Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Gibraltar, Strait of

(Encyclopedia)Gibraltar, Strait of jĭbrôlˈtər [key], Lat. Fretum Herculeum or Fretum Gaditanum, passage, c.36 mi (58 km) long, connecting the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, between southernmost Spain and north...

Jonathan, Joseph Leabua

(Encyclopedia)Jonathan, Joseph Leabua jŏnˈəthən [key], 1914–87, prime minister of Lesotho (1965–86). He founded (1959) and led the Basutoland National party working for separate independence from Great Bri...

babbler

(Encyclopedia)babbler, common name for some members of the large, diversified family Timaliidae, passerine birds found primarily in wooded areas of Asia, Africa, and Australia. Babblers have soft, fluffy plumage an...

Cape Town, City of

(Encyclopedia)Cape Town, City of, metropolitan municipality (2021 est. pop. 4,710,000), Western Cape prov., South Africa, on the Atlantic Ocean. Cape Town is the ...

Tarik ibn Ziyad

(Encyclopedia)Tarik ibn Ziyad täˈrĭk [key], fl. 711, Berber leader of the Muslim invaders of Spain. When the heirs of the Visigothic king, Witiza, requested help from the Moors of N Africa against the usurper Ro...

tigernut

(Encyclopedia)tigernut, nearly cosmopolitan perennial (Cyperus esculentum) of the family Cyperaceae (sedge family) of the same genus as the papyrus plant. The tigernut has been cultivated since early times (chiefly...

Alexandra, Mount

(Encyclopedia)Alexandra, Mount, E Africa: see Ruwenzori, mts. ...

Albert Nyanza

(Encyclopedia)Albert Nyanza, E Africa: see Albert, Lake. ...

Victoria Nyanza

(Encyclopedia)Victoria Nyanza, Africa: see Victoria, Lake. ...

Mountains of the Moon

(Encyclopedia)Mountains of the Moon, Africa: see Ruwenzori. ...