Czar (political term)

Czar is an informal title for certain high-level officials in the United States and the United Kingdom. Political czars can run or organize governmental departments, and may devote their expertise to a single area of work. The "czars" have various official titles which may include the terms adviser, director, administrator, or diplomatic envoy, but such titles are often quite long or awkward sounding.

In the United States, czars are generally executive branch officials appointed by the President either with Senate approval or without it. Some appointees outside the executive branch are called czars as well. Specific instances of the term are often a media creation.

In the United Kingdom, the term tsar is more loosely used to refer to high-profile appointments who devote their skills to one particular area.

United States

Development of term

The term 'czar,' is a word of Balkan origin etymologically originating from the name "Caesar," as does the word 'tsar,' a title of sovereignty adopted by late Rurukid-dynasty (Ivan III and Ivan IV the Terrible in particular) rulers of Muscovy. Confusion emerged when a German traveler recorded that the ruler of Muscovy at the time was titled 'czar,' due to a linguistic mistake derived from the fact that the Polish, with which the German had greater familiarity, titled some leaders 'czars.' The term czar was used to designate the Russian, Bulgarian or Serbian monarchs of pre-World War I Europe.

Zar, Azerbaijan

Coordinates: 40°00′19″N 45°57′08″E / 40.00528°N 45.95222°E / 40.00528; 45.95222

Zar (Armenian: Ծար, Tsar, also spelled Tzar or Car, Armenian pronunciation: [tsɑɾ]) is a village in the Kalbajar Rayon of Azerbaijan, currently under the control of the unrecognized Nagorno Karabakh Republic.

Etymology

Armenian architectural historian Samvel Karapetyan has written that name Zar is the Turkish pronunciation of the settlement's Armenian name Tsar which, due to its size, was still being referred to as Metsn Tzar (Great Tzar) as late as the eighteenth century.

A popular Azeri legend gives an alternative origin. A poor young man named Zasa once lived in this village. He was in love with a girl named Nasy whose parents did not approve of their relationship. Zasa then decided to ask Nadir Shah for help. He planted a watermelon in a jar with a narrow neck. The surprised shah liked it and ordered Nasy to be given to Zasa. However, as soon as Nadir Shah left town, Nasy's family went to Zasa's house, killed him and threw his body into a well. After that, Zasa's mother wept for many days. The name Zar was said to have be derived from this legend because the Azerbaijani word zarıldamaq (zaryldamag) translates as "to sob."

Tsar (band)

Tsar is a rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1998, with Jeff Whalen on lead vocals and guitar, Daniel Kern on vocals and guitar, Jeff Solomon on bass, and Steve Coulter on drums. They released an eponymous album on Hollywood Records in 2000, which, although a financial disappointment for the label, availed them a number of dedicated fans. Their songs 'Ordinary Gurl' and 'The Girl Who Wouldn't Die' were featured in the movie American Psycho 2. "Calling All Destroyers" was prominently featured in the animated opening titles for 'Super.'

In 2004 Chuck Byler replaced Coulter and in 2005 Derrick Forget replaced Solomon. In 2005 Tsar released its second full album, Band-Girls-Money, on TVT Records. The album had been recorded nearly two years earlier with Coulter and Solomon. The titular track was included in the soundtrack for the racing games Burnout Revenge and its PSP and DS spin-off Burnout Legends.

In late January 2010, the band's original lineup ( Whalen/Kern/Solomon/Coulter ) reunited. They played a show at the LA Times, & released a new song ( "Girls Try To Be Cool" ).

White

White is an achromatic color, literally a "color without hue", that is a mixture of the frequencies of all the colors of the visible spectrum. It is one of the most common colors in nature, the color of sunlight, snow, milk, chalk, limestone and other common minerals. In many cultures white represents or signifies purity, innocence, and light, and is the symbolic opposite of black, or darkness. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, white is the color most often associated with perfection, the good, honesty, cleanliness, the beginning, the new, neutrality, and exactitude.

In ancient Egypt and ancient Rome, priestesses wore white as a symbol of purity, and Romans wore a white toga as a symbol of citizenship. In the Middle Ages and Renaissance a white unicorn symbolized chastity, and a white lamb sacrifice and purity; the widows of kings dressed in white rather than black as the color of mourning. It sometimes symbolizes royalty; it was the color of the French kings (black being the color of the queens) and of the monarchist movement after the French Revolution as well as of the movement called the White Russians (not to be confounded with Belarus, literally "White Russia") who fought the Bolsheviks during the Russian Civil War (1917-1922). Greek and Roman temples were faced with white marble, and beginning in the 18th century, with the advent of neoclassical architecture, white became the most common color of new churches, capitols and other government buildings, especially in the United States of America. It was also widely used in 20th century modern architecture as a symbol of modernity, simplicity and strength.

White and Black in chess

In chess, the player who moves first is referred to as "White" and the player who moves second is referred to as "Black". Similarly, the pieces that each conducts are called, respectively, "the white pieces" and "the black pieces". The pieces are often not literally white and black, but some other colors (usually a light color and a dark color, respectively). The 64 squares of the chessboard, which is colored in a checkered pattern, are likewise referred to as "white squares" or "light squares" on the one hand, and "black squares" or "dark squares" on the other. In most cases, the squares are not actually white and black, but a light color and a contrasting dark color. For example, the squares on plastic boards are often off-white ("buff") and green, while those on wood boards are often light brown and dark brown.

In old chess writings, the sides are often called Red and Black, because those were the two colors of ink then commonly available when hand-drawing or printing chess position diagrams.

White (Surrey cricketer)

White (full name and dates of birth and death unknown) was an English cricketer. White's batting style is unknown. He most likely held the rank of captain in either the British Army or Royal Navy, as he was known as Captain White on scorecards.

White made a single first-class appearance for Surrey against Middlesex in 1850 at The Oval. Middlesex batted first and made 89 all out, to which Surrey responded to in their first-innings by making 87 all out, with White being dismissed for a duck by William Lillywhite. Middlesex then made 72 all out in their second-innings, leaving Surrey with a target of 74 for victory. Surrey reached their target with six wickets to spare, with White scoring 3 runs during the chase before he was dismissed by James Pollitt. This was his only major appearance for Surrey.

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