Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Pepi I

(Encyclopedia)Pepi I pāˈpē [key], fl. c.2300 b.c., king of ancient Egypt, of the VI dynasty. He was responsible for the rise of the official Uni. He was succeeded by his sons Merenre, who reigned for less than d...

Khufu

(Encyclopedia)Khufu kēˈŏps [key], fl. c.2680 b.c., king of ancient Egypt, founder of the IV dynasty. He was king for 23 years and was famous as the builder of the greatest pyramid at Giza. ...

Abu Qir

(Encyclopedia)Abu Qir or Abukir both: ăˌbo͞okērˈ, əbo͞oˈkər [key], village, N Egypt, on a promontory in the Nile River delta. Admiral Horatio Nelson's victory over the French fleet off Abu Qir on Aug. 1–...

Pharnaces II

(Encyclopedia)Pharnaces II färˈnəsēz [key], d. 47 b.c., king of Pontus, son of Mithradates VI. In the Roman civil war he overran Colchis and central Asia Minor. Julius Caesar came from Egypt and defeated (47 b....

Cairo geniza

(Encyclopedia)Cairo geniza kōˈrō gənˈēzə [key], archive of ancient Jewish manuscripts found in the synagogue of Fostat-Cairo, Egypt (built 882). In the 1890s western scholars visited the synagogue and remove...

Bruyn, Cornelis de

(Encyclopedia)Bruyn, Cornelis de broin [key], 1652–c.1726, Dutch portrait painter and traveler. He painted for some years in Italy, where he was known, in Rome, as Adonis. Bruyn is remembered chiefly for the rec...

Sohag

(Encyclopedia)Sohag sôˈhäj [key], town (1986 pop. 132,649), capital of Sohag governorate, central Egypt, on the Nile River. It is located in a densely populated agricultural region. Local industries include ginn...

Qattara Depression

(Encyclopedia)Qattara Depression mo͝ongkhäfädˈ äl-kät-täräˈ [key], desert basin, c.7,000 sq mi (18,130 sq km), NW Egypt, NE Africa, in the Libyan Desert. It was long believed to be the lowest point (436 ft...

Benha

(Encyclopedia)Benha bänˈ– [key], city (1986 pop. 115,701), capital of Qalyubiyah governate, N Egypt, in the Nile River delta. A rail junction and trade center, Benha has cotton-ginning, rug-weaving, and food-pr...

Browse by Subject