Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

hare

(Encyclopedia)hare, name for certain herbivorous mammals of the family Leporidae, which also includes the rabbit and pika. The name is applied especially to species of the genus Lepus, sometimes called the true har...

Frobenius, Leo

(Encyclopedia)Frobenius, Leo lāˈō frōbāˈnēo͝os [key], 1873–1938, German archaeologist and anthropologist. An authority on prehistoric art and culture, especially of Africa, he organized 12 expeditions to ...

honey badger

(Encyclopedia)honey badger or ratel rātˈəl [key], carnivore, Mellivora capensis, of the forest and brush country of Africa, the Middle East, and India; it is a member of the badger and skunk family. Related to t...

mandrill

(Encyclopedia)mandrill, large monkey, Mandrillus sphinx, of central W Africa, related to the baboons. Mandrills are found in forests, while baboons live in open country. The fur of the mandrill is mostly dark brown...

Smith, Ian Douglas

(Encyclopedia)Smith, Ian Douglas, 1919–2007, Rhodesian political leader. A cattle farmer who was the son of a Scottish immigrant, he served in the Southern Rhodesia legislative assembly from 1948 until 1953, when...

Ulundi

(Encyclopedia)Ulundi o͞olo͞onˈdē [key] [Zulu,=the high place], town, part and seat of Ulundi local municipality (2011 pop. 187,271), KwaZulu-Natal prov., SE South Africa. Situated on a hill overlooking the Whit...

Johnston, Sir Harry Hamilton

(Encyclopedia)Johnston, Sir Harry Hamilton, 1858–1927, British explorer and colonial official. His early interest in the natural sciences was combined with his concern for the political problems of colonial Afric...

imperialism

(Encyclopedia)imperialism, broadly, the extension of rule or influence by one government, nation, or society over another. Imperialism was reborn in the West with the emergence of the modern nation-state and the ...

Afroasiatic languages

(Encyclopedia)Afroasiatic languages hămˈĭtō-səmĭtˈĭk [key], family of languages spoken by more than 250 million people in N Africa; much of the Sahara; parts of E, central, and W Africa; and W Asia (especia...

Commonwealth of Nations

(Encyclopedia)Commonwealth of Nations, voluntary association of Great Britain and its dependencies, certain former British dependencies that are now sovereign states and their dependencies, and the associated state...