Burton, Sir Richard Francis

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Burton, Sir Richard Francis (1821–90) English explorer and scholar. In 1853 he travelled in disguise to Medina and Mecca, one of the first Europeans to visit the holy cities. On his second trip to e Africa, with John Speke in 1857, he discovered Lake Tanganyika. The author of many books, he was best known for his translation of the Arabian Nights (1885–88).

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