Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

117 results found

Macpherson, James

(Encyclopedia)Macpherson, James, 1736–96, Scottish author. Educated at Aberdeen and Edinburgh, he spent his early years as a schoolmaster. In later life he held a colonial secretaryship in West Florida (1764–66...

bilingualism

(Encyclopedia)bilingualism, ability to use two languages. Fluency in a second language requires skills in listening comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing, although in practice some of those skills are often...

Charlottetown

(Encyclopedia)Charlottetown, city, capital and chief port of Prince Edward Island, E Canada, on the southern coast. Food processing, tourism, fishing, and farming are...

Jones, Casey

(Encyclopedia)Jones, Casey, 1864–1900, American locomotive engineer celebrated in ballad and song, probably b. Jordan, Fulton co., Ky. His real name was John Luther Jones, but at the age of 17 he went to Cayce, K...

Grangemouth

(Encyclopedia)Grangemouth grānjˈməth, –mouth [key], town (1981 pop. 21,744), Falkirk, central Scotland, on the Forth River at the eastern terminus of the Forth and Clyde canal. Grangemouth is an important oil ...

Williams, William Carlos

(Encyclopedia)Williams, William Carlos, 1883–1963, American poet and physician, b. Rutherford, N.J., educated in Geneva, Switzerland, Univ. of Pennsylvania (M.D., 1906), and Univ. of Leipzig, where he studied ped...

Deluc, Jean André

(Encyclopedia)Deluc, Jean André zhäN äNdrāˈ dəlükˈ [key], 1727–1817, Swiss geologist. During the first half of his life he was engaged mainly in business in Switzerland. He also made scientific excursions...

Nassau, city, Bahamas

(Encyclopedia)Nassau năˈsô [key], city (1990 pop. 172,196), capital of the Bahamas. A port on New Providence island, it has a large and beautiful harbor and is the commercial and social center of the islands. It...

Kublai Khan

(Encyclopedia)Kublai Khan ko͞oˈblī kän [key], 1215–94, Mongol emperor, founder of the Yüan dynasty of China. From 1251 to 1259 he led military campaigns in S China. He succeeded (1260) his brother Mongke (Ma...

Englewood

(Encyclopedia)Englewood ĕngˈgəlwo͝od [key]. 1 City (2020 pop. 33,659), Arapahoe co., N central Colo., o...

Browse by Subject