Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Saint Laurent, Yves

(Encyclopedia)Saint Laurent, Yves săN lôräNˈ [key], 1936–2008, French fashion designer, b. Oran, Algeria, as Yves Henri Donat Mathieu-Saint-Laurent. Moving to Paris at 17, he ultimately established houses of...

Saint-Simon, Claude Henri de Rouvroy, comte de

(Encyclopedia)Saint-Simon, Claude Henri de Rouvroy, comte de klōd äNrē də ro͞ovrwäˈ kôNt də săN-sēmôNˈ [key], 1760–1825, French social philosopher; grand nephew of Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simo...

Prokofiev, Sergei Sergeyevich

(Encyclopedia)Prokofiev, Sergei Sergeyevich syĭrgāˈ syĭrgāˈəvĭch prōkôfˈēĕf [key], 1891–1953, Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Prokofiev achieved wide popularity with his lively music, in wh...

French language

(Encyclopedia)CEE French language, member of the Romance group of the Italic subfamily of the Indo-European family of languages (see Romance languages). It is spoken as a first language by more than 70 million p...

baroque, in art and architecture

(Encyclopedia)baroque bərōkˈ [key], in art and architecture, a style developed in Europe, England, and the Americas during the 17th and early 18th cent. The baroque style is characterized by an emphasis on unity...

Villon, François

(Encyclopedia)Villon, François fräNswäˈ vēyôNˈ [key], 1431–1463?, French poet, b. Paris, whose original name was François de Montcorbier or François Des Loges. One of the earliest great poets of France, ...

vapor pressure

(Encyclopedia)vapor pressure, pressure exerted by a vapor that is in equilibrium with its liquid. A liquid standing in a sealed beaker is actually a dynamic system: some molecules of the liquid are evaporating to f...

Xenakis, Yannis

(Encyclopedia)Xenakis, Yannis or Iannis yänˈĭs zānäˈkĭs [key], 1922–2001, Greek-French composer, b. Brăila, Romania. Xenakis studied civil engineering in Athens (1940–47) and was active in the anti-Nazi...

Senghor, Léopold Sédar

(Encyclopedia)Senghor, Léopold Sédar lāôpôldˈ sādärˈ säNgôrˈ [key], 1906–2001, African statesman and poet; president (1960–80) of the Republic of Senegal, b. Joal. The son of a prosperous landowner,...

Diaghilev, Sergei Pavlovich

(Encyclopedia)Diaghilev, Sergei Pavlovich syĭrgāˈ pävˈləvĭch dyäˈgĭlyĭf [key], 1872–1929, Russian ballet impresario and art critic, grad. St. Petersburg Conservatory of Music, 1892. In 1898 he founded ...