Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Archipelago

(Encyclopedia)Archipelago ärkĭpĕlˈəgō [key] [Ital., from Gr.,=chief sea], ancient name of the Aegean Sea, later applied to the numerous islands it contains. The word now designates any cluster of islands. ...

Rogers, Woodes

(Encyclopedia)Rogers, Woodes, 1679?–1732, British privateer and colonial administrator. A romantic figure, Rogers plundered (1708–9) Spanish commerce in the Pacific and rescued Alexander Selkirk from the Juan F...

Louisiade Archipelago

(Encyclopedia)Louisiade Archipelago lo͞oēˌzēădˈ, –ädˈ [key], SW Pacific, part of Papua New Guinea. The archipelago comprises c.10 volcanic islands and numerous coral reefs. The major islands are Tagula (t...

Halsey, William Frederick, Jr.

(Encyclopedia)Halsey, William Frederick, Jr. (Bull Halsey) hôlˈsē [key], 1882–1959, American admiral, b. Elizabeth, N.J., grad. Annapolis, 1904. In World War II he led (Jan., 1942) a spectacular carrier raid a...

Florida Keys

(Encyclopedia)Florida Keys, chain of coral and limestone islands and reefs, c.150 mi (240 km) long, extending from Virginia Key, S of Miami Beach, to Key West, and forming the southern extremity of Florida. Between...

Inland Sea

(Encyclopedia)Inland Sea, Jap. Seto-naikai, arm of the Pacific Ocean, c.3,670 sq mi (9,510 sq km), S Japan, between Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu islands. It is linked to the Sea of Japan by a narrow channel. The sha...

Charlotte Amalie

(Encyclopedia)Charlotte Amalie əmälˈē [key], town, capital of the Virgin Islands of the United States, on ...

Cadamosto, Luigi da

(Encyclopedia)Cadamosto, Luigi da lo͞oēˈjē dä kädämôˈstō [key], 1432?–1488, Venetian navigator in the service of Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal. He seems to have entered Portuguese service in 14...

San Andrés and Providencia

(Encyclopedia)San Andrés and Providencia, district (1990 est. pop. 39,949), 21 sq mi (54 sq km), Colombia, comprising two small islands and seven groups of coral reefs and cays in the Caribbean 125–200 mi (201�...

Furneaux Group

(Encyclopedia)Furneaux Group fûrˈnō [key], about 25 islands, c.900 sq mi (2,330 sq km), Tasmania, SE Australia, in Bass Strait between Tasmania and the Australian mainland. The largest is Flinders Island, and th...