ARZAIVIAS, iieztl-mas'. The capita] of the district of the same name, in the Govern ment of Nizhni Novgorod, Russia (Map: Russia, 3). It. is situated on the high right bank of the Tesha River at its juncture with the Arsha, an affluent of the Volga, about SO miles from Nizhni Novgorod, and 340 miles east of Moscow. Arzamas has tanneries, brick-yards. and tallow factories. Population estimated at 10,600. Ar zainas was noted in the first half of the Nine teenth Century for its school of painting, whose products supplied a great part of Russia with holy pictures.
AS (Lat.). The designation both of a Roman weight (called also Libra), corresponding very nearly to an English pound. and also of a coin made of the mixed metal a's, or bronze. The as (coin) originally no doubt weighed a (Roman) pound; but it was gradually reduced to 1-36 of a pound, and even lower. It is thus difficult to assign any fixed value to the as. About B.C. 270, the t/cmtrias (= 17e.) contained 10 asses; so that the value of the as was a little less than one and three-quarters cents; when 16 asses went to the denarius, the value was about one cent. It was by the scstcrtius (q.v.) that money was reckoned at Rome. The oldest form of as usually bore the figure of an ox, a sheep, or other domestic animal (perus) ; from which it is usually supposed that the Latin word for money. peennia, is derived.
A'SA, son of Abijah (IL Chron. xiv. 11 and the third kin°. of Judah. He began his reign as
a religious reformer by removing the idolatrous altars and the images (IL Chron. xiv. 3). Ile next turned his attention to the fortifications of the land. building walls and towers (11. Citron. xiv. 6). With the help of a large army which he collected—the Chronicler puts it at 580,000 men, which is surely too large a figure—he was able to defeat Zerah, the Ethiopian King (II. Citron. xiv. 8-12). On his return from this glorious victory he was met by Azariah, the son of Oiled, who preached a new religious reform. Aza•iah's preaching strengthened Asa in his work, and lie removed the traces of idolatry from Judah and Benjamin. He even removed his mother, Man chah. from power because she had made an idol to Ashera (1. Kings xv. 13: 11. Citron. xv. 16). For a time Asa had peace in the country, but war broke out between him and lIaasha, King of Israel. Against this king, Asa asked and secured the help of Benhadad, King of Syria. For this step he was severely rebuked by Ilanani, the seer. The King, in anger. imprisoned the prophet (11. Chron. xvi. 7-10). For the last two years of his reign Asa was arnieted with a disease of the foot. lie died and was buried in the city of David ( II. Chron. xvi. 13; I. Kings xv. 23-24) with great solemnity. The duration of his reign may be fixed approximately at B.C. 917-876.