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imam

(Encyclopedia)imam ĭmämˈ [key] [Arab.,=leader], in Islam, a recognized leader or a religious teacher. Among the Sunni the term refers to the leader in the Friday prayer at the mosque; any pious Muslim may functi...

James, Cyril Lionel Robert

(Encyclopedia)James, C. L. R., 1901–1989, Trinidadian historian, journalist, and communist activist, b. Tunapuna, Trinidad and Tobago. A social theorist, anti-colon...

Tilden, Samuel Jones

(Encyclopedia)Tilden, Samuel Jones, 1814–86, American political figure, Democratic presidential candidate in 1876, b. New Lebanon, N.Y. Admitted to the bar in 1841, Tilden was an eminently successful lawyer, with...

Cox, Kenyon

(Encyclopedia)Cox, Kenyon, 1856–1919, American painter, draftsman, and art critic, b. Warren, Ohio. He studied in Cincinnati, at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and with Carolus-Duran and Gérôme in P...

Clampitt, Amy

(Encyclopedia)Clampitt, Amy, 1920–94, American poet, b. New Providence, Iowa. A librarian and editor, she wrote little until the 1960s. Her first major magazine publication was in 1974, and her first commercially...

Gundulić, Ivan

(Encyclopedia)Gundulić, Ivan jōvänˈnē gōndəˈlä [key], 1588–1638, Croatian poet. Born in Ragusa (Dubrovnik) of an aristocratic Dalmatian family, he became chief magistrate of Ragusa. In his early work he ...

Fuller, George

(Encyclopedia)Fuller, George, 1822–84, American portrait, figure, and landscape painter, b. Deerfield, Mass.; pupil of Henry K. Brown at Albany. He first practiced portraiture in Boston and later in New York City...

Altamirano, Ignacio Manuel

(Encyclopedia)Altamirano, Ignacio Manuel ēgnäˈsyō mänwĕlˈ ältämēräˈnō [key], 1834–93, Mexican novelist and poet. Altamirano came from a poor family of indigenous descent, and after gaining his formal...

Jacquard, Joseph Marie

(Encyclopedia)Jacquard, Joseph Marie zhôzĕfˈ märēˈ zhäkärˈ [key], 1752–1834, French inventor, whose loom is of the greatest importance in modern mechanical figure weaving. After several years of experime...

Nervo, Amado

(Encyclopedia)Nervo, Amado ämäˈᵺō nārˈvō [key], 1870–1919, Mexican poet. Known as the “monk of poetry,” he studied for the priesthood but abandoned it for writing. An intimate friend of Rubén Darío...