Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 December 12

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Gillingham F.C. is an English professional football club based in the town of Gillingham, Kent. The only Kent-based club in the Football League, they play their home matches at the Priestfield Stadium. In the 2008–09 season, the club was promoted to Football League One after victory over Shrewsbury Town in the League Two play-off final; however, they were relegated back into the basement division the following season. The club was founded in 1893 and joined the Football League in 1920. They were voted out of the league in favour of Ipswich Town at the end of the 1937–38 season, but returned to it 12 years later after it was expanded from 88 to 92 clubs. Twice in the late 1980s they came close to winning promotion to the second tier of English football, but a decline then set in and in 1993 they narrowly avoided relegation to the Football Conference. Between 2000 and 2005, Gillingham were in the second tier of the English football league system for the only time in their history, achieving a club record highest league finish of eleventh place in 2002–03. (more...) Recently featured: Californication – Norwich Market – Maple syrup Archive – By email – More featured articles...
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From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that Thomas Harrison's first commission was for Skerton Bridge (pictured), the first large public bridge in England to have a flat roadway, and his last commission was for Grosvenor Bridge, which has the longest masonry arch in Britain? ... that singer Madonna appeared only as an animated fairy in the music video for her song "Dear Jessie"? ... that efforts by George Tchobanoglous have contributed to UV disinfection of wastewater being accepted as a technology for water reuse? ... that Dutch Antillean sprinter Churandy Martina would have won silver at the 2008 Summer Olympics if he had not been disqualified? ... that William Hamlin was the first engraver for the state of Rhode Island? ... that several pelagic gooseneck barnacles were once found attached to an American crocodile? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Allegations of flaws in the Russian legislative elections trigger the country's largest protests (pictured) since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Iran files a formal complaint to the UN Security Council regarding a U.S. RQ-170 Sentinel aircraft seized within its territory. The National Basketball Association lockout ends with a collective bargaining agreement between players and owners. Positive Slovenia, led by Ljubljana mayor Zoran Janković, wins a narrow plurality in the Slovenian parliamentary election. After 541 days of negotiations, a new Belgian government is sworn in, with Elio Di Rupo as prime minister. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
December 12: Independence Day in Kenya (1963) 1531 – According to traditional Catholic accounts, the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary (pictured) miraculously appeared imprinted on Juan Diego's tilma. 1915 – President Yuan Shikai of the Republic of China reinstated the monarchy and declared himself Emperor. 1918 – The Flag of Estonia was raised for the first time atop the Pikk Hermann in Tallinn. 1941 – At a Nazi Party meeting in the Reich Chancellery, Adolf Hitler declared the imminent destruction of the Jewish race. 2000 – The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Bush v. Gore that the election recount of the ballots cast in Florida for the presidential election must stop, effectively making George W. Bush the winner. More anniversaries: December 11 – December 12 – December 13 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now December 12, 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured list

Valkyrie names are found in the Old Norse poems Völuspá, Grímnismál, Darraðarljóð, and the Nafnaþulur section of the Prose Edda book Skáldskaparmál. Other valkyrie names appear solely outside these lists, such as Sigrún, which is attested in the poems Helgakviða Hundingsbana I and Helgakviða Hundingsbana II. In Norse mythology, a valkyrie is one of a host of female figures who choose which warriors will win or die in battle. Valkyrie names commonly emphasize associations with battle and, in many cases, on the spear—a weapon heavily associated with the god Odin. Scholars such as Hilda Ellis Davidson and Rudolf Simek propose that the names of the valkyries themselves contain no individuality, but are rather descriptive of the traits and nature of war-goddesses, and are possibly the descriptive creations of skalds, a type of traditional Scandinavian poet. Some valkyrie names may be descriptive of the roles and abilities of the valkyries. (more...)

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The brown-throated sloth (Bradypus variegatus) is the most common species of three-toed sloth. It is found in the forests of South and Central America. Males and females are both about 42–80 cm (17–31 in) in total body length and weigh 2.25–6.3 kg (5–14 lb).

Photo: Christian Mehlführer

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