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Galatia

(Encyclopedia)Galatia gəlāˈshə [key] [Gr.,=Gaul], ancient territory of central Asia Minor, in present Turkey (around modern Ankara). It was so called from its inhabitants, the Gauls, who invaded from the west a...

Draco, in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Draco [Lat.,=the dragon], northern constellation lying SE of Ursa Minor and N of Lyra and Hercules. It is traditionally depicted as a dragon. Draco contains the bright star Eltanin (Gamma Draconis). T...

Hankey, Maurice Pascal Alers Hankey, 1st Baron

(Encyclopedia)Hankey, Maurice Pascal Alers Hankey, 1st Baron, 1877–1963, British soldier and civil servant. Educated at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, he served in the Royal Marines artillery (1895–1901) a...

Pentapolis

(Encyclopedia)Pentapolis pĕntăˈpəlĭs [key] [Gr.,=five cities], collective name anciently applied to several groups of five cities. The chief cities of Cyrenaica on the northern coast of Africa (Apollonia, Arsi...

Peter the Hermit

(Encyclopedia)Peter the Hermit, c.1050–1115, French religious leader. In 1095 he was a very successful preacher of the First Crusade (see Crusades), and he led one of its bands. In 1096 he reached Constantinople ...

Pharnabazus

(Encyclopedia)Pharnabazus färnəbāˈzəs [key], d. after 374 b.c., Persian governor. He had an important satrapy in Asia Minor under Darius II and Artaxerxes II. He was responsible for the assassination (404 b.c....

ephemeris

(Encyclopedia)ephemeris ĭfĕmˈərĭs [key] (pl., ephemerides), table listing the position of one or more celestial bodies for each day of the year. The French publication Connaissance de Temps is the oldest of th...

Herodotus

(Encyclopedia)Herodotus hērŏdˈətəs [key], 484?–425? b.c., Greek historian, called the Father of History, b. Halicarnassus, Asia Minor. Only scant knowledge of his life can be gleaned from his writings and fr...

Pergamum

(Encyclopedia)Pergamum pûrˈgəməm [key], ancient city of NW Asia Minor, in Mysia (modern Turkey), in the fertile valley of the Caicus. It became important c.300 b.c., after the breakup of the Macedonian empire, ...

miniature painting

(Encyclopedia)miniature painting [Ital.,=artwork, especially manuscript initial letters, done with the red lead pigment minium; the word originally had no implication as to size]. In a general sense the term denote...