 34.0% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 43.4% from 25 to 44, 15.0% from 45 to 64, and 2.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males.  The median income for a household in the town was $74,116, and the median income for a family was $77,384 (these figures had risen to $80,679 and $89,154, respectively, as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $52,070 versus $35,700 for females. The per capita income for the town was $27,479. About 1.7% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.2% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education.

Parker is served by Douglas County School District RE-1. Douglas County School District has among the highest level of students in Colorado. Students have scored, on average, 12 to 19 percent above the state average. The district was rated 9th in the state in 2009. The Pine Lane Elementary School had the largest student enrollment in Parker until Mammoth Heights Elementary opened in January 2007 and took the overload.  Two of the three principal high schools in the area, Ponderosa and Chaparral High School, have a cross-town rivalry and compete annually for The Pride of Parker trophy. Legend High School opened in 2008, as Douglas County's ninth high school.  Private schools in Parker include:  For other Parker and Douglas County school information:  Parker Secondary Schools  Parker also has four public charter schools:  College classes:  Post-Secondary Education:

Recreation.

The Town maintains 10 trails with over 27 miles of concrete paved, multi-use trails, over 6 miles of natural surface equestrian trails and a 1.8-mile natural surface, multi-use loop trail. The Cherry Creek Trail runs along Cherry Creek, north and south through Parker. Bicycling, hiking, nature walks, and cross-country skiing are all popular uses.  The Rueter–Hess Reservoir is located west of town and is not yet open for recreational use. Nevertheless, planned activities there include fishing, hiking, and non-motorized boating. No natural streams flow into the reservoir, instead, water rights owned by the Parker Water and Sanitation District provide water delivered via Cherry Creek and a local canals. If filled to capacity, the surface size would be 1,140 acres.  The Parker Recreation Center is located alongside Lincoln Avenue and has several amenities such as gyms, swimming pools, fitness and cycling studios, sports and fitness classes, and more.  The Parker Field House offers 100000 square feet of space including sports turf, batting cages, gymnasiums, inline rink with Sport Court flooring, and climbing.

Attractions.

The town currently maintains about 250 acres of developed parkland and more than 900 acres of open space.  Parker is home to the Parker Arts, Culture, & Events Center (PACE). It is a venue that hosts art exhibits, art classes, theater productions, and concerts. It is the official home of the Parker Symphony Orchestra, a community orchestra established in 1994, that offers a full season of orchestra concerts annually. The Parker Symphony was formerly the South Suburban Community Orchestra.  Parker is also home to Colorado School of Dance, which partners with Parker Arts, Culture, & Events Center (PACE) each December to produce the "Nutcracker of Parker." The annual ballet has been a Parker tradition since 2003.

Local media.

Parker currently has one local magazine and one local paper. "Search Parker Magazine" is the local magazine and the "Parker Chronicle" is the local paper. Parker also receives the county-wide channel, Douglas County 8, which broadcasts school sports events and assorted programs run by residents.

Notable people.

Notable individuals who were born in or have lived in Parker include:

Parker is a home rule municipality in Douglas County, Colorado, United States. As a self-declared "town" under the Home Rule statutes, Parker is the second most populous town in the county; Castle Rock is the most populous (the community of Highlands Ranch, with a population of over 96,000, is an unincorporated CDP). In recent years, Parker has become a commuter town at the southeasternmost corner of the Denver metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census the town population was 45,297; the estimated population in 2019 was 57,706. Parker is now the 19th most populous municipality in the state of Colorado.

Parker je město v okrese Douglas, státu Colorado ve Spojených státech amerických. Nachází se necelých 40 kilometrů jihovýchodně od centra města Denver. K roku 2010 zde žilo 45 297 obyvatel, čímž jde o druhé nejlidnatější město okresu (hned po Castle Rock).


Biography.

Yitzhak (Itzik) Shmuli was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, to Nechama and Chaim Shmuli, restaurant owners. His family is of Iraqi Jewish descent. At the age of 3, his family moved to Ramat Gan. Shmuli was conscripted to the Israel Defense Forces in 1998, and served as a tank commander in an operational company of the 7th Armored Brigade's 82nd Battalion.  In 2001, Shmuli established a restaurant and catering company with his father in Tel Aviv, where he worked for two years. At the age of 23, he moved to Argentina, and helped to establish a Buenos Aires orphanage whilst residing there. After returning to Israel, he attended Oranim Academic College, and graduated with a B.Ed. in Special Education and Social-Community Action. During his first year at Oranim, he was elected head of the Student Union. In that position, he led a campaign against the Shochat Committee, which sought to privatize higher education and raise tuition fees.  In the beginning of 2009, Shmuli was elected deputy chairman of the National Union of Israeli Students. In October 2010, he was elected chairman of the Student Union. In 2010, he began his studies towards a master's degree in public policy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Social activism.

Shmuli was one of the leaders of the 2011 Israeli social justice protests. In July 2015, following a stabbing incident at Jerusalem's gay pride parade, Shmuli wrote in an article to Yedioth Ahronoth that "when the knife is raised around the neck of an entire LGBT community, my community, it will not stop there"; in this article, he became the first Knesset Member who came out of the closet during his term.

Political career.

In October 2012, Shmuli announced his intention to run in the Labor Party's primaries for the 19th Knesset. Shmuli was placed in the party's 11th slot for the Knesset list. In the 19th Knesset, Shmuli served as a member of the Economic Affairs Committee.  In elections for the 20th Knesset, Shmuli was placed fifth on the list of the Zionist Union, after reaching third place in the Labor primaries, and was thus elected to the 20th Knesset.  On 17 May 2020, Shmuli joined the Israeli Cabinet after being sworn in as Minister of Labor, Social Affairs and Social Services, also known as Minister of Welfare.

Awards and recognition.

Shmuli was named "The Most Social Knesset Member in the Knesset" four times in a row. He won "The Outstanding Parliamentarian Award" from the Israel Democracy Institute.

Itzik Shmuli (; born 8 February 1980) is an Israeli politician who currently serves as a member of the Knesset for the Israeli Labor Party and as Minister of Welfare. He is a former leader of the National Union of Israeli Students.

Jicchak Šmuli, neformálně Icik Šmuli ( יצחק שמולי nebo איציק שמולי, narozen 8. února 1980 Tel Aviv), je izraelský aktivista, politik a poslanec Knesetu za Izraelskou stranu práce.


Plot.

Glee club director Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith) is convinced by guidance counselor Emma Pillsbury (Jayma Mays) to create a "diva-off" assignment to prepare New Directions for Regionals. Blaine Anderson (Darren Criss), Kitty Wilde (Becca Tobin), Tina Cohen-Chang (Jenna Ushkowitz), Brittany Pierce (Heather Morris), Wade "Unique" Adams (Alex Newell) and Marley Rose (Melissa Benoist), then perform "Diva" in preparation for the assignment. Meanwhile, in New York City, Kurt Hummel (Chris Colfer) is becoming increasingly irritated by Rachel Berry's (Lea Michele) arrogance after winning the Winter Showcase and challenges her to a "diva-off". They both perform "Bring Him Home", and Kurt is declared the winner, which shakes Rachel's confidence in herself until Kurt reassures her of her talent and encourages her to audition for an upcoming production of "Funny Girl".  In Lima, following Blaine's performance of "Don't Stop Me Now", Finn reveals that Santana Lopez (Naya Rivera) has agreed to perform for New Directions with her fellow cheerleaders from the University of Louisville and Santana leads a rendition of "Nutbush City Limits". She reveals that she has discovered about Brittany's relationship with Sam Evans (Chord Overstreet) through Tina, and attempts to undermine their relationship. They duel with "Make No Mistake (She's Mine)", while Brittany secretly watches.  Meanwhile, Tina struggles with her romantic feelings for Blaine, and, after failing to declare herself to him, she expresses her feelings through a performance of "Hung Up", which convinces Finn and Emma to declare her winner of the diva-off, and Blaine to apologize for taking her for granted by asking her to be his date to Will Schuester and Emma's upcoming wedding. Throughout this, Finn, still reeling from having discovered that Rachel has moved in with her boyfriend Brody Weston (Dean Geyer), helps Emma prepare for the wedding, and, when she has a breakdown over a series of trivial matters, Finn attempts to calm her down by kissing her, but quickly realizes it was a mistake and leaves a shocked Emma behind.  Cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) reveals that she knows Santana has dropped out of college and offers her a job as interim coach for the Cheerios, but, after a talk with Brittany, encouraging her to follow her dreams, Santana sings "Girl on Fire" to empower herself before relocating to NYC and moving in with Rachel and Kurt, much to their surprise.

Production.

The episode was written by "Glee" co-creator Brad Falchuk and directed by Paris Barclay. The episode was being shot as late as January 15, 2013, overlapping with the following episode, which was being directed by Falchuk.  Recurring characters in this episode include school guidance counsellor Emma Pillsbury (Jayma Mays), glee club members Wade "Unique" Adams (Alex Newell), Marley Rose (Melissa Benoist), Jake Puckerman (Jacob Artist), Kitty Wilde (Becca Tobin) and Ryder Lynn (Blake Jenner), and NYADA junior Brody Weston (Dean Geyer) and senior Adam Crawford (Oliver Kieran Jones).  Seven songs from the episode are being released as singles. These include "Bring Him Home" from "Les Misérables" performed by Colfer and Michele, which is being released in two solo versions, one by Michele and one by Colfer, Beyoncé's "Diva" performed by Newell, Morris, Jenna Ushkowitz, Darren Criss and Benoist, the Barbra Streisand and Kim Carnes duet "Make No Mistake (She's Mine)" performed by Rivera and Overstreet, Alicia Keys' "Girl on Fire" and Ike & Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits", both sung by Rivera, Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now" performed by Criss, and Madonna's "Hung Up" performed by Ushkowitz.

Reception.

Ratings.

The episode, including DVR numbers, was watched by 8.71 million American viewers.

Critical response.

Erin Strecker of "Entertainment Weekly" gave a mixed review to the episode, especially with the end scene with Finn and Emma, saying "Did anyone see that coming? We’ll have to wait until next week for the fall out, because as soon as he kissed her, he freaked out and immediately left her office. I’m no psychic, but I don’t think this is going to have fans cheering quite as much as Nick and Jess’ big kiss on "New Girl.""He then talked positively about the performance of "Bring Him Home" and "Diva", calling the first song of the two ""Defying Gravity Part 2" for out NYADA kids." The second song was "a ton of fun. Loved the idea of turning an auditorium into a runway, did not love Blaine’s feathered top. Unique taking lead vocals on this was a great choice."  L'Oreal Thompson of "The Baltimore Sun" commented on Tina's role in the episode, saying "I really do feel bad for her. It's no fun feeling unappreciated and being on the spurned side of unrequited love." Thompson then gave a mixed review to Santana's end song, saying "I know it's a good message and all, but I just feel like it should be in the Gabby Douglas Lifetime movie or something."  Paris Barclay was nominated at the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for this episode.

"Diva" is the thirteenth episode of the fourth season of the American musical television series "Glee", and the seventy-ninth episode overall. Written by co-creator Brad Falchuk and directed by Paris Barclay, it aired on Fox in the United States on February 7, 2013. Paris Barclay was nominated at the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series for this episode.

Diva je třináctá epizoda čtvrté série amerického hudebního televizního seriálu "Glee" a v celkovém pořadí sedmdesátá devátá epizoda tohoto seriálu. Scénář napsal Brad Falchuk, režíroval ji Paris Barclay a poprvé se vysílala ve Spojených státech dne 7. února 2013 na televizním kanálu Fox.


History.

The first historical mention of Chortkiv dates to 1522, when Polish King Sigismund I the Old granted an ownership order for Jerzy Czortkowski over the town and allowed him to name it after himself—"Czortków". The small community, numbering at 50 families, were almost all massacred during the Chmielnicki Uprisings of 1648–9. Jewish leadership opposed the resettlement of Jews in Chortkiv until 1705. During that time, the town was also granted Magdeburg rights. However, Chortkiv would later decline in the second half of the 17th century during Ottoman Expansion of central Europe. The town was taken over by Ottoman Empire, whose rule lasted 27 years. It was part of the short-lived Turkish Podolia Eyalet, which lasted from 1672 to 1699. During this period, it was nahiya centre in Yazlofça sanjak as "Çortkuv" (Spelled as "Chortkoov" in Turkish). After First Partition of Poland Chortkiv came under Austro-Hungarian rule which lasted from 1772 to 1918, during the time of which it was the center of the Chortkiv Bezirk except brief Russian rule between 1809 and 1815 as part of Tarnopol Governorate. On June 8, 1919 the Ukrainian Galician Army broke for couple months through the Polish front at Chortkiv and began the Chortkiv offensive. Soon afterwards, the town was seized by the Poles. It was ceded to sovereign Poland in the Peace Treaty of Riga between Poland, Soviet Russia (acting also on behalf of Soviet Belarus) and Soviet Ukraine, and remained part of the Tarnopol Voivodeship of the Second Polish Republic until the Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939.  In 1931, the town had 19,000 inhabitants, 22.8 percent of whom were Ukrainians (Greek Catholics), 46.4 percent of whom were Poles (Roman Catholics), and 30 percent of whom were Jews. Chortkiv was an important garrison of the Polish Border Defence Corps Brigade "Podole", whose commandant from 1935 to 1938 was General Stefan Rowecki. Furthermore, it was home to the 36th Reserve Infantry Division.  The town was annexed to the Soviet Union from September 17, 1939 until June 1941. Its Polish inhabitants, particularly students of the local high school, organized a failed uprising in January 1940, which would serve as the first Polish uprising of World War II. From 1941-1944 it was annexed to Nazi Germany. After the defeat of the Nazis by the Red Army in 1944, the town returned to Soviet control until in 1991 it became part of independent Ukraine. Polish residents of the town were transferred to the Recovered Territories in the immediate postwar period (see Polish population transfers (1944–1946)).  Due to heavy destruction of Ternopil, in 1944 Chortkiv served as a regional seat.  In January 1989 the population was 26 681 people.  In January 2013 the population was 29 640 people.

References.

8. Czortków KehilaLinks Site - JewishGen http://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/Suchostaw/sl_czortkow.htm

Chortkiv (; ; "Chortkov") is a city in Ternopil Oblast (province) in western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Chortkiv Raion (district), housing the district's local administration buildings.

Čortkiv (, – "Čortkov", ) je město oblastního významu v Ternopilské oblasti na Ukrajině. Leží na řece Seretu jižně od oblastního města Ternopilu. V roce 2014 zde žilo 29 662 obyvatel.


History.

It is an old town, first mentioned in 1253 AD as a place where many merchants rested and paid taxes while on their way to Dubrovnik. "Voivode" Stefan Vasoje, the son of King Stefan Konstantin (r. 1321-1322), received Sjenica as an appanage by Emperor Stefan Dušan (r. 1331–1355). During the reign of the Ottoman Empire, Sjenica was used as a fortified site. On a nearby hill the Ottomans built a fortress, which was later demolished. Next to the fortress was a merchants' quarter and few wooden residential homes. In the 19th century, Sjenica was considered a high priority because of its political, military and strategic significance, thus many military campaigns were led during the First Serbian Uprising. Soon after, a new turmoil came to the region with a resistance movement against Sultan Mahmud II's reforms. During the Ottoman-Albanian hostilities of 1901 the town was partly burnt by Albanian bands. In the 1908-12 Ottoman parliament, the elected representative of Sjenica was Hasan Muhidin Bey (Hasan Muhedini), a local prominent Albanian.  In 1917 when the area was under Austrian control a conference was held, in which the representatives drafted and signed a resolution for the union of the area with Bosnia or the establishment of an autonomous region.  From 1929 to 1941, Sjenica was part of the Zeta Banovina of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.  During World War II the SS Polizei-Selbstschutz-Regiment Sandschak under Karl von Krempler was stationed here consisted of local Muslim population, during a period when many Serbs lost their lives. In 1943 Sjenica was the battleground of intense fighting between Partisans and the German army.

Settlements.

Aside from the town of Sjenica, the municipality includes the following settlements:

Demographics.

According to the last official census of 2011, the Municipality of Sjenica has a population of 26,392 inhabitants. The population density on the territory of the municipality is 24.9 inhabitants per square kilometer.

Ethnic groups.

In 1991, the population of the municipality of Sjenica was 76.1% Muslims by nationality, 22.6% Serbs and Montenegrins, and 1.3% others. In the 1991 census, most of those who declared themselves as Muslims by nationality, some declared themselves as Bosniaks in the next census of 2002, while others still declared themselves as a Muslims by nationality.  Most of the population in Sjenica are Bosniaks or Muslims by the ethnicity (78.55%), followed by Serbs (19.95%) and Romani (0.35%). Ethnic composition of the municipality (2011 census):

Economy.

The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2018):

Geography and climate.

Sjenica is located at an altitude of 1,026 meters above sea level, making it one of the highest towns in Serbia and the Balkans. Temperatures fall below freezing on average 134 days per year, with the first freeze in late September and the last in early May. According to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification, it has a humid continental climate (Dfb) with freezing and not so humid winters, and with warm and humid summers, but with cold nights.

Sjenica (; ), is a town and municipality located in the Zlatibor District of southwestern Serbia. The population of the town, according to 2011 census, is 14,060 inhabitants, while the municipality has 26,392.

Sjenica (v srbské cyrilici Сјеница) je město v centrálním Srbsku poblíž hranice s Černou Horou. V roce 2002 mělo 14 060 obyvatel. Administrativně je součástí Zlatiborského okruhu a historicky regionu, známého jako Sandžak. Nachází se v hornaté oblasti; průměrná nadmořská výška se pohybuje okolo 1000 m.


Definition.

Solo diving is defined as a dive planned to be conducted entirely or partly without a buddy. It may also apply to dives that begin with a buddy but continue after separation, and to dives where other divers are nearby but are neither responsible for the safety of the solo diver, nor competent to deal with the consequences of a foreseeable contingency. The term has also been used to define dives where buddies are insufficiently attentive or close enough to function effectively as a buddy pair, a situation more commonly referred to as "same ocean buddy diving".

History.

The history of solo diving stands in stark contrast to the relatively new concept of buddy diving that was developed for recreational diving in the early to mid-20th century. Artifacts dating back some 4,500 years provide evidence of solo diving for food and commerce by the ancient people of Mesopotamia. There are written accounts from 2nd century BC that describe commercial sponge fishing, including notes about sponge divers, their lifestyle and fear of predatory sharks. In 350 BC, Aristotle wrote about "an 'elephant nose-like tube' that allowed sponge fishermen to breathe during diving", and in 8th–6th century BC, there are references to solo diving in the writings of Homer.  Freedivers traditionally dove alone or with an attendant on the surface to assist with the harvest; many of the early diving bells were only large enough for a single occupant. When surface supplied diving was first developed, it was common to have only one diver unless the work required more. Those early traditions continue and customarily include a standby diver, and a working diver who is in constant communication with the surface control crew. The sport of scuba diving is rooted in a multitude of small enthusiastic snorkeling and spearfishing clubs that date back to the decades just before and after World War II. In the late 1940s, after the invention of the Aqua-lung by Cousteau and Gagnan, the first retail underwater breathing apparatus for sport was commercially marketed. As the sport expanded through the 1950s, several sporting organisations – notably the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) – began scuba training programmes for swimming enthusiasts, thus began the codification of what was believed to be proper practices for the expanding amateur sport of scuba diving. The buddy system was thought to be a useful corollary to the "never swim alone" edicts of the YMCA swimming and lifesaving programmes. Cousteau independently implemented a buddy system after a number of harrowing diving incidents that date back to the earliest days of exploratory diving. The buddy system's useful aspects have long been established, including the cross-checking of equipment before dives, the facilitating of assistance for possible entanglement problems or equipment failures, and enhancement of the social nature of diving. The YMCA was a substantial influence in the development of diver certification during the first 50 years of the sport. As various scuba programmes were adopted by emerging scuba certification agencies, such as the National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI), Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI), and British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC), the practise of buddy diving inspired one of the two main mantras of recreational scuba: "never hold your breath" and "never dive alone".  By the early to mid-1990s, solo divers became more visible and increasingly open about their alternative dive safety philosophy, despite the recreational industry's established adherence to the buddy system. It wasn't until 2001 that Scuba Diving International (SDI) initiated formal certification training specifically for solo diving. Several other agencies eventually followed suit with certificates titled Self-reliant Diver and variations of that theme; all with the intention of improving diver competence without necessarily going solo, and recognising that the buddy system does not always comply with the ideal. At the 2012 "Rebreather Forum 3", a significant minority of attendees were of the opinion that, in some circumstances, it would be acceptable to dive solo on rebreathers.

Reasons for solo scuba diving.

The intention of using the buddy system when scuba diving is to improve the chances of avoiding or surviving accidents in or underwater. Diving together in close groups of two or sometimes three divers, and co-operating with each other to help or perform a rescue in an emergency situation may save a life; however, it is most effective when each buddy is competent in all the relevant skills and remain consistently and sufficiently aware in order to respond in time.  Some divers, such as instructors, are effectively acting as self-sufficient divers because they dive with students who may not yet be trained in or capable of rescue. Others, such as underwater photographers and videographers, dive solo as it allows them to focus more on capturing selected images rather than relying on buddies to remain close at hand. Photographers or videographers who dive with buddies are often effectively "same ocean" buddies, implying they may be far enough apart physically, or sufficiently focused on their camera-related tasks, to be ineffective as a designated dive buddy. This practice has led to many highly experienced underwater photographers diving solo since they don't commit to provide timely support to a buddy nor expect such support from a buddy. Underwater hunters often elect to dive solo in order to focus on their prey.  Solo diving was considered technical diving by most recreational diver certification agencies and discouraged as more dangerous than buddy diving, but many experienced divers and some certification agencies consider it an acceptable practice for suitably trained, equipped, and competent recreational divers; some others consider it occasionally inevitable. In place of relying on the buddy diving safety system, solo divers try to be self-sufficient and are willing to take responsibility for their own safety while diving. The first training agency to offer a Solo Diving certification was SDI in 1999. In 2011, the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) started offering a solo specialty called "Self-Reliant Diver", which in many respects (entry requirements, for example) is very similar to the course offered by SDI.  In professional diving, solo diving is normal procedure when one diver is sufficient to perform the required task, particularly on surface supplied equipment, to the extent that it is not even noted as an exception. However, a standby diver is required at the surface or at the bell, and the working diver must be in communication with the supervisor at the surface. Procedures for the dive are based on assessed risk.  In recreational diving, solo diving is an option chosen by the diver, for any combination of several reasons.

Disadvantages of the buddy system.

Scuba diving is done in a hostile environment for which humans are not adapted, breathing from a portable and limited capacity life support system. Under these conditions fatality is always a possible outcome, as even simple equipment or procedural problems can be mishandled. In dealing with this reality a number of major concerns about potentially inherent flaws or negative impacts that can exist within the buddy system have been identified. Few, if any, of these problems are defects in the concept of the buddy system, they are problems with the application of the system.  The amount of discipline, effort and attention needed from both divers in a buddy pair, and the even greater input required in a three diver team, is unattractive to a confident diver who has other things to do during a straightforward, low risk, recreational dive, and the system is undermined when any one of the divers fails to put in the effort, putting the burden on the remaining diver who takes the responsibilities more seriously. Familiarity with the environment, and the very low incidence of life-threatening accidents is likely to lead to a confidence that there will not be a problem on any given dive, so the divers may pay less attention to good buddy practices, and this may become habitual. This may be exacerbated by the divers being strangers thrown together by chance and the whims of the divemaster, who have no real interest in each other, and whose reasons to dive may be incompatible. Pairing an explorer with a macro photographer will annoy at least one, probably both, if they comply with recommended buddy diving practices. Many nominally buddy dives effectively become solo dives soon after entering the water, with the buddies occasionally checking for the presence of each other and often being beyond direct view of each other. In spite of this, very few of these divers die as a consequence.  Critics of the buddy system state that the proponents project the image of a "totally reliable buddy" that does not generally exist in reality. Some buddies lack skills or experience and some are unfit, and some personality types are outright dangers; these types have been described as "the untrained diver", "the high-flyer", "the falsely confident diver", "the angry diver", "the buddy from hell" and several others. The bad buddy problem is compounded by training that pressurises the diver to "stick with his buddy" at all times, leading to the situation that the bad buddy sets the criteria of how (badly) the dive is carried out. The solo diver avoids this problem altogether.

Risks and their mitigation.

The generic risks of recreational diving include: These risks can be reduced and the consequences mitigated by correct application of knowledge, skills, fitness and equipment. Where a single point of failure is likely to seriously compromise safety, redundant equipment can be carried, and the skills learned to effectively use the equipment without undue delay.  There has been much disagreement over the relative safety and merits of solo diving. Up to 2003, very few statistics existed regarding the impact of solo diving on safety, as the subject had not been specifically studied. A 2006 report from the British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC) concluded that "BSAC currently takes the view that based on evidence from available statistics and risk assessment, the increased risk attendant to allowing planned solo diving is unacceptable". The data underlying the statistics which are used to point to the dangers of solo diving are questionable: for example, divers who end up dying alone but originally had started out as part of a buddy pair are often considered to be "diving solo" in such statistics, but whether the separation was a consequence of the triggering incident rather than a cause is not analyzed.  In actuality, studies show that with fatal buddy diving incidents, 57% of deaths happened after the buddy pair had separated from one another during the emergency. Again, these cases could be attributed to failure of the buddy system rather than failure of any solo diving/self sufficient diving system. A further complication in such statistics is that certain more dangerous diving practices (e.g. cave diving) are frequently carried out solo. Therefore, it is questionable whether a death in these circumstances should be attributed to solo diving or to cave diving. Analysis of the figures used by BSAC to categorise solo diving as dangerous shows that during 2001–2008 all but one of these "solo diving deaths" were actually paired buddy divers that became separated during or before the fatal incident (75%) or else were divers diving far outside of the limits set by both SDI and PADI for the practice of solo diving (20%) (i.e. actually deep divers, rebreather tech-divers, and/or cave divers). Two further "solo-diving deaths" were not scuba divers at all, but snorkelers.  In almost all circumstances, two highly competent, totally self-sufficient divers diving a specific dive profile as a buddy pair are at lower risk than those same two divers diving exactly the same profile separately, but this raises the question "how often do normal buddy divers both really fit into this particular description?" When considering the risks in solo diving the alternative risks found predominantly in buddy diving need also be considered. The greatest danger to sports divers is inexperience – 60% of all diving fatalities involve divers having less than 20 completed dives. The buddy system itself can be a source of risk – a 2006 survey showed that 52% of buddy divers were at some time actually endangered by a buddy's behavior or actions.  While there are hazards specifically associated with solo diving, most of these can be planned for and their consequences mitigated by the use of appropriate equipment. In technical diving, where redundancy of critical equipment is standard policy, self-sufficiency is emphasised and taught more extensively than in recreational diving. This philosophy should also be followed by solo divers. A solo diver operating beyond the range for acceptable risk for a controlled emergency swimming ascent needs to carry a second, independent source of suitable breathing gas, which includes a regulator and preferably a submersible pressure gauge. This emergency gas supply typically takes the form of a pony bottle, or for more demanding diving, a twin tank set with the capability of independent operation of each tank. Additional equipment carried may include a backup dive computer, a backup dive light and a backup dive mask. The diver must be familiar with the equipment configuration used and be able to access the equipment easily if it is needed. A solo diver needs to be particularly aware of overall personal fitness and health and the limitations it may impose on their ability to manage an emergency. Finally, the solo diver may dive a more conservative dive plan than he or she might dive with an equally competent buddy diver.  As part of mitigating risks in solo diving the following specific practices have been adopted by SDI for solo diving or are key recommendations by Robert von Maier—author of the 1991 book "Solo Diving: The Art of Underwater Self-Sufficiency":

Self sufficiency.

The core objective in training to be a solo diver is to become as self-sufficient and self-reliant as possible, to be able to deal with any reasonably foreseeable problems without assistance, and to have the competence, fitness, discipline, skills and equipment that will achieve this result. This requires competence at risk-assessment and the ability to plan dives and select equipment that limit the risks. An additional benefit of these disciplines is that they will improve the safety of buddy diving whenever the competent solo diver pairs up with another diver in a buddy team by reducing the risk of the second diver being exposed to an emergency which they may not be capable of managing. Agencies training solo divers also recommend the self-sufficiency training in their courses for all divers as their diving experience grows, so as to achieve greater safety in all diving—buddy and solo.

Training and equipment.

To be safe, solo divers must be self-sufficient, well trained, prepared and practised. They should have a completely redundant set of all life support equipment – a complete, self-contained backup breathing gas supply sufficient to return to the surface from any point of the planned dive profile. In addition, the responsible solo divers adhere to a very conservative dive profile, both in depth and level of difficulty. Unlike the buddy system, which encourages divers to rely on others in the event of an emergency, solo diving encourages divers to prepare themselves to overcome emergencies by their own means. The divers who engage in solo diving are typically those who are experienced and equipped enough to handle problems themselves. Solo divers must feel totally comfortable and relaxed in doing this sort of diving, and nobody should ever think of doing diving solo if they are not both competent and comfortable in doing so.  Solo divers are trained to extend their experience gradually, and to ensure that they remain within their personal comfort zone where possible. This reduces the risk of excessive task loading and possible panic reaction to an otherwise manageable contingency. This is not unique to solo diver training, it is a common training practice for any hazardous activity, but when exposing oneself to circumstances where there is no backup it is more important. This means that changes to environment, depth, or equipment are best made one at a time, so that the diver can become familiar with a small change in circumstances before adding another. Simulating emergencies for practice and ensuring that one's response is prompt, appropriate and effective will reduce the risk of inappropriate response if the real emergency occurs.  Qualifications for formal solo diving training as provided by SDI emphasises the need for experience and maturity in diving. In particular the student prerequisites for the solo diving certification course are:  Most of the equipment needed for solo diving is the same as that which would be used for buddy diving the same profile at the same place. The single most important item of additional equipment is the redundant breathing gas supply, which must be sufficient to get the diver safely to the surface from any point of the planned dive. There is more than one way to achieve this, and they each have their advantages and disadvantages. Other more complex arrangements of three or more cylinders are possible, but not usually of any advantage for recreational solo diving. Arrangements using H- and Y-valved back gas cylinders with two first stages may be useful if there is a risk of regulator freezing, but do not provide full redundancy. For solo diving an octopus regulator is not needed – it is intended for supplying gas to another diver. Another item which is very useful for the solo diver is the delayed surface marker buoy (DSMB) with a reel or spool suited to the depth of the planned dive.

Self-reliance skills.

Besides competence in the standard set of scuba skills, there are a few more advanced self-reliance and self-rescue skills required by some of the training agencies. The diver should be able to select and correctly use all equipment needed for the dive, including self-extrication gear for cutting loose from entanglement. A solo diver needs to be able to prepare, dress in and check all equipment used without buddy assistance.  The diver must have an acceptable alternative air configuration, redundant gauges and/or computers, DSMB and reel, compass, and (depending on training centre) signalling device and line cutting device. During the course tests are conducted on swimming skills and swimming endurance, scuba skills associated with solo diving (e.g. use of redundant air and bailout to emergency gas supply), navigation skills and dive planning skills (including breathing gas management).  The CMAS Self-Rescue Diver training includes the deployment of colour-coded DSMBs – red for position indication, and yellow to indicate a problem – the use of a ratchet dive reel to control ascent rate in the event of unplanned positive buoyancy due to loss of weights, and the use of a backup mask.

Legal status.

In most countries there is no government regulation of recreational diving and solo diving is at the discretion of the diver in publicly accessible waters. There are some exceptions:

Solo diving is the practice of underwater diving without a "dive buddy", particularly with reference to scuba diving, but the term is also applied to freediving. Surface supplied diving and atmospheric suit diving are single diver underwater activities but are accompanied by an on-surface support team dedicated to the safety of the diver, and not considered solo diving in its truest sense.

Sólo potápění, občas taky sólové potápění je jednou z forem přístrojového potápění, kdy se potápěč (sólo potápěč – solo diver) potápí sám bez potápěčského partnera – buddyho. Na první pohled to může působit zvláštně, neboť od základních kurzů (bez ohledu na výcvikovou agenturu) se potápěči učí potápět přinejmenším ve dvojici, tzv. buddy teamu.


Names.

From 1918 to 1945, the town, which at that time was part of the Second Polish Republic, was officially called Kosów Huculski.

History.

Initially, a small Hutsul settlement with the remnants of a small castle destroyed by the Turks, Kosiv was founded on the Rybnica River. The first written mention of it is in the Grant Charter of Lithuanian Duke Svitrigaila, on September 31, 1424. At that time, the village was in the territory of what is today Old Kosiv. In 1565, not far from modern-day Kosiv, Starosta of Sniatyn, Tenczynski founded a town named Rukiv (Polish: Rukow). Polish Crown Hetman Jerzy Jazlowiecki, the owner of Kuty, later destroyed it. Some years later, the town was recovered and named Kosiv (the earlier village of this name thus became Old Kosiv). Until 1772, Kosiv/Kosów was under Polish control.  As a result of the first of Partitions of Poland (Treaty of St. Petersburg dated 5 July 1772), Kosiv was attributed to the Habsburg Empire, as part of Austrian Galicia. Since 1867, Kosiv was the administrative center of the "Kossow Bezirkshauptmannschaft" (Austrian name of the district). In 1919, after the Great War, the area returned to Poland and was turned into a powiat seat within the Stanisławów Voivodship. In the Second Polish Republic, Kosów emerged as one of the most popular spas. The Kosów spa was founded in 1891 by doctor Apolinary Tarnawski. Here, in 1911, one of the first units of the Polish Scouting and Guiding Association was created by Kazimierz and Witold Lutosławski, and Olga Drohnowska. Kosów Huculski, as it was called, attracted top names of the interbellum Poland. The spa was visited, among others, by Roman Dmowski, Ignacy Daszynski, Wojciech Korfanty, Gabriela Zapolska, Juliusz Osterwa, Maria Dabrowska, Melchior Wankowicz, Xawery Dunikowski, Karol Adwentowicz, Leon Schiller, Stanisław Dygat, Jozef Pankiewicz, and Lucjan Rydel.  In 1939, Kosów Huculski became part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) as a result of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact and the Invasion of Poland. Here, in September 1939, the government of Poland crossed the Romanian border. Despite this pact, Kosiv was occupied by Nazi Germany from July 1, 1941 until April 2, 1944. After that time it was, again, a member of the Soviet Union, until the independence of Ukraine in 1991.  In September and November 1942, the Nazis transported the Jews of the town to the Bełżec extermination camp.  Today, the town of Kosiv borders on the towns and villages of Babyn, Horod, Smodna, Cherhanivka, Staryi Kosiv, Verbovets and Pistyn. The distance from the railroad station in Vizhnytsa is 12 kilometers, from Zabolotiv is 25 kilometers and from Kolomyia — 35 kilometers. Roads with all neighbouring districts connect the city. The total length of roads is 362 kilometers. 160 kilometers of these roads are paved.

See also.

Kosovo

Kosiv () is a city located in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, in western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Kosiv Raion (district). Population:.

Kosiv (, – "Kosov",, ) je město v Ivanofrankivské oblasti na Ukrajině. Leží na jihozápadě státu na řece Rybnycja zhruba 73 kilometrů na jih od hlavního oblastního města Ivano-Frankivska.


Etymology and usage.

Although free-roaming Mustangs are called "wild" horses, they descend from feral domesticated horses.  According to the "Oxford English Dictionary" ("OED"), the English word "mustang" was likely borrowed from two essentially synonymous Spanish words, (or ) and. English lexicographer John Minsheu glossed both words together as'strayer' in his dictionary of 1599. Both words referred to livestock defined as 'wild, having no master'. was used since the 13th century, while is attested from the late 15th.  "Mustangers" () were cowboys () who caught, broke, and drove free-ranging horses to market in the Spanish and later American territories of what is now northern Mexico, Texas, New Mexico, and California. They caught the horses that roamed the Great Plains, the San Joaquin Valley of California, and later the Great Basin, from the 18th century to the early 20th century.

Characteristics and ancestry.

The original mustangs were Colonial Spanish horses, but many other breeds and types of horses contributed to the modern mustang, resulting in varying phenotypes. Mustangs of all body types are described as surefooted and having good endurance. They may be of any coat color. Throughout all the Herd Management Areas managed by the Bureau of Land Management, light riding horse type predominates, though a few horses with draft horse characteristics also exist, mostly kept separate from other mustangs and confined to specific areas. Some herds show the signs of the introduction of Thoroughbred or other light racehorse-types into herds, a process that also led in part to the creation of the American Quarter Horse. The mustang of the modern west has several different breeding populations today which are genetically isolated from one another and thus have distinct traits traceable to particular herds. Genetic contributions to today's free-roaming mustang herds include assorted ranch horses that escaped to or were turned out on the public lands, and stray horses used by the United States Cavalry. For example, in Idaho some Herd Management Areas (HMA) contain animals with known descent from Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse stallions turned out with feral herds. The herds located in two HMAs in central Nevada produce Curly Horses. Others, such as certain bands in Wyoming, have characteristics consistent with gaited horse breeds. Many herds were analyzed for Spanish blood group polymorphism (commonly known as "blood markers") and microsatellite DNA loci. Blood marker analysis verified a few to have significant Spanish ancestry, namely the Cerbat mustang, Pryor Mountain mustang, and some horses from the Sulphur Springs HMA. The Kiger mustang is also said to have been found to have Spanish blood and subsequent microsatellite DNA confirmed the Spanish ancestry of the Pryor Mountain mustang.  Horses in several other HMAs exhibit Spanish horse traits, such as dun coloration and primitive markings. Genetic studies of other herds show various blends of Spanish, gaited horse, draft horse, and pony influences.  Height varies across the west, but most are small, generally, and not taller than, even in herds with draft or Thoroughbred ancestry. Some breeders of domestic horses consider the mustang herds of the west to be inbred and of inferior quality. However, supporters of the mustang argue that the animals are merely small due to their harsh living conditions and that natural selection has eliminated many traits that lead to weakness or inferiority.  The now-defunct American Mustang Association developed a breed standard for those mustangs that carry morphological traits associated with the early Spanish horses. These include a well-proportioned body with a clean, refined head with wide forehead and small muzzle. The facial profile may be straight or slightly convex. Withers are moderate in height, and the shoulder is to be "long and sloping". The standard considers a very short back, deep girth and muscular coupling over the loins as desirable. The croup is rounded, neither too flat nor goose-rumped. The tail is low-set. The legs are to be straight and sound. Hooves are round and dense. Dun color dilution and primitive markings are particularly common among horses of Spanish type.

History.

1493–1600.

Modern horses were first brought to the Americas with the conquistadors, beginning with Columbus, who imported horses from Spain to the West Indies on his second voyage in 1493. Horses came to the mainland with the arrival of Cortés in 1519. By 1525, Cortés had imported enough horses to create a nucleus of horse-breeding in Mexico.  One hypothesis held that horse populations north of Mexico originated in the mid-1500s with the expeditions of Narváez, de Soto or Coronado, but it has been refuted. Horse breeding in sufficient numbers to establish a self-sustaining population developed in what today is the southwestern United States starting in 1598 when Juan de Oñate founded Santa Fe de Nuevo México. From 75 horses in his original expedition, he expanded his herd to 800, and from there the horse population increased rapidly. While the Spanish also brought horses to Florida in the 16th century, the Choctaw and Chickasaw horses of what is now the southeastern United States are believed to be descended from western mustangs that moved east, and thus Spanish horses in Florida did not influence the mustang.

17th- and 18th-century dispersal.

Native American people readily integrated use of the horse into their cultures. They quickly adopted the horse as a primary means of transportation. Horses replaced the dog as a pack animal and changed Native cultures in terms of warfare, trade, and even diet—the ability to run down bison allowed some people to abandon agriculture for hunting from horseback.  Santa Fe became a major trading center in the 1600s. Although Spanish laws prohibited Native Americans from riding horses, the Spanish used Native people as servants, and some were tasked to care for livestock, thus learning horse-handling skills. Oñate's colonists also lost many of their horses. Some wandered off because the Spanish generally did not keep them in fenced enclosures, and Native people in the area captured some of these estrays. Other horses were traded by Oñate' settlers for food, women or other goods. Initially, horses obtained by Native people were simply eaten, along with any cattle that were captured or stolen. But as individuals with horse-handling skills fled Spanish control, sometimes with a few trained horses, the local tribes began using horses for riding and as pack animals. By 1659, settlements reported being raided for horses, and in the 1660s the "Apache" were trading human captives for horses. The Pueblo Revolt of 1680 also resulted in large numbers of horses coming into the hands of Native people, the largest one-time influx in history.  From the Pueblo people, horses were traded to the Apache, Navajo and Utes. The Comanche acquired horses and provided them to the Shoshone. The Eastern Shoshone and Southern Utes became traders who distributed horses and horse culture from New Mexico to the northern plains. West of the Continental Divide, horses distribution moved north quite rapidly along the western slopes of the Rocky Mountains, skirting desert regions such as the Great Basin and the western Colorado Plateau. Horses reached what today is southern Idaho by 1690. The Northern Shoshone people in the Snake River valley had horses in 1700. By 1730, they reached the Columbia Basin and were east of the Continental divide in the northern Great Plains. The Blackfeet people of Alberta had horses by 1750. The Nez Perce people in particular became master horse breeders, and developed one of the first distinctly American breeds, the Appaloosa. Most other tribes did not practice extensive amounts of selective breeding, though they sought out desirable horses through acquisition and quickly culled those with undesirable traits. By 1769, most Plain Indians had horses.  In this period, Spanish missions were also a source of stray and stolen livestock, particularly in what today is Texas and California. The Spanish brought horses to California for use at their missions and ranches, where permanent settlements were established in 1769. Horse numbers grew rapidly, with a population of 24,000 horses reported by 1800. By 1805, there were so many horses in California that people began to simply kill unwanted animals to reduce overpopulation. However, due to the barriers presented by mountain ranges and deserts, the California population did not significantly influence horse numbers elsewhere at the time. Horses in California were described as being of "exceptional quality".  In the upper Mississippi basin and Great Lakes regions, the French were another source of horses. Although horse trading with native people was prohibited, there were individuals willing to indulge in illegal dealing, and as early as 1675, the Illinois people had horses. Animals identified as "Canadian", "French", or "Norman" were located in the Great Lakes region, with a 1782 census at Fort Detroit listing over 1000 animals. By 1770, Spanish horses were found in that area, and there was a clear zone from Ontario and Saskatchewan to St. Louis where Canadian-type horses, particularly the smaller varieties, crossbred with mustangs of Spanish ancestry. French-Canadian horses were also allowed to roam freely, and moved west, particularly influencing horse herds in the northern plains and inland northwest. Although horses were brought from Mexico to Texas as early as 1542, a stable population did not exist until 1686, when Alonso de León's expedition arrived with 700 horses. From there, later groups brought up thousands more, deliberately leaving some horses and cattle to fend for themselves at various locations, while others strayed. By 1787, these animals had multiplied to the point that a roundup gathered nearly 8,000 "free-roaming mustangs and cattle". West-central Texas, between the Rio Grande and Palo Duro Canyon, was said to have the most concentrated population of feral horses in the Americas. Throughout the west, horses escaped human control and formed feral herds, and by the late 1700s, the largest numbers were found in what today are the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico.

19th century.

An early 19th-century reference to mustangs by American sources came from Zebulon Pike, who in 1808 noted passing herds of "mustangs or wild horses". In 1821, Stephen Austin noted in his journal that he had seen about 150 mustangs.  Estimates of when the peak population of mustangs occurred and total numbers vary widely between sources. No comprehensive census of feral horse numbers was ever performed until the time of the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 and any earlier estimates, particularly prior to the 20th century, are speculative. Some sources simply state that "millions" of mustangs once roamed western North America. In 1959, geographer Tom L. McKnight suggested that the population peaked in the late 1700s or early 1800s, and the "best guesses apparently lie between two and five million". Historian J. Frank Dobie hypothesized that the population peaked around the end of the Mexican–American War in 1848, stating: "My own guess is that at no time were there more than a million mustangs in Texas and no more than a million others scattered over the remainder of the West." J. Edward de Steiguer questioned Dobie's lower guess as still being too high.  In 1839, the numbers of mustangs in Texas had been augmented by animals abandoned by Mexican settlers who had been ordered to leave the Nueces Strip. Ulysses Grant, in his memoir, recalled seeing in 1846 an immense herd between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande in Texas: "As far as the eye could reach to our right, the herd extended. To the left, it extended equally. There was no estimating the number of animals in it; I have no idea that they could all have been corralled in the state of Rhode Island, or Delaware, at one time." When the area was ceded to the U.S. in 1848, these horses and others in the surrounding areas were rounded up and trailed north and east, resulting in the near-elimination of mustangs in that area by 1860.  Farther west, the first known sighting of a free-roaming horse in the Great Basin was by John Bidwell near the Humboldt Sinks in 1841. Although John Charles Fremont noted thousands of horses in California, the only horse sign he spoke of in the Great Basin, which he named, was tracks around Pyramid Lake, and the natives he encountered there were horseless. In 1861, another party saw seven free-roaming horses near the Stillwater Range. For the most part, free-roaming horse herds in the interior of Nevada were established in the latter part of the 1800s from escaped settlers' horses.

20th century.

In the early 1900s, thousands of free-roaming horses were rounded up for use in the Spanish–American War and World War I.  By 1920, Bob Brislawn, who worked as a packer for the U.S. government, recognized that the original mustangs were disappearing, and made efforts to preserve them, ultimately establishing the Spanish Mustang Registry. In 1934, J. Frank Dobie stated that there were just "a few wild [feral] horses in Nevada, Wyoming and other Western states" and that "only a trace of Spanish blood is left in most of them" remaining. Other sources agree that by that time, only "pockets" of mustangs that retained Colonial Spanish Horse type remained.  By 1930, the vast majority of free-roaming horses were found west of Continental Divide, with an estimated population between 50,000–150,000. They were almost completely confined to the remaining General Land Office (GLO)-administered public lands and National Forest rangelands in the 11 Western States. In 1934, the Taylor Grazing Act established the United States Grazing Service to manage livestock grazing on public lands, and in 1946, the GLO was combined with the Grazing Service to form the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which, along with the Forest Service, was committed to removing feral horses from the lands they administered.  By the 1950s, the mustang population dropped to an estimated 25,000 horses. Abuses linked to certain capture methods, including hunting from airplanes and poisoning water holes, led to the first federal free-roaming horse protection law in 1959. This statute, titled "Use of aircraft or motor vehicles to hunt certain wild horses or burros; pollution of watering holes" popularly known as the "Wild Horse Annie Act", prohibited the use of motor vehicles for capturing free-roaming horses and burros. Protection was increased further by the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 (WFRHABA).  The Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 provided for protection of certain previously established herds of horses and burros. It mandated the BLM to oversee the protection and management of free-roaming herds on lands it administered, and gave U.S. Forest Service similar authority on National Forest lands. A few free-ranging horses are also managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service. and the National Park Service. but for the most part they are not subject to management under the Act. A census completed in conjunction with passage of the Act found that there were approximately 17,300 horses (25,300 combined population of horses "and" burros) on the BLM-administered lands and 2,039 on National Forests.

Mustangs today.

The BLM has established Herd Management Areas to determine where horses will be sustained as free-roaming populations. The BLM has established "Appropriate Management Levels" (AML) for each HMA, totaling 26,000 bureau-wide, but the on-range mustang population in August 2017 was estimated to be over 72,000 horses. More than half of all free-roaming mustangs in North America are found in Nevada (which features the horses on its State Quarter), with other significant populations in California, Oregon, Utah, Montana, and Wyoming. Another 45,000 horses are in holding facilities.

Land use controversies.

Prehistoric context.

The taxonomic horse family "Equidae" evolved in North America 55 million years ago. By the end of the Late Pleistocene, there were two lineages of the Equine family present in North America, the "caballine" and "stilt-legged", which have been referred to by various species names. In 2005, a study of ancient DNA found "all caballine horses from western Europe to eastern Beringia—including the domestic horse—are a single Holarctic species" but in 2011 classification of Equus species was standardized as to be determined based on whether they are domestic or wild-type, so currently, domestic horses are classified as a different species "Equus caballus" from the only remaining horse thought never to have been domesticated, Przewalskii's horse, or "Equus ferus". A later 2017 DNA study, this one done alongside tooth morphology confirmed that the North American caballines are closely related to domestic horses. The study classified the North American caballine horses as the same species ("Equus ferus") as Przewalskii's horse, but with a caveat that Przewalskii's horse possibly should be classified with domestic horses.  At the end of the Last Glacial Period, the non-caballines went extinct and the caballine was extirpated from the Americas, possibly due to a changing climate or the impact of newly arrived human hunters. The youngest physical evidence for the survival of Equids in the Americas dates between 7,600 and 10,500 years old.

Modern issues.

Due in part to the prehistory of the horse, there is controversy as to the role mustangs have in the ecosystem as well as their rank in the prioritized use of public lands, particularly in relation to livestock. There are multiple viewpoints. Some supporters of mustangs on public lands asserts that, while not native, mustangs are a "culturally significant" part of the American West, and acknowledge some form of population control is needed. Another viewpoint is that mustangs reinhabited an ecological niche vacated when horses went extinct in North America, with a variant characterization that horses are a reintroduced native species that should be legally classified as "wild" rather than "feral" and managed as wildlife. The "native species" argument centers on the premise that the horses extirpated in the Americas 10,000 years ago are closely related to the modern horse as was reintroduced. Thus, this debate centers in part around the question of whether horses developed an ecomorphotype adapted to the ecosystem as it changed in the intervening 10,000 years.  The Wildlife Society views mustangs as an introduced species stating: "Since native North American horses went extinct, the western United States has become more arid... notably changing the ecosystem and ecological roles horses and burros play." and that they draw resources and attention away from true native species. A 2013 report by the National Research Council of the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine also challenged the idea of horses being a reintroduced native species stating that "the complex of animals and vegetation has changed since horses were extirpated from North America". It also stated that the distinction between native or non-native was not the issue, but rather the "priority that BLM gives to free-ranging horses and burros on federal lands, relative to other uses".  Mustang advocates favor that the BLM rank mustangs higher in priority than it currently does, arguing that too little forage is allocated to mustangs as opposed to cattle and sheep. Ranchers and those who depend on the livestock industry favor a lower priority, arguing essentially that their livelihoods and rural economies are threatened because they depend upon the public land forage for their livestock.  The debate as to what degree mustangs and cattle compete for forage is multifaceted. Horses are adapted by evolution to inhabit an ecological niche characterized by poor quality vegetation. Advocates assert that most current mustang herds live in arid areas which cattle cannot fully utilize due to the lack of water sources. Mustangs can cover vast distances to find food and water; advocates assert that horses range 5–10 times as far as cattle to find forage, finding it in more inaccessible areas. In addition, horses are "hindgut fermenters", meaning that they digest nutrients by means of the cecum rather than by a multi-chambered stomach. While this means that they extract less energy from a given amount of forage, it also means that they can digest food faster and make up the difference in efficiency by increasing their consumption rate. In practical effect, by eating greater quantities, horses can obtain adequate nutrition from poorer forage than can ruminants such as cattle, and so can survive in areas where cattle will starve.  However, while the BLM rates horses by animal unit (AUM) to eat the same amount of forage as a cow–calf pair, 1.0, studies of horse grazing patterns indicate that horses probably consume forage at a rate closer to 1.5 AUM. Modern rangeland management also recommends removing all livestock during the growing season to maximize re-growth of the forage. Year-round grazing by any non-native ungulate will degrade it, particularly horses whose incisors allow them to graze plants very close to the ground, inhibiting recovery.

Management and adoption.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) was tasked by United States CongressCongress with protecting, managing, and controlling free-roaming horses and burros under the authority of the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 to ensure that healthy herds thrive on healthy rangelands under the 1976 Federal Land Policy and Management Act. Difficulty arises because mustang herd sizes can multiply rapidly, increasing up to and possibly by over 20% every year, so population control presents a challenge. When unmanaged, population numbers can outstrip forage available, leading to starvation.  There are few predators in the modern era capable of preying on healthy adult mustangs, and for the most part, predators capable of limiting the growth of feral mustang herd sizes are not found in the same habitat as most modern feral herds. Although wolves and mountain lions are two species known to prey on horses and in theory could control population growth, in practice, predation is not a viable population control mechanism. Wolves were historically rare in, and currently do not inhabit, the Great Basin, where the vast majority of mustangs roam. While they are documented to prey on feral horses in Alberta, Canada, there is no known documentation of wolf predation on free-roaming horses in the United States. Mountain lions have been documented to prey on feral horses in the U.S., but in limited areas and small numbers, and mostly foals.  One of the BLM's key mandates under the 1971 law and amendments is to maintain AML of wild horses and burros in areas of public rangelands where they are managed by the federal government. Control of the population to within AML is achieved through a capture program. There are strict guidelines for techniques used to round up mustangs. One method uses a tamed horse, called a "Judas horse", which has been trained to lead wild horses into a pen or corral. Once the mustangs are herded into an area near the holding pen, the Judas horse is released. Its job is then to move to the head of the herd and lead them into a confined area.  Since 1978, captured horses have been offered for adoption to individuals or groups willing and able to provide humane, long-term care after payment of an adoption fee; the base fee is $125. Adopted horses are still protected under the Act, for one year after adoption, at which point the adopter can obtain title to the horse. Horses that could not be adopted were to be humanely euthanized. Instead of euthanizing excess horses, the BLM began keeping them in "long term holding", an expensive alternative that can cost taxpayers up to $50,000 per horse over its lifetime. On December 8, 2004, a rider amending the Wild and Free Roaming Horse and Burro Act was attached to an appropriation bill before the Congress by former Senator Conrad Burns. This modified the adoption program to also allow the unlimited sale of captured horses that are "more than 10 years of age", or that were "offered unsuccessfully for adoption at least three times". Since 1978, there had been specific language in the Act forbidding the BLM from selling the horses to those would take them to slaughter, but the Burns Amendment removed that language. In order to prevent horses being sold to slaughter, the BLM has implemented policies limiting sales and requiring buyers to certify they will not take the horses to slaughter. In 2017, the Trump administration began pushing Congress to remove barriers to implementing both the option to euthanize and sell excess horses.  Despite such means as the Extreme Mustang Makeover, a promotional competition that gives trainers 100 days to gentle and train 100 mustangs, which are then adopted through an auction, to try increase the number of horses adopted, adoption numbers do not come close to finding homes for the excess horses. Ten thousand foals were expected to be born on range in 2017, whereas only 2500 horses were expected to be adopted. Alternatives to roundups for on range population control include fertility control, either by PZP injection or spaying mares, culling and natural regulation.  Captured horses are freeze branded on the left side of the neck by the BLM, using the International Alpha Angle System, a system of angles and alpha-symbols that cannot be altered. The brands begin with a symbol indicating the registering organization, in this case the U.S. Government, then two stacked figures indicating the individual horse's year of birth, then the individual registration number. Captured horses kept in sanctuaries are also marked on the left hip with four inch-high Arabic numerals that are also the last four digits of the freeze brand on the neck.

The mustang is a free-roaming horse of the Western United States, descended from horses brought to the Americas by the Spanish. Mustangs are often referred to as wild horses, but because they are descended from once-domesticated horses, they are actually feral horses. The original mustangs were Colonial Spanish horses, but many other breeds and types of horses contributed to the modern mustang, now resulting in varying phenotypes. Some free-roaming horses are relatively unchanged from the original Spanish stock, most strongly represented in the most isolated populations.

Mustang je volně žijící plemeno koně v Severní Americe. Mustangové nejsou v Americe původní. Jsou potomci zdivočelých koní španělských kolonistů (ačkoli kůň pochází právě ze Severní Ameriky). Je to poměrně malé, houževnaté plemeno s výškou v kohoutku 140-160 cm. V současnosti žije ve volné přírodě asi 35 tisíc kusů a zhruba stejný počet ve státních rezervacích.