Columbia Encyclopedia

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Reyes, Rafael

(Encyclopedia)Reyes, Rafael räfäĕlˈ rāˈyās [key], 1850–1921, president of Colombia (1904–9). As a young man, he explored the upper Amazon wilderness with his brother. Later he distinguished himself in th...

balance of payments

(Encyclopedia)balance of payments, balance between all payments out of a country within a given period and all payments into the country, an outgrowth of the mercantilist theory of balance of trade. Balance of paym...

Bhutan

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Bhutan bo͞otänˈ [key], officially Kingdom of Bhutan, kingdom (2020 est. pop. 771,612), ...

Cline, Patsy

(Encyclopedia)Cline, Patsy, 1932–63, American country singer, b. Winchester, Va., as Virginia Patterson Hensley. She began singing locally while still in her teens and signed her first recording contract in 1953,...

exchange

(Encyclopedia)exchange, mutual transfer of goods, money, services, or their equivalents; also the marketplace where such transfer occurs, such as a stock exchange or a commodity exchange (see commodity market). In ...

Nelson, Willie

(Encyclopedia)Nelson, Willie, 1933–, American country singer, guitarist, and songwriter, b. Abbott, Tex. Nelson began playing professionally at 10 and joined a western swing band as a teenager. In the 1960s he mo...

Swift, Taylor Alison

(Encyclopedia) Swift, Taylor Alison, 1989- , American singer-songwriter, b. West Reading, Pa. A precocious songwriter, Swift moved to Nashville at age 15 hoping ...

Santo Domingo, city, Dominican Republic

(Encyclopedia)Santo Domingo sänˈtō dōmēngˈgō [key], city (1993 pop. 1,609,966), S Dominican Republic, on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River. It is the country's capital, largest city, leading...

Sufism

(Encyclopedia)Sufism so͞oˈfĭzəm [key], an umbrella term for the ascetic and mystical movements within Islam. While Sufism is said to have incorporated elements of Christian monasticism, gnosticism, and Indian m...

Andorra

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Andorra äNdôrˈ [key], officially Principality of Andorra, autonomous parliamentary co-principality (2020 est. pop. 77.265), 179 sq mi (464 sq km), high in the E ...