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Xenophon

(Encyclopedia)Xenophon zĕnˈəfən [key], c.430 b.c.–c.355 b.c., Greek historian, b. Athens. He was one of the well-to-do young disciples of Socrates before leaving Athens to join the Greek force (the Ten Thousa...

Flemish language

(Encyclopedia)Flemish language, member of the West Germanic group of the Germanic subfamily of the Indo-European family of languages (see Germanic languages). Generally regarded as the Belgian variant of Dutch (see...

Ptolemaïs, ancient cities, Asia and Africa

(Encyclopedia)Ptolemaïs tŏləmāˈīs [key], ancient name given to several cities to honor members of the dynasty of the Ptolemies. One of these later became known as Akko, in modern Israel. Another was one of th...

Russian art and architecture

(Encyclopedia)Russian art and architecture, the artistic and architectural production of the geographical area of Russia. Around the turn of the century Mir Iskusstva (World of Art Group) was initiated, a movemen...

Owl and the Nightingale, The

(Encyclopedia)Owl and the Nightingale, The, Middle English poem written probably by Nicholas de Guildford of Dorsetshire about the beginning of the 13th cent. Written in 2,000 lines of octosyllabic couplets, it des...

Pisemsky, Aleksey Feofilaktovich

(Encyclopedia)Pisemsky, Aleksey Feofilaktovich əlyĭksyāˈ fāˌəfēläkˈtəvĭch pēˈsyĭmskē [key], 1821–81, Russian novelist and playwright. In his realistic descriptions of country life he portrayed the...

Cagney, James

(Encyclopedia)Cagney, James, 1899–1986, American movie actor, b. New York City. He worked on Broadway as an actor and dancer before appearing in films. He is best remembered as a brash, sadistic, tough guy in suc...

Coffin, Charles Carleton

(Encyclopedia)Coffin, Charles Carleton, 1823–96, American journalist, b. Boscawen, N.H. During the Civil War, he was a correspondent in the field for the Boston Journal, and he served in the same capacity in the ...

Shawn, Ted

(Encyclopedia)Shawn, Ted (Edwin Myers Shawn), 1891–1972, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Kansas City, Mo. Introduced to dance as physical therapy, he taught ballroom dancing, then married (1914) the ...

Cyril and Methodius, Saints

(Encyclopedia)Cyril and Methodius, Saints məthōˈdēəs [key], d. 869 and 884, respectively, Greek missionaries, brothers, called Apostles to the Slavs and fathers of Slavonic literature. Their history and influe...