Yoruba Vyor-o-boN One of Nigeria’s three largest ethnic groups, num¬ bering more than 22 million. The many dialects comprising the Yoruba language belong to the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo family. The Yoruba states, including the Oyo empire, were built in the 11th-16th centuries. Yorubaland remains divided into politically autonomous king¬ doms, each centred on a capital city or town and headed by a hereditary king ( oba ), traditionally considered sacred. Most Yoruba men are farm¬ ers, growing yams, corn, and millet as staples; cocoa is a cash crop. Yoruba women control much of the complex market system. Craftsmen work in blacksmithing, weaving, leatherworking, glassmaking, bronze casting, and ivory- and wood-carving. Though some Yoruba are now Christians or Muslims, belief in their traditional religion continues, and it remains alive, too, in the New World countries to which may Yoruba were transported to work as slaves (see Candomble; Macumba; Santeria; vodun). The Yoruba language has an extensive literature of poetry, short stories, myths, and proverbs.
Yorubaland Vyor-u-bo-.landN Area of western Africa, in present-day Nigeria. It once comprised several states headed by individual Yoruba kings. It flourished for centuries before disputes between minor rulers, difficulties in maintaining trade routes, and invasions led to its decline, beginning in the late 18th century. Oyo, Ife, Ibadan, and Oshogbo are cities with historical Yoruba background.
Yosemite \yo-'se-m3-te\ Falls Two waterfalls, Yosemite National Park, central California, U.S. Formed by creeks tumbling into the Yosemite River valley, the upper falls drop 1,430 ft (436 m) and the lower, 320 ft (98 m). With the cascades between, the total drop from the crest of the upper to the base of the lower is 2,425 ft (739 m), one of the world’s longest cataracts.
Yosemite National Park National preserve, central California, U.S. Made a national park in 1890, it encompasses 761,320 ac (308,106 ha) in the Sierra Nevada range. Its many features include giant redwood groves with trees thousands of years old, Yosemite Falls, Bridal veil Fall (620 ft [189 m]), and huge domes and peaks; the greatest of these is El Capitan, a granite buttress that is 3,604 ft (1,098 m) high.
Yoshida Shigeru Vyo-she-da-she-'ge-riA (b. Sept. 22, 1878, Tokyo, Japan—d. Oct. 20, 1967, Oiso) Japanese prime minister after World War II. He served as ambassador to Britain in the 1930s. Late in the war (June 1945) he was arrested for attempting to force an early Japanese surren¬ der; he was not freed until the start of the Allied occupation (September). He first became prime minister in 1946. Between 1946 and 1954 he formed five separate cabinets, guiding Japan back to economic prosper¬ ity and setting a course for postwar cooperation with the U.S. and Europe. In 1951 he negotiated the peace treaty that ended World War II; he also negotiated a security pact between Japan and the U.S. He retired from politics in 1955. See also Showa period.
Yoshida Shoin Vyo-she-da-'sho-en\ (b. Sept. 20, 1830, Nagato prov¬ ince, Japan—d. Nov. 21, 1859, Edo) Japanese teacher of military tactics in the domain of ChoshO. He studied “Dutch learning” (European stud¬ ies) in Nagasaki and Edo (modern Tokyo) and was deeply influenced by the pro-emperor thinkers in the domain of Mito. His radical pro-emperor stance influenced young samurai in Choshu to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate. He was executed for an assassination plot against the shogun’s representative in Kyoto. See also Kido Takayoshi; Tokugawa period.
Yoshitsune See Minamoto Yoshitsune
Youghiogheny \,ya-k3-'ga-ne\ River River in northeastern West Vir¬ ginia, northwestern Maryland, and southwestern Pennsylvania, U.S. It rises in West Virginia, near the western edge of Maryland, and flows north through northwestern Maryland into Pennsylvania to enter the Mononga- hela River at McKeesport after a course of 135 mi (217 km). It is the only river in western Maryland that does not flow south into the Potomac River.
You mans Vyti-monzV Vincent (Millie) (b. Sept. 27,1898, New York, N.Y., U.S.—d. April 5, 1946, Denver, Colo.) U.S. songwriter. He started writing songs while in the navy during World War I and later worked as a song plugger in Tin Pan Alley. He collaborated with lyricists such as Ira
Gershwin and Oscar Hammerstein on the Broadway musicals Wildflower (1923), No, No, Nanette (1925), Hit the Deck (1927), Great Day (1928), and the first Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers vehicle. Flying Down to Rio (1933). His standards include “Tea for Two,” “More Than You Know,” “Time on My Hands,” and “Carioca.”
Young, Andrew in full Andrew Jackson Young, Jr. (b. March 12, 1932, New Orleans, La., U.S.) U.S. politician. He earned a divinity degree in 1955 and became a pastor at several African American churches in the South. Active in the civil rights movement, he worked with Martin Luther King, Jr., and Ralph Abernathy in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (1961-70). He served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1972-77). An early supporter of Jimmy Carter, he was appointed U.S. ambassador to the UN (1977-79), the first African American to hold the post. He served as mayor of Atlanta (1982-90).
Young, Brigham (b. June 1, 1801, Whitingham, Vt., U.S.—d. Aug. 29, 1877, Salt Lake City, Utah) U.S. religious leader, second president of the Mormon church. He settled in Mendon, N.Y., in 1829 and was bap¬ tized into Joseph Smith’s Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1832. In 1834 he joined the Mor¬ mons in Missouri, and when they were driven out in 1838, he orga¬ nized their move to Nauvoo, Ill. He established a Mormon mission in England in 1839. After Smith’s mur¬ der in 1844, Young took over the church. He led the persecuted Mor¬ mons from Illinois to Utah (1846—
48), choosing the site of Salt Lake City for the new Mormon headquar¬ ters. Elected president of the Mor¬ mons in 1847, he became governor of the provisional state of Deseret in 1849 and of the territory of Utah in 1850. His dictatorial autonomy and legalization of polygamy led Pres. James Buchanan to replace him as governor in 1857 and send the army to assert federal supremacy in the so-called Utah War, but Young remained head of the Mormon church until his death. He took more than 20 wives and fathered 47 children.
Young, Coleman (b. May 24, 1918, Tuscaloosa, Ala., U.S.—d. Nov. 29, 1997, Detroit, Mich.) U.S. politician. He moved with his family to Detroit in 1923. At Ford Motor Co. he became involved in union activi¬ ties and civil rights activism. In World War II, he served with the Tuske- gee Airmen. He later cofounded the National Negro Labor Council, which he disbanded in the 1950s to avoid turning over its membership list dur¬ ing an investigation by the House Un-American Activities Committee. He was elected to the Michigan senate in 1964, and in 1968 he became the Demo¬ cratic National Committee’s first African American member. As mayor of Detroit (1973-93), he focused on revitalizing the crime-ridden city by attracting new businesses and reinforcing the police department. He retired after an unprecedented five terms.
Young, Cy orig. Denton True Young (b. March 29, 1867, Gilmore, Ohio, U.S.—d. Nov. 4, 1955, Newcomerstown, Ohio) U.S. baseball pitcher. Young, 6 ft 2 in. (1.88 m) tall, was a powerful right-handed thrower. His dominating fastball earned him the nickname “Cy,” short for “cyclone.” He began his major league career in 1890 with the Cleveland Indians (National League); after his Cleveland years (1890-98), he pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals (1899-1900), the Boston Red Sox (1901-08), the Cleveland Indians again (American League, 1909-11), and the Boston Braves (1911). In each of 16 seasons he won more than 20 games; in five he won more than 30. Though many early records are in dispute, he won more major league games (509 or 511) than any other pitcher in history. Among his other records are games started (816 or 818), completed starts (750 or 751), and innings pitched (7,356 or 7,377). In 1904 he pitched the first perfect game (no player reaching first base). The annual Cy Young Award, instituted in 1956, originally honoured the best major league pitcher; since 1967 it has been given to the best pitcher in each league.