Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Evans, Charles

(Encyclopedia)Evans, Charles, 1850–1935, American librarian and bibliographer, b. Boston. He organized many major American libraries including the Indianapolis public library, the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Balt...

Fosse, Jon

(Encyclopedia)Jon Fosse, 1959– , b. Haugesund, Norway, Norwegian author and playwright, studied at the University of Bergen (B.A.; M.A, 1987). His work is noted for...

Jastrow, Marcus

(Encyclopedia)Jastrow, Marcus yäsˈtrō, jăsˈ– [key], 1829–1903, American rabbi and Talmudic scholar, b. Poland. He was a rabbi (1866–92) in Philadelphia, editor of the Talmud material of The Jewish Encycl...

Latini, Brunetto

(Encyclopedia)Latini, Brunetto bro͞onĕtˈtō lätēˈnē [key], d. 1294?, Italian man of letters, a diplomat. He introduced French literature to Italy and wrote, in French, Li livres dou tresor, the first vernacu...

Saint-Gelays, Mellin de

(Encyclopedia)Saint-Gelays or Saint-Gelais, Mellin de mĕlăN də săN-zhəlāˈ [key], c.1490–1558, French poet. He lived in Italy for many years, and he helped to introduce the Italian sonnet form as well as th...

Brontë

(Encyclopedia)Brontë brŏnˈtē [key], family of English novelists, including Charlotte Brontë, 1816–55, English novelist, Emily Jane Brontë, 1818–48, English novelist and poet, and Anne Brontë, 1820–49, ...

Chamfort, Sébastien Roch Nicolas

(Encyclopedia)Chamfort, Sébastien Roch Nicolas sābästyăNˈ rōk nēkōläˈ shäNfôrˈ [key], 1740–94, French writer. He is remembered only for his maxims and epigrams. His acute observations on literature, ...

Toldy, Ferencz

(Encyclopedia)Toldy, Ferencz fĕˈrĕnts tôlˈdĭ [key], 1805–75, father of Hungarian literary history. Toldy edited various literary journals and founded (1842) Nemzeti Könyvtár [national library] to produce ...

Laxness, Halldór Kiljan

(Encyclopedia)Laxness, Halldór Kiljan hälˈdōr kĭlˈyän läkhsˈnĕs [key], 1902–98, Icelandic novelist, b. Reykjavík as Halldór Kiljan Gudjónsson. Although Laxness was converted to Roman Catholicism brie...

Sturm und Drang

(Encyclopedia)Sturm und Drang shto͝orm o͝ont dräng [key] or Storm and Stress, movement in German literature that flourished from c.1770 to c.1784. It takes its name from a play by F. M. von Klinger, Wirrwarr; od...