Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

125 results found

Lee, Ang

(Encyclopedia)Lee, Ang äng [key], 1954–, Taiwanese filmmaker. Lee is one of the few directors who have achieved commercial and critical success in Asia and the United States, and is also unusual in the wide rang...

Bhagavad-Gita

(Encyclopedia)Bhagavad-Gita bŭgˈəvəd-gēˈtə [key] [Skt.,=song of the Lord], Sanskrit poem incorporated into the Mahabharata, one of the greatest religious classics of Hinduism. The Gita (as it is often called...

Thorpe, Jim

(Encyclopedia)Thorpe, Jim (James Francis Thorpe), 1888–1953, American athlete, b. near Prague, Okla. Thorpe was probably the greatest all-round male athlete the United States has ever produced. His mother, a Sac,...

tenrec

(Encyclopedia)tenrec tĕnˈrĕk [key], any of the small insectivorous mammals of the family Tenrecidae, also called tendrecs or tanrecs. These animals are found on the island of Madagascar. In that closed environme...

theosophy

(Encyclopedia)theosophy thēŏsˈəfē [key] [Gr.,=divine wisdom], philosophical system having affinities with mysticism and claiming insight into the nature of God and the world through direct knowledge, philosoph...

Wuorinen, Charles Peter

(Encyclopedia)Wuorinen, Charles Peter wûrˈĭnən [key], 1938–2020, American composer, conductor, and pianist, b. New York City. Wuorinen studied at Columbia (B.A., 1961; M.A., 1963) and taught there, at the Man...

ode

(Encyclopedia)ode, elaborate and stately lyric poem of some length. The ode dates back to the Greek choral songs that were sung and danced at public events and celebrations. The Greek odes of Pindar, which were mod...

skiing

(Encyclopedia)skiing, sport of sliding over snow on skis—long, narrow, flexible runners. Water skiing is a warm-weather sport in which a motor-propelled craft tows a skier through the water. Although its orig...

Krupp

(Encyclopedia)Krupp kro͝op [key], family of German armament manufacturers. The family settled in Essen in the 16th cent. The core of the great Krupp industrial empire was started by Friedrich Krupp, 1787–1826, w...

waters, territorial

(Encyclopedia)waters, territorial, all waters within the jurisdiction, recognized in international law, of a country. Certain waters by their situation are controlled by one nation; these include wholly enclosed in...