Welcome to Wikipedia

,

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

From today's featured article

Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954, it is Minnesota's most populous city as of the 2020 census. Minneapolis occupies both banks of the Mississippi River and adjoins Saint Paul, the state capital of Minnesota. Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and the surrounding area are collectively known as the Twin Cities, a metropolitan area with 3.69 million residents. Minneapolis is known for cold, snowy winters and hot, humid summers. The city's public park system is connected by the Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway. Dakota people originally inhabited the site of today's Minneapolis. For a time in the 19th century, Minneapolis was the lumber and flour milling capital of the world, and as home to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, it has preserved its financial clout into the 21st century. Minneapolis has a political landscape dominated by the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

Did you know ...

Zeng Laishun

... that Qing-dynasty official Zeng Laishun (pictured) attended the second inauguration of Ulysses S. Grant?
... that the male standard-winged nightjar grows a wing ornament more than twice the length of its body during breeding season?
... that John Green was UCLA's leading scorer on the first of coach John Wooden's 12 Final Four teams?
... that while Schubert wrote a melody for the song "Bunt sind schon die Wälder" in 1816, Johann Friedrich Reichardt's 1799 version is the one that remains popular?
... that a fighter-bomber group under the command of Walter G. Benz Jr. during the Korean War became the first United States Air Force unit to complete 50,000 combat sorties?
... that because of the cultural impact of Dragon Ball in Mexico, Goku has been described as "a Latino icon"?
... that Chrystal read law before beginning a music career?
... that the straight-tusked elephant was one of the largest land mammals ever?
... that seamen from the warship USS Roy O. Hale boarded the Soviet ship M/V Novorossiysk in 1959, in response to a report from AT&T?

In the news

Jimmy Carter

Former president of the United States and Nobel Peace laureate Jimmy Carter (pictured) dies at the age of 100.
Jeju Air Flight 2216 crashes at Muan International Airport, South Korea, killing 179 people.
Acting president and prime minister of South Korea Han Duck-soo is impeached by the National Assembly.
Former prime minister of India Manmohan Singh dies at the age of 92.

On this day

December 31: Saint Sylvester's Day (Western Christianity)

Taipei 101

1909 – The Manhattan Bridge, connecting Lower Manhattan to Downtown Brooklyn and considered to be the forerunner of modern suspension bridges, opened to traffic.
1983 – Two Australian biologists published an article titled "A Synopsis of the Class Reptilia in Australia", initiating the Wells and Wellington affair.
1986 – Three disgruntled employees set fire to the Dupont Plaza Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico, killing more than 90 people and injuring 140 others, making it the second-deadliest hotel fire in American history.
1999 – In accordance with the Torrijos–Carter Treaties, Panama assumed full control of the Panama Canal Zone from the United States.
2004 – Taipei 101 (pictured) in Taipei, Taiwan, opened to the public as the world's tallest building.

Ibn Hawshab (d. 914)
Richard Montgomery (d. 1775)
Cornelius Gallagher (b. 1854)
Mary Logan Reddick (b. 1914)

More anniversaries:

Today's featured picture

The Shah Jahan Mosque is a 17th-century central mosque in the city of Thatta, Pakistan. The mosque was built during the reign of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, who bestowed it on Thatta as a token of gratitude, and is heavily influenced by Central Asian architecture – a reflection of Shah Jahan's campaigns near Samarkand shortly before the mosque was designed. It is notable for its geometric brick work, a decorative element that is unusual for Mughal-period mosques. The mosque is unusual for its lack of minarets although it has a total of 93 domes, the most of any structure in Pakistan. This photograph depicts an interior view of one of the Shah Jahan Mosque's secondary domes, showing its octagonal structure, with blue-and-white tiles arranged in stellated patterns to represent the heavens.

Photograph credit: Alexander Savin

Recently featured:

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – The central hub for editors, with resources, links, tasks, and announcements.
Village pump – Forum for discussions about Wikipedia itself, including policies and technical issues.
Site news – Sources of news about Wikipedia and the broader Wikimedia movement.
Teahouse – Ask basic questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Help desk – Ask questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Reference desk – Ask research questions about encyclopedic topics.
Content portals – A unique way to navigate the encyclopedia.

Wikipedia's sister projects

Wikipedia is written by volunteer editors and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other volunteer projects: