Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Muret mürāˈ [key], town (1990 pop. 18,604), Haute-Garonne dept., S France. It is an agricultural market and produces foundry products, surgical instruments, and bricks. In 1213, Simon de Montfort, ...

(Encyclopedia) Bourdon, Sébastien sābästyăNˈ bo͞ordôNˈ [key], 1616–71, French painter. Bourdon was active in Rome (1634–37), in Sweden (1652–54) as Queen Christina's court portrait painter, and in Pari...

(Encyclopedia) Boyacá bōyäkäˈ [key], town, Boyacá dept., N central Colombia, near Tunja. At Boyacá on Aug. 7, 1819, revolutionary forces under Simón Bolívar won the decisive engagement that assured the inde...

(Encyclopedia) Alexander, in the Bible. 1 Kinsman of Annas. 2 Son of Simon of Cyrene, probably a Christian. 3 Heretic condemned by Paul. 4 Coppersmith who did Paul harm. 5 Jew who tried to speak during a riot at Eph...

(Encyclopedia) Caesar, Sid (Isaac Sidney Caesar), 1922–2014, American comedian, one of the stars of the “golden age of live television,” b. Yonkers, N.Y. While performing in a World War II military show he met...

(Encyclopedia) Achenwall, Gottfried gôtˈfrēt äkhˈənväl [key], 1719–72, German statistician and political scientist. He used the term Statistik for the first time in his Staatsverfassung der heutigen vornehm...

(Encyclopedia) Hartmann von Aue härtˈmän fən ouˈə [key], c.1170–c.1220, German poet whose name is also spelled von Ouwe. His chivalric romances Erec and Iwain are tales of Arthurian legend. Other works inclu...

(Encyclopedia) Sinding, Christian krĭsˈtyän sĭnˈdĭng [key], 1856–1941, Norwegian nationalist composer, best remembered for his lyrical, romantic piano works, including the popular Rustle of Spring. He also w...

(Encyclopedia) classicism, a term that, when applied generally, means clearness, elegance, symmetry, and repose produced by attention to traditional forms. It is sometimes synonymous with excellence or artistic qual...

(Encyclopedia) Kant, Immanuel ĭmänˈo͞oĕl känt [key], 1724–1804, German metaphysician, one of the greatest figures in philosophy, b. Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russia). The impact of Kant's work has be...