Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

lares

(Encyclopedia)lares lârˈēz [key], in Roman religion, guardian spirits. According to some they were ghosts of the dead, destructive spirits who frequented crossroads and had to be propitiated. Others say that the...

Lompoc

(Encyclopedia)Lompoc lŏmˈpōk [key], city (1990 pop. 37,649), Santa Barbara co., S Calif., in an oil and agricultural area; inc. 1888. It has a huge flower-seed industry and two large diatomaceous earth mines. Pe...

Kolas, Jakub

(Encyclopedia)Kolas, Jakub yäˈko͝ob kōˈläs [key], 1882–1956, Belorussian poet and novelist, whose original name was Konstantin Mitskevich. With Janka Kupala, he was a leading figure in Belorussian national ...

mumming play

(Encyclopedia)mumming play, form of drama developed in England in the early 17th cent., based on the legend of St. George and the dragon. The central theme of the play is the death and resurrection of the hero. The...

Huitzilopochtli

(Encyclopedia)Huitzilopochtli wēˌtsēlōpōchtˈlē [key], chief deity of the Aztec, god of war. He is said to have guided the Aztecs during their migration from Aztlán. Usually represented in sculptured images ...

igloo

(Encyclopedia)igloo ĭgˈlo͞o [key] [Inuit,=house]. The Eskimos traditionally had three types of houses. A summer house, which was basically a tent, a winter house, which was usually partially dug into the ground ...

inorganic chemistry

(Encyclopedia)inorganic chemistry, the study of all the elements and their compounds with the exception of carbon and its compounds, which fall under the category of organic chemistry. Inorganic chemistry investiga...

Ea

(Encyclopedia)Ea ĕngˈkē [key], ancient water god of Sumerian origin, worshiped in Babylonian religion. The great benefactor of mankind, Ea was called the lord of wisdom, of magic, and of the arts and sciences. W...

Pluto, in Greek religion and mythology

(Encyclopedia)Pluto, in Greek religion and mythology, god of the underworld, son of Kronos and Rhea; also called Hades. After the fall of the Titans, Pluto and his brothers Zeus and Poseidon divided the universe, a...

New Hampshire, University of

(Encyclopedia)New Hampshire, University of, main campus at Durham; land-grant and state supported; coeducational; chartered 1866, opened 1868 as the state college of agriculture and mechanic arts, a division of Dar...