Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Agnon, S. Y. (Shmuel Yosef Agnon) shmo͞oˈĕl yōˈsəf ägnōnˈ; yōˈzəf [key], 1888–1970, Israeli writer, b. Buczacz, Galicia, Austria-Hungary (now Buchach, Ukraine), as Samuel Josef Czaczkes....

(Encyclopedia) humor, according to ancient theory, any of four bodily fluids that determined human health and temperament. Hippocrates postulated that an imbalance among the humors (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and b...

(Encyclopedia) Herrick, Robert, 1591–1674, English poet, generally considered the greatest of the Cavalier poets. Although he was born in London, he spent most of his childhood in Hampton. In 1607 he became appren...

(Encyclopedia) Wyler, William, 1902–1981, American film director, producer, and writer, b. Mülhausen, Germany (now Mulhouse, France) as Willi Wilder. He came to the United States (1920) at the invitation of Carl ...

(Encyclopedia) Yellen, Janet Louise yĕlˈən [key], 1946–, U.S. economist and government official, b. Brooklyn, N.Y., B.A. Brown (1967), Ph.D. Yale (1971). Yellen taught economics (1971–76) at Harvard and subse...

(Encyclopedia) Beersheba bērshēˈbə, bērˈshēbə [key] [Heb.,=seven wells or well of the oath],...

(Encyclopedia) tempera tĕmˈpərə [key], painting method in which finely ground pigment is mixed with a solidifying base such as albumen, fig sap, or thin glue. When used in mural painting it is also known as fres...

(Encyclopedia) fraternal orders, organizations whose members are usually bound by oath and who make extensive use of secret ritual in the conduct of their meetings. Most fraternal orders are limited to members of on...

(Encyclopedia) National Dialogue Quartet, informal grouping of four Tunisian civil society organizations formed in mid-2013 to facilitate political dialogue in Tunisia that would lead to consensus on the adoption of...

(Encyclopedia) Lawrence, Sir Thomas, 1769–1830, English portrait painter, b. Bristol. He began to draw when very young and developed extraordinary talents as a draftsman; though he studied briefly at the Royal Aca...