Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

abscess

(Encyclopedia)abscess, localized inflammation associated with tissue necrosis. Abscesses are characterized by inflamation, which is due to the accumulation of pus in the local tissues, and often painful...

glass snake

(Encyclopedia)glass snake, common name for the snakelike legless lizards of the genus Ophisaurus found in the S and central United States and in Eurasia. The shiny, scaled body is gray or greenish brown, sometimes ...

Akita, breed of dog

(Encyclopedia)Akita äkēˈtə [key], breed of large dog developed in Japan from ancient ancestry and used originally as a hunter of such game as deer, wild boar, and bear. It stands from 20 to 27 in. (50.8–68.6 ...

Guadalupe Hidalgo, Treaty of

(Encyclopedia)Guadalupe Hidalgo, Treaty of, 1848, peace treaty between the United States and Mexico that ended the Mexican War. Negotiations were carried on for the United States by Nicholas P. Trist. The treaty wa...

Ferdinand I, king of Portugal

(Encyclopedia)Ferdinand I, 1345–83, king of Portugal (1367–83), son and successor of Peter I. His ambitions and his private life plunged the realm into disaster, although during his reign agricultural reform wa...

Alexander, prince of Bulgaria

(Encyclopedia)Alexander (Alexander of Battenberg), 1857–93, prince of Bulgaria (1879–86); second son of Prince Alexander of Hesse-Darmstadt and nephew of Alexander II of Russia. He served in the Russian army ag...

speech, freedom of

(Encyclopedia)speech, freedom of, liberty to speak and otherwise express oneself and one's opinions. Like freedom of the press (see press, freedom of the), which pertains to the publication of speech, freedom of sp...

Charles IV, duke of Lorraine

(Encyclopedia)Charles IV, 1604–75, duke of Lorraine. He succeeded to the duchy in 1624 but was to lose it several times because of his anti-French policy. In 1633, French troops invaded Lorraine in retaliation fo...

Aix-la-Chapelle, Treaty of

(Encyclopedia)Aix-la-Chapelle, Treaty of ĕks-lä-shäpĕlˈ [key]. 1 Compact of May 2, 1668, that ended the French invasion of the Spanish Netherlands (see Devolution, War of). France kept most of its conquests in...

William, crown prince of Germany

(Encyclopedia)William or Frederick William, 1882–1951, crown prince of Germany, son of William II. In World War I he commanded (1914) an army on the Western Front and was nominal commander in the German attack (1...