Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Zetkin, Klara

(Encyclopedia)Zetkin, Klara kläˈrä tsĕtˈkĭn [key], 1857–1933, German Communist leader and feminist. A teacher, she early joined the Social Democratic party and together with Rosa Luxemburg, became prominent...

Bonnet, Georges

(Encyclopedia)Bonnet, Georges bônāˈ [key], 1889–1973, French politician. He entered politics as a Radical Socialist. A financial expert, he was prominent at international conferences on reparations and other ...

Black Shirts

(Encyclopedia)Black Shirts, colloquial term originally used to refer to the members of the Fasci di combattimento, units of the Fascist organization founded in Italy in Mar., 1919, by Benito Mussolini. A black shir...

Basques

(Encyclopedia)Basques băsks [key], people of N Spain and SW France. There are about 2 million Basques in the three Basque provs. and Navarre, Spain; some 250,000 in Labourd, Soule, and Lower Navarre, France; and c...

Petrobras scandal

(Encyclopedia)Petrobras scandal, Brazilian corruption scandal involving executives at the government-controlled oil company, Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras), prominent politicians, and construction firms work...

wagon train

(Encyclopedia)wagon train, in U.S. history, a group of covered wagons used to convey people and supplies to the West before the coming of the railroad. The wagon replaced the pack, or horse, train in land commerce ...

Soka Gakkai

(Encyclopedia)Soka Gakkai sōˈkä gäkˈkī [key] [Jap.,=Value Creation Society], Japan-based independent lay Buddhist movement. A theological offshoot of Nichiren Buddhism, it was founded (1930) as the Soka Kyoik...

Brown, Gordon

(Encyclopedia)Brown, Gordon (James Gordon Brown), 1951–, British politician. From 1975 to 1980 he taught at Edinburgh Univ. and Glasgow College of Technology; he then joined Scottish Television (1980–83) as a j...

Laffitte, Jacques

(Encyclopedia)Laffitte, Jacques zhäk läfētˈ [key], 1767–1844, French banker and politician. He rose from poverty to become one of the wealthiest and most influential men in France. He was director (1809) and ...

Konoye, Fumimaro

(Encyclopedia)Konoye, Fumimaro fo͞oˌmēmärōˈ kōnōyāˈ [key], 1891–1945, Japanese statesman. He was a scion of the ancient Fujiwara noble family. In June, 1937, he accepted the premiership. A former libera...