History.

The university was established in 1986 by IRGC Commander Seyed Mehdi Mousavi Zare, named "Imam Hossein Higher Education" and approved as a university by Ministry of Science, Research and Technology (Iran). It included faculty of engineering science, faculty of natural science, faculty of social science, and faculty of medicine in 1987. Later, it also included faculty of military science. In 1994, the faculty of medicine seceded to become the Baqiyatallah Medical Sciences University, which is the primary medical institution, and currently trains students up to PhD levels in three faculties, namely: Nursing, Allied Health, and Medicine, as well as the Institute of Research for Military Medicine.

Background.

In 1963, Iran placed all military factories under the Military Industries Organization (MIO) of the Ministry of War. Over the next fifteen years, they produced small arms ammunition, explosives, and mortar rounds and fuses. They furthermore produced rifles and machine guns under West German license. Additionally, they assembled helicopters, jeeps, trucks, and trailers from imported kits. However, the Iran Revolution stopped all activities. The MIO was unable to operate without foreign experts, so it had lost much of its management ability and control over its industrial facilities by 1981.  In late 1981, the revolutionary government brought together all military industrial units and placed them under the Defense Industries Organization (DIO). By 1986, a large number of infantry rifles, machine guns, and mortars and some small-arms ammunition were being manufactured locally. However, they required some specialists and technicians. For this purpose, they opened several universities and colleges e.g. Imam Hossein University, Baqiyatallah Medical Sciences University, and Malek-Ashtar University of Technology, directly or indirectly linked to DIO by mid-1980s.  Prior to 1989, they began working on the ballistic missiles program was responsibility of the missile unit in IRGC. In 1989, the Ministry of Defense and the Guards merged to form the Ministry of the Armed Forces Logistics, and the IRGC's facilities were merged into the Defense Industry Organization. By the mid-1990s, they were reportedly responsible for Iran's missile programs, headed by the Aerospace Industries Organization (AIO).

Research.

It has a scientific group and a nuclear physics department. The Imam Hossein University, which is particularly run on military lines by IRGC, is the center for experiments on nuclear research. Iranian scientists are conducting nuclear research and development using university laboratories.  However, it is not only a main center for nuclear research. It also has a place for biological research. The Imam Hossein University has a biological section that conducts microbial research. Nonetheless, nuclear enrichment at the Imam Hossein University is the mother of all research at what called a nuclear weapons university. Prof. Raymond Tanter, of Georgetown University, an expert on Iran, claimed that this university has become the center for all of Iran's secret nuclear programs. In February 1998, Imam Hossein University was identified by the British government as having procured goods and/or technology for weapons of mass destruction programs, in addition to doing non-proliferation related business. It was named by the German government as an Iranian military procurement organization working toward acquiring weapons of mass destruction; reportedly conducts nuclear development activities separate from the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, according to US officials produces anthrax and aflatoxin. It was added to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list maintained by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on 8 November 2012, freezing its assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibiting transactions with U.S. parties, which targets proliferators of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems, and also listed by the Government of Japan in 2012 as an entity of concern for proliferation relating to missiles and biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons.  During the 1990s, the Iran centralized several centers for nuclear research programme under a single unit. They transferred all of their nuclear facilities around the country to the Defense Ministry and also to the Imam Hossein University. The announcement on the university's now defunct website shed light on one of Iran's developing nuclear programme and the laser enrichment technique. Prof. Raymond Tanter said that it particularly is importance to mention laser enrichment as a mean to create nuclear fuel. One of the most critical projects is conducted at the Imam Hossein University on use of lasers for enrichment. In addition to laser enrichment, the university carried out a test on neutron generator that can also trigger the fission chain reaction.  In January 2006, the university had the third nationwide congress on the modern defensive wars in the field of chemical, biological, nuclear wars as announced on the university's website, which is no longer online. According to the announcement, the congress discussed the new types of bombs, such as: electromagnetic, air fuelled, graphite, laser and enfeebling bombs. Prof. Raymond Tanter argued the conference was a part of the accelerating research and development on nuclear programme.

Physics Research Center.

According to the ElBaradei's report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the university (called a "technical university" in the report) houses the Physics Research Center (PHRC), which controls the Iranian nuclear program, once under the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Iran's civilian nuclear agency. One of the principal sources of nuclear experts has been the Imam Hossein University. Part of the takeover of the Iranian nuclear program also necessarily included transferring experts from around the country into this university. The IAEA stated the IRGC is believed to have co-opted the nuclear research facilities and experts of the university system in order to conceal and cloak the true military aspect of the Iranian nuclear program. For example, an Iranian company, Kimia Maadan (KM) Company, made use of experts from this university. The IAEA had also questions regarding the role and origin of KM Company. The company was founded by nuclear experts, a core staff about half a dozen experts who had previously worked for the Iranian Ore Processing Center (OPC). There are relationships among various university research teams, PHRC of the Imam Hossein University, the Education Research Institute (ERI) and the Institute of Applied Physics (IAP) and KM Company, each working on different aspects of the Iranian nuclear program.  One of the research projects addressed in the IAEA report is the Iranian Green Salt Project, apparently managed by KM Company. The project performed a flowsheet of bench scale conversion of uranium oxide (UO2) into 1 ton of UF4 per year, also known as Green Salt. It is an early step in an enrichment process, beyond the capacity or scope of the Uranium Ore Concentration (UOC) plant. According to the IAEA report, KM Company designed and built a turnkey (flowsheet). The document also referred to the project concerning the missile re-entry vehicle. However, Iran answered that the flowsheets and allegations were baseless and fabrications, and the only project that the KM Company worked on was the UOC plant.  The IAEA has also reported the Iranian testing of multiple high-explosive detonators designs and documents the layout for an underground nuclear blast test facility in this university. In 2006, a senior US official revealed the Washington Post a diagram being schematically consistent with a nuclear test-site schematic in Iran. Later in 2006, a contingent of senior officers from Iran travelled to North Korea to see an underground facility to test explosion. IAEA also made question about the Iranian Shahab-3 missile designs. Specifically, re-entry vehicle designs are believed to be engineered for the ability to carry nuclear warheads.  The various scientific research groups of Iran's nuclear program, run from this university under the direction of the IRGC, are including efforts to obtain training courses and software on spark gaps, shock wave software, neutron sources, special steel parts, radiation measurement equipment, including borehole spectrometers. Nonetheless, Iran answered that it sought PAM shock software to study aircraft, collision of cars, airbags and for the design of seatbelts.

Biological Research Center.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) made a report about the biological activities in Iran, which are centered on the productions of microbial bombs using anthrax, smallpox virus, typhoid fever, high dosage of aflatoxin, plague microbes, and chloromicrobes, done at the Imam Hossein University in Tehran. Genetic cloning is also being carried out at Malek-Ashtar University of Technology. These claims were provided by the National Council of Resistance of Iran in a press conference at the Willard Hotel in Washington on 15 May 2003. The activities about biological weapons began in 1985, during the Iran–Iraq War. In 1985 and 1986, they established a research center in the Pasteur Institute of Iran in Tehran to work on toxic fungus and microbial substances. The center succeeded in producing toxic fungus, including aflatoxin. In the next years, as they succeeded in mass production of microbial material, they moved the production centers to the Imam Hossein University. Centers such as Pasteur Institute are now being used for research purposes. A number of foreign microbial experts from China, North Korea, India, and Russia are cooperating with the Ministry of Defense of Iran. A number of them have been hired by this organization. The Biological Research Center of Special Industries Organization is located at Shahid Meisami and Martyr Meisami complex. Also, students are given scholarships to study and use technology. The Baqiyatallah Medical Sciences University, affiliated with the Baqiyatallah Hospital, is another center which works on microbial works. The Research Center for Direct Biotechnology does not directly work on microbial bombs, but it is used as the research supplement for biological weapons and actively works with Malek-Ashtar University of Technology and Imam Hossein University, as well as the Baqiyatallah Medical Sciences University. Notwithstanding, the Centers for Science and Technological Growth of the Biological Research Center of Malek Ashtar, affiliated with the defense industries, are in charge of mass production of biological weapons.  In addition, the Sina Industry (previously named Vira Laboratories) are concentrated on production of the biological materials. It is a center that has been active since 1990. It is one of the most important biological and chemical laboratories of Iran. It seems that basically used as a front, as a cover for doing their research and their activities on biological weapons under the cover and the name of medical research.

Chemical Research Center.

The Imam Hossein University is involved in chemical technology, offering scholarships in this subject. Since 1999, they have pursued the chemical research in a much larger scale. One of the projects was to build a fermentor. The 24th Bessat group linked to this university produces a significant amount of nerve gas in liquid, vapor, and powder form. Cyanide, tri-glycol, and sodium cyanide are produced for chemical purposes as well.  Another organization run by the Defense Ministry is one of the agencies involved in producing chemical products. They have more than 4,000 employees, a chemical laboratory named Vira Laboratories, and a chemical material storage known as Shahid Meisami. The Parchin Chemical Industries, located in south of Tehran, is another center of chemical products. It includes storage and glass body equipment to produce lethal nerve gas. Much of the equipment has been received from Hungarian manufacturer Lampert. Another complex manufacturer near the city of Semnan is also engaged in producing nerve gas.  The center for chemical research and chemical engineering located in west of Tehran is also used for a joint research and technological study of Imam Hossein University and Malek-Ashtar University of Technology. The Chinese experts are supervising some research projects.

Aerospace Research Center.

The Imam Hossein University offers Aerospace Engineering degree programs at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It is among some universities in Iran, where provide the Aerospace Engineering degrees. These universities includes K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Sharif University of Technology, Amirkabir University of Technology, Imam Hossein University, and Malek-Ashtar University of Technology. The Sharif University of Technology is the first university, where offers bachelor's degree and master's degree in the field of Aerospace Engineering and Aeronautical Engineering since 1987. The K.N. Toosi University of Technology has also Ph.D in Aerospace Engineering (Joint program with Moscow State Aviation Technological University in Russia). The Malek-Ashtar University of Technology is also involved in Aerospace research and programs related to Aerospace engineering. Iran established the Iranian Space Agency in an uninhabited desert area in Semnan Province, south-east of Tehran in April 2003. The Center has a remote satellite command-and-control facility and a satellite launch pad. The Remote Space Sensing Center affiliated to the Ministry of Post and Telegraph and Technology launched three decades ago. The Aerospace Research Institute affiliated to the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology is another active organization in the space science and technology applications. The Meteorological Organization performs atmosphere analysis in support of agriculture, transportation, water, energy, and environment. Five public Universities, one private university (Azad University Science and Research Branch), and one college (Civil Aviation Technology College) provide higher education and research in aerospace engineering. Iran started its scientific aerospace cooperation with China following the establishment of its Aerospace Organization in 2000. China has successfully launched forty satellites since 1996. In May 2005, Iran signed a regional research cooperation with China for the designing and launching satellites for long distance surveillance, subterranean resources, agrometeorology, and aerospace training at Iranian universities. Iran's Aerospace Organization's has been getting engaged in designing and manufacturing of a small multi-mission satellite with China and Thailand since 2005.  Since the 1990s, Iran started to develop a launch vehicle based on Shahab-3. The Shahab-3 is a liquid-fueled single-stage missile. The Iran Space Research Center started testing launch capabilities since early 2007 reaching 150–200 km altitude. These rockets were based on Shahab-3 series and were typically equipped with wind, air and temperature instruments. In August 2008, Iran developed a two-stage launch vehicle Safir-1 which launched a dummy satellite. On February 2009, Iran launched a satellite named Omid into orbit using the domestically built launch vehicle Safir-2, thus becoming the 9th nation to do so on Timeline of first orbital launches by country. Their Aerospace engineering achievement appears as the country has been under nearly 30 years of sanctions.

Academic profile.

The Imam Hossein University has 33 postgraduate programs and 9 PhD programs approved by Ministry of Science, Research and Technology (Iran).

Publications.

A number of journals and books are published by Imam Hossein University. Among those:

Organisation and structure.

Faculties.

Initially Imam Hossein University included four faculties:  Later another faculty was founded:  In 1994, faculty of Medicine seceded to become the Baqiyatallah Medical Sciences University.

Facilities.

The main buildings are located in Tehran, Shahid Babaei Highway near Tehran Pars Fourth Square, Hakimiyeh and Mini-city, include:

Associated institutes.

The university cooperates with several institutes related to IRGC ad Defense Industries Organization. Among those:

Related organizations.

Lavizan Technical Research Center.

Originally Lavizan was a heavily fortified Army Garrison housing Shah's Imperial Guards. During the Iranian Revolution, the garrison fell to Revolutionaries after a fight in which several officers of the guard were killed. The site was later on converted to a research facility. The Lavizan Technical Site includes faculties of installations industries and metallurgy. According to a document, the alleged Iranian nuclear warheads were being stored in the Lavizan military camp in the Teheran area in 1992. Another document discusses the production of a solid fuel missile prototype completed in Lavizan.  A satellite image of 10 May 2004 showed that Iran had almost totally razed part of the Lavizan Technical Research Center. It showed Iran had been demolishing buildings at Lavizan. The Lavizan Center had imported a whole-body counter (WBC), a device used to identify and measure the radioactive material in the body of human beings and animals. On 29 June 2004, El Baradei said that Iran had accepted that the alleged concealed nuclear site in Tehran was a military-research complex before it was razed. The Iranian authorities stated that this was a physics institute later on turned to be a biotechnology research and development center.

Aerospace Industries Organization.

Aerospace Industries Organization (AIO) is a leading industrial subsidiary of the Ministry of Defense. More than 13 large factories with over 10,000 expert personnel are occupied in manufacturing a vast variety of military and non-military purposes. Products include different types of weapons such as guns, rockets, missiles, mortars, bombs, rocket launchers, field kitchens, gyroscopes, transportation means, police equipment, and helmets. Engineering services include precision machining, metal forming, software services, quality control test, dimensional measurement, CNC machine, and Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM).  The Aerospace Industries Organization (AIO), also known as the Sanam Industrial Group, is the Defense Industries Organization (DIO) Missile Industries Group. Sanam Industries Group is said to be the lead organization for the development of the Shahab-3 missile. In 1998, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation had reportedly negotiated an agreement with Sanam Industries Group to provide telemetry infrastructure for Iran's Shahab-3 and Shahab-4 ballistic missile.  Baltic State Technical University in Saint Petersburg has allegedly contracted with the Sanam Industrial group to train Iranian students in order to design long-range solid fuel rocket boosters. They together created a center known as Persepolis as part of a contract concluded in 1996. On 22 June 1998, Iranian students were expelled from Baltic State Technical University as part of Russia's international obligations to control the spread of missile technology.  In addition to military products, the Sanam Industrial Group also produces non-military products to convene domestic and export markets demands including TVs, vacuum cleaners, washing machines, various types of grinding wheels, stainless steel dishes, industrial fans, motor pumps, and automotive parts. The Sanam Washing Machine use Korean SAMSUNG technology, by which it becomes a powerful, economic and durable washing machine. Sanam Industrial Group in Parchin is licensed by the Italian company Lombardini to fabricate internal combustion engines, that are used in automotive, agricultural, industrial and marine applications.

Parchin site.

Parchin Complex, 30 kilometers southeast of Tehran, was the site for the implementation of a variety of defense projects. Parchin was the center of the Defense Industries Organization's (DIO) Chemical industry, and, possibly, the home of the main producers of the Iran's missiles. Parchin was opened in 1939, and was in operation since before the Second World War. Very few information was available about the post-Revolutionary Iranian arms industry. On 25 August 1999, it included the Parchin Chemical Factories (PCF). PCF was equipped with modern technology producing various commercial explosives, and chemical material.  Parchin is one of Iran's major chemical weapons facilities, along with the facilities located at Damghan, Esfahan and Qazvin. US intelligence said Iran has been continuing to improve and develop its chemical warfare production infrastructure and munitions arsenal until 2003. US intelligence reporting Iran tries to dual-use facilities could quickly field chemical agents, but are not mainly active in military. It made also question the character of the facilities at Parchin.  On 29 December 2003, the Wall Street Journal reported that, Ahmad Shirzad, a deputy from the city of Isfahan, stated that there was a large nuclear underground facility in Parchin. In an article in the Washington Times, on 7 March 2004, claimed that Iran's nuclear weapons program included use of Belarus-Russian filtering and high-temperature melting technologies for uranium enrichment. The accurate technique supposedly involved was unclear, but would appear to have been thermal diffusion.  The generally Parchin institute represents the chief center of Iran's military industry, so a nuclear program would by now include all the proficiency required within commuting distance. The suspect area was physically isolated from other components, which implies that it was not part of the ammo, chemical or missile programs. The United States made also questions whether Iran is testing high explosives at Parchin. Nonetheless, Hossein Mousavian, Iran's chief delegate to the IAEA, rejected all claims about a nuclear testing area at Parchin. He categorically denied any nuclear activities in Parchin. He accused the US of deliberately using misinformation to embarrass Iran at IAEA hearings.  Jay C. Davis, former head of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency at the US Department of Defense, said neither the design of the facility nor the nature of the tests is unique to nuclear weapons. Davis added that environmental sampling done by IAEA inspectors could detect the presence of by-products used in the testing of high explosives for a nuclear weapon. On 17 September 2004 IAEA head El Baradei said his organization had found no sign of nuclear-related activity at the Parchin site in Iran, which several US officials had said might be to secret nuclear weapons research. Iran allowed IAEA inspectors to visit the Parchin military site in the interests of transparency, but the visit was limited to only few areas.  On 1 March 2005, Iran abandoned a second request by the IAEA to visit again the Parchin site. However, the IAEA was eventually allowed entrance to the Parchin facility in November 2005. The IAEA did not observe any unusual activities in the buildings visited, and the results of the analysis of environmental samples did not indicate the presence of nuclear material.

List of Chancellors of Imam Hossein University.

The chancellors of the Imam Hossein University since its foundation:

The Imam Hossein Comprehensive University (also referred to as IHU or the Imam Hossein University, in Persian: "دانشگاه امام حسین" Dāneshgāh-e Emām Hossein') is a public university located in Tehran, Iran.

L'université Imam Hossein (en persan : دانشگاه امام حسین) est une université située à Téhéran, en Iran. Elle a été fondée en 1986.


History.

In December 1994, Disney announced that it was establishing a new division dedicated to publishing computer and video game console software, called Disney Interactive. The initial staff consisted of 200 newly hired employees. The company was formally established in mid-1995. On August 23, 1995, Disney Interactive formed Disney Online.

Buena Vista Internet Group.

Disney purchased a one-third share of Starwave on April 3, 1997, for $100 million. In January 1998, Disney registered go.com. Exercising its options, Disney purchased the outstanding shares of Starwave from Paul Allen in April 1998. In June 1998, Disney purchased 43% ownership of Infoseek in exchange for Starwave and $70 million. Infoseek and Disney Online joint ventured in developing the Go Network, an internet portal. With Disney's purchase of the remainder of Infoseek in July 1999, the Go Network, Infoseek, the Disney Catalog, Disney Online (Disney.com and DisneyStore.com), ABC News Internet Ventures and ESPN Internet Ventures and Buena Vista Internet Group are merged into the Go.com company.  In August 1996, BVIG took a controlling in interest in toysmart.com with three directors on the board. Toysmart would be granted marketing support including free advertising on BVIG websites like family.com. After an attempted round of financing, Toysmart.com shut down in May 2000.  In June 1999, the Disney Internet Guide is abandoned. The Go.com portal was shut down in 2001 at a cost of $878 million in charges.  In 2004, Disney re-activated the Starwave identity as Starwave Mobile, which publishes casual games for mobile phones for non-Disney brands with in Disney conglomerate or from third party. In December 2004 and partnered with Indiagames, the Walt Disney Internet Group released Disney games, wallpapers and ringtones in the Indian market which is also available on AirTel.  The group purchased Living Mobile, a European mobile game developer and publisher in November 2005.

Interactive Media Group.

On June 5, 2008, Disney Interactive Studios and the Walt Disney Internet Group merged into a single business unit, now known as the Disney Interactive Media Group. In 2009, DIMG's Disney Online unit purchased multiple websites from Kaboose.  In July 2010, Disney Interactive purchased Playdom for $563.2 million and Tapulous for its Mobile division. On July 1, Disney Interactive announced it had acquired Tapulous, the studio behind the Tap Tap Revenge franchise for iOS. In October, two co-presidents were named for DIMG, John Pleasants and James Pitaro, with orders to make the company profitable.  In January 2011, DIMG closed its Propaganda Games game studio and laid off 200 employees later in the month. The dual presidents placed the game studios of Blackrock, Junction Point, Avalanche, Wideload and Gamestar under its new game development chief Alex Seropian while Penguin creator Lane Merrifield was assigned to game initiatives for kids and families within a new publishing unit to handle marketing and production. On February 18, DIMG purchased Togetherville, a pre-teen social network. Also in February, Disney purchased Finland-based Rocket Pack, a game development company with a plugin free game development system. In November, DIMG purchased Babble Media Inc.  In April 2012, the Group announced three web series targeted towards mothers: "Moms of", "That's Fresh", and "Thinking Up." By October, DIMG had 15 consecutive quarters of losses totaling some $977 million. Lane Merrifield, the founder of Club Penguin, resigned after conflict with Pleasants. DIMG also in October announced "Toy Box", a cross platform gaming initiative where Pixar and Disney characters will interact from a console game to multiple mobile and online applications.

Disney Interactive.

Around May–July 2012, Disney Interactive Media Group changed its name to Disney Interactive (DI).  In January 2013, Disney Interactive Games' Avalanche Software unveiled the Toy Box cross platform game as "Disney Infinity", based on ""'s "Toy Box" mode crossed with a toy line. Also in January, Disney Interactive announced the closure of Junction Point Studios.  In October 2013, Disney announced that its Interactive division had a profit of $16 million for its fourth quarter, based partly on sales of Disney Infinity and uniting both halves of the division under one president.  In March 2014, Disney Interactive announced it was laying off 700 people, or one-fourth of its staff as DI combines its two-game units, mobile and social, due to sagging popularity of Facebook games, and closing some Disney Online sites. They said will focus less on advertising and more on sponsorships for Disney Online and licensed game development. While some endeavors have shown profitability, such as an app in Japan and the combined game and toy line "Infinity", the segment as a whole is unprofitable for Disney.  Disney Interactive was merged with Disney Consumer Products on June 29, 2015, forming a new segment and division known as "Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media", with Disney Interactive as a direct unit. In December 2015, Maker Studios was placed under the control of Disney Interactive with the appointment of Maker's executive vice president Courtney Holt, reporting to Jimmy Pitaro, president of Disney Interactive.  With a lack of growth in toy-to-game market and increasing developmental costs, in May 2016, Disney Interactive discontinued "Disney Infinity" and closed down the unit that developed "Infinity", Avalanche Software. Also, the company ended all self-publishing efforts. A discontinuation charge of $147 million for ending its console gaming business affected earning.  In September 2018, Disney confirmed the imminent discontinuation of "Club Penguin Island" in a letter sent to its Disney Online Studios team in Kelowna, as well as the layoffs of most employees in said studio.  In November 2018, Disney agreed to have Jam City take over operation of its Glendale-based Disney Interactive Studios, sell them "Emoji Blitz" and development of future Pixar and Walt Disney Animation franchises games. Staff at the studio would be offered jobs with Jam City working of the Disney titles.

Units.

Disney Online.

Disney Online is a division of Disney Interactive that operates most of Disney online portfolio.

Disney Online History.

On August 23, 1995, Disney Interactive formed Disney Online unit with the naming of Jake Winebaum as president of Disney Online. On November 19, 1996, the opening of DisneyStore.com was open under Disney Online business unit. The family.com website is launched on December 9, 1996.  Disney announced on April 18, 1997 that it will purchase Starwave's Family Planet Web site and merge it with Family.com. The Disney Daily Blast (dailyblast.com) web site is official launched on April 23 under a subscription plan and daily content targeted to younger viewers with Microsoft Network marketing and distributing for an exclusive 10-month period.  In July 1998, Disney Online announced dig.com, Disney Internet Guide, a child friendly web directory which launched in June 1998 and closed one year later in June to focus on Infoseek/Go Network.  In late 2007, DIMG purchased IParenting Media's websites. Disney sold movies.com to Fandango in June 2008. Disney Online purchased in 2008 Take 180 from Chris Williams, who stays on until April 2012 as vice president and general manager of Disney Online Originals, which has Take 180 as creative hub. In 2009, DIMG's Disney Online unit purchased from Kaboose multiple websites including: Kaboose.com, Babyzone.com, AmazingMoms.com, Funschool.com and Zeeks.com, and place them into its Disney Family Network. Disney.com purchased Kerpoof in February 2009.  In November 2011, DIMG purchased Babble Media Inc. to add it to the Mom and Family Portfolio. In March 2014, Disney Interactive announced it was laying off 700 people, or one-fourth of its staff as DI closed smaller Disney Online sites including BabyZone.com and Spoonful.com. They said will focus less on advertising and more on sponsorships for Disney Online to fit the experience Disney wishes to offer.

Disney Games and Interactive Experiences, originally established as Disney Interactive, Disney Interactive Media Group and Walt Disney Internet Group, is an American company that oversees various websites and interactive media owned by The Walt Disney Company and its subsidiaries.

Le Disney Interactive Media Group est une société, filiale de la Walt Disney Company, créée le de la fusion de Disney Interactive Studios et du Walt Disney Internet Group. La société supervise les différents sites internet et productions sur les médias interactifs de la Walt Disney Company et ses filiales. En juin 2015, Disney annonce le regroupement de ses divisions Disney Consumer Products et Disney Interactive pour le début de l'année fiscale 2016 sous le nom "Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media".


Etymology.

The word "Kolkata" derives from "Kôlikata" () [ˈkɔliˌkat̪a], the Bengali name of one of three villages that predated the arrival of the British, in the area where the city was eventually established; the other two villages

History.

British colonial rule.

The discovery and archaeological study of Chandraketugarh, north of Kolkata, provide evidence that the region in which the city stands has been inhabited for over two millennia. Kolkata's recorded history began in 1690 with the arrival of the English East India Company, which was consolidating its trade business in Bengal. Job Charnock, an administrator who worked for the company, was formerly credited as the founder of the city; In response to a public petition, the Calcutta High Court ruled in 2003 that the city does not have a founder. The area occupied by the present-day city encompassed three

Contemporary.

During the 1960s and 1970s, severe power shortages, strikes and a violent Marxist–Maoist movement by groups known as the Naxalites damaged much of the city's infrastructure, resulting in economic stagnation. The Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 led to a massive influx of thousands of refugees, many of them penniless, that strained Kolkata's infrastructure. During the mid-1980s, Mumbai (then called Bombay) overtook Kolkata as India's most populous city. In 1985, prime minister Rajiv Gandhi

Geography.

Spread roughly north–south along the east bank of the Hooghly River, Kolkata sits within the lower Ganges Delta of eastern India approximately 75 km (47 mi) west of the international border with Bangladesh; the city's elevation is. Much of the city was originally a wetland that was reclaimed over the decades to accommodate a burgeoning population. The remaining undeveloped areas, known as the East Kolkata Wetlands, were designated a "wetland of international importance" by the Ramsar Convention (1975). As with most of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, the soil and water are predominantly alluvial in origin. Kolkata is located over the "Bengal basin", a pericratonic tertiary basin. Bengal basin comprises three structural units: shelf or platform in the west; central hinge or shelf/slope break; and deep basinal part in the east and southeast. Kolkata is located atop the western part of the hinge zone which is about wide at a depth of about below the surface. The shelf and hinge zones have many faults, among them some are active. Total thickness of sediment below Kolkata is nearly above the crystalline basement; of these the top is Quaternary, followed by of Tertiary sediments, trap wash of Cretaceous trap and Permian-Carboniferous Gondwana rocks. The quaternary sediments consist of clay, silt and several grades of sand and gravel. These sediments are sandwiched between two clay beds: the lower one at a depth of ; the upper one in thickness. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, on a scale ranging from in order of increasing susceptibility to earthquakes, the city lies inside seismic zone III.

Urban structure.

The Kolkata metropolitan area is spread over and comprises 4 municipal corporations (including Kolkata Municipal Corporation), 37 local municipalities and 24 panchayat samitis, as of 2011. The urban agglomeration encompassed 72 cities and 527 towns and villages, as of 2006. Suburban areas in the Kolkata metropolitan area incorporate parts of the following districts: North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly and Nadia. Kolkata, which is under the jurisdiction of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), has an area of. The east–west dimension of the city is comparatively narrow, stretching from the Hooghly River in the west to roughly the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass in the east—a span of. The north–south distance is greater, and its axis is used to section the city into North, Central, South and East Kolkata.  North Kolkata is the oldest part of the city. Characterised by 19th-century architecture and narrow alleyways, it includes areas such as Jorasanko, Rajabazar, Maniktala, Ultadanga, Shyambazar, Shobhabazar, Bagbazar, Cossipore, Sinthee etc. The north suburban areas like Dum Dum, Baranagar, Belgharia, Sodepur, Khardaha, New Barrackpore, Madhyamgram, Barrackpore, Barasat etc. are also within the

Climate.

Kolkata is subject to a tropical wet-and-dry climate that is designated "Aw" under the Köppen climate classification. According to a United Nations Development Programme report, its wind and cyclone zone is "very high damage risk".

Temperature.

The annual mean temperature is ; monthly mean temperatures are. Summers (March–June) are hot and humid, with temperatures in the low 30s Celsius; during dry spells, maximum temperatures often exceed 40 °C (104 °F) in May and June. Winter lasts for roughly two-and-a-half months, with seasonal lows dipping to in December and January. May is the hottest

Rainfall.

Rains brought by the Bay of Bengal branch of the south-west summer monsoon lash Kolkata between June and September, supplying it with most of its annual rainfall of about. The highest monthly rainfall total occurs in July and August. In these months often incessant rain for days brings life to a stall for the city dwellers. The city receives 2,107 hours of sunshine per year, with maximum sunlight exposure occurring in April. Kolkata has been hit by several cyclones; these include systems occurring in 1737 and 1864 that killed thousands. In 2009, Severe Cyclone Aila and in 2020 Extremely Severe Cyclone Amphan caused widespread damage to Kolkata by bringing catastrophic winds and torrential rainfall.

Environmental issues.

Pollution is a major concern in Kolkata., sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide annual concentration were within the national ambient air quality standards of India, but

Economy.

Kolkata is the commercial and financial hub of East and North-East India and home to the Calcutta Stock Exchange. It is a major commercial and military port, and is the only city in eastern India, apart from Bhubaneswar to have an international airport. Once India's leading city, Kolkata experienced a steady economic decline in the decades following India's independence due to steep population increases and a rise in militant trade-unionism, which included frequent strikes that were backed by left-wing parties. From the 1960s to the late 1990s, several factories were closed and businesses relocated. The lack of capital and resources added to the depressed state of the city's economy and gave rise to an unwelcome sobriquet: the "dying city". The city's fortunes improved after the Indian economy was liberalised in the 1990s and changes in economic policy were enacted by the West Bengal state government. Recent estimates of the economy of Kolkata's metropolitan area have ranged from $60 to $150 billion (PPP GDP), and have ranked it third-most productive metro area of India.  Flexible production has been the norm in Kolkata, which has an informal sector that employs more than 40% of the labour force. One unorganised group, roadside hawkers, generated business worth 87.72 billion ( 2 billion) in 2005., around

Demographics.

The demonym for residents of Kolkata are "Calcuttan" and "Kolkatan". According to provisional results of the 2011 national census, Kolkata district, which occupies an area of, had a population of 4,486,679; its population density was. This represents a decline of 1.88% during the decade 2001–11. The sex ratio is 899 females per 1000 males—lower than the national average. The ratio is depressed by the influx of working males from surrounding rural areas, from the rest of West Bengal; these men commonly leave their families behind. Kolkata's literacy rate of 87.14% exceeds the national average of 74%. The final population totals of census 2011 stated the population of city as 4,496,694. The urban agglomeration had a population of 14,112,536 in 2011.  Bengali Hindus form the majority of Kolkata's population; Marwaris, Biharis and Muslims compose large minorities. Among Kolkata's smaller communities are Chinese, Tamils, Nepalis, Pathans/Afghans (locally known as "Kabuliwala") Odias, Telugus, Assamese, Gujaratis, Anglo-Indians, Armenians, Greeks, Tibetans, Maharashtrians, Konkanis, Malayalees, Punjabis and Parsis. The number of Armenians, Greeks, Jews and other foreign-origin groups declined during the 20th century. The Jewish population of Kolkata was 5,000 during World War II, but declined after Indian independence and the establishment of Israel; by 2013, there were 25 Jews in the city. India's sole Chinatown is in eastern Kolkata; once home to 20,000 ethnic Chinese, its population dropped to around 2,000 as a result of multiple factors including

Government and public services.

Civic administration.

Kolkata is administered by several government agencies. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation, or KMC, oversees and manages the civic infrastructure of the city's 16 boroughs, which together encompass 144 wards. Each ward elects a councillor to the KMC. Each borough has a committee of councillors, each of whom is elected to represent a ward. By means of the borough committees, the corporation undertakes urban planning and maintains roads, government-aided schools, hospitals, and municipal markets. As Kolkata's apex body, the corporation discharges its functions through the mayor-in-council, which comprises a mayor, a deputy mayor, and ten other elected members of the KMC. The functions of the KMC include water supply, drainage and sewerage, sanitation, solid waste management, street lighting, and building regulation.  Kolkata's administrative agencies have areas of jurisdiction that do not coincide. Listed in ascending order by area, they are: Kolkata district; the Kolkata Police area and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area, or "Kolkata city"; and the Kolkata metropolitan area, which is the city's urban agglomeration. The agency overseeing the latter, the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority, is responsible for the statutory planning and development

Utility services.

The Kolkata Municipal Corporation supplies the city with potable water that is sourced from the Hooghly River; most of it is treated and purified at the Palta pumping station located in North 24 Parganas district. Roughly 95% of the 4,000 tonnes of refuse produced daily by the city is transported to the dumping grounds in Dhapa, which is east of the town. To promote the recycling of garbage and sewer water, agriculture is encouraged on the dumping grounds. Parts of the city lack proper sewerage, leading to unsanitary methods of waste disposal.  In 1856 the Bengal Government appointed George Turnbull to be the Commissioner of Drainage and Sewerage to improve the city's sewerage.

Military and diplomatic establishments.

The Eastern Command of the Indian Army is based in the city. Being one of India's major city and the largest city in eastern and north-eastern India, Kolkata hosts diplomatic missions of many countries such as Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Canada, People's Republic of China, France,

Transport.

Public transport is provided by the Kolkata Suburban Railway, the Kolkata Metro, trams, rickshaws, taxis and buses. The suburban rail network connects the city's distant suburbs.  According to a 2013 survey conducted by the International Association of Public Transport, in terms of a public transport system, Kolkata ranks among the top of the six Indian cities surveyed. The Kolkata Metro, in operation since 1984, is the oldest underground mass transit system in India. It spans the north–south length of the city. In 2020, part of the Second line was inaugurated to cover part of Salt Lake. This East-West line will connect Salt Lake with Howrah The 2 lines cover a distance of., four Metro rail lines were under construction. Kolkata has five long-distance railway stations, located at Howrah (the largest railway complex in India), Sealdah, Chitpur, Shalimar and Santragachi, which connect Kolkata by rail to most cities in West Bengal and to other major cities in India. The city serves as the headquarters of three railway Zone out of Eighteen of the Indian Railways regional divisions—the Kolkata Metro Railways, Eastern Railway and the South-Eastern Railway. Kolkata has rail and road connectivity with Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.  Buses, which are the most commonly used mode of transport, are run by government agencies and private operators. Kolkata is the only Indian city with a

Healthcare.

, the health care system in Kolkata consists of 48 government hospitals, mostly under the Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of West Bengal, and 366 private medical establishments; these establishments provide the city with 27,687 hospital beds. For every 10,000 people in the city, there are 61.7 hospital beds, which is higher than the national average of 9 hospital beds per 10,000. Ten medical and dental colleges are located in the Kolkata metropolitan area which act as tertiary referral hospitals in the state. The Calcutta Medical College, founded in 1835, was the first institution in Asia to teach modern medicine. However, These facilities are inadequate to meet the healthcare needs of the city. More than 78% in Kolkata prefer the private medical sector over the public medical sector, due to the overburdening of the public health sector, the lack of a nearby facility, and excessive waiting times at government facilities.  According to the Indian 2005 National Family Health Survey, only a small proportion of Kolkata households were covered under any health scheme or

Education.

Kolkata's schools are run by the state government or private organisations, many of which are religious. Bengali and English are the primary languages of instruction; Urdu and Hindi are also used, particularly in central Kolkata. Schools in Kolkata follow the "10+2+3" plan. After completing their secondary education, students typically enroll in schools that have a higher secondary facility and are affiliated with the West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education, the ICSE, or the CBSE. They usually choose a focus on liberal arts, business, or science. Vocational programs are also available. Some Kolkata schools, for example La Martiniere Calcutta, Calcutta Boys' School, South Point School, St. James' School (Kolkata), St. Xavier's Collegiate School and Loreto House, have been ranked amongst the best schools in the country., the Kolkata urban agglomeration is home to 14 universities run by the state government. The colleges are each affiliated with a university or institution based either in Kolkata or elsewhere in India. Aliah University which was founded in 1780 as "Mohammedan College of Calcutta" is the oldest post-secondary educational institution of the city. The University of Calcutta, founded in 1857, is the first modern university in South Asia. Presidency College, Kolkata (formerly Hindu College between 1817 and 1855), founded in 1855, was one of the oldest and most eminent colleges in India. It was affiliated with the University of Calcutta until

Culture.

Kolkata is known for its literary, artistic and revolutionary heritage; as the former capital of India, it was the birthplace of modern Indian literary and artistic thought. Kolkata has been called the "City of Furious, Creative Energy" as well as the "cultural [or literary] capital of India". The presence of "paras", which are neighbourhoods that possess a strong sense of community, is characteristic of the city. Typically, each "para" has its own community club and on occasion, a playing field. Residents engage in "addas", or leisurely chats, that often take the form of freestyle intellectual conversation. The city has a tradition of political graffiti depicting everything from outrageous slander to witty banter and limericks, caricatures and propaganda.Kolkata has many buildings adorned with Indo-Islamic and Indo-Saracenic architectural motifs. Several well-maintained major buildings from the colonial period have been declared "heritage structures"; others are in various stages of decay. Established in 1814 as the nation's oldest museum, the Indian Museum houses large collections that showcase Indian natural history and Indian art. Marble Palace is a classic example of a European mansion that was built in the city. The Victoria Memorial, a place of interest in Kolkata, has a museum documenting the city's history. The National Library of India is the leading public library in the country while Science City is the largest science centre in the Indian subcontinent.The popularity of commercial theatres in the city has declined since the 1980s. Group theatres of Kolkata, a cultural movement that started in the 1940s contrasting with the then-popular commercial theatres, are theatres that are not professional or commercial, and are centres of various experiments in theme, content, and production; group theatres use the proscenium stage to highlight socially relevant messages. Chitpur locality of the city houses multiple production companies of "jatra", a tradition of folk drama popular in rural Bengal. Kolkata is the home of the Bengali cinema industry, dubbed "Tollywood" for Tollygunj, where most of the state's film studios are located. Its long tradition of art films includes globally acclaimed film directors such as Academy Award-winning director Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak, Mrinal Sen, Tapan Sinha and contemporary directors such as Aparna Sen, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Goutam Ghose and Rituparno

Media.

The first newspaper in India, the "Bengal Gazette" started publishing from the city in 1780. Among Kolkata's widely circulated Bengali-language newspapers are "Anandabazar Patrika", "Bartaman", Ei Samay Sangbadpatra, "Sangbad Pratidin", "Aajkaal", "Dainik Statesman" and "Ganashakti". "The Statesman" and "The Telegraph" are two major English-language newspapers that are produced and published from Kolkata. Other popular English-language newspapers published and sold in Kolkata include "The Times of India", "Hindustan Times", "The Hindu", "The Indian Express" and the "Asian Age". As the largest trading centre in East India, Kolkata has several high-circulation financial dailies,

Sports.

The most popular sports in Kolkata are football and cricket. Unlike most parts of India, the residents show significant passion for football. The city is home to top national football clubs such as Mohun Bagan A.C., East Bengal F.C. and the Mohammedan Sporting Club. Calcutta Football League, which was started in 1898, is the oldest football league in Asia. Mohun Bagan A.C., one of the oldest football clubs in Asia, is the only organisation to be dubbed a "National Club of India". Football matches between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, dubbed as the Kolkata derby, witness large audience attendance and rivalry between patrons. The multi-use Salt Lake Stadium, also known as Yuva Bharati Krirangan, is India's largest stadium by seating capacity. Most matches of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup were played in the Salt Lake Stadium including both Semi-final matches and the Final match. Kolkata also accounted for 45% of total attendance in 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup with an average of 55,345 spectators. The Calcutta Cricket and Football Club is the second-oldest cricket club in the world.  As in the rest of India, cricket is popular in Kolkata and is played on grounds and in streets throughout the city. Kolkata has the Indian Premier League franchise Kolkata Knight Riders; the Cricket Association of Bengal, which regulates cricket in West Bengal, is also based in the city. Kolkata also has an Indian Super League franchise known as Atlético de Kolkata. Tournaments, especially those involving cricket, football, badminton and carrom, are regularly organised on an inter-locality or inter-club basis. The Maidan, a vast field that serves as the city's largest park, hosts several minor football and cricket clubs and coaching institutes. Eden Gardens, which has a capacity of 68,000, hosted the final match of the 1987 Cricket World Cup. It is home to the Bengal cricket team and the Kolkata Knight Riders.  Kolkata's Netaji Indoor Stadium served as host of the 1981 Asian Basketball Championship, where India's national basketball team finished 5th, ahead of teams that belong to Asia's basketball elite, such as Iran. The city has three 18-hole golf courses. The oldest is at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club, the first golf club built outside the United Kingdom. The other two are located at the Tollygunge Club and at Fort William. The Royal Calcutta Turf Club hosts horse racing and polo matches. The Calcutta Polo Club is considered the oldest extant polo club in the world. The Calcutta Racket Club is a squash and racquet club in Kolkata. It was founded in 1793, making it one of the oldest rackets clubs in the world, and the first in the Indian subcontinent. The Calcutta South Club is a venue for national and international tennis tournaments; it held the first grass-court national championship in 1946. In the period 2005–2007, Sunfeast Open, a tier-III tournament on the Women's Tennis Association circuit, was held in the Netaji Indoor Stadium; it has since been discontinued.  The Calcutta Rowing Club hosts rowing heats and training events. Kolkata, considered the leading centre of rugby union in India, gives its name to the oldest international tournament in rugby union, the Calcutta Cup. The Automobile Association of Eastern India, established in 1904, and the Bengal Motor Sports Club are involved in promoting motor sports and car rallies in Kolkata and West Bengal. The Beighton Cup, an event organised by the Bengal Hockey Association and first played in 1895, is India's oldest field hockey tournament; it is usually held on the Mohun Bagan Ground of the Maidan. Athletes from Kolkata include Sourav Ganguly, Pankaj Roy and Jhulan Goswami, who are former captains of the Indian national cricket team; Olympic tennis bronze medalist Leander Paes, golfer Arjun Atwal, and former footballers Sailen Manna, Chuni Goswami, P. K. Banerjee and Subrata Bhattacharya.

Kolkata ( or,, also rendered Calcutta, the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian census, it is the seventh most populous city in India; the city had a population of 4.5 million, while the suburb population brought the total to 14.1 million, making it the third-most populous metropolitan area in India. Kolkata Megalopolis is the area surrounding Kolkata Metropolitan city with additional population. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River approximately west of the border with Bangladesh, it is the principal commercial, cultural and educational centre of East India, while the Port of Kolkata is India's oldest operating port and its sole major riverine port. The city nicknamed the "City of Joy" is widely regarded as the "cultural capital" of India. Recent estimates of the metro economy of its urban area have ranked Kolkata third-most productive metro area of India.

Calcutta ou Kolkata depuis 2001 (, ) est une ville du Nord-Est de l'Inde. Capitale du Bengale-Occidental, située sur la rive gauche du fleuve Hooghly, Kolkata compte et son agglomération 14 millions, ce qui en fait la troisième agglomération du pays, après Delhi et Bombay, et la au monde.


Feral horse populations.

Horses that live in an untamed state but, have ancestors who have been domesticated are not true "wild" horses; they are feral horses. The only truly wild horses in existence today are the Przewalski's horse native to the steppes of central Asia. The best-known examples of feral horses are the "wild" horses of the American west. When Europeans reintroduced the horse to the Americas, beginning with the arrival of the Conquistadors in the 15th century, some horses escaped and formed feral herds known today as Mustangs.  Australia has the largest population of feral horses in the world, with in excess of 400,000 feral horses. The Australian name equivalent to the 'Mustang' is the Brumby, feral descendants of horses brought to Australia by English settlers.  In Portugal, there are two populations of free-ranging feral horses, known as Sorraia in the southern plains and Garrano in the northern mountain chains. There are also isolated populations of feral horses in a number of other places, including Sable Island off the coast of Nova Scotia, Assateague Island off the coast of Virginia and Maryland, Cumberland Island, Georgia, and Vieques island off the coast of Puerto Rico. Some of these horses are said to be the descendants of horses who managed to swim to land when they were shipwrecked. Others may have been deliberately brought to various islands by settlers and either left to reproduce freely or abandoned when assorted human settlements failed.  More than 400 feral horses live in the foothills of Cincar mountain, between Livno and Kupres, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in an area of approximately. These animals, which descend from horses set free by their owners in the 1950s, enjoy a protected status since 2010.  A modern feral horse population ("Janghali ghura") is found in the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Biosphere reserve of Assam, in north-east India, and is a herd of approximately 79 feral horses descended from animals that escaped army camps during World War II.  In North America, feral horses are the offspring of horses that were domesticated in Europe, although many ancient, prehistoric subspecies now extinct evolved in North America. While there are similarities shown in certain genes of both modern and fossil North American horses, they are not believed to be members of the same species. In the western United States, certain bands of horses and burros are protected under the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971.

Modern feral horses.

Modern types of feral horses that have a significant percentage of their number living in a feral state, even though there may be some domesticated representatives, include the following types, landraces, and breeds:

Semi-feral horses.

In the United Kingdom, herds of free-roaming ponies live in apparently wild conditions in various areas, notably Dartmoor, Exmoor, Cumbria (Fell Pony) and the New Forest. Similar horse and pony populations exist elsewhere on the European continent. These animals, however, are not truly feral, as all of them are privately owned, and roam out on the moors and forests under common grazing rights belonging to their owners. A proportion of them are halter-broken, and a smaller proportion broken to ride but simply turned out for a while for any of a number of reasons (e.g., a break in training to allow them to grow on, a break from working to allow them to breed under natural conditions, or retirement). In other cases, the animals may be government-owned and closely managed on controlled reserves.

Population impacts.

Feral populations are usually controversial, with livestock producers often at odds with horse aficionados and other animal welfare advocates. Different habitats are impacted in different ways by feral horses. Where feral horses had wild ancestors indigenous to a region, a controlled population may have minimal environmental impact, particularly when their primary territory is one where they do not compete with domesticated livestock to any significant degree. However, in areas where they are an introduced species, such as Australia, or if the population is allowed to exceed available range, there can be significant impacts on soil, vegetation (including overgrazing), and animals that are native species.  If a feral population lives close to civilization, their behavior can lead them to damage human-built livestock fencing and related structures. In some cases, where feral horses compete with domestic livestock, particularly on public lands where multiple uses are permitted, such as in the Western United States, there is considerable controversy over which species is most responsible for degradation of rangeland, with commercial interests often advocating for the removal of the feral horse population to allow more grazing for cattle or sheep, and advocates for feral horses recommending reduction in the numbers of domestic livestock allowed to graze on public lands.  Certain populations have considerable historic or sentimental value, such as the Chincoteague pony that lives on Assateague Island, a national seashore with a delicate coastal ecosystem, or the Misaki pony of Japan that lives on a small refuge within the municipal boundaries of Kushima. These populations manage to thrive with careful management that includes using the animals to promote tourism to support the local economy. Most sustained feral populations are managed by various forms of culling, which, depending on the nation and other local conditions, may include capturing excess animals for adoption or sale. In some nations, management may include the often-controversial practice of selling captured animals for slaughter or simply shooting them. Fertility control is also sometimes used, though it is expensive and has to be repeated on a regular basis.

A feral horse is a free-roaming horse of domesticated stock. As such, a feral horse is not a wild animal in the sense of an animal without domesticated ancestors. However, some populations of feral horses are managed as wildlife, and these horses often are popularly called "wild" horses. Feral horses are descended from domestic horses that strayed, escaped, or were deliberately released into the wild and remained to survive and reproduce there. Away from humans, over time, these animals' patterns of behavior revert to behavior more closely resembling that of wild horses. Some horses that live in a feral state but may be occasionally handled or managed by humans, particularly if privately owned, are referred to as "semi-feral".

Un cheval sauvage est un cheval qui vit en liberté, sans contacts avec l'être humain, ou très peu, par opposition au cheval domestique. L'expression « cheval sauvage » n'est appliquée, de façon erronée, qu'à des animaux descendants de populations de chevaux domestiques, retournées à l'état sauvage par marronnage, après avoir été abandonnées ou après s'être échappées. Ces animaux se réadaptent très facilement à la vie sauvage. Il ne faut pas confondre leur situation avec celle des chevaux préhistoriques disparus qui n'ont jamais été domestiqués.


History.

Troy was platted ca. 1807. A post office in Troy has been in operation since 1824.  Troy was one of the cities impacted by severe flooding in the Great Flood of 1913.  On August 28, 2004 George W. Bush had a rally in downtown Troy in the square.  A definitive book on the history of Troy titled "Troy: The Nineteenth Century" was authored and published by Thomas Bemis Wheeler and the Troy Historical Society in January, 1970. Copies are still available online and through the organization. Detailed events include the founding of the city and the Ohio canal era of the 1800s.

Historic sites.

The city was the location of the Hobart Welded Steel House Company, which might have become influential in U.S. housing, if pre-fabricated houses had succeeded in becoming popular after World War II. The firms' homes are similar to those of the more well-known Lustron houses of the Columbus, Ohio-based Lustron Corporation (which also failed). The Hobart firm manufactured and built 22 homes, all in Troy, 16 of which survive and are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.  Other NRHP-listed properties in Troy include four unrelated homes, a tavern, the Miami County Courthouse and Power Station, the 1859 First Presbyterian Church, and the Troy Public Square.

Geography.

Troy is located at (40.041621, -84.208627).  According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Demographics.

As of 2000 the median income for a household in the city was $39,531, and the median income for a family was $46,889. Males had a median income of $35,819 versus $25,536 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,892. About 6.4% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.8% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census.

As of the census of 2010, there were 25,058 people, 10,353 households, and 6,600 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 11,166 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 90.1% White, 4.2% African American, 0.2% Native American, 2.4% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.8% of the population.  There were 10,353 households of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.1% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.3% were non-families. 30.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.95.  The median age in the city was 36.9 years. 25.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.1% were from 25 to 44; 25.7% were from 45 to 64; and 13.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.7% male and 51.3% female.

Government.

The City of Troy is a Statutory form of Government, as described in Ohio Revised Code Sections 731 and 733. General statutory law is the form of government of municipalities if the electorate has not adopted, by vote, one of the other forms. In addition to a Council, a Mayor, President of Council and three principal administrators (Auditor, Treasurer and Solicitor) are chosen by the electorate. The daily operations of the City are administered by the Mayor. The City of Troy has a Service and Safety Director who reports to and is appointed by the Mayor.  The Mayor, Auditor and Law Director are elected to four year terms. The City Council is elected to two year terms on odd numbered years. President of City Council, three At-Large representatives and Ward representatives 1 through 6 are selected by the electorate. The current Mayor and Auditor were elected in 2019 and the City Council was elected in 2017. The current Treasurer was elected in 2017.  The Troy City Police Department is located at 124 E. Main Street. The force has 38 officers and 3 civilian employees. The department is separated into 3 divisions: Patrol, Detective and Administration, with Charles Phelps as current Police Chief. The department moved to its current location in 1995.  The Troy Fire Department was established in 1850 with the Troy Hook & Ladder Company and the Troy Bucket Company were organized. The Fire Department of Troy was formally organized in the fall of 1857. Currently the fire department operates with three fire stations and 37 firefighter/paramedics, a training Lieutenant, 2 Assistant Chiefs and the current Fire Chief Matthew D. Simmons. The fire department provides a full complement of services to its citizens with fire/EMS/Community outreach/ specialty rescue services. The Troy Fire Department serves 74.2 square miles with the city and three townships averaging over 5,000 incidents a year. Their motto of "Exceeding the Expectations of our Community" is evident with their Fire Apprenticeship program and the Quick Response Team (QRT) for addition services.

Education.

Troy City Schools operates public schools  The Western Ohio Japanese Language School (オハイオ西部日本語学校 "Ohaio Seibu Nihongo Gakkō") is a supplementary weekend Japanese school in unincorporated Miami County, near Troy. It started in April 1988.  Troy is home to the Hobart Institute of Welding Technology, founded in 1930, one of the premier welding schools in the United States. https://classonewelding.com/top-welding-schools-usa/  Troy has a public library, a branch of the Troy-Miami County Public Library.

Media.

The city and surrounding area are served by a daily newspaper based in Troy, the "Miami Valley Today" in addition to WTJN-LP "Troy Community Radio" 107.1 FM and online, including My Miami County.com.

Arts and culture.

On August 30, 2013 Mumford & Sons had a concert in the Troy High School football stadium for their Gentlemen of the Road Stopover tour.  Troy is home to the Troy-Hayner Cultural Center, a 1914 Romanesque mansion donated to the city by Mary Jane Harter Coleman Hayner. Hayner had been the wife of William Hayner, founder of a Dayton-based mail order whiskey business which operated prior to the Prohibition. Today, the Troy-Hayner houses the Hayner Distillery Collection as well as a variety of works by local artists.

Troy is a city in and the county seat of Miami County, Ohio, United States located north of Dayton. The population was 25,058 at the 2010 census, making it the largest city in the county and the 61st largest city in Ohio; it is part of the Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area. Troy is home to an annual Strawberry Festival the first weekend in June.

La ville de Troy est le siège du comté de Miami, situé dans l'État de l'Ohio, aux États-Unis. Selon le recensement de 2010, sa population est de.


History.

The name Bellefontaine means "beautiful spring" in French, and is purported to refer to several springs in the area. However, locally, the original French pronunciation is not used, and it is pronounced "bell fountain."

Blue Jacket's Town.

Around 1777, the Shawnee war chief Blue Jacket ("Weyapiersenwah") built a settlement here, known as "Blue Jacket's Town". Blue Jacket and his band had previously occupied a village along the Scioto River, but the American Revolutionary War had reached the Ohio Country. Blue Jacket and other American Indians who took up arms against the American revolutionaries relocated in order to be closer to their British allies at Detroit.  After the United States gained independence, its forces continued warfare against former Indian allies of the British. Blue Jacket's Town was destroyed in Logan's Raid, conducted by Kentucky militia in 1786 at the outset of the Northwest Indian War. The expedition was led by Benjamin Logan, namesake of Logan County. Blue Jacket and his followers relocated further northwest to the Maumee River.  Beginning in the 1800s, American Revolutionary War veterans and others from Virginia and elsewhere began settling in the area of Blue Jacket's Town. Bellefontaine is on or near the edge of the Virginia Military District, where the cash-poor government granted tracts of land to veterans in payment for their services during the war. The Treaty of Greenville defined lands to be held by European Americans as separate from those to be held by natives but it was poorly administered in the area and whites frequently encroached on native lands.

Railroads.

Bellefontaine was platted by European Americans in 1820 and incorporated by the legislature in 1835. In 1837, the Mad River & Lake Erie Railroad built the first railroad to Bellefontaine. This began its reputation as a railroading town. In the 1890s the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (also called the Big Four Railroad) built a main terminal in the city. This terminal boasted the largest roundhouse between New York and St. Louis.  Though railroading hit hard times and the industry went through radical restructuring in the late 20th century, and the Big Four terminal ceased operations in 1983, Bellefontaine remains a landmark on America's railways. The city is now just a thoroughfare for CSX.

Automotive transportation.

In 1891, Bellefontaine became the location of the first concrete street in America. George Bartholomew invented a process for paving using Portland cement, which until then had been used in stone construction. A small section of Main Street, on the west side of the Logan County Courthouse, was the first to be paved using that process. When that proved successful, Court Avenue, which runs along the south side of the courthouse, was paved with concrete. While Main Street is now paved with asphalt, Court Avenue has retained its original concrete pavement for more than 100 years. At its centennial, the street was closed to traffic and a statue of Bartholomew placed at its Main Street end; it became a pedestrian way. Since then one lane has been reopened for eastbound traffic.  In 1979, Honda began manufacturing motorcycles in the nearby city of Marysville, Ohio. Since that time, Honda's operations in the Bellefontaine area have greatly expanded. Bellefontaine is a central location among Honda operations in Marysville, East Liberty, Russells Point, Anna, and Troy, Ohio. Honda is Bellefontaine's largest employer in the early 21st century.  U.S. Route 68 intersects with State Routes 47 and 540 in Bellefontaine. U.S. Route 33, a freeway that has interchanges with US 68 and SR 540, skirts the northern edge of the city.

Campbell Hill.

To European settlers, Campbell Hill was first known as Hogue's Hill, perhaps a misspelling of Solomon Hoge's surname, the person who first deeded the land in 1830. In 1898, the land was sold to Charles D. Campbell, in whose name Campbell Hill is now known. Campbell sold the hill and surrounding land to August Wagner, who was the original brewer of Augustiner and Gambrinus beers. (These brands are now the trademarks of the Gambrinus Company of San Antonio, Texas, though the company has stopped production of these beers.)  In 1950, the family of August Wagner deeded Campbell Hill and the surrounding 57.5 acres to the U.S. government. The government stationed the 664th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron on the hill in 1951. This military unit was responsible for monitoring for possible aerospace attacks from the Soviet Union during the Cold War. The 664th AC&WS and similar military units were eventually superseded by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (or NORAD). The base in Bellefontaine was closed in 1969.  The Ohio Hi-Point Vocational-Technical District opened a school atop the hill in 1974. The school is now known as the Ohio Hi-Point Career Center.

Geography.

According to the 2010 census, the city has a total area of, all land.

Climate.

The city of Bellefontaine is at the convergence of the humid subtropical (Köppen C"fa") and humid continental (Köppen D"fa") climate zones according to the Köppen climate map. The region is characterized by four distinct seasons. Winters are cool to cold with mild periods, and summers are generally hot and muggy, with significant precipitation year-round. The city is too far south to experience lake effect snow from the Great Lakes region, however it does experience more snow than surrounding areas due to the city's elevation. Traditionally, Bellefontaine's elevation excludes it from tornados and floods that affect the majority of the Miami Valley.

Demographics.

As of the census of 2000, there were 13,069 people, 5,319 households, and 3,436 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 5,722 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 90.82% White, 5.13% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.93% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.53% from other races, and 2.40% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.12% of the population.  There were 5,319 households, of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.7% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.4% were non-families. 30.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.01.  In the city the population was spread out, with 28.1% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.4 males.  The median income for a household in the city was $37,189, and the median income for a family was $43,778. The per capita income for the city was $20,917. About 19.9% of families and 23.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 38.9% of those under the age of 18 and 10.9% of those ages 65 and older.

2010 census.

As of the census of 2010, there were 13,370 people, 5,415 households, and 3,420 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 6,115 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 90.1% White, 4.3% African American, 0.2% Native American, 1.2% Asian, 0.5% from other races, and 3.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.9% of the population.  There were 5,415 households, of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.1% were married couples living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.8% were non-families. 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.01.  The median age in the city was 34.8 years. 27.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.3% were from 25 to 44; 24.7% were from 45 to 64; and 12.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.4% male and 51.6% female.

Micropolitan statistical area.

Bellefontaine is the center of the Bellefontaine Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. This micropolis consists solely of Logan County, Ohio. The 2000 census found 46,005 people in the micropolis, making it the 260th most populous such area in the United States. Among all U.S. statistical areas (CBSAs), the Bellefontaine micropolis ranks 622nd. In Ohio, the Bellefontaine micropolis is the 37th most populous CBSA, and the 21st most populous micropolitan statistical area.  By comparison, the least populous metropolitan area in the United States, Carson City, Nevada, has 52,457 residents. The least populous metropolitan area in Ohio is Sandusky, with 79,555 residents. The Bellefontaine micropolis is not as populous as these, but does have a greater population than some micropolitan statistical areas traditionally considered to be small regional cities. (Examples: El Dorado, Arkansas; Clovis, New Mexico; and Red Wing, Minnesota.)  Though official definitions of micropolitan statistical areas did not exist until 2003, the area now constituting the Bellefontaine micropolis grew in population by 8.7 percent between 1990 and 2000.

Arts and culture.

Logan County Historical Society.

The Logan County Historical Society and museum was first housed in the McBeth School, built in 1919 as the last of the four elementary schools to be built in Bellefontaine at the turn of the century. The building was sold at public auction in 1957 to the Church of God. In 1971 McBeth School was purchased by the Logan County Historical Society for use as the Logan County Historical Museum. The historical society eventually grew out of the 3-story building and moved to its current home closer to Downtown. McBeth School has been adapted for use as an apartment building.  Today the museum includes the Orr mansion, former home of the local Orr family; as well as an extension to the mansion that includes history exhibits from around the county. The Mansion portion of the building has been completely restored by the historical society. Day-to-day operations in the museum and The Logan County Historical Society are supported by a Logan County tax levy and donations received from visitors to the museum. Donations also can be contributed to the society to be used in historical displays. Recent donations in the 21st century include the 1950s era "house call" bag from local doctor George E. Nixon.

Government.

Bellefontaine has an elected mayor and city council style of government.

Local.

City Council.

Bellefontaine City Council Members serve 2 year terms. The city has 4 wards and 3 At-Large seats.

Education.

The Bellefontaine City Schools operate one elementary school, one intermediate school, one middle school, and one high school in the area. These schools have a combined enrollment of 2,840. In addition, the Ohio Hi-Point Career Center, located atop Campbell Hill, offers both secondary and post-secondary education. Enrolled at Ohio Hi-Point are 505 students. The neighboring Benjamin Logan Local School District campus also has a Bellefontaine address.  Several colleges and universities operate satellite campuses in the Bellefontaine area. These include:  Bellefontaine has a public library, a branch of Logan County Libraries.

Media.

The city is served by both print publishing and radio broadcasting.  The "Bellefontaine Examiner" is the daily local newspaper. It is the latest in a series of newspapers which have been published in Bellefontaine since 1831. It has a current daily circulation of approximately 9500 copies.  Operating currently are WPKO, an FM radio station, WPKO HD2, a second FM radio station, and its sister station WBLL, an AM radio station. These stations are owned and operated by V-Teck Communications.  Two Christian radio stations WKEN, an FM radio station operating on FM frequency of 88.5 and WSOH, an FM radio station operating on FM frequency of 88.9. These stations are owned and operated by Soaring Eagle Promotions, Inc.

Infrastructure.

Transportation.

The Bellefontaine Regional Airport is located about 5 miles from the downtown business district. The airport replaced the Bellefontaine Municipal Airport in 2002 and is one of 2 new airports opened to the public in Ohio in the past 30 years.

Bellefontaine ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Logan County, Ohio, United States, located 48 miles northwest of Columbus. The population was 13,370 at the 2010 Census. It is the principal city of the Bellefontaine, OH Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Logan County. The highest point in Ohio, Campbell Hill, is within the city limits.

La ville de Bellefontaine est le siège du comté de Logan, situé dans l'État de l'Ohio, aux États-Unis. Sa population s’élevait à lors du recensement, estimée à.


History.

Belkin was founded in 1983 in California, by Steve Bellow and Chet Pipkin.  In March 2013, Belkin acquired Cisco Systems' Home Networking Business Unit, including the Linksys brand and product line. On March 26, 2018, Foxconn announced its intent to acquire Belkin for US$866 million.

Sponsorship and community work.

Between May 2013 and the end of the 2014 season, Belkin sponsored a Dutch professional cycling team, Belkin Pro Cycling Team. Belkin stepped in after the team formerly known as Rabobank lost their headline sponsor.  Belkin is involved in the local Compton community through the ASAP (Advanced Surveillance and Protection Plan) program with the LASD (LA County Sheriff’s Department) and the Everybody Wins reading program. Belkin supports Susan G. Komen for the Cure to fight breast cancer through its pink ribbon iPod cases that have helped raise $350,000 for the organization. In 2007, Belkin made a holiday donation to the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) initiative.

Criticism.

In 2003, Belkin released a home-use wireless router which would occasionally replace users' HTTP requests with an advertisement for Belkin's filtering software. Belkin received some intense criticism for this from technically literate customers and others who described it as a man-in-the-middle attack or a form of session hijacking. Belkin initially treated this as a public relations problem rather than an inappropriate action on their part, but later relented and issued a firmware update deleting this functionality from the product.  In early 2009, a Belkin 'online sales representative' was discovered paying Amazon.com, Newegg and Buy.com users to manipulate reviews of a notoriously buggy Belkin router. Belkin's President, Mark Reynoso, responded to criticism, saying that the company does not engage in unethical practices, noting however that 'one of our employees' may have been responsible. On January 19, 2009, gizmodo.com published a letter from an anonymous Belkin worker, where the employee claims that for years all workers were pressed upon to "do whatever is needed to get good product reviews and good press", which included "sending blog writers a device with custom firmware that hides known bugs", "faking hardware logo certifications", as well as "writing poor reviews of competitors products".

Belkin International, Inc., is an American manufacturer of consumer electronics that specializes in connectivity devices. Headquartered in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, California, it sells various consumer and commercial product lines, including routers, iPod and iPhone accessories, mobile computing accessories, surge protectors, network switches, hubs, (USB and computer network) cables, KVM switches, racks and enclosures, and other peripherals. Belkin International is the parent company for Belkin, Linksys and Wemo branded products and services, as well as the smart home water management company, Phyn.

Belkin International est un fabricant de matériel informatique américain spécialisé dans les produits servant aux connexions (câbles, prises, connecteurs USB, etc.). Il fabrique également des routeurs, des accessoires pour iPhone, iPad et iPod, des commutateur réseau, des "hubs" et des accessoires pour appareil mobile, etc. Belkin International commercialise des produits sous 3 marques "Belkin", "Linksys" et "WeMo".


History.

For much of its history, Šuto Orizari was a small village in the country, as were neighbouring Butel and Vizbegovo. Its name derives from "orizar" (оризар), the Macedonian word for paddy field. It is only after the 1963 Skopje earthquake that the area became urbanised. Through the 20th century, Skopje had greatly expanded: while it had only 41,000 inhabitants in 1921, it had reached 166,870 in 1961. As a result, the area around Šuto Orizari was slowly becoming part of the city.  Before the earthquake, most of Skopje's Romani community lived in areas close to the Old Bazaar. The largest one is Topaana, located close to the fortress and home to Roma people since at least the 14th century. Built in cheap materials, Topaana and the other Roma settlements were severely damaged by the earthquake which destroyed around 80% of the whole city.  Thanks to international aid, the reconstruction started quickly after the earthquake. Local authorities took the opportunity to rebuild Skopje as a functional and modern city, privileging large blocks of flats and dividing Skopje into areas dedicated to specific uses. As they also had to build new accommodation for the large Roma minority, they first considered the reconstruction as a way to assimilate them and resolve unemployment and sanitary problems that concerned that population.  Most of the Roma population refused to live in the new buildings and authorities eventually decided to give them a specific neighbourhood where they could build the houses they wished. The first buildings to appear were iron shacks donated by the United States. They were planned for temporary use, but some still remain more than 40 years after the earthquake. Most of the Romani community of Šutka is still facing unemployment and hard living conditions, although some of them manage to build large houses with the money they get as seasonal workers in Western Europe. The Roma houses in Šutka are built with solid materials and have fenced gardens. The area does not give the same impression of marginality as do older Romani neighbourhoods such as Topaana.  Šuto Orizari became a distinct municipality in 1996.

Geography.

Šuto Orizari is located to the North of central Skopje, at approximately 5 km of Macedonia Square. The municipality is at the northern edge of the urban unit and comprises some agricultural land. To the south, Šuto Orizari is bordered by Butel, another municipality of Skopje. To the north, it is bordered by Čučer-Sandevo, a rural municipality.  The municipality comprises three distinct settlements: Šuto Orizari proper, Dolno Orizari and Gorno Orizari. The first is an urban neighbourhood forming part of the urban unit and located inside the Skopje bypass. The second is a small village which comprised only 454 inhabitants in 2002. It is located north of the bypass. Gorno Orizari is located between Šuto Orizari proper and the rest of the city. The municipality is separated from the rest of Skopje by the Serava, a small river tributary to the Vardar, by Slovenia boulevard and by the Skopje-Pristina railway. The nearest train station is Skopje-Sever ("Skopje-North"), located in Butel. To the west Šuto Orizari is bordered by the village of Vizbegovo, and to the east by the Butel cemetery, the largest in Skopje.

Demographics.

Šuto Orizari is the only municipality in the country where Romani make up a majority of the population. Out of a total population of 17,357 in the 2002 census, 13,311 people (76.6%) were of Roma ethnicity. Other significant ethnic groups include Albanians (2,594 or 14.9%) and Macedonians (962 or 5.5%). During the recent conflict in Kosovo many Romani refugees found shelter here. The overwhelming majority of the inhabitants are Muslims.  Most of the Romani population originates from the relocation of families after the 1963 Skopje earthquake. They were later followed by many other families coming from Skopje and other towns in North Macedonia. Romani language is spoken in a large number of dialects and several ones coexist in Skopje. They usually correspond to a single area (Topaanli, Barutči, Gilanska, Prištivačija, etc.) but as the Romani population in Šutka came in recent times and from many neighbourhoods, several dialects are used there and tend to assemble.  According to the 2002 census, the exact composition of the population was:

Politics.

The municipality of Šuto Orizari was founded in 1996 following a law on local administration. The creation of a Romani municipality was a move to further emancipate and empower Romani people in the Republic of North Macedonia. At first, many of its inhabitants were skeptical of the project, as they feared the local budget would be too low to run the municipality properly. The first mayor, Nezdet Mustafa, was elected together with his council in autumn 1996 and the municipality became effective in January 1997.  As anywhere in the Republic of North Macedonia, Macedonian is the official language. As an ethnic minority forms more than 20% of the population, its language is also official in the municipality, thus both Romani and Macedonian are official languages in Šuto Orizari. Albanian is also spoken, but is not an official language. The mayor of the municipality, Kurto Dudush, is Romani.  In 2009, the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia took further measures to enlarge inclusion of Romani in the education process. The cornerstone of a government-funded secondary school for Šuto Orizari was laid on 10 February 2009, an investment worth 1.6 million euros.

Culture.

As it is the largest Romani settlement in North Macedonia, Šuto Orizari is home to several cultural institutions dedicated to Roma people. There are for instance a cinema and an amateur theatre company, Theater Roma. It was also home to the Phralipe theatre company, founded in 1970 and a pioneer in Romani theatre, before it moved to Germany in 1990.  Šuto Orizari is the set of two films: "Time of the Gypsies" by Emir Kusturica (1988) and "The Shutka Book of Records" by Aleksandar Manic (2005).

Šuto Orizari (; Romani: "Shuto Orizari"; ), often shortened as Šutka (Шутка), is one of the ten municipalities that make up the City of Skopje, the capital of the Republic of North Macedonia. "Šuto Orizari" is also the name of the urban neighbourhood where the municipal seat is located. It consists of a council and mayor.

Chouto Orizari ou Šuto Orizari (en ; en romani "Shuto Orizari") est une des dix municipalités spéciales qui constituent la ville de Skopje, capitale de la République de Macédoine. Elle comptait 22017 habitants en 2002 et fait. Elle est couramment appelée Choutka ou Šutka (en macédonien ).