Arable Land, land which is fit for ploughing, and capable of being cultivated, as distinguished from grass-land, wood-land, common pasture, mountains, forests, morasses, and waste. In Government returns the term is applied to land that is actually under regular cultivation. The land capable of being cultivated amounts in England and Wales to about 25 per cent, and in Ireland to about 13 per cent. In the course of the last thirty or forty years there has, however, been a considerable diminution in the area of land actually cultivated, as a result of large foreign imports of grain and other agricultural products.
Arabs. The Arabs, as a race, are of middle stature, of a powerful though slender build, and have a skin of a more or less brownish colour; in towns and the uplands often almost white. Their features are well cut, the nose straight, the forehead high. They are naturally active, intelligent, and courteous; and their character is marked by temperance, bravery, and hospitality. The first religion of the Arabs, the worship of the stars, was supplanted by the doctrines of Mahommedanism, which succeeded rapidly in establishing itself throughout Arabia. Besides the two principal sects of Islam, the Sunnites and the Shiites, there also exists, in considerable numbers, a third Mahommedan sect, the Wahabis, which arose in the latter half of the eighteenth century, and for a time possessed great political importance in the peninsula. The mode of life of the Arabs is either nomadic or settled. The nomadic tribes are termed Bedouins (or Bedawins), and among them are considered to be the Arabs of the purest blood.
Aracacha, or Arracacha (ar-a-kä'cha), a genus of umbelliferous plants of Southern and Central America. The root of A. esculenta is divided into several lobes, each of which is about the size of a large carrot. These are boiled like potatoes and largely eaten in South America.
Aracan (ar-a-kan'), the most northern division of Lower Burmah, on the Bay of Bengal; chief town and seaport Akyab. It was ceded to the English in 1826, as a result of the first Burmese war.
Araçari (a˙-ra˙-sä'rē), native name of a genus of brilliant birds (Pteroglossus) closely allied to the toucans, but generally smaller; natives of the warm parts of South America.
Aracati (a˙-ra˙-ka˙-tē'), a Brazilian river-port, State of Ceará, on the River Jaguaribe, about 10 miles from its mouth. Exports hides and cotton. Pop. about 10,000.
Ara´ceæ, a nat. ord. of monocotyledonous plants, mostly tropical, having the genus Arum as the type. Most of the species have tuberous roots abounding in starch, which forms a wholesome food after the acrid juice has been washed out. See Arum, Caladium, Dumb-cane.
Arachis (ar´a-kis), a genus of leguminous plants much cultivated in warm climates, and esteemed a valuable article of food. The most remarkable feature of the genus is that when the flower falls the stalk supporting the small undeveloped fruit lengthens, and bending towards the ground pushes the fruit into the ground, when it begins to enlarge and ripen. The pod of A. hypogœa (popularly called ground, earth, or pea nut) is of a pale-yellow colour, and contains two seeds the size of a hazel-nut, in flavour sweet as almonds, and yielding when pressed an excellent oil.
Arachnida (a-rak´ni-da; Gr. arachnē, a spider), a class of Arthropoda or higher Annulose animals including the Spiders, Scorpions, Mites, Ticks, &c. They have the body divided into a number of segments or somites, some of which have always articulated appendages (limbs, &c.). There is often a pair of nervous ganglia in each somite, although in some forms (as spiders) the nervous system becomes modified and concentrated. They are oviparous and somewhat resemble insects, but they have a united head and thorax, and do not undergo a metamorphosis similar to insects. They respire by tracheæ, by pulmonary sacs, or by the skin.
Ar´ack, or Ar´rack, a spirituous liquor manufactured in the East Indies from a great variety of substances. It is often distilled from fermented rice, or it may be distilled from the juice of the coco-nut and other palms. Pure arack is clear and transparent, of a yellowish or straw colour, and with a peculiar but agreeable taste and smell; it contains at least 52 to 54 per cent of alcohol.