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electric fish

(Encyclopedia)electric fish, name for various fish that produce electricity by means of organs usually developed from modified muscle tissue. The electric eels of South America are freshwater knifefish unrelated to...

Burton, Sir Richard Francis

(Encyclopedia)Burton, Sir Richard Francis, 1821–90, English explorer, writer, and linguist. He joined (1842) the service of the East India Company and, while stationed in India, acquired a thorough knowledge of t...

Ramsey of Canterbury, Arthur Michael Ramsey, Baron

(Encyclopedia)Ramsey of Canterbury, Arthur Michael Ramsey, Baron, 1904–88, archbishop of Canterbury (1961–74), b. Cambridge, England. He was educated at Repton School; Magdalene College, Cambridge; and Cuddesdo...

Groningen, city, Netherlands

(Encyclopedia)Groningen, city, capital of Groningen prov., NE Netherlands. It is an important trade and transportation center. Manufactures include clothing, food pro...

John Frederick I

(Encyclopedia)John Frederick I, 1503–54, elector (1532–47) and duke (1547–54) of Saxony; last elector of the Ernestine branch of the house of Wettin. Like his father, John the Steadfast, whom he succeeded, Jo...

Médici, Emílio Garrastazú

(Encyclopedia)Médici, Emílio Garrastazú əmēˈlyo͝o gəräshˈtəzo͞o mĕdˈĭsē [key], 1905–86, president of Brazil (1969–74). An army general, he served as head of the national intelligence service. He...

mestizo

(Encyclopedia)mestizo māstēˈsō [key] [Span.,=mixture], person of mixed race; particularly, in Mexico and Central and South America, a person of European (Spanish or Portuguese) and indigenous descent. The mesti...

Ribeiro, Darcy

(Encyclopedia)Ribeiro, Darcy rēbāˈrü [key], 1922–97, Brazilian anthropologist, statesman, and author. An expert on the indigenous peoples of Brazil, he wrote many books, notably the six-volume 1960s work, Stu...

Dias, Antônio Gonçalves

(Encyclopedia)Dias, Antônio Gonçalves əntôˈnyo͝o go͝onsälˈvəs dēˈəs [key], 1823–64, Brazilian poet and dramatist. A leading writer of the romantic school, he is noted for his strong nativist feeling ...

Xingu

(Encyclopedia)Xingu zĭng-go͞oˈ, Port. shēng-go͞oˈ [key], river, 1,230 mi (1,979 km) long, rising in central Mato Grosso state, Brazil, and winding north across Pará state into the Amazon River at the head of...