Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Taglioni, Maria

(Encyclopedia)Taglioni, Maria, 1804–84, Italian ballerina, b. Stockholm. Taglioni is considered the first and foremost ballerina of the romantic period. She made her debut in Vienna in 1822 in a ballet created fo...

Monreale

(Encyclopedia)Monreale mōnrāäˈlā [key], town (1991 pop. 26,256), NW Sicily, Italy, near Palermo. An agricultural market and tourist center, it commands a magnificent view of the fertile Conca d'Oro plain. A fa...

Murten

(Encyclopedia)Murten mo͝orˈtən [key], Fr. Morat, town, Fribourg canton, W Switzerland, on the Lake of Murten. It is known chiefly as the scene of the defeat (1476) of Charles the Bold of Burgundy by the Swiss. F...

Hvar

(Encyclopedia)Hvar khvär [key], Gr. Pharos, Ital. Lesina, island, 112 sq mi (290 sq km), in the Adriatic Sea off the Dalmatian coast, Croatia. Fruit growing, cattle raising, and fishing are the chief occupations. ...

Elgin, town, Scotland

(Encyclopedia)Elgin, town, Moray, NE Scotland, on the Lossie River. Lossiemouth is its port. Elgin is the market town for Moray's farm belt. Woolen textiles are manuf...

Santo Tomás, University of

(Encyclopedia)Santo Tomás, University of sänˈtō tōmäsˈ [key], at Manila, the Philippines; Roman Catholic, coeducational; founded 1611 by Dominican priests. It is the oldest institution of higher learning in ...

Ramsgate

(Encyclopedia)Ramsgate rămzˈgĭt [key], town (1991 pop. 36,678), in the Isle of Thanet, Kent, SE England. Ramsgate is a resort and yachting harbor. The town began as a fishing settlement, and extensive trade with...

Rice University

(Encyclopedia)Rice University, at Houston, Tex.; coeducational; chartered 1891 as Rice Institute through a bequest of William Marsh Rice, opened 1912, renamed 1960. It follows the residential college system and has...

Windisch

(Encyclopedia)Windisch vĭnˈdĭsh [key], town, Aargau canton, N Switzerland, on the Reuss River near its confluence with the Aare. Textiles and cables are made there. Originally a Helvetian settlement, it later be...

Bogardus, James

(Encyclopedia)Bogardus, James bōgärˈdəs [key], 1800–1874, American architect, b. Catskill, N.Y. Among the first to use cast iron in the construction of building facades, Bogardus was noted for his commercial ...