Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Geoffrey of Monmouth

(Encyclopedia)Geoffrey of Monmouth mŏnˈməth [key], c.1100–1154, English author. He was probably born at Monmouth and was of either Breton or Welsh descent. In 1152 he was named bishop of St. Asaph in Wales. Hi...

Fontainebleau, school of

(Encyclopedia)Fontainebleau, school of, group of 16th-century artists who decorated the royal palace at Fontainebleau. The major figures in this group were Italian painters invited to France by Francis I. Il Rosso,...

Fools, Feast of

(Encyclopedia)Fools, Feast of, burlesque religious festival of the Middle Ages. It occurred during the Christmas and New Year's revels, on or near New Year's Day. In many places a Lord of Misrule ruled over the rev...

Fulk of Neuilly

(Encyclopedia)Fulk of Neuilly, Fr. Foulques de Neuilly fo͞olk də nöyēˈ [key], d. 1201, French preacher. His sermons and alleged miracles gave him a wide popular following in N France, and in 1199 Pope Innocent...

Fundy, Bay of

(Encyclopedia)Fundy, Bay of, large inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, c.170 mi (270 km) long and 30 to 50 mi (50–80 km) wide, between New Brunswick and SW Nova Scotia, Canada. It is famous for its tide and tidal bore; ...

Galilee, Sea of

(Encyclopedia)Galilee, Sea of, Lake Tiberias kĭnˈərĕtˌ [key], lake, 64 sq mi (166 sq km), 14 mi (23 km) long, and 3 to 7 mi (4.8–11.3 km) wide, NE Israel; its surface is c.700 ft (210 m) below sea level. Th...

Gamaliel of Jabneh

(Encyclopedia)Gamaliel of Jabneh jăbˈnē [key], fl. a.d. 100, Jewish scholar; grandson of the Gamaliel who, according to tradition, taught St. Paul the law. A Palestinian Tanna, he succeeded Johanan ben Zakkai as...

games, theory of

(Encyclopedia)games, theory of, group of mathematical theories first developed by John Von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern. A game consists of a set of rules governing a competitive situation in which from two to n i...

Gang of Four

(Encyclopedia)Gang of Four, term of opprobrium given by the Chinese Communist authorities to four persons held responsible for the excesses of the Cultural Revolution (1966–69). They were also accused of trying t...

Gaon of Vilna

(Encyclopedia)Gaon of Vilna: see Elijah ben Solomon. ...

Browse by Subject