Historical Columbia

From ePedia, the electronic encyclopedia
Columbia is a name used in the English language for many things and places. The name is derived from that of Christopher Columbus. The term "Pre-Columbian" is used for American cultures before the arrival of Columbus and other European explorers.

The name "Columbia" is/was a poetic name for the United States of America, which largely fell out of use in the early 20th century. This was the origin of the name District of Columbia.

Columbia was also a female personification of the USA, similar to the male Uncle Sam, the British female Britannia, and the French Marianne, often seen in political cartoons through the early 20th century (similar to the illustration at right) and still used by Columbia Pictures, though its current incarnation looks very different.

The term Columbian has been occasionally used as an alternative word for American when referring to someone from the United States, but has not entered general use, not least because of its confusing similarity to Colombian.

Columbia was the name of the first reusable space shuttle by NASA . It was first launched in April 1981. In February 2003, it was destroyed on its return to Cape Canaveral, Florida during the re-entry to Earth's atmosphere.

Columbia University is a private university in New York City.

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