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Costa Rica

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Costa Rica kŏsˈtə rēˈkə [key], officially Republic of Costa Rica, republic (2020 est. pop. ...

Voice of America

(Encyclopedia)Voice of America, broadcasting service of the United States Information Agency, est. 1942. Originally set up as a means of fighting the cold war, the Voice of America produces and broadcasts radio pro...

Volunteers of America

(Encyclopedia)Volunteers of America, national nondenominational organization providing a wide variety of human services as part of a Christian ministry of service. Founded (1896) by Ballington and Maud Booth (see B...

Belize City

(Encyclopedia)Belize City, capital (1993 est. pop. 47,724) of Belize dist., Belize, at the mouth of the Belize River, on the Caribbean Sea. The river flows c.180 mi (290 km) generally west and is navigable almost t...

domino theory

(Encyclopedia)domino theory, the notion that if one country becomes Communist, other nations in the region will probably follow, like dominoes falling in a line. The analogy, first applied (1954) to Southeast Asia ...

quetzal

(Encyclopedia)quetzal kāsälˈ [key], common name for a magnificent bird of the family Trogonidae (trogon family), found in the rain forests from S Mexico to Costa Rica at altitudes of up to 9,000 ft (2,745 m). It...

Fifty-four forty or fight

(Encyclopedia)Fifty-four forty or fight, in U.S. history, phrase commonly used by extremists in the controversy with Great Britain over the Oregon country. The rights of the United States, they maintained, extended...

Navajo, indigenous people of North America

(Encyclopedia)Navajo or Navaho both: näˈvəhō [key], Native North Americans whose language belongs to the Athabascan branch of the Nadene linguistic stock (see Native American languages). A migration from the No...

El Salvador

(Encyclopedia)CE5 El Salvador ĕl sälväᵺōrˈ [key], officially Republic of El Salvador, republic (2021 est. pop. ...

Carter Family

(Encyclopedia)Carter Family, group of singers that specialized in traditional music of the Southern Appalachian Mountains; it consisted of A(lvin) P(leasant) Carter, 1891–1960, b. Maces Spring, Va.; his wife, Sar...