Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Bunyan, John

(Encyclopedia)Bunyan, John bn´yn [key], 1628–88, English author, b. Elstow, Bedfordshire. After a brief period at the village free school, Bunyan learned the tinker's trade, which he followed intermittently ...

Bunyan, Paul

(Encyclopedia)Bunyan, Paul, legendary American lumberjack. He was the hero of a series of tall tales popular through the timber country from Michigan westward. Bunyan was known for his fantastic strength and gigant...

Islington

(Encyclopedia)Islington z´lngtn [key], inner borough (1991 pop. 155,200) of Greater London, SE England. Islington, in the north, is mostly residential, while Finsbury, in the south, is highly industrialized....

Bedford

(Encyclopedia)Bedford, town and borough (1991 pop. 75,632), central England, on the Ouse River. It is an important industrial center; diesel engines, pumps, turbines, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, a...

allegory

(Encyclopedia)allegory, in literature, symbolic story that serves as a disguised representation for meanings other than those indicated on the surface. The characters in an allegory often have no individual persona...

John

(Encyclopedia)John, three letters of the New Testament. Traditionally, they are ascribed to John son of Zebedee, the disciple of Jesus. All three letters probably date to the end of the 1st cent. AD, and may have b...

John I

(Encyclopedia)John I (John Tzimisces)tsms´z [key], c.925–976, Byzantine emperor (969–76). With the aid of Emperor Nicephorus II's wife, Theophano, John had Nicephorus murdered and himself proclaimed empe...

John V

(Encyclopedia)John V (John Palaeologus)pll´gs [key], 1332–91, Byzantine emperor (1341–91), son and successor of Andronicus III. Forced to fight John VI (John Cantacuzene), who usurped the throne du...

John I

(Encyclopedia)John I, 1350–95, king of Aragón and count of Barcelona (1387–95), son and successor of Peter IV. During his reign Aragón lost (1388) the duchy of Athens. An enthusiastic patron of learning and a...

John

(Encyclopedia)John, 1167–1216, king of England (1199–1216), son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. Early Life The king's youngest son, John was left out of Henry's original division of territory among his so...