Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

zebra

(Encyclopedia)zebra, herbivorous hoofed African mammal of the genus Equus, which also includes the horse and the ass. It is distinguished by its striking pattern of black or dark brown stripes alternating with whit...

Macmillan, (Maurice) Harold, 1st earl of Stockton

(Encyclopedia)Macmillan, (Maurice) Harold, 1st earl of Stockton, 1894–1986, British statesman. A descendant of the founder of the publishing house of Macmillan and Company, he was educated at Eton and at Oxford a...

Scipio Africanus Major

(Encyclopedia)Scipio Africanus Major (Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus) ăfrĭkāˈnəs [key], 236–183 b.c., Roman general, the conqueror of Hannibal in the Punic Wars. He was the son of Publius Cornelius Scipi...

Gauteng

(Encyclopedia)Gauteng, province, 7,019 sq mi (18,178 sq km), NE South Africa. In 1994, under South Africa's post-apartheid constitution, Gauteng was created from the ...

Head, Bessie

(Encyclopedia)Head, Bessie, 1937–86, South African writer. Born in South Africa to a white mother and black father, she was placed in foster homes and orphanages as a child. After 1964, she lived in exile in Bots...

Lesotho

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Lesotho ləsōˈtō [key], officially Kingdom of Lesotho, kingdom (2015 est. pop. 2,175,000), 11,720 sq mi (30,355 sq km), S Africa. It is an enclave within the Republic of South Africa. Maseru...

gazelle

(Encyclopedia)gazelle, name for the many species of delicate, graceful antelopes of the genera Gazella, Eudorcas, and Nanger, inhabiting arid, open country. Most gazelles are found only in Africa, but several speci...

Geingob, Hage

(Encyclopedia)Geingob, Hage, 1941–, Namibian political leader. Geingob joined the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) in the early 1960s. In exile from 1962, he became a member of SWAPO's central comm...

Nkoli, Simon Tseko

(Encyclopedia)Nkoli, Simon 1957–1998, anti-apartheid and LGBTQ rights activist. Born in Soweto, Nkoli (sometimes referred to as Nkodi) was an influential South Afri...

Lion, The

(Encyclopedia)Lion, The, English name for Leo, a constellation. ...