Accoramboni, Vittoria

She was the 10th child in a well-to-do but not illustrious family that hoped to better its position by marrying Vittoria,

Celandine

Any of several distinct flowering plants of similar appearance. The celandine proper, or greater celandine (Chelidonium majus), once a valued plant of the Old World herbalist, is now grown somewhat in wild gardens. A member of the poppy family (Papaveraceae), it has poisonous orange sap, coarsely toothed, divided leaves, and four-petaled yellow blooms

Latium

Ancient area in west-central Italy, originally  limited to the territory around the Alban Hills, but extending by about 500 Bc  south of the Tiber River as far as the promontory of Mount Circeo. It was bounded on the northwest by Etruria, on the southeast by Campania, on the east by Samnium, and on the northeast by the territory of the Sabini, Aequi, and Marsi. The modern region of Lazio extends farther to include the entire coastal plain between the Fiora River in the north and Garigliano River in

Courante

Also spelled  Courant  (from Latin currere, “to run”), court dance for couples, prominent in the late 16th century and fashionable in aristocratic European ballrooms, especially in France and England, for the next 200 years. It reputedly originated as an Italian folk dance with running steps. As a court dance it was performed with small, back-and-forth, springing steps, later subdued to stately glides.

Tabuk

Oasis town, northwestern Saudi Arabia. The town is situated amid a grove of date palms. In former times it was a station on the Hejaz railway (now defunct). At the edge of the old part of Tabuk town stands a Turkish fort, built in 1694. Modern Tabuk is developing as one of the fastest-growing industrial centres of Saudi Arabia. Pop. (1974) 74,825.

Friuli-venezia Giulia

Regione of northeastern Italy, bordering north and east on Austria and Slovenia, south on the Adriatic Sea, and west on Veneto regione; it has an area of 3,030 square miles (7,847 square km) and comprises the provincias of Udine, Pordenone, Gorizia, and Trieste. In the north the solid wall of the Carnine Alps, broken only by the Plöcken Pass (Passo di Monte Croce) and the low Tarvisio saddle,

Latter Rain Revival

Early name for the Pentecostal movement within U.S. Protestantism; it began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Tennessee and North Carolina and took its name from the “latter rain” referred to in Joel 2:23. The Bible passage states that the former (fall) rain and latter (spring) rain were poured down from God. These rains marked the beginning and end of the Jewish harvest.

Noverre, Jean-georges

Distinguished French choreographer whose revolutionary treatise, Lettres sur la danse et sur les ballets (1760), still valid, brought about major reforms in ballet production, stressing the importance of dramatic motivation, which he called ballet d'action, and decrying overemphasis on technical virtuosity. His first choreographic

Bream, Julian Alexander

After studying with his father and performing locally from age 14, Bream attended the Royal College of Music while pursuing private extracurricular study of the guitar. He was much influenced by the styles of Andrés Segovia and

Emecheta, Buchi

Emecheta was married at age 16 and immigrated with her husband to London in 1962. The problems she encountered in London during the early 1960s provided background for the books that are called her immigrant novels. Her first two books,

Abel, Theodora Mead

Abel was educated at Vassar College (B.A., 1921), Columbia University (M.A., 1924), and the University of Paris, where she received a diploma in psychology (1923). After earning a Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1925, she taught at numerous institutions, including

Biblical Literature, The Gothic version

The Gothic version was produced in the mid-4th century by Ulfilas, a Christian missionary who also invented the Gothic alphabet. It constitutes practically all that is left of Gothic literature. The translation of the Old Testament has entirely disappeared except for fragments of Ezra and Nehemiah. Though a Greek base is certain, some scholars deny the attribution

France, History Of, Tax reform

In 1749–51 Jean-Baptiste de Machault d'Arnouville, then comptroller general of finances, proposed a partial reform of the tax system, his particular concern being to restrict the financial power of the church. In 1764 and 1765 another comptroller general, François de L'Averdy, attempted a reform of municipal representation and administration. All royal officials understood the

Vena Cava

In air-breathing vertebrates, including humans, either of two major trunks, the anterior and posterior venae cavae, that deliver oxygen-depleted blood to the right side of the heart. The anterior vena cava, also known as the precava, drains the head end of the body, while the posterior vena cava, or postcava, drains the tail, or rear, end. In humans these veins are respectively

Campa

Campa is often mentioned in early Buddhist literature as a city of importance and was one