Wikipedia:Main Page history/2012 May 5

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

Today's featured article
Ram Narayan (born 1927) is an Indian musician who popularized the bowed instrument sarangi as a solo concert instrument in Hindustani classical music and became the first internationally successful sarangi player. Narayan was born in Udaipur and learned to play the sarangi at an early age. He studied under sarangi players and singers and, as a teenager, worked as a music teacher and traveling musician. All India Radio, Lahore, hired Narayan as an accompanist for vocalists in 1944. He moved to Delhi following the partition of India in 1947, but wishing to go beyond accompaniment and frustrated with his supporting role, Narayan moved to Mumbai in 1949 to work in Indian cinema. After an unsuccessful attempt in 1954, Narayan became a concert solo artist in 1956, and later gave up accompaniment. He recorded solo albums and began to tour America and Europe in the 1960s. Narayan taught Indian and foreign students and performed, frequently outside of India, into the 2000s. He was awarded India's second highest civilian honor, the Padma Vibhushan, in 2005. (more...) Recently featured: Red-tailed Black Cockatoo – Invasion of Tulagi – Golding Bird Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that @ladygaga (pictured) and @justinbieber are, respectively, the first and second most-followed celebrities on Twitter? ... that Melville Waddington was the first observer ace in No. 20 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps to score a victory in the Bristol Fighter? ... that the coming out of real-life gay former baseball player Glenn Burke inspired the Cheers episode "The Boys in the Bar"? ... that the stepfather of Swiss politician Jakob Lechleiter was a German communist leader who was executed in 1942? ... that VimpelCom was the first Russian company to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange? ... that John Stossel's book No, They Can't focuses on the topic of government intervention? ... that Wingletang Down is the only place in Great Britain and Ireland where you can find Least Adder's Tongue? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Beastie Boys founding member Adam Yauch (pictured), better known by his stage name "MCA", dies at the age of 47. János Áder is elected President of Hungary following the resignation of Pál Schmitt. An 1895 version of The Scream, by Edvard Munch, sells at auction for a record US$120 million. Bolivia announces plans to nationalise local assets of the Spanish electricity company Red Eléctrica de España. Guggenheim Partners, LLC purchases the Los Angeles Dodgers for US$2.1 billion, a record for a professional sports franchise. A ferry capsizes in Assam, India, killing at least 103 people on board. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
May 5: Cinco de Mayo; Liberation Day in Denmark, Ethiopia, and the Netherlands; Children's Day in Japan and South Korea 1860 – Led by Italian general Giuseppe Garibaldi (pictured), the volunteer Expedition of the Thousand set sail from Genoa on a campaign to conquer the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. 1891 – New York City's Carnegie Hall, built by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, officially opened with a concert conducted by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. 1936 – Second Italo-Abyssinian War: Italian troops captured Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, unopposed. 1991 – Rioting broke out in Washington, D.C., after a rookie police officer shot a Salvadorean man in the chest. 2007 – Kenya Airways Flight 507 crashed immediately after takeoff from Douala International Airport in Cameroon, resulting in the deaths of all 114 people aboard. More anniversaries: May 4 – May 5 – May 6 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now May 5, 2012 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

The Nefertiti Bust is a 3300-year-old painted limestone bust of Nefertiti, the Great Royal Wife of the Pharaoh Akhenaten and one of the most copied works of Ancient Egypt. It is believed to have been crafted in 1345 BCE by the sculptor Thutmose, in whose workshop it was discovered. It is part of the Egyptian Museum of Berlin collection and has been the subject of an intense argument between Egypt and Germany over the Egyptian demands for its repatriation.

Photo: Philip Pikart

Recently featured: Monarch butterfly with a tracking tag – Gondi women – Rubber tree seeds

Archive – More featured pictures...

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.