Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

186 results found

Ramah

(Encyclopedia)Ramah rāˈmə [key], in the Bible. 1 Town, NE ancient Palestine, allotted to Naphtali. 2 Town of Asher. 3 Unidentified town of Simeon, called Ramah of the south. It is apparently intended by the Ramo...

Barber, Samuel

(Encyclopedia)Barber, Samuel, 1910–81, American composer, b. West Chester, Pa. Barber studied at the Curtis Institute of Music, Philadelphia. His music is lyrical and generally tonal; his later works are more chr...

Franks, Lucinda Laura

(Encyclopedia) Franks, Lucinda Laura, 1946-2021, American journalist, b. Chicago, Il., Vassar College (B.A., 1968). Franks was born in Chicago but raised in Wellesle...

elegy

(Encyclopedia)elegy, in Greek and Roman poetry, a poem written in elegiac verse (i.e., couplets consisting of a hexameter line followed by a pentameter line). The form dates back to 7th cent. b.c. in Greece and poe...

passion music

(Encyclopedia)passion music, choral music whose text depicts events immediately surrounding the crucifixion of Jesus. The earliest passions, composed from the 9th to the 14th cent., were monophonic and employed the...

Millay, Edna St. Vincent

(Encyclopedia)Millay, Edna St. Vincent mĭlāˈ [key], 1892–1950, American poet, b. Rockland, Maine, grad. Vassar College, 1917. One of the most popular poets of her era, Millay was admired as much for the bohemi...

Micah, book of the Bible

(Encyclopedia)Micah mīˈkə [key], 6th of the books of the Minor Prophets of the Bible, containing the oracles of the prophet Micah, a contemporary of Isaiah whose career spanned the period c.750–c.700 b.c. The ...

Penrose, Boies

(Encyclopedia)Penrose, Boies boiz [key], 1860–1921, American political leader, b. Philadelphia. A lawyer, he was (1884–97) a member of the Pennsylvania legislature and coauthored a scholarly work, The City Gove...

Maris

(Encyclopedia)Maris mäˈrĭs [key], three Dutch painters, who were brothers. Jacob or Jakob Maris, 1837–99, the most celebrated, painted domestic interiors but is particularly famous for his vigorous landscapes ...

Rugby, town, England

(Encyclopedia)Rugby, town (1991 pop. 59,039), Warwickshire, central England. An important railroad junction and engineering center, Rugby is the seat of one of England's most esteemed public schools. Rugby School w...