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Laban
(Encyclopedia)Laban lāˈbăn [key], in the Bible, father of Leah and Rachel and uncle of Jacob. The Nuzi tablets contain the stories of Laban and Jacob. ...Israel, in the Bible
(Encyclopedia)Israel ĭzˈrēəl, ĭzˈrāəl [key] [as understood by Hebrews,=he strives with God], according to the book of Genesis, name given to Jacob as eponymous ancestor of the Hebrews, the chosen people of ...Shechem, town, West Bank
(Encyclopedia)Shechem shēˈkəm [key], town, central ancient Palestine, the modern Tell Balatan, between Mts. Gerizim and Ebal, near Nablus. Archaeological excavations indicate a village there c.3500 b.c. Shechem'...Esau
(Encyclopedia)Esau ēˈsô [key] [Heb.,=hairy], in the Bible, son of Isaac, who sold his birthright to his younger twin, Jacob, for lentil stew and who was tricked by Jacob out of his father's blessing. Also known ...patriarch, in the Bible
(Encyclopedia)patriarch pāˈtrēärk [key], in biblical tradition, one of the antediluvian progenitors of the race as given in Genesis (e.g., Seth) or one of the ancestors of the Jews (e.g., Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,...Astor, John Jacob, 1864–1912, American financier
(Encyclopedia)Astor, John Jacob, 1864–1912, American financier, b. Rhinebeck, N.Y.; son of William Backhouse Astor (1829–92). He served in the Spanish-American War. Drowned in the Titanic disaster, he left two ...Fugger
(Encyclopedia)Fugger fo͝ogˈər [key], German family of merchant princes. The foundation of their wealth was laid by Hans Fugger, allegedly a weaver, who moved to Augsburg in 1367. His descendants built up the fam...Rachel, in the Bible
(Encyclopedia)Rachel rāˈchəl [key], in the Bible, wife of Jacob and mother of Joseph and Benjamin. She is one of the four Jewish matriarchs. An alternate form is Rahel. ...Mata Hari
(Encyclopedia)Mata Hari mäˈtə häˈrē [key], 1876–1917, Dutch dancer and spy during World War I. Her real name was Margaretha Geertruida Zelle. She married (1895–1906) the Dutch captain Rudolph MacLeod, liv...U-2 incident
(Encyclopedia)U-2 incident, in U.S. and Soviet history, the events following the Soviet downing of an American U-2 high altitude reconnaissance aircraft over Soviet territory on May 1, 1960. The incident led to the...Browse by Subject
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