26 September 2018
cenote
[suh-noh-tee]
noun
1. a deep natural well or sinkhole, especially in Central America, formed by the collapse of surface limestone that exposes ground water underneath, and sometimes used by the ancient Mayans for sacrificial offerings.
Origin of cenote
Mexican Spanish Yucatec
1835-1845; < Mexican Spanish < Yucatec Mayan
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for cenote
Historical Examples
For these the Mayan Indian name is ” cenote,” and they are often huge.
The American Egypt
Channing Arnold
The floor of this cenote is near the watertable but not below it.
Summer Birds From the Yucatan Peninsula
Erwin E. Klaas
Dinny led on rapidly till they reached the turning in the direction of the old temple which contained the cenote.
Commodore Junk
George Manville Fenn
Probably the swallows were nesting in the cenote although the nests were inaccessible to view.
Summer Birds From the Yucatan Peninsula
Erwin E. Klaas
Today’s quote
Laughter is an instant vacation.
– Milton Berle
On this day
26 September 1181 – birth of St Francis of Assisi, Italian friar and founder of the men’s Franciscan Order, the women’s Order of St Clare and the Third Order of St Francis. Although these are all Catholic Orders, he was never ordained as a Catholic priest. Died 3 October 1226.
26 September 1774 – birth of Johnny Appleseed (John Chapman), American environmentalist. Appleseed was a nurseryman who introduced significant numbers of apple trees to Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia and Illinois. His legend grew while he was still alive because of his generous nature, care for animals and the environment, and respect he had for the American Indian tribes who believed he’d been touched by the ‘Great Spirit’ because of his love and admiration for them and the gospel message he preached. Born 26 September 1774. Died 11 March 1845. The exact date of Appleseed’s death is in dispute, with some sources claiming 18 March 1845 and others as ‘Summer 1845’. 11 March is celebrated in the USA as ‘Johnny Appleseed Day’.
26 September 1888 – birth of Thomas Stearns Eliot (T.S. Eliot), poet, playwright, publisher, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, described as ‘arguably the most important English language poet of the 20th century’. Wrote ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock‘, ‘The Waste Land‘, ‘Ash Wednesday‘, ‘The Hollow Men‘. Died 4 January 1965.
26 September 1902 – death of Levi Strauss, German-born, American clothing manufacturer. Most notable for Levi jeans. Born 26 February 1829.
26 September 1907 – New Zealand declares independence from Great Britain.
26 September 1960 – Fidel Castro delivers the longest speech in U.N. history, at 4 hours, 29 minutes.
26 September 1964 – the first episode of the sit-com, Gilligan’s Island, airs in the United States. The final episode aired on 17 April 1967. It told the story of four men and three women on board the S.S. Minnow are ship-wrecked on a deserted island in the Pacific Ocean following a storm. Stranded are the ship’s mate, Gilligan and the ship’s skipper, a millionaire and his wife (the Howells), a sultry movie star (Ginger Grant), a professor and farm girl (Mary-Anne Summers).
26 September 1983 – Australia wins the America’s Cup yacht race; the first nation to take the cup off America in 132 years.
26 September 1997 – the Basilica of St Francis of Assisi (in Assisi, Italy) partially collapses after an earthquake strikes the region.