Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

initiation

(Encyclopedia)initiation, the transition and attendant ceremonies, such as ordeals and rites, involved in passing from one state or status to another, often from childhood to adulthood. It was among the most import...

hose

(Encyclopedia)hose, covering for the legs and feet. In the Middle Ages the leg was bound from the ankle to the knee with hides or cloth and then cross-gartered with thongs or strips of cloth; later a loose trouser,...

Aggrey, James Emman Kwegyir

(Encyclopedia)Aggrey, James Emman Kwegyir ĕmˈən kwĕgˈyĭr ăgˈrē [key], 1875–1927, African educator and missionary, b. Anamabu, Gold Coast (now Ghana). Educated at Livingstone College, he taught there for ...

frost

(Encyclopedia)frost or hoarfrost, ice formed by the condensation of atmospheric water vapor on a surface when the temperature of the surface is below 32℉ (0℃). In the formation of frost, a gas (water vapor) is ...

Faisalabad

(Encyclopedia)Faisalabad līˈəlpo͝or [key], city, NE Pakistan, in a cotton- and wheat-growing area. It is an ...

hysteria

(Encyclopedia)hysteria hĭstĕrˈēə [key], in psychology, a disorder commonly known today as conversion disorder, in which a psychological conflict is converted into a bodily disturbance. It is distinguished from...

pallium

(Encyclopedia)pallium pălˈēəm [key], vestment proper to the pope, who confers it on archbishops in token of their union with and obedience to him. It is a band of cloth worn around the neck and has a 2-in. (5.1...

Gouda

(Encyclopedia)Gouda gouˈdə, go͞oˈ–, Du. gouˈdä [key], city, South Holland prov., W Netherla...

Jezreel

(Encyclopedia)Jezreel jĕzˈrēĕl [key] [Heb.,=God sows]. 1 City, ancient Palestine, in the plain of Esdraelon, halfway from Megiddo to the Jordan, and mentioned in the Bible. Situated on land allotted to Issachar...

Sacré-Cœur

(Encyclopedia)Sacré-Cœur säkrā-körˈ [key], basilica in Paris, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is a famous landmark atop the Montmartre, from which it dominates the city. Built (1875–1914) by subs...