Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

John, king of England

(Encyclopedia)John, 1167–1216, king of England (1199–1216), son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. John, though often cruel and treacherous, was an excellent administrator, much concerned with rendering...

Didrikson, Babe

(Encyclopedia)Didrikson, Babe (Mildred Didrikson) dēˈdrĭksən [key], 1913–56, American athlete, generally considered the greatest woman athlete of modern times, b. Port Arthur, Tex. At an early age Babe Didrik...

Lee, Richard Henry

(Encyclopedia)Lee, Richard Henry, 1732–94, political leader in the American Revolution, b. Westmoreland co., Va.; brother of Arthur Lee, Francis L. Lee, and William Lee. He served in the house of burgesses (1758�...

Togo, Heihachiro

(Encyclopedia)Togo, Heihachiro hāˈhächĭrōˈ tōˈgō [key], 1846–1934, Japanese admiral, Japan's greatest naval hero. He studied naval science in England (1871–78), gained international recognition for his...

Pyle, Howard

(Encyclopedia)Pyle, Howard, 1853–1911, American illustrator and writer, b. Wilmington, Del., studied at the Art Students League, New York City. His illustrations appeared regularly in Harper's Weekly, and in many...

Kinshasa

(Encyclopedia)Kinshasa kēnˈshäsə [key], city (1984 pop. 2,664,309), capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, W Congo, a port on Pool Malebo of the Congo River. It is the Congo's largest city and its adm...

californium

(Encyclopedia)californium kălˈĭfôrˌnēəm [key] [from California], artificially produced, radioactive metallic chemical element; symbol Cf; at. no. 98; mass no. of most stable isotope 251; m.p. about 900℃; b...

value, in economics

(Encyclopedia)value, in economics, worth of a commodity in terms of other commodities, or in terms of money (see price). Value depends on both desirability and scarcity. The marginal theory of value, pioneered in t...

Baring

(Encyclopedia)Baring bârˈĭng [key], British family of bankers. Sir Francis Baring (1740–1810) founded (1763) the John and Francis Baring Company, which he renamed Baring Brothers and Company in 1806. At first ...

Victoria, Lake

(Encyclopedia)Victoria, Lake, or Victoria Nyanza nēănˈzə, nī– [key], largest lake of Africa and the world's second largest freshwater lake, c.26,830 sq mi (69,490 sq km), E central Africa, on the Uganda-Tanz...