Alma

Tadema, Alma: see Alma-Tadema, Sir Lawrence.

Gluck, Alma, 1884-1938, American soprano, b. Bucharest, Romania. Her real name was Reba Fiersohn. She sang (1909-12) at the Metropolitan Opera, New York City, and was one of the first singers to make phonograph records. In 1914 she married Efrem Zimbalist. Her daughter, by a previous marriage, was the writer Marcia Davenport.

Alma, city (1991 pop. 25,910), S central Que., Canada, on the Saguenay River. In 1954 its name was shortened from St. Joseph d'Alma. There are granite quarries in the region, and the town has pulp and paper and aluminum plants.

(born Jan. 8, 1836, Dronrijp, Neth.—died June 25, 1912, Wiesbaden, Ger.) Dutch-British painter. After studies at the Antwerp Academy, he visited Italy (1863) and became enamoured of Greco-Roman antiquity and Egyptian archaeology; the ancient world was to provide his primary themes. After settling in London in 1870, he excelled at the accurate re-creation of ancient scenes, exotic costumes, and the sensuous depiction of beautiful women against backgrounds of marble, bronze, and silk. Such figurative images combined sentimentality and anecdote. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1879 and knighted in 1899. Alma-Tadema's work was immensely popular in his day, but it went out of favour after his death.

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(born Jan. 8, 1836, Dronrijp, Neth.—died June 25, 1912, Wiesbaden, Ger.) Dutch-British painter. After studies at the Antwerp Academy, he visited Italy (1863) and became enamoured of Greco-Roman antiquity and Egyptian archaeology; the ancient world was to provide his primary themes. After settling in London in 1870, he excelled at the accurate re-creation of ancient scenes, exotic costumes, and the sensuous depiction of beautiful women against backgrounds of marble, bronze, and silk. Such figurative images combined sentimentality and anecdote. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1879 and knighted in 1899. Alma-Tadema's work was immensely popular in his day, but it went out of favour after his death.

Learn more about Alma-Tadema, Sir Lawrence with a free trial on Britannica.com.

formerly Alma-Ata

City (pop., 1999: 1,129,400), southeastern Kazakhstan. Formerly the capital of Kazakhstan, it lost its capital status in 1995 to Aqmola (now Astana). The modern city was founded in 1854, when the Russians established a military fortification on the site of the ancient city of Almaty, destroyed by the Mongols in the 13th century. With the coming of the railroad in 1930, its population grew rapidly. In World War II (1939–45), heavy industry expanded widely as factories were evacuated to the site from European Russia. The city remains a major industrial centre.

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Alma is a city in Crawford County in the western part of the U.S. state of Arkansas, along I-40 about 13 miles from the Oklahoma border. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of Alma is 4,734, making it the sixth largest city in the Fort Smith Arkansas-Oklahoma Statistical Area.

Geography

Alma is located at (35.488013, -94.220796).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.0 square miles (12.9 km²), of which 4.8 square miles (12.5 km²) is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km²) is water.

Alma has no airport, and the train station, which fell into a state of dilapidation, was torn down in the early 1970s. Much of its commerce derives from interstate highway traffic, as Interstates 40 and 540, as well as U.S. Routes 64 and 71, pass through the city.

The city gets its water supply from Lake Alma, which is perched above the city on the northeast, held back by a tall earthen dam that blocks Little Frog Bayou. Lake Alma is the reservoir that supplies the city's tap water, which is often tainted by algae levels in the lake. There are many other manmade ponds along the many streams that cut through the area's rolling hills.

Alma sits along the border between the Boston Mountains and the Arkansas River Valley, so while most of the city lies on flat land, immediately to the north is scenic hill country. Alma is surrounded by several rural towns as well, including Rudy to the north, Dyer and Mulberry to the east, and Kibler to the southwest.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 4,160 people, 1,560 households, and 1,168 families residing in the city. The population density was 865.4 people per square mile (333.9/km²). There were 1,688 housing units at an average density of 351.1/mi² (135.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.66% White, 1.71% Black or African American, 1.56% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 0.75% from other races, and 1.11% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.70% of the population.

There were 1,560 households out of which 42.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.1% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the city the population was spread out with 32.1% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,906, and the median income for a family was $34,068. Males had a median income of $33,235 versus $17,014 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,227. 11.9% of families and 16.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.7% of those under the age of 18 and 25.4% of those ages 65 or older.

The Spinach Capital of the World

The city of Alma is "the spinach capital of the world." This designation was adopted because Alma surrounds the spinach plant of the Allen Canning Company. The city has several landmarks and events to commemorate its connection with the green, leafy vegetable:

1. A statue of Popeye stands in the downtown area.
2. The city's water towers, which stand prominently above Lake Alma, have been painted green, and one of them displays a Popeye Brand spinach can label. The towers are known as the "largest cans of spinach in the world."
3. The city also hosts a Spinach Festival each April. Popeye himself has been known to make an appearance at this event.
4. Allen's canning company cans and ships spinach.
5. Due to the large export of spinach, and other canned goods, from The Allen Canning Co. Alma, AR is called the "Spinach Capital of the World".
6. This title is also claimed by Crystal City, Texas - ,

Education

Alma is served by Alma High School. Its mascot is the Airedale breed of dog. It has also added a new arena for which basketball and volleyball can be played in, the estimated cost of it was around 15 million dollars.

Notable natives

• Kiley Dean - R&B singer
• Bradley Hathaway - poet and folk musician.

References

External links

• Alma Performing Arts Center
• Alma School District
• History of Alma (pdf) from the Alma Chamber of Commerce website