Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

rock carvings and paintings

(Encyclopedia)rock carvings and paintings, designs inscribed on rock surfaces and huge stone monuments in many parts of the world by prehistoric or preindustrial peoples. They have been found on every continent and...

Uist, North, and South Uist

(Encyclopedia)Uist, North yo͞oˈĭst, o͞oˈ– [key], and South Uist, islands, two of the Outer Hebrides, Western Isles council area, NW Scotland. North Uist (1985 est. pop. 3,300), is 18 mi (29 km) long and 13 m...

rhythm

(Encyclopedia)rhythm, the basic temporal element of music, concerned with duration and with stresses or accents whether irregular or organized into regular patternings. The formulation in the late 12th cent. of the...

folk song

(Encyclopedia)folk song, music of anonymous composition, transmitted orally. The theory that folk songs were originally group compositions has been modified in recent studies. These assume that the germ of a folk m...

Hermes, in Greek religion and mythology

(Encyclopedia)Hermes, in Greek religion and mythology, son of Zeus and Maia. His functions were many, but he was primarily the messenger of the gods, particularly of Zeus, and conductor of souls to Hades. He was go...

Theodorakis, Mikis

(Encyclopedia) Theodorakis, Mikis , 1925-2021, Greek composer and politician, b. Chios island, Greece, Athens Conservatoire (1950). Theodorakis showed interest in mus...

Branson

(Encyclopedia)Branson, city (2020 pop. 12,638), Taney co., SW Mo.; inc. 1904. The primarily residential city's economy is based on tourism, especially to theaters off...

Amanullah

(Encyclopedia)Amanullah ăməno͝olˈə [key], 1892–1960, emir (1919–26) and king (1926–29) of Afghanistan. To win popular support for his rule he invaded India in an attempt to free Afghanistan from British-...

Vaughan Williams, Ralph

(Encyclopedia)Vaughan Williams, Ralph, 1872–1958, English composer, considered the outstanding composer of his generation in England. He graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1894 and studied composition ...