Zu Chongzhi (b. 429, Jiankang, China—d. 500, China) Chinese astronomer, mathematician, and engineer. About 462 he proposed a new calendar system that would provide a more precise number of lunations per year and take into consideration the precession of the equinoxes. His Darning calendar was finally adopted in 510 through the efforts of his son, Zu Gengzhi. Li Chunfeng called Zu Chongzhi the best mathematician ever and gave him credit for three approximations of n: 22 /i, 355 /ii3, and the interval 3.1415926 <n< 3.1415927; the third result remained the best in the world until improved by the Arab mathematician al-Kashi (fl. c. 1400). He also worked on the mathematical theory of music and metrology, and he constructed several devices, such as a semilegendary “south-pointing carriage.” The carriage was topped by a symbolic figure that, once prop¬ erly aligned, would always point to the south.
Zu Gengzhi also known as Zu Xuan (b. c. 480, Jiankang, China—d. c. 525, China) Chinese government official, mathematician, astronomer, and son of Zu Cfiongzhi. Beginning in 504, he actively advocated his father’s Darning calendar and finally succeeded in getting it officially adopted in 510. His astronomical observations with gnomons allowed him to measure the angular distance between Polaris and the celestial north pole. A mathematical fragment of his was appended by Li Chunfeng to the commentary on Jiuzhang suanshu (.Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Procedures), a Chinese classic probably compiled in the 1st century ad. Fragments of his writings are also found in the astronomical chapter of Suishu (“History of the Sui Dynasty”). His fame as a mathematician rests primarily on his derivation and proof of the formula for the volume of a sphere.
Zuccaro Vtsii-kar-oV, Federico or Federico Zuccari \'tsii-kar-e\ (b. c. 1540, Sant’Angelo in Vado, Duchy of Urbino—d. July 20, 1609, Ancona) Italian painter and art theorist. In 1565 he worked in Florence with Giorgio Vasari. He codified the theory of Mannerism in The Idea of Painters, Sculptors, and Architects (1607) and in a series of frescoes in his own house in Rome. In England in 1575 he drew or painted portraits of Elizabeth I and the earl of Leicester. He also painted the dome of the cathedral of Florence (1574), a large work in the Doges’ Palace in Ven¬ ice (1582), and much work for El Escorial in Spain (1585-88). At one time the central figure of the Roman Mannerist school, he lived to see Mannerism become extinct.
zucchini Subspecies of Cucurbita pepo, dark green elongate summer squash in the gourd family, of great abundance in U.S. home gardens and supermarkets. The creeping vine has five-lobed leaves, tendrils, and large yellow flowers.
Zuckerman Vtsuk-or-.manV Yitzhak or Yitzhak Cukierman
\'tsuk-3r-,man\ (b. 1915, Warsaw, Pol.—d. June 17, 1981, Tel Aviv, Israel) Hero of Jewish resistance to the Nazis in World War II. Active in Zionist organizations in his native Warsaw, he urged the creation and arming of a Jewish defense organization after the German takeover of Poland. He used his contacts outside the Warsaw Ghetto to smuggle in a few arms. He took command after the other leaders of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising were killed, and eventually he led some 75 people through the sewers to safety. He continued leading Jewish resistance and alerting Jewish lead¬ ers elsewhere to the situation in Nazi Europe. At war’s end he helped organize transportation for Jewish refugees to Palestine.
zuhd Vzu-hodX Islamic asceticism. Though Islam permits unforbidden pleasure, it praises those who shun luxury in favour of a simple and pious
life. Zuhd may have been influenced directly by the Christian hermits who had some contact with early Muslims. It was institutionalized in Islam as a result of Muslim conquests, which brought material wealth and wide¬ spread indulgence in luxurious living. Devout Muslims reacted by call¬ ing for a return to the way of life of Muhammad, who spent long periods in solitary vigil, fasting and praying. See also Sufism.
Zuiderzee X.zl-dor-'za, .zl-dor-'zeV Dutch "Southern Sea" Former inlet of the North Sea, northern coast of The Netherlands. From the 13th to the 20th century, it penetrated The Netherlands and occupied 2,000 sq mi (5,000 sq km), separated from the North Sea by an arc of former sand flats that are now the West Frisian Islands. Frisian peoples inhabited the sand flats from c. ad 400 and built the first sea works, considered engi¬ neering marvels, to stem rising sea levels. The control of water levels within the dikes developed into the reclamation of lowlands (polders) from the water. Between 1927 and 1932 a dam 19 mi (30 km) long was built across the Zuiderzee, separating it into the Waddenzee and the Ijs¬ selmeer. By the early 1980s four polders (of five proposed), largely agri¬ cultural land, had been created.
Zulu Nguni-speaking people living in KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa. Numbering about 9.5 million, they are South Africa’s largest eth¬ nic group. Traditionally grain farmers, they also kept large herds of cattle. European settlers wrested grazing and water resources from the Zulu in prolonged warfare during the 19th century; with much of their wealth lost, modern Zulu depend largely on wage labour on farms owned by whites or work in the cities. The Zulu provide the main support for the Inkatha Freedom Party. Many Zulu belong to independent or separatist African churches, though the traditional religion, based on ancestor worship and belief in a creator-god, witches, and sorcerers, remains strong. See also Shaka.
Zululand Historical region, eastern South Africa. It was the home of the Zulu people when Chief Shaka established dominance over what is now KwaZulu-Natal. His state fought the Boers in the 1840s; it later lost parts of its territory to them. The British moved into nearby Natal and annexed it in 1843. The Zulu resisted British rule in 1878 but were over¬ come in 1879. The British made Zululand a crown colony in 1887 and annexed it to Natal in 1897. Under the apartheid system, a Bantu home¬ land named KwaZulu, composed of parts of the historical Zululand, was established for the Zulu in the 1970s. With the abolition of the apartheid system, KwaZulu in 1994 was reincorporated into Natal province, which was renamed KwaZulu-Natal.
Zuni \'zii-ne\ North American Pueblo Indian people living in west-central New Mexico, U.S. They call themselves Ashiwi. Their origin and early history are uncertain. When first encountered by 16th-century Spanish explorers, they were living in seven separate towns thought by the explor¬ ers to be the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola; under the Spaniards they were crowded into a single pueblo. The traditional occupation was com farm¬ ing; basketry and pottery were also well developed. Religious life centred on gods or spirits called kachinas. Today the Zuni number about 12,000.
Zunz \'tsimts\, Leopold Hebrew Yom-Tob Lippmann (b. Aug. 10, 1794, Detmold, Lippe—d. March 18, 1886, Berlin) German historian of Jewish literature. After taking his doctorate at Halle, he spent much of his life in a precarious struggle with poverty. With the publication of his seminal work, On Rabbinic Literature (1818), he initiated (1819) the movement called Wissenschaft des Judentums (“Science of Judaism”), which stressed the analysis of Jewish literature and culture with the tools of modern scholarship. His On History and Literature (1845) places Jew¬ ish literary activity in the context of European literature and politics. Zunz is often considered the greatest Jewish scholar of the 19th century.
Zuo zhuan or Tso chuan \'dzw6-'jwan\ Ancient commentary on the Chunqiu (“Spring and Autumn Annals”). It provides extensive narrative accounts and background materials concerning events covered in the Chunqiu, as well as authentic historical documents and written evidence of the philosophical schools of the time. Finally, it provides a compre¬ hensive account of the principal political, social, and military events of the period. It was once believed to have been written by Zuo, an ancient historian about whom virtually nothing is known, but modern scholarship attributes it to an anonymous author of the period 475-221 bce.