Foix \'fwa\ Historical region, southern France. It corresponds approxi¬ mately to the modern departement of Ariege in the region of Midi- Pyrenees. Foix was a quasi-independent power from the 11th to the 15th century. Bounded by Languedoc and by the territories of the counts of Roussillon and the kings of Aragon, it became part of the crown lands at the ascension of Henry IV as king of France (1589).
Fokine \fo-'ken\, Michel orig. Mikhail Mikhaylovich Fokine
(b. April 23, 1880, St. Petersburg,
Russia—d. Aug. 22, 1942, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Russian-born U.S. dancer and choreographer. He trained at the Imperial Ballet School in St. Petersburg and debuted at the Mariinsky Theatre at age 18. Follow¬ ing his creation of The Dying Swan for Anna Pavlova in 1905, he was in demand as a choreographer. When his ambitious scenario for a ballet on the story of Daphnis and Chloe was rejected, Sergey Diaghilev in 1909 engaged Fokine at the Ballets Russes in Paris, where he choreographed works such as The Firebird (1910),
Petrushka (1911), and Daphnis and Chloe (1912). In these ballets he strove for a greater dramatic and sty¬ listic unity than had been previously known. He moved to New York City in 1923 and thereafter choreo¬ graphed works for companies in the U.S. and Europe.
Fokker, Anthony orig. Anton April 6, 1890, Kediri, Java, Nether¬ lands East Indies—d. Dec. 23, 1939,
New York, N.Y., U.S.) Dutch-U.S. aircraft designer and manufacturer.
He built his first plane in 1910 and taught himself to fly. In 1912 he established a small aircraft factory near Berlin. In World War I he pro¬ duced over 40 types of airplanes for Germany, having originally offered his designs to both sides. He also developed a gear system that allowed a machine gun to fire through a spinning propeller’s field.
In 1922 he moved to the U.S. and opened an aircraft factory, where he produced numerous commercial air¬ craft that were used in the newly developing U.S. airlines business.
folate See folic acid
fold In geology, an undulation or wave in the stratified rocks of the Earth’s crust. Stratified rocks were originally formed from sediments that were deposited in flat, horizontal sheets, although in some places the strata are no longer horizontal but have warped. The warping may be so gentle that the inclination of the strata is barely perceptible, or it may be so pro¬ nounced that the strata of the two flanks are essentially parallel or nearly flat. Folds vary widely in size; the tops of large folds are commonly eroded away on the Earth’s surface.
foliation Planar arrangement of structural or textural features in any rock type, but particularly that resulting from the alignment of constitu¬ ent mineral grains of a metamorphic rock along straight or wavy planes. Foliation commonly occurs parallel to original bedding, but it may not be obviously related to any other structural direction. Foliation is exhibited most prominently by sheety minerals, such as mica or chlorite.
folic acid \'fo-lik\ or folate Organic compound essential to animal growth and health and needed by bacteria as a growth factor. Part of the vitamin B complex, folic acid is necessary for synthesis of nucleic acids and formation of the heme component of hemoglobin in red blood cells. To prevent neural tube defects in babies, it should ideally be taken by women starting at least a month before conception. Dietary folate sources include leafy and dark green vegetables, citrus fruits, cereals, beans, poultry, and egg yolks, but free folic acid is available only in supplements. Low intake leads to folic acid deficiency anemia.
folic-acid-deficiency anemia Anemia resulting from too little folic acid, needed for red-blood-cell maturation (see erythrocyte). White-cell and platelet levels are also often low. Progressive gastrointestinal prob¬ lems develop. It may result from poor diet or from malabsorption, cir¬ rhosis of the liver, or anticonvulsant drugs; it may also occur in the last three months of pregnancy and in severe hemolytic anemia (in which red cells break down). The blood profile resembles that of pernicious anemia. Taking folic acid causes rapid improvement; an adequate diet cures cases caused by malnutrition.
Folies-Bergere \fo-Te-ber-'zher\ Music hall and variety theatre in Paris. It opened in 1869 and soon became a major music hall, presenting oper¬ ettas and pantomimes. By the 1890s its repertory also included vaudeville sketches, acrobats, ballets, and magicians. After the vogue of nudity appeared in Parisian music halls (1894), the Folies produced sensational displays of women in scanty but opulent costumes that soon overshad¬ owed its other performances. Under the management of Paul Derval (1918-66), the Folies achieved an international reputation and became one of Paris’s major tourist attractions. Each show requires about 10 months of preparation, 40 sets, and 1,000 costumes.
folk art Art produced in a traditional fashion by peasants, seamen, country artisans, or tradespeople with no formal training, or by members of a social or ethnic group that has preserved its traditional culture. It is predominantly functional, typically produced by hand for use by the maker or by a small group or community. Paintings are usually incorpo¬ rated as decorative features on clock faces, chests, chairs, and interior and exterior walls. Sculptural objects in wood, stone, and metal include toys, spoons, candlesticks, and religious items. Folk architecture may include public and residential buildings, such as eastern European wooden churches and U.S. frontier log cabins. Other examples of visual folk arts are woodcuts, scrimshaw, pottery, textiles, and traditional clothing.
folk dance Dance that has developed without a choreographer and that reflects the traditional life of the common people of a country or region. The term was coined in the 18th century and is sometimes used to dis¬ tinguish between dances of the people and those of the aristocracy. Courtly and formal dances of the 16th-20th centuries often developed from folk dances; these include the gavotte, gigue, mazurka, minuet, polka, samba, tango, and waltz. See also country dance; hula; morris dance; square dance; sword dance; tap dance.
folk music Music held to be typical of a nation or ethnic group, known to all segments of its society, and preserved usually by oral tradition. Knowledge of the history and development of folk music is largely con¬ jectural. Musical notation of folk songs and descriptions of folk music culture are occasionally encountered in historical records, but these tend to reflect primarily the literate classes’ indifference or even hostility. As Christianity expanded in medieval Europe, attempts were made to sup¬ press folk music because of its association with heathen rites and cus¬ toms, and uncultivated singing styles were denigrated. During the
Fokine as Perseus in Medusa
COURTESY OF THE DANCE COLLECTION, THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY AT LINCOLN CENTER, ASTOR, LENOX AND T1LDEN FOUNDATIONS
Herman Gerard Fokker (b.
Anthony Fokker.
ULLSTEIN BILDERDIENST
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
688 i folk psychology ► Fontainebleau
Renaissance, new humanistic attitudes encouraged acceptance of folk music as a genre of rustic antique song, and composers made extensive use of the music; folk tunes were often used as raw material for motets and masses, and Protestant hymns borrowed from folk music. In the 17th century folk music gradually receded from the consciousness of the lit¬ erate classes, but in the late 18th century it again became important to art music. In the 19th century, folk songs came to be considered a “national treasure,” on a par with cultivated poetry and song. National and regional collections were published, and the music became a means of promoting nationalistic ideologies. Since the 1890s, folk music has been collected and preserved by mechanical recordings. Publications and recordings have promoted wide interest, making possible the revival of folk music where traditional folk life and folklore are moribund. After World War II, archives of field recordings were developed throughout the world. While research has usually dealt with “authentic” (i.e., older) material not heavily influenced by urban popular music and the mass media, the influ¬ ence of singer-songwriters such as Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Joan Baez, and Bob Dylan expanded the genre to include original music that largely retains the form and simplicity of traditional compositions.