Han Yu: Han advocated the adoption of guwen, the free, simple prose of these early philosophers, a style unencumbered by the mannerisms and elaborate verselike regularity of the pianwen (“parallel prose”) style that was prevalent in Han’s time. His own essays (e.g., “On the Way,” “On Man,” and “On Spirits”) are among…

Chinese literature: May Fourth period: …established the Wenxue Yanjiuhui (“Literary Research Association”), generally referred to as the “realist” or “art-for-life’s-sake” school, which assumed the editorship of the established literary magazine Xiaoshuo yuebao (Short Story Monthly). Perhaps the most important literary magazine of the early 1920s, Xiaoshuo yuebao was used by the Association to promote…

Chinese literature: May Fourth period: …established the Wenxue Yanjiuhui (“Literary Research Association”), generally referred to as the “realist” or “art-for-life’s-sake” school, which assumed the editorship of the established literary magazine Xiaoshuo yuebao (Short Story Monthly). Perhaps the most important literary magazine of the early 1920s, Xiaoshuo yuebao was used by the Association to promote…

Vissarion Grigoryevich Belinsky: …were called “Literaturnye mechtaniya” (“Literary Reveries”), and they established his reputation. In them he expounded F.W.J. Schelling’s Romantic view of national character, applying it to Russian culture.

education: Education in the republic: …of great significance was the Literary Revolution. Its most important aspect was a rebellion against the classical style of writing and the advocacy of a vernacular written language. The classics, textbooks, and other respectable writings had been in the classical written language, which, though using the same written characters, was…

history of publishing: Literary agents and scouts: …1950s and 1960s is the literary scout. Though a few had been employed earlier, mainly by U.S. publishers, who had their “lookouts” in one or two European cities, the practice is now more widespread. Many European publishers employ residents in London, Paris, and New York City to alert them at…

literary sketch, short prose narrative, often an entertaining account of some aspect of a culture written by someone within that culture for readers outside of it—for example, anecdotes of a traveler in India published in an English magazine. Informal in style, the sketch is less dramatic but more

Japanese performing arts: Meiji period: In 1906 the Literary Society was established by Tsubouchi Shōyō to train young actors in Western realistic acting, thus beginning the serious study of Western drama. The first modern play (shingeki) to be staged in Japan in the Western realistic manner was Ibsen’s John Gabriel Borkman, directed by…

literati, scholars in China and Japan whose poetry, calligraphy, and paintings were supposed primarily to reveal their cultivation and express their personal feelings rather than demonstrate professional skill. The concept of literati painters was first formulated in China in the Bei (Northern)

Nan-ga, (“Literati Painting”), style of painting practiced by numerous Japanese painters of the 18th and 19th centuries. Some of the most original and creative painters of the middle and late Edo period belonged to the Nan-ga school. The style is based on developments of 17th- and 18th-century

wenrenhua, ideal form of the Chinese scholar-painter who was more interested in personal erudition and expression than in literal representation or an immediately attractive surface beauty. First formulated in the Northern Song period (960–1127)—at which time it was called shidafuhua—by the

chanson de geste: …of the Brazilian backlands, called literatura de la corda (“literature on a string”) because, in pamphlet form, they were formerly hung from strings and sold in marketplaces. Frequently in these ballads, through a misunderstanding of a Portuguese homonym, Charlemagne is surrounded by a company of 24 knights—i.e., “Twelve Noble Pairs.”

literature, a body of written works. The name has traditionally been applied to those imaginative works of poetry and prose distinguished by the intentions of their authors and the perceived aesthetic excellence of their execution. Literature may be classified according to a variety of systems,

Dante: Exile, Il convivio, and De monarchia: 1304–07; Concerning Vernacular Eloquence], a companion piece, presumably written in coordination with Book I, is primarily a practical treatise in the art of poetry based upon an elevated poetic language.) Dante became the great advocate of its use, and in the final sentence of Book I…

American literature: Realism and metafiction: In an important essay, “The Literature of Exhaustion” (1967), John Barth declared himself an American disciple of Nabokov and Borges. After dismissing realism as a “used up” tradition, Barth described his own work as “novels which imitate the form of the novel, by an author who imitates the role…

African literature, the body of traditional oral and written literatures in Afro-Asiatic and African languages together with works written by Africans in European languages. Traditional written literature, which is limited to a smaller geographic area than is oral literature, is most characteristic

Oceanic literature, the traditional oral and written literatures of the indigenous people of Oceania, in particular of Melanesia, Polynesia, Micronesia, and Australia. While this article addresses the influence of Western literary forms, it does not address the adoption of purely Western styles;

popular literature, any written work that is read, or is intended to be read, by a mass audience. In its broadest sense, popular literature may include best-selling nonfiction books, widely circulated periodicals, and certain kinds of digital texts. However, the term is typically used to refer to

popular literature, any written work that is read, or is intended to be read, by a mass audience. In its broadest sense, popular literature may include best-selling nonfiction books, widely circulated periodicals, and certain kinds of digital texts. However, the term is typically used to refer to

Hanoi: The contemporary city: …the 3rd century bce; the Temple of Literature (1070), dedicated to Confucius; the Mot Cot (“One-Pillar”) Pagoda (1049); and the Temple of the Trung Sisters (1142). In addition, the Central Sector of the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long, built in the 11th century, was designated in 2010 as a UNESCO…

Western literature, history of literatures in the languages of the Indo-European family, along with a small number of other languages whose cultures became closely associated with the West, from ancient times to the present. Diverse as they are, European literatures, like European languages, are

history of publishing: Continental Europe: The Literaturnaya Gazeta (founded 1929) and the influential Novy Mir (founded 1925; “New World”) often became the centre of controversy in the Soviet Union when writers were condemned for their views or denied the opportunity to publish. This led to a strong underground press. In Czechoslovakia…

Vissarion Grigoryevich Belinsky: …were called “Literaturnye mechtaniya” (“Literary Reveries”), and they established his reputation. In them he expounded F.W.J. Schelling’s Romantic view of national character, applying it to Russian culture.

lithic arenite, sandstone (i.e., sedimentary rock composed of grains 0.06–2 mm [0.0024–0.08 inch] in diameter) containing over 50 percent rock fragments. Lithic arenites most often are of gray or salt-and-pepper colour because of the inclusion of dark rock fragments, mainly slate, phyllite, or

litharge, one of two mineral forms of lead(II) oxide (PbO). It is found with the other form, massicot, as dull or greasy, very heavy, soft, red crusts in the oxidized zone of lead deposits, as at Cucamonga Peak and Fort Tejon, Calif., U.S., and near Hailey, Idaho, U.S. For mineralogic properties,

litharge, one of two mineral forms of lead(II) oxide (PbO). It is found with the other form, massicot, as dull or greasy, very heavy, soft, red crusts in the oxidized zone of lead deposits, as at Cucamonga Peak and Fort Tejon, Calif., U.S., and near Hailey, Idaho, U.S. For mineralogic properties,

Lithgow, city, east-central New South Wales, Australia. It is situated on the western slopes of the Blue Mountains. Founded in 1824 and named for former state auditor-general William Lithgow, it became a municipality in 1889 and a city in 1945; in 1977 it was amalgamated with Blaxland Shire to form

John Lithgow is an American stage and screen character actor known for his extreme versatility, earning acclaim in roles ranging from mild-mannered everymen to cold-blooded killers. Lithgow was born into a theatrical family; his mother was an actress, and his father was a theatre producer. When he

John Lithgow is an American stage and screen character actor known for his extreme versatility, earning acclaim in roles ranging from mild-mannered everymen to cold-blooded killers. Lithgow was born into a theatrical family; his mother was an actress, and his father was a theatre producer. When he

William Lithgow was a Scottish traveler and writer. Lithgow was the son of a merchant and began his travels in his youth. He visited the Orkney and Shetland islands, Germany, Bohemia, and the Low Countries, arriving in Paris in 1609. The following year he went to Rome and began the first of his

lepidolite, the most common lithium mineral, basic potassium and lithium aluminosilicate; a member of the common mica group. It is economically important as a major source of lithium. Because it is one of the few minerals containing appreciable amounts of rubidium, it is useful in determining

Ashland: Lithia Park, a 93-acre (38-hectare) tract of land near the city centre, is a local attraction; spring water (known as Lithia water for its high concentration of lithium salts)—once the focus of a mineral spa—is piped in to the park’s bubblers. Ashland is also the…

lithic arenite, sandstone (i.e., sedimentary rock composed of grains 0.06–2 mm [0.0024–0.08 inch] in diameter) containing over 50 percent rock fragments. Lithic arenites most often are of gray or salt-and-pepper colour because of the inclusion of dark rock fragments, mainly slate, phyllite, or

lithification, complex process whereby freshly deposited loose grains of sediment are converted into rock. Lithification may occur at the time a sediment is deposited or later. Cementation is one of the main processes involved, particularly for sandstones and conglomerates. In addition, reactions

lithiophilite, common phosphate mineral [LiMnPO4] similar to triphylite

lithium (Li), chemical element of Group 1 (Ia) in the periodic table, the alkali metal group, lightest of the solid elements. The metal itself—which is soft, white, and lustrous—and several of its alloys and compounds are produced on an industrial scale. atomic number 3 atomic weight 6.941 melting

lithium, in pharmacology, drug that is the primary treatment for bipolar disorder. Given primarily in its carbonate form, lithium is highly effective in dissipating a manic episode and in calming the individual, although its action in this regard may take several weeks. When given on a long-term

aldehyde: Oxidation-reduction reactions: …the most commonly used being lithium aluminum hydride (LiAlH4), sodium borohydride (NaBH4), or hydrogen (H2) in the presence of a transition catalyst such as nickel (Ni), palladium (Pd), platinum (Pt), or rhodium (Rh).

lithium: Chemical properties: …include lithium chloride (LiCl) and lithium bromide (LiBr). They form concentrated brines capable of absorbing aerial moisture over a wide range of temperatures; these brines are commonly employed in large refrigerating and air-conditioning systems. Lithium fluoride (LiF) is used chiefly as a fluxing agent in enamels and glasses.

lithium: Occurrence and production: …The major commercial form is lithium carbonate, Li2CO3, produced from ores or brines by a number of different processes. Addition of hydrochloric acid (HCl) produces lithium chloride, which is the compound used to produce lithium metal by electrolysis. Lithium metal is produced by electrolysis of a fused mixture of lithium…

battery: Lithium batteries: The area of battery technology that has attracted the most research since the early 1990s is a class of batteries with a lithium anode. Because of the high chemical activity of lithium, nonaqueous (organic or inorganic) electrolytes have to be used. Such electrolytes…

lithium: Occurrence and production: …of hydrochloric acid (HCl) produces lithium chloride, which is the compound used to produce lithium metal by electrolysis. Lithium metal is produced by electrolysis of a fused mixture of lithium and potassium chlorides. The lower melting point of the mixture (400–420 °C, or 750–790 °F) compared with that of pure…

nuclear weapon: Further refinements: It used solid lithium deuteride rather than liquid deuterium and produced a yield of 15 megatons, 1,000 times as large as the Hiroshima bomb. Here the principal thermonuclear reaction was the fusion of deuterium and tritium. The tritium was produced in the weapon itself by neutron bombardment of…

Gilman reagent: …used organocopper compounds are the lithium diorganocuprates, which are prepared by the reaction between organolithium reagents (RLi) and copper(I) halides (CuX); for example, ArLi gives Ar2CuLi.

radiation measurement: Silicon detectors: …detectors, a process known as lithium-ion drifting can be employed. This process produces a compensated material in which electron donors and acceptors are perfectly balanced and that behaves electrically much like a pure semiconductor. By fabricating n- and p-type contacts onto the opposite surface of a lithium-drifted material and applying…

lithium: Chemical properties: Lithium fluoride (LiF) is used chiefly as a fluxing agent in enamels and glasses.

hydride: Covalent hydrides: Lithium gallium hydride, LiGaH4, can also be used as a reducing agent. When pure, all these compounds are white crystalline solids, and their thermal and chemical stabilities are such that those of the boron compounds are greater than those of the aluminum compounds, which are…

lithium: Chemical properties: Lithium hydride (LiH), a gray crystalline solid produced by the direct combination of its constituent elements at elevated temperatures, is a ready source of hydrogen, instantly liberating that gas upon treatment with water. It also is used to produce lithium aluminum hydride (LiAlH4), which quickly…

lithium: Chemical properties: Lithium hydroxide (LiOH), commonly obtained by the reaction of lithium carbonate with lime, is used in making lithium salts (soaps) of stearic and other fatty acids; these soaps are widely used as thickeners in lubricating greases. Lithium hydroxide is also used as an additive in…

chemical compound: Binary ionic compounds: For example, Li+ is called lithium in the names of compounds containing this ion. Similarly, Na+ is called sodium, Mg2+ is called magnesium, and so on. A simple anion (obtained from a single atom) is named by taking the root of the parent element’s name and adding the suffix -ide.…

niobium processing: Lithium niobate: Single-crystal lithium niobate, a transparent, relatively hard, and dense material that resembles clear glass, is particularly suitable for electro-optical applications. The electro-optical effect, also known as the Pockels effect, is an optical phenomenon in which the refractive index of a medium varies linearly…

battery: Lithium storage batteries: Rechargeable lithium–metal anode batteries show commercial promise, with theoretical energy densities that range from 600 to 2,000 watt-hours per kilogram. Even after allowance is made for the inactive parts of such cells, the net energy density is still competitive with aqueous systems.…

radiation measurement: Slow-neutron detectors: In the lithium-6 (6Li) and boron-10 (10B) reactions, the isotopes of interest are present only in limited percentage in the naturally occurring element. To enhance the conversion efficiency of lithium or boron, samples that are enriched in the desired isotope are often used in the fabrication of…

radioactivity: Electron capture: …its inner electrons to give lithium-7:

battery: Lithium batteries: The lithium–carbon monofluoride system has been among the more successful early commercial lithium miniature batteries. It has been used extensively in cameras and smaller devices, providing about 3.2 volts per cell, high power density, and long shelf life. Good low-temperature performance and constant voltage discharge over…

radiation measurement: Silicon detectors: These relatively thick lithium-drifted silicon detectors are widely used for X-ray spectroscopy and for the measurement of fast-electron energies. Operationally, they are normally cooled to the temperature of liquid nitrogen to minimize the number of thermally generated carriers that are spontaneously produced in the thick active volume so…

battery: Lithium storage batteries: …came with the development of lithium-ion cells. The difficult problem of preventing lithium dendrite formation on charging was solved in these cells by using specially selected carbon powders as a base in which to insert lithium ions to form a weak compound that functions as a high-voltage, high-energy-density anode. While…

radiation measurement: Silicon detectors: …detectors, a process known as lithium-ion drifting can be employed. This process produces a compensated material in which electron donors and acceptors are perfectly balanced and that behaves electrically much like a pure semiconductor. By fabricating n- and p-type contacts onto the opposite surface of a lithium-drifted material and applying…

battery: Lithium batteries: Lithium–manganese dioxide cell systems have slowly gained wider application in small appliances, especially automatic cameras. Batteries of this kind have an operating voltage of 2.8–3.2 volts and offer high energy density and relatively low cost for the capability of the cells.

battery: Lithium batteries: Lithium–sulfur dioxide batteries have been used extensively in some emergency power units for aircraft and in military cold-weather applications (e.g., radio operation). The cathode consists of a gas under pressure with another chemical as electrolyte salt; this is analogous to the thionyl chloride electrolyte and…

battery: Lithium batteries: Lithium–thionyl chloride batteries provide the highest energy density and power density commercially available. Thionyl chloride, a very corrosive and toxic chemical, serves not only as the electrolyte solvent but also as the cathode material. Formation of a film of lithium chloride salt on the lithium…

offset printing, in commercial printing, widely used printing technique in which the inked image on a printing plate is printed on a rubber cylinder and then transferred (i.e., offset) to paper or other material. The rubber cylinder gives great flexibility, permitting printing on wood, cloth,

bacteria: Autotrophic metabolism: …photosynthetic bacteria, and most aerobic lithoautotrophic bacteria. The key step in the Calvin cycle is the reaction of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate with carbon dioxide, yielding two molecules of 3-phosphoglycerate, a precursor to glucose. This cycle is extremely expensive for the cell in terms of energy, such that the synthesis of one…

bullfrog, (Lithobates catesbeianus), semi-aquatic frog (family Ranidae), named for its loud call. This largest North American frog, native to the eastern United States and Canada, has been introduced into the western United States and into other countries. The name is also applied to other large

pickerel frog, (Rana palustris), dark-spotted frog (family Ranidae), found in eastern North America, usually in such areas as meadows, cool streams, and sphagnum bogs. The pickerel frog is about 5 to 7.5 centimetres (2 to 3 inches) long and has lengthwise rows of squarish spots on its golden or

centipede: The little stone centipedes (order Lithobiomorpha) are short-bodied. They, like the house centipedes, run with the body held straight and are the fastest moving centipedes.

centipede: The little stone centipedes (order Lithobiomorpha) are short-bodied. They, like the house centipedes, run with the body held straight and are the fastest moving centipedes.

Fagales: Fagaceae: The two remaining genera, Lithocarpus (120 species) and Castanopsis (about 110 species), are almost exclusively restricted to eastern and southeastern Asia.

tanbark oak, (Notholithocarpus densiflorus), evergreen tree of the beech family (Fagaceae), native to coastal areas of southern Oregon and northern California. The plant is related to true oaks (Quercus) and is noted for its tannin-rich bark. The tanbark oak is cultivated as an ornamental in cooler

bile acid: Synthesis and circulation: …produced from cholic acid, and lithocholic acid, which is generated from chenodeoxycholic acid. Secondary bile acids function primarily as signaling molecules, which can influence such processes as immune responses, fat digestion, and cell proliferation.

sedimentary facies: …one is able to recognize lithofacies. The biological (or more correctly, paleontological) attributes—the fossils—define biofacies. Both are the direct result of the depositional history of the basin. By ascribing modes of origin to different facies (i.e., interpreting the lithofacies or biofacies) one can visualize a genetic system of facies. It…

multilith, offset duplicating process that requires either chemically fixing copy on a metal sheet or preparing a paperlike master copy by typing, printing, or drawing (see lithography; offset

lithography, planographic printing process that makes use of the immiscibility of grease and water. In the lithographic process, ink is applied to a grease-treated image on the flat printing surface; nonimage (blank) areas, which hold moisture, repel the lithographic ink. This inked surface is then

sedimentary facies: …one is able to recognize lithofacies. The biological (or more correctly, paleontological) attributes—the fossils—define biofacies. Both are the direct result of the depositional history of the basin. By ascribing modes of origin to different facies (i.e., interpreting the lithofacies or biofacies) one can visualize a genetic system of facies. It…

river: Determining factors: Lithology is significant mainly in connection with permeability. The capacity of karst to swallow and to reissue water is well known, as is the role of permeable strata generally in absorbing water into groundwater tables. An extreme case of a special kind is represented by…

urology: …derives directly from the medieval lithologists, who were itinerant healers specializing in the surgical removal of bladder stones. In 1588 the Spanish surgeon Francisco Diaz wrote the first treatises on diseases of the bladder, kidneys, and urethra; he is generally regarded as the founder of modern urology. Most modern urologic…

printing: Second generation of phototypesetters: functional: …the Lumitype, invented as the Lithomat in 1949 by two Frenchmen, René Higonnet and Louis Moyroud. Executed by phototypesetting, The Marvelous World of Insects was done on their machine in 1953. The first model had an attached keyboard. Later models with a separate keyboard printed more than 28,000 characters per…

ectopic pregnancy: …to the formation of a lithopedion (calcified dead fetus) and death of the mother.

bivalve: Importance: Date mussels (Lithophaga) bore into rocks and corals. Marine mussels (family Mytilidae) foul ships, buoys, and wharves; they may also block seawater intakes into the cooling systems of power stations. The freshwater zebra mussel (family Dreissenidae) feeds on phytoplankton and proliferates rapidly, clogging water-intake pipes…

lithophane, biscuit, or unglazed, white porcelain decorated with a molded or impressed design, usually reproducing a painting, that was meant to be seen by transmitted light. Only a few examples were painted. Lithophanes were produced from about 1830 to about 1900, mostly in Germany, by the Royal

stone chimes, a set of struck sonorous stones. Such instruments have been found—and in some cases, are still used—in Southeast, East, and South Asia as well as in parts of Africa, South America, and Oceania. In the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, for

igneous rock: Small-scale structural features: Lithophysae, also known as stone bubbles, consist of concentric shells of finely crystalline alkali feldspar separated by empty spaces; thus, they resemble an onion or a newly blooming rose. Commonly associated with spherulites in glassy and partly crystalline volcanic rocks of salic composition, many lithophysae are about the size…

lithopone, brilliant white pigment used in paints, inks, leather, paper, linoleum, and face powder. Lithopone was developed in the 1870s as a substitute or supplement for lead carbonate (white lead), to overcome its drawbacks of toxicity, poor weathering, and darkening in atmospheres that contain

lithops, (genus Lithops), genus of about 40 species of small succulent plants of the carpetweed family (Aizoaceae), native to southern Africa. The plants are generally found in rocky arid regions of southern Angola, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa, and it is believed that their small rocklike

falconiform: Evolution and paleontology: The oldest raptorial bird (Lithornis) known is from the late Paleocene Epoch (57.9 to 54.8 million years ago) and may have been a New World vulture (family Cathartidae). Cathartids may have evolved in the Old World, dying out there and surviving only in the New World. Fossil New World…

soil: Parent material: …differing soil areas are called lithosequences, and they fall into two general types. Continuous lithosequences have parent materials whose properties vary gradually along a transect, the prototypical example being soils formed on loess deposits at increasing distances downwind from their alluvial source. Areas of such deposits in the central United…

sexuality: The spectrum of sexuality: In lithosexuality, an individual feels sexual attraction to others but does not wish for it to be reciprocated and therefore typically does not pursue sexual relationships. Both autosexuality and lithosexuality fall within the spectrum of asexuality. Skoliosexuality, an infrequently used term, describes attraction to transgender or…

stony iron meteorite: …of stony iron, known as pallasites (formerly called lithosiderites), the nickel-iron is a coherent mass enclosing separated stony parts. The material that makes up pallasites probably formed, after melting and differentiation of their parent asteroids, at the interface between the nickel-iron metal core and the surrounding silicate mantle. The other…

footman moth, (subfamily Lithosiinae), any of a group of insects in the tiger moth family, Arctiidae (order Lepidoptera), for which the common name footman is probably derived from the stiff, elongate appearance of the adult moths, which usually align their narrow wings (span 2 to 5 cm [45 to 2

South America: Soils: …slopes are often steep, and lithosols (shallow soils consisting of imperfectly weathered rock fragments) abound, accounting for another 10 percent of the continent’s surface. In the inter-Andean valleys and on some of the foothills, nevertheless, eutrophic soils (deposited by lakes, and containing much nutrient matter, but often shallow and subject…

puccoon: Lithospermum species include the yellow puccoon, or Indian paint (L. canescens), with small yellow or orange flowers and reddish roots. It and a few other species (L. incisum and L. carolinense) of the borage family (Boraginaceae) are sometimes planted in the wild garden. The red puccoon, or bloodroot (Sanguinaria…

lithosphere, rigid, rocky outer layer of Earth, consisting of the crust and the solid outermost layer of the upper mantle. It extends to a depth of about 60 miles (100 km). It is broken into about a dozen separate, rigid blocks, or plates (see plate tectonics). A series of forces that include slab

phase: Applications to petrology: …melts as a function of lithostatic pressure; this pressure is due to depth of burial. The two short lines show the approximate position of a transition region between gabbro and its denser solid equivalent, eclogite (a sodium-pyroxene + garnet rock). The melting curves have a positive slope, as the solids…

bacteria: 16S rRNA analysis: …widely distributed among prokaryotes is lithotrophy (from the Greek word lithos, meaning “stone”), the ability to obtain energy by the transfer of electrons from hydrogen gas to inorganic acceptors. It has been proposed that the earliest forms of life on Earth used lithotrophic metabolism and that photosynthesis was a later…

bacteria: 16S rRNA analysis: …widely distributed among prokaryotes is lithotrophy (from the Greek word lithos, meaning “stone”), the ability to obtain energy by the transfer of electrons from hydrogen gas to inorganic acceptors. It has been proposed that the earliest forms of life on Earth used lithotrophic metabolism and that photosynthesis was a later…

coal: Coal rock types: Coals may be classified on the basis of their macroscopic appearance (generally referred to as coal rock type, lithotype, or kohlentype). Four main types are recognized:

Lithuania, country of northeastern Europe, the southernmost and largest of the three Baltic states. Lithuania was a powerful empire that dominated much of eastern Europe in the 14th–16th centuries before becoming part of the Polish-Lithuanian confederation for the next two centuries. Aside from a

horizontally striped yellow-green-red national flag. It has a width-to-length ratio of 1 to 2.The coins and seals of Grand Duke Vytautas the Great (reigned 1392–1430) displayed the figure of a knight on horseback raising his sword. This design supposedly dated back to Grand Duke Gediminas

Grand Duchy of Lithuania, state, incorporating Lithuania proper, present-day Belarus, western Ukraine, and, at its greatest extent, parts of present-day Russia and Poland that became one of the most influential powers in eastern Europe (14th–16th century). Pressed by the crusading Teutonic and

Lithuania: History of Lithuania: Lithuanians are an Indo-European people belonging to the Baltic group. They are the only branch within the group that managed to create a state entity in premodern times. The Prussians, overrun by the Teutonic Order in the 13th century, became…