Biographical Names

Entries from this section contain the names of persons both living and deceased.  Persons are generally entered under the name or title by which they are most commonly known.  Entries typically consist of last name, personal names, birth and death dates, nationality, and occupation or status.  Also included, when appropriate, are pseudonyms, original names, epithets, alternate names, reign names, and titles.  The pronunciation and syllabication of elements in boldface are usually shown.  The pronunciation and syllabication of names or titles in italics or roman are given occasionally.  Transliterations of names from alphabets other than the roman have been made as exact and consistent as possible.  For most Chinese names the traditional Wade-Giles system has been used.  The Pinyin system has been used only for Chinese still living or recently deceased.

A number of names contain connectives like  d', de, di, van, and von.  With some exceptions, chiefly American or British, names are not alphabetized under these connectives but rather under the principal element of the surname.  If the surname of a person is usually construed as containing this connective, the entry appears at the principal element and the connective appears immediately after, separated by a comma:

Gogh, van . . . Vincent

If the full name contains a connective which is not usually construed as an inseparable part of the surname, then the connective follows the personal name.

Bee·tho·ven . . . Ludwig van

Birth and death dates about which there is little or no doubt are entered without qualification.  Doubtful dates are followed by a question mark, and approximate dates are preceded by ca (circa).  In some instances only the years of principal activity are given, preceded by the abbreviation fl (flourished).  The dates of a reign or other term of office are enclosed in parentheses.

At the end of many entries are derivative adjectives with such endings as -ian,
-ic, or -esque.  While it is possible to form these derivatives from any name, only the more common are shown:

Rubens . . . Peter Paul . . . ± Ru·ben·esque adj ± Ru·ben·si·an . . . adj

Of necessity many abbreviations have been used.  These are listed under the heading  §Abbreviations Used in the Dictionary.