Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Marbut, Curtis Fletcher

(Encyclopedia)Marbut, Curtis Fletcher märˈbət [key], 1863–1935, American geologist, b. Verona, Mo., grad. Univ. of Missouri (B.S., 1889) and Harvard (M.A., 1844). As professor of geology at the Univ. of Missou...

McGill University

(Encyclopedia)McGill University, at Montreal, Que., Canada; coeducational; chartered 1821, opened 1829. It was named for James McGill, who left a bequest to establish it. Its real development dates from 1855 when J...

Madura

(Encyclopedia)Madura or Madoera both: mädo͝oˈrä [key], island (1990 pop. 3,015,124), c.1,760 sq mi (4,560 sq km), Indonesia, near the northeast coast of Java, from which it is separated by Madura Strait. The is...

Matanzas, province, Cuba

(Encyclopedia)Matanzas mätänˈsäs [key], province (1990 pop. 601,500), W central Cuba. Matanzas is the capital. The northern coast is lined with ports and bays and contains one of the world's finest beaches, at ...

Mars, in Roman religion and mythology

(Encyclopedia)Mars, in Roman religion and mythology, god of war. In early Roman times he was a god of agriculture, but in later religion (when he was identified with the Greek Ares) he was primarily associated with...

layering

(Encyclopedia)layering, horticultural practice of propagating a plant by rooting a branch before severing it from the mother plant. Typically the branch is bent and a section that has been slit or broken on the und...

Kelley, Oliver Hudson

(Encyclopedia)Kelley, Oliver Hudson, 1826–1913, American agriculturist, b. Boston. He was a founder of the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, the central influence in the Granger movement of the 1870s. ...

Khiva, khanate of

(Encyclopedia)Khiva, khanate of, former state of central Asia, based on the Khiva (Khwarazm or Khorezm) oasis along the Amu Darya River. The khanate lay S of the Aral Sea and included large areas of the Kyzyl Kum a...

Plaza Lasso, Galo

(Encyclopedia)Plaza Lasso, Galo gäˈlō pläˈ sä läˈsō [key], 1906–87, president of Ecuador (1948–52) and secretary-general of the Organization of American States (OAS; 1968–75), b. New York City. He se...

Callejas Romero, Rafael Leonardo

(Encyclopedia)Callejas Romero, Rafael Leonardo, 1943–2020, Honduran political leader, president of Honduras (1990–94). A member of the conservative National party, he served in various government and party posi...