Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) limpkin or courlan ko͝orˈlən [key], common terms for a long-legged, nonmigratory marsh bird, considered the connecting evolutionary link between the crane and the rail. They have a cranelike skelet...

(Encyclopedia) arrowroot, any plant of the genus Maranta, usually large perennial herbs, of the family Marantaceae, found chiefly in warm, swampy forest habitats of the Americas and sometimes cultivated for their or...

(Encyclopedia) citron sĭtˈrən [key], name for a tree (Citrus medica) of the family Rutaceae (orange family), and for its fruit, the earliest of the citrus fruits to be introduced to Europe from Asia. The small ev...

(Encyclopedia) python pīˈthŏn [key], name for nonvenomous constrictor snakes of the boa family, found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, Australia, and the S Pacific islands. Pythons climb and swim expertly...

(Encyclopedia) United Nations Trusteeship Council: see trusteeship, territorial. ...

(Encyclopedia) United States National Museum: see Smithsonian Institution. ...

(Encyclopedia) protectorate, in international law, a relationship in which one state surrenders part of its sovereignty to another. The subordinate state is called a protectorate. The term covers a great variety of ...

(Encyclopedia) Lavrov, Sergey Viktorovich, 1950– Russian and Soviet diplomat, b. Moscow, grad. Moscow State Institute of International Relations, 1972. He began his career in the Soviet foreign service, working in...

(Encyclopedia) United Way of America: see community chest. ...

(Encyclopedia) Maachah or Maacah both: māˈəkə [key], ancient city-state of Syria, S of Mt. Hermon. It was held by Arameans in biblical times. The inhabitants are Maachathi or Maachathites. It is mentioned severa...