Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

398 results found

rosary

(Encyclopedia)rosary [rose garden], prayer of Roman Catholics, in which beads are used as counters. The term, applied also to the beads, is extended to Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist prayers that use beads. The tradit...

Pankhurst, Emmeline Goulden

(Encyclopedia)Pankhurst, Emmeline Goulden ĕmˈəlīnˌ, –lēnˌ, go͞olˈdən, păngkˈhûrst [key], 1858–1928, British woman suffragist. Disappointed in the disinterest in women's suffrage shown by the Libera...

Carnegie, Andrew

(Encyclopedia)Carnegie, Andrew kärnĕgˈē, kärˈnəgē [key], 1835–1919, American industrialist and philanthropist, b. Dunfermline, Scotland. His father, a weaver, found it increasingly difficult to get work i...

Bernanke, Ben Shalom

(Encyclopedia)Bernanke, Ben Shalom bĕrnăngkˈē [key], 1953–, U.S. economist and government official, b. Augusta, Ga.; grad. Harvard (B.A., 1975), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Ph.D., 1979). He was a p...

knight

(Encyclopedia)knight, in ancient and medieval history, a noble who did military service as a mounted warrior. As the feudal system disintegrated, knight service was with growing frequency commuted into cash pay...

duel

(Encyclopedia)duel, prearranged armed fight with deadly weapons, usually swords or pistols, between two persons concerned with a point of honor. The duel may have originated in the wager of battle, an early mode of...

conscription

(Encyclopedia)conscription, compulsory enrollment of personnel for service in the armed forces. Obligatory service in the armed forces has existed since ancient times in many cultures, including the samurai in Japa...

Field, Marshall

(Encyclopedia)Field, Marshall, 1834–1906, American merchant, b. Conway, Mass. In 1856, after five years' apprenticeship in a general store in Pittsfield, Mass., he went to Chicago and became a clerk for Cooley, W...

settlement house

(Encyclopedia)settlement house, neighborhood welfare institution generally in an urban slum area, where trained workers endeavor to improve social conditions, particularly by providing community services and promot...

Bank of England

(Encyclopedia)Bank of England, central bank and note-issuing institution of Great Britain. Popularly known as the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street, its main office stands on the street of that name in London. The ba...