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Rudolf I

(Encyclopedia)Rudolf I or Rudolf of Hapsburg ro͞oˈdŏlf [key], 1218–91, German king (1273–91), first king of the Hapsburg dynasty. Rudolf's election as king ended the interregnum (1250–73), during which tim...

Epicurus

(Encyclopedia)Epicurus ĕpĭkyo͝orˈəs [key], 341–270 b.c., Greek philosopher, b. Samos; son of an Athenian colonist. He claimed to be self-taught, although tradition states that he was schooled in the systems ...

Gama, Vasco da

(Encyclopedia)Gama, Vasco da văˈskō də găˈmə, Port. väshˈkō dä gäˈmə [key], c.1469–1524, Portuguese navigator, the first European to journey by sea to India. His epochal voyage (1497–99) was made ...

Norfolk Island

(Encyclopedia)Norfolk Island nôrˈfək [key], island (2016 pop. 1,748), 13 sq mi (34 sq km), South Pacific, a territory of Australia, c.1,035 mi (1,670 km) NE of Sydney. Its capital is Kingston. Now a resort, Norf...

Malraux, André

(Encyclopedia)Malraux, André äNdrāˈ mälrōˈ [key], 1901–76, French man of letters and political figure. An intellectual with a broad knowledge of archaeology, art history, and anthropology, Malraux led a re...

McGovern, George Stanley

(Encyclopedia)McGovern, George Stanley məgŭvˈərn [key], 1922–2012, U.S. senator from South Dakota (1963–81), b. Avon, S.Dak. He was a decorated B-24 bomber pilot during World War II. He later obtained degre...

David, in the Bible

(Encyclopedia)David, d. c.970 b.c., king of ancient Israel (c.1010–970 b.c.), successor of Saul. The Book of First Samuel introduces him as the youngest of eight sons who is anointed king by Samuel to replace Sau...

Henry III, king of France

(Encyclopedia)Henry III, 1551–89, king of France (1574–89); son of King Henry II and Catherine de' Medici. He succeeded his brother, Charles IX. As a leader of the royal army in the Wars of Religion (see Religi...

folk song

(Encyclopedia)folk song, music of anonymous composition, transmitted orally. The theory that folk songs were originally group compositions has been modified in recent studies. These assume that the germ of a folk m...

Seeger, Pete

(Encyclopedia)Seeger, Pete (Peter Seeger), 1919–2014, American folksinger, composer, and environmentalist, b. New York City. Seeger, a son of musicologist Charles Seeger and violinist Constance Edson Seeger, step...