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Selkirk, Thomas Douglas, 5th earl of

(Encyclopedia)Selkirk, Thomas Douglas, 5th earl of, 1771–1820, Scottish philanthropist, founder of the Red River Settlement. Emigration to America seemed to him the best solution for the poverty of his countrymen...

Fairfax of Cameron, Thomas Fairfax, 6th Baron

(Encyclopedia)Fairfax of Cameron, Thomas Fairfax, 6th Baron, 1693–1781, proprietor of the Northern Neck of Virginia, b. England. He inherited the Northern Neck, comprising the land between the Rappahannock and Po...

Shibboleth

(Encyclopedia)Shibboleth shĭbˈōlĕth [key], in the Bible, test word that the Gileadites made the Ephraimites pronounce. As Ephraimites could not say sh but only s as in “Sibboleth,” this was regarded as a te...

Prince, Thomas, 1687–1758, American clergyman, scholar, and historian

(Encyclopedia)Prince, Thomas, 1687–1758, American clergyman, scholar, and historian, b. Sandwich, Mass., grad. Harvard, 1709. From 1709 to 1717 he was abroad; he studied in London and preached at a Congregational...

Medjugorje

(Encyclopedia)Medjugorje, town (2010 est. pop. 4,000), Herzegovina region, Bosnia and Herzegovina, about 16 mi (25 km) SW of Mostar. In 1981 six children claimed to have seen visions of the Virgin Mary there, which...

Annas

(Encyclopedia)Annas ănˈəs [key] [Gr.,=Heb. Hananiah], in the New Testament, Jewish high priest who examined Jesus. Nonbiblical sources say that he was retired high priest. His son-in-law was Caiaphas. ...

Beatitudes

(Encyclopedia)Beatitudes bē-ătˈĭto͞odzˌ [key] [Lat.,=blessing], in the Gospel of St. Matthew, eight blessings uttered by Jesus at the opening of the Sermon on the Mount. Some, counting verses differently, say...

Aldrovandi, Ulisse

(Encyclopedia)Aldrovandi, Ulisse o͞olēsˈsā äldrōvänˈdē [key], 1522–1605, Italian naturalist, professor at the Univ. of Bologna. He instigated the establishment (1567) of the Bologna Botanical Garden and ...

Palamedes

(Encyclopedia)Palamedes păləmēˈdēz [key], in Greek mythology, crafty Greek hero of the Trojan War. Because he had exposed Odysseus when he tried to evade going to war, Odysseus falsely accused him of treachery...

Argo

(Encyclopedia)Argo ärˈgō [key], in Greek mythology, ship in which Jason and the Argonauts sailed in quest of the Golden Fleece. Most legends say that Argus, son of Phrixus, was the builder, with the help of Athe...