Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Tarik ibn Ziyad

(Encyclopedia)Tarik ibn Ziyad täˈrĭk [key], fl. 711, Berber leader of the Muslim invaders of Spain. When the heirs of the Visigothic king, Witiza, requested help from the Moors of N Africa against the usurper Ro...

turquoise

(Encyclopedia)turquoise, hydrous phosphate of aluminum and copper, Al2(OH)3PO4·H2O+Cu, used as a gem. It occurs rarely in crystal form, but is usually cryptocrystalline. Turquoise is opaque and has a waxy luster; ...

Trudeau, Edward Livingston

(Encyclopedia)Trudeau, Edward Livingston tro͞oˈdō [key], 1848–1915, American physician, b. New York City, M.D. Columbia, 1871. As a result of taking care of his brother, who had tuberculosis, he developed the ...

Union League Clubs

(Encyclopedia)Union League Clubs, in U.S. history, organizations formed throughout the North in the Civil War after the military defeats and Republican election losses of 1862. A convention at Cleveland (May, 1863)...

Wright, Jim

(Encyclopedia)Wright, Jim (James Claud Wright, Jr.), 1922–2015, U.S. congressman, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives (1987–89), b. Fort Worth, Tex. Following service in the U.S. army during World War ...

Yakub I

(Encyclopedia)Yakub I yäko͝obˈ [key], 1160?–1199, ruler of Morocco (1184–99) and Moorish Spain. He was known as Yakub al-Mansur [the victorious] after his victory over Alfonso VIII of Castile at Alarcos (119...

beryl

(Encyclopedia)beryl bĕrˈĭl [key], mineral, a silicate of beryllium and aluminum, Be3Al2Si6O18, extremely hard, occurring in hexagonal crystals that may be of enormous size and are usually white, yellow, green, b...

Zimbalist, Efrem

(Encyclopedia)Zimbalist, Efrem ĕˈfrəm zĭmˈbəlĭst [key], 1889–1985, Russian-American violinist. Zimbalist was a pupil of Leopold Auer at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. He made his debut in Berlin in 1907,...

juvenile delinquency

(Encyclopedia)juvenile delinquency, legal term for behavior of children and adolescents that in adults would be judged criminal under law. In the United States, definitions and age limits of juveniles vary, the max...

National Recovery Administration

(Encyclopedia)National Recovery Administration (NRA), in U.S. history, administrative bureau established under the National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933. In response to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's cong...

Browse by Subject