Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Woods, Tiger

(Encyclopedia)Woods, Tiger (Eldrick Woods), 1975–, American golfer, b. Cypress, Calif. The son of an African-American father and a Thai mother, he was a college star at Stanford and became the only three-time (19...

Nureyev, Rudolf

(Encyclopedia)Nureyev, Rudolf no͝orĕˈyĕf [key], 1938–93, Russian ballet dancer, b. near Irkutsk, Siberian USSR (now Russia). Nureyev studied in Ufa and Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), and in 1958 he became a ...

medal

(Encyclopedia)medal, a piece of metal, cast or struck, often coin-shaped. The obverse and reverse bear bas-relief and inscription. Commemorative medals are issued in memory of a notable person or event. Civil and m...

Le Clézio, Jean-Marie Gustave

(Encyclopedia)Le Clézio, Jean-Marie Gustave, 1940–, French novelist, b. Nice, grad. Univ. of Nice (L. ès L., 1963), Univ. of Aix-en-Provence (M.A., 1964), Univ. of Perpignan (D. ès L., 1983). He spent much of ...

Schwarzenegger, Arnold Alois

(Encyclopedia)Schwarzenegger, Arnold Alois, 1947–, Austrian-American actor, bodybuilder, and politician, b. Thal, Austria. He began competing in bodybuilding contests in his teens, and won his first of five Mr. U...

Scilly Islands

(Encyclopedia)Scilly Islands sĭlˈē [key], officially Isles of Scilly, archipelago and unitary authority (2001 pop. 2,153), encompassing more than 150 isles and rocky islets, off Cornwall, SW England, 28 mi (45 k...

Greenwood

(Encyclopedia)Greenwood.1 City (2020 pop. 9,516 ), seat of Sebastian co., NW Ark.; founded 1851. It was the first county seat for the area, when its original courthou...

Pym, John

(Encyclopedia)Pym, John pĭm [key], 1583?–1643, English statesman. A Puritan opposed equally to Roman Catholicism and to Arminianism in the Anglican church, Pym early became prominent in the parliamentary opposit...

Donen, Stanley

(Encyclopedia)Donen, Stanley, 1924–2019, American film director, choreographer, and producer, b. Columbia, S.C. He is best known for directing some of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's finest musicals. In 1940 Donen danced i...

Aaron, Hank

(Encyclopedia)Aaron, Hank (Henry Louis Aaron), 1934–2021, U.S. baseball player, b. Mobile, Ala. A durable outfielder and consistent hitter noted for his powerful wrists and explosive swing, Aaron joined the Negro...