Abba

Swedish pop group Abba performing on a television programme in the mid-1970s. Abba travelled all over Europe, appearing on countless television and radio shows.

Swedish pop group 1973–81, one of the most successful groups in Europe during the 1970s. Their well-produced songs were characterized by the harmonies of the two female lead singers, and were aimed at a wide audience. Abba had a string of international hits beginning with ‘Waterloo’ (winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 1974) and including ‘SOS’ (1974), ‘Fernando’ (1976), ‘Dancing Queen’ (1976), and ‘The Winner Takes It All’ (1980).

The group members comprised Agnetha Fältskog (1950– ), Anni-Frid (Frida) Lyngstad (1945– ) (vocalists), Benny Andersson (1945– ), and Björn Ulvaeus (1945– ) (songwriters and lead male performers). There was a revival of interest in their music in the 1990s, with a musical based on their songs, Mamma Mia!, premiering in London in 1999.

Abba

Term used in the Babylonian Talmud by a child addressing his or her father, and as an honorific style of address to rabbis. In the Syriac, Coptic, and Ethiopic churches the title came to be applied to the bishops.