Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Robert II, 1316–90, king of Scotland (1371–90), nephew and successor of David II. He was the first sovereign of the house of Stuart, or Stewart (see Stuart, family), which eventually succeeded to ...

(Encyclopedia) Joab jōˈăb [key], in the Bible, son of David's sister Zeruiah and commander of his uncle's armies. A trusted and skillful administrator, he was often vindictive and cruel, as in his killing of Abne...

(Encyclopedia) Earnhardt, Dale (Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr.) ûrnˈhärt [key], 1951–2001, American auto racing driver widely regarded as stock car racing's greatest star, b. Kannapolis, N.C. The 1979 National Assoc...

(Encyclopedia) Cambridge Platonists, group of English philosophers, centered at Cambridge in the latter half of the 17th cent. In reaction to the mechanical philosophy of Thomas Hobbes this school revived certain Pl...

(Encyclopedia) Ahimelech əhĭmˈəlĕk [key], in the Bible. 1 Priest at Nob, brother of, or perhaps the same as, Ahijah (2.) He befriended David, and Saul had him killed. In some passages his name is reversed with ...

(Encyclopedia) Absalom ăbˈsəlŏm [key], in the Bible, son of David. He murdered his half-brother Amnon for the rape of their sister Tamar, and fled. No sooner was he reconciled with his father than he incited a r...

(Encyclopedia) Jeiel jēīˈĕl [key], in the Bible. 1 Levite under David. 2 Musician of David. 3 Ancestor of Jahaziel (2.) 4 Scribe of Uzziah. 5 Levite of Hezekiah. 6 Levite of Josiah. 7 Companion of Ezra. ...

(Encyclopedia) Baliol, Edward de bālˈyəl [key], d. 1363, king of Scotland, son of John de Baliol (d. 1315). Having secured English support for his claim to the Scottish throne, he invaded Scotland in 1332 and was...

(Encyclopedia) Olajuwon, Hakeem häkēmˈ ōlīˈjəwŏnˌ [key], 1963–, Nigerian-American basketball player, b. Lagos. Introduced to basketball at age 15, when he stood 6 ft 9 in. (206 cm) tall, he soon became th...

(Encyclopedia) Dollier de Casson, François fräNswäˈ dôlyāˈ də käsôNˈ [key], 1636–1701, priest and explorer in Canada, b. near Nantes, France. In 1657 he entered the seminary of Saint-Sulpice, Paris, and...