Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

John II, Byzantine emperor

(Encyclopedia)John II (John Comnenus) kŏmnēˈnəs [key], 1088–1143, Byzantine emperor (1118–43), son and successor of Alexius I. He was crowned despite the intrigues of his sister, Anna Comnena, and of his mo...

Karrer, Paul

(Encyclopedia)Karrer, Paul, 1889–1971, Swiss organic chemist, Ph.D. Univ. of Zürich, 1911. From 1912 to 1918, Karrer was a chemist at the Georg Speyer Haus, Frankfurt-am-Main. He left in 1919 to become professor...

Haskins, Charles Homer

(Encyclopedia)Haskins, Charles Homer, 1870–1937, American historian, an authority on medieval history, b. Meadville, Pa. At Harvard (1902–31) he was professor and dean of graduate studies (1908–24); in the la...

Hakam II, al-

(Encyclopedia)Hakam II, al- äl-häkämˈ [key], 914–76, Umayyad caliph of Córdoba (961–76), son and successor of Abd ar-Rahman III. In the early part of his reign he successfully waged war against the Christi...

Great Malvern

(Encyclopedia)Great Malvern môlˈvərn, môˈ– [key] or Malvern, town, Worcestershire, W central England, on ...

Dexter, Colin

(Encyclopedia)Dexter, Colin (Norman Colin Dexter), 1930–2017, English mystery novelist, b. Stamford, Lincolnshire. He as a classics teacher in secondary schools until deafness forced him to find a new career; he ...

Warwick, town and district, England

(Encyclopedia)Warwick, town (1991 pop. 21,701) and district, county seat of Warwickshire, central England, on the Avon River. The town has some commerce and manufacturing. Warwick is best known for Warwick Castle, ...

Canosa di Puglia

(Encyclopedia)Canosa di Puglia känôˈzä dē po͞oˈlyä [key], Lat. Canusium, city, Apulia, S It...

creeper

(Encyclopedia)creeper, common name for members of a family of small, inconspicuous birds related to wrens and nuthatches. They are found in wooded regions of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. A creeper spirals up ...

benzoin

(Encyclopedia)benzoin bĕnzoinˈəm [key], balsamic resin, the dried exudation from the pierced bark of various species of the benzoin tree (Styrax) native to Sumatra, Java, and Thailand; appearing as red-brown to ...