Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Dili

(Encyclopedia)Dili dēˈlē [key], city (2002 est. pop. 49,900), capital of East Timor. on the N coast of Timor, on Ombai Strait. Dili is the largest city and chief port and commercial center of East Timor. Soap, p...

Torrington, George Byng, Viscount

(Encyclopedia)Torrington, George Byng, Viscount bĭng, tŏrˈĭngtən [key], 1663–1733, British admiral. Early in his career he helped win the support of the navy for William of Orange in the Glorious Revolution ...

Otranto

(Encyclopedia)Otranto ôˈträntō [key], town (1991 pop. 5,114), in Apulia, extreme S Italy, on the Strait of Otranto, which links the Adriatic and Ionian seas. It is a small fishing port and a seaside resort. Ori...

Point Roberts

(Encyclopedia)Point Roberts, uninc. town (1990 pop. 750), Whatcom co., NW Wash., on the Strait of Georgia near the tip of the Point Roberts, or Tsawwassen, peninsula, extending south from British Columbia, Canada, ...

Barrow, Sir John

(Encyclopedia)Barrow, Sir John, 1764–1848, British geographer, promoter of arctic exploration. His early travels as secretary to Earl Macartney (who was ambassador to China and governor of the Cape of Good Hope c...

Schouten, Willem Cornelis

(Encyclopedia)Schouten, Willem Cornelis vĭlˈəm kôrnāˈlĭs skhouˈtən [key], 1567?–1625, Dutch navigator. In 1615 he sailed from Texel island, Holland, in command of an expedition whose objective was to eva...

Baffin, William

(Encyclopedia)Baffin, William, c.1584–1622, British arctic explorer. He was pilot on two expeditions (1615–16) sent out to search for the Northwest Passage under command of Robert Bylot, who was formerly with H...

Wellington

(Encyclopedia)Wellington, city (1996 pop. 157,647; urban agglomeration 334,051), capital of New Zealand, extreme S North Island, on Port Nicholson, an inlet of Cook Strait. Socially and economically linked with Hut...

Melville Peninsula

(Encyclopedia)Melville Peninsula, 24,156 sq mi (62,564 sq km), c.250 mi (400 km) long and from 70 to 135 mi (113–217 km) wide, Nunavut, Canada, between the Gulf of Bothnia and Foxe Basin, and separated from Baffi...