Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

Brown, Samuel Robbins

(Encyclopedia)Brown, Samuel Robbins, 1810–80, American missionary and educator, b. East Windsor, Conn. As a missionary (1839–47) to China, he took charge of a school founded by the Morrison Educational Associat...

Cave, Edward

(Encyclopedia)Cave, Edward, 1691–1754, English publisher. He founded (1731) the Gentleman's Magazine, the first modern magazine in English. Cave gave Samuel Johnson his first regular literary employment when he p...

Nicholson, James William Augustus

(Encyclopedia)Nicholson, James William Augustus, 1821–87, American naval officer, b. Dedham, Mass.; grandson of Samuel Nicholson. He was appointed a midshipman in 1838, served under Commodore Perry in East Asia (...

Kings, books of the Bible

(Encyclopedia)Kings, books of the Bible, originally a single work in the Hebrew canon. They are called First and Second Kings in modern Bibles, and Third and Fourth Kingdoms in the Greek versions, where the books o...

comedy

(Encyclopedia)comedy, literary work that aims primarily to provoke laughter. Unlike tragedy, which seeks to engage profound emotions and sympathies, comedy strives to entertain chiefly through criticism and ridicul...

tragedy

(Encyclopedia)tragedy, form of drama that depicts the suffering of a heroic individual who is often overcome by the very obstacles he is struggling to remove. The protagonist may be brought low by a character flaw ...

Hawkesworth, John

(Encyclopedia)Hawkesworth, John, 1715?–1773, English author. He succeeded his friend Samuel Johnson in 1744 as reporter of parliamentary debates in the Gentleman's Magazine. With Johnson and Joseph Warton he wrot...

Meriden

(Encyclopedia)Meriden mĕrˈĭdən [key], city (1990 pop. 59,479), New Haven co., S central Conn.; settled 1661, inc. as a town 1806, as a city 1867, town and city consolidated 1922. Silverware and pewter were made...

Easthampton

(Encyclopedia)Easthampton ēst-hămpˈtən [key], town (2020 pop. 16,211), Hampshire co., W Mass.; inc. 1809. It is ...

Elihu

(Encyclopedia)Elihu ēlīˈhyo͞o [key], in the Bible. 1 Ancestor of Samuel. An alternate form is Eliel. 2 One of Job's comforters. 3 The same as Eliab (3.) 4 Manassite captain of David. 5 Korahite doorkeeper. ...
 

Browse by Subject