Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

hat

(Encyclopedia)hat, headdress developed from the simple close-fitting cap and hood of antiquity. The first hat, which was distinguished as such by having a brim, was the felt petasus of the Greeks, which tied under ...

Papen, Franz von

(Encyclopedia)Papen, Franz von fränts fən päˈpən [key], 1879–1969, German politician. Appointed (1913) military attaché to the German embassy in Washington, he was implicated in espionage activities that le...

East India Company, Dutch

(Encyclopedia)East India Company, Dutch, 1602–1798, chartered by the States-General of the Netherlands to expand trade and assure close relations between the government and its colonial enterprises in Asia. The c...

Eaton, John Henry

(Encyclopedia)Eaton, John Henry, 1790–1856, U.S. Senator (1818–29) and Secretary of War (1829–31), b. Halifax co., N.C. After being admitted to the bar, he practiced in Franklin, Tenn., and married Myra Lewis...

denture

(Encyclopedia)denture, artificial replacement for natural teeth and surrounding tissue. Dentures are classified as partial or complete. The former are removable and maintained by clasps, or are fixed bridges with c...

Algonquin

(Encyclopedia)Algonquin ălgŏngˈkwĭn, –kĭn [key], small group of Native North Americans. The name of the Algonquian branch of the Algonquian-Wakashan linguistic stock (to which they belonged) is derived from ...

Domenico Veneziano

(Encyclopedia)Domenico Veneziano dōmāˈnēkō vānātsyäˈnō [key], c.1400–1461, Italian painter. His origin is unknown, although his name suggests that he came from Venice. His art, with rich coloring and de...

Curtis, George Ticknor

(Encyclopedia)Curtis, George Ticknor, 1812–94, American lawyer and writer, b. Watertown, Mass. A highly successful patent attorney, Curtis served in the Massachusetts legislature (1840–43) and as U.S. commissio...

Eton

(Encyclopedia)Eton ēˈtən [key], town, Windsor and Maidenhead, central England, on the Thames River. It i...

executive privilege

(Encyclopedia)executive privilege, exemption of the executive branch of government, or its officers, from having to give evidence, specifically, in U.S. law, the exemption of the president from disclosing informati...