Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Cowell, Henry Dixon kouˈəl [key], 1897–1965, American composer and pianist, b. Menlo Park, Calif., largely self-educated, studied musicology in Berlin (1931–32). Cowell experimented with new mus...

(Encyclopedia) Kashi käshˈgär [key], city (1994 est. pop. 190,500), SW Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, on the Kaxgar (Kashgar) River (a tributary of the Tarim). It is the hub of an important commercial d...

(Encyclopedia) Somerset, county (1991 pop. 459,100), 1,333 sq mi (3,453 sq km), SW England, on the Bristol Channel. The county seat is Taunton. The terrain is generally low and flat in the center (the location of th...

(Encyclopedia) Yaroslavl yərəsläˈvəl [key], city (1991 est. pop. 640,000), capital of Yaroslavl region, E European Russia, on the upper Volga River. It is a river port, a major rail junction, and a center of in...

(Encyclopedia) Willkie, Wendell Lewis, 1892–1944, American industrialist and political leader, b. Elwood, Ind. After graduating from Indiana Univ. law school (1916), he practiced law in Ohio and then New York (192...

(Encyclopedia) sphinx sfĭngks [key], mythical beast of ancient Egypt, frequently symbolizing the pharaoh as an incarnation of the sun god Ra. The sphinx was represented in sculpture usually in a recumbent position ...

(Encyclopedia) Persian language, member of the Iranian group of the Indo-Iranian subfamily of the Indo-European family of languages (see Indo-Iranian languages). The official language of Iran, it has about 38 millio...

(Encyclopedia) United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), agency of the United Nations, with headquarters in Amman, Jordan and Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Established in 1949,...

(Encyclopedia) Huizinga, Johan yōhänˈ hoiˈzĭngə [key], 1872–1945, Dutch historian. He began his academic career in Indian literature, but his reputation rests on his work in the cultural history of the late ...

(Encyclopedia) Christmas [Christ's Mass], in the Christian calendar, feast of the nativity of Jesus, celebrated in Roman Catholic and Protestant Churches on Dec. 25. In liturgical importance it ranks after Easter, P...