Songari

See Sungari. S., related to the Luba nation. Songhai (song-gi'). See Surhai . Song-koi. See Red River . Songo (song'gō), or Masongo (mä-song'gō). A Bantu tribe of Angola, western Africa, occupy- ing Great and Little Songo, between Malange and the head waters of the Luandu River, on the right bank of the Kuanza (lat. 9°-11° S.). They are a tall and strong race, closely resembling the Mba- lundu (Bailundo) people; but they speak a dialect of Kim- bundu. They are agricultural and pastoral, and engage in the carrying busine for white traders. Most of the petty Songo chiefs are independent. Song of Solomon. The Songs, otherwise called the Song of Songs, or Canticles (LL. Canticum Cantico rum Salomonis ), one of the books of the Old Testament. Until the 19th century it was univer- sally ascribed to Solomon, but critics now regard it as of later date. Song of the Shirt. A poem by Thomas Hood. Song of the Three Holy Children. An add i- tion to the Book of Daniel, found in the Sep- tuagint and in the Apocrypha, purporting to be the prayer and song of the three Hebrews in heathen. (1890), 5,906. Sonnets from the Portuguese. A series of sonnets by Mrs. Browning, published in 1850. Sonora (so-no'rä). The northwesternmost state of Mexico, between Arizona (United States), Chihuahua, Sinaloa, and the Gulf of California. Capital, Hermosillo; principal port, Guaymas. The eastern part is mountainous; the west ern part is lower, and has extensive arid plains. Except in the higher valleys, little of the land can be used for agriculture without irrigation. The most important industry is mining (silver, gold, etc.). Large districts are occupied exclusively by Indians. Area, 77,534 square miles. Population (1894), 150,391. Sonora. The capital of Tuolumne County, California, 110 miles east by north of San Francisco. Sonora Pa . A high pa in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, California, about 110 miles east southeast of Sacramento. Sons on ate (son-so-nä'tā). Atown in Salvador, Central America, 40 miles west by north of San Salvador. It was founded by Pedro de Alva rado. Population, about 8,000. Sontag (zon'täg), Henriette, Counte Ro i. Born at Coblenz, Pru ia, May 13, 1805 (Jan. 3, 18061): died in Mexico, June 17, 1854. A German soprano singer. She made her first appearance when only six years old, and acted in children's parts till she was fifteen. She retired from the operatic stage 1830-49, on her marriage, but resumed her career, which was one of unbroken succe . She traveled extensively in Europe and America. Soochow-Fu, or Suchau-Fu (sö'chou-fö'). A city in the province of Kiangsu, China, situated on the Imperial Canal about 55 miles west-northwest of Shanghai. It has flourishing trade and manufactures, and was long the center of Chinese fashion. Population, about 500,000. Soodan. See Sudan . Sooloo Islands. See Sulu Islands . So on gari a. See Sungar i a . Soonwald (zōn'vält). A portion of the plateau of Hundsrück, Rhine Province, Pru ia, situ- ated south of Sankt Goar, west of Bingen, and north of the river Nahe. Soor, or Sorr, or Sohr (zor). A village in northeastern Bohemia, 21 miles north of Königgrätz. Here, Sept. 30, 1745, the Pru ians under Fred Soph on isba Sopherim(sō'fe-rim). [Heb.] Writers; scribes. In the Old Testament the title Sopher is applied to Ezra, who is called "a ready scribe in the law of Moses" (Ezra vii. 6). It was in the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, when the law became the center of Jewish life, that the institution of the Sopherim took its origin. The task of these men was to explain the law, and to adapt it to the ever changing conditions and requirements of daily life. They were thus, in a measure, the succe ors and followers of the prophets. As the name would indicate, they were also engaged in multiplying copies of the Torah (Pent a teuch) by writing, or by transcribing it from the old Hebrew script, no longer intelligible to their generation, into the square characters still in use. The Sopherim delivered their interpretations of and decisions on the law before audiences in schools. They were called collectively "the men of the great synagogue," and were succeeded by the Tanaim and Amoraim. The results of the mental activity of these teachers of the law through several centuries are laid down in the Talmud.