Handbook of South American Indians
Encyclopedia
The Handbook of South American Indians is a monographic series
of edited scholarly and reference volumes in ethnographic studies, published by the Smithsonian Institution
between 1940 and 1947.
In 1932, Baron Erland Nordenskiöld
agreed to edit the series for the National Research Council Division of Anthropology and Psychology; however, he died that year. The Smithsonian Institution agreed to sponsor the series but adequate funds were not approved by US Congress until 1940. Julian Haynes Steward edited the series. Ultimately, over a hundred scholars from Latin America, the United States, and Europe contributed and provided advice for the series.
This six-volume series, with an additional index volume, documents information about Indigenous peoples of South America, including cultural and physical aspects of the people, language family
, history, and prehistory
. This is a reference work for historians, anthropologists, other scholars, and the general reader. The series utilized noted authorities for each topic. The set is illustrated, indexed, and has extensive bibliographies. Volumes may be purchased individually.
Monographic series
Monographic series are scholarly and scientific books released in successive volumes, each of which is structured like a separate book or scholarly monograph.-Semantics:...
of edited scholarly and reference volumes in ethnographic studies, published by the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
between 1940 and 1947.
In 1932, Baron Erland Nordenskiöld
Erland Nordenskiöld
Baron Nils Erland Herbert Nordenskiöld was a Finnish-Swedish archeologist and anthropologist. He was born in Stockholm, the son of N. A. E. Nordenskiöld...
agreed to edit the series for the National Research Council Division of Anthropology and Psychology; however, he died that year. The Smithsonian Institution agreed to sponsor the series but adequate funds were not approved by US Congress until 1940. Julian Haynes Steward edited the series. Ultimately, over a hundred scholars from Latin America, the United States, and Europe contributed and provided advice for the series.
This six-volume series, with an additional index volume, documents information about Indigenous peoples of South America, including cultural and physical aspects of the people, language family
Language family
A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto-language of that family. The term 'family' comes from the tree model of language origination in historical linguistics, which makes use of a metaphor comparing languages to people in a...
, history, and prehistory
Prehistory
Prehistory is the span of time before recorded history. Prehistory can refer to the period of human existence before the availability of those written records with which recorded history begins. More broadly, it refers to all the time preceding human existence and the invention of writing...
. This is a reference work for historians, anthropologists, other scholars, and the general reader. The series utilized noted authorities for each topic. The set is illustrated, indexed, and has extensive bibliographies. Volumes may be purchased individually.
Bibliographic information
Handbook of South American Indians / Julian H. Steward, General Editor. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution, 1940-1947.Volume 1: The Marginal Tribes
Sections
- Indians of Southern South America
- Indians of the Gran Chaco
- The Indians of Eastern Brazil
Volume 2: The Andean Civilizations
Volume 3: The Tropical Forest Tribes
Sections
- The Coastal and Amazonian Tupi
- The Tribes of Mato Grosso and Eastern Bolivia
- Tribes of the Montana and Bolivian East Andes
- Tribes of the western Amazon Basin
- Tribes of the Guianas and the Left Amazon Tributaries
Volume 4: The Circum-Caribbean Tribes
Sections
- Central American Cultures
- The Cultures of Northweat South America
- The West Indies
Volume 5: The Comparative Ethnology of South American Indians
Sections
- A Cross-Cultural Survey of South American Indian Tribes
- Jesuit Missions in South America
- The Native Populations of South America
- South American Cultures: An Interpretative Summary
Volume 6: Physical Anthropology, Linguistics and Cultural Geography of South American Indians
Sections
- Ancient Man
- Physical Anthropology
- The languages of South American Indians
- Geography and Plant and Animal Resources
Volume 7: Index
External links
- Volume 1: The Marginal Tribes., online at Biodiversity Heritage Library
- Volume 3: The Tropical Forest Tribes., BHL
- Volume 4: The Circum-Caribbean Tribes., BHL
- Volume 3: The Tropical Forest Tribes., BHL
- Volume 5: The Comparative Ethnology of South American Indians., BHL
- Volume 6: Physical Anthropology, Linguistics and Cultural Georgraphy of South American Indians., BHL
- Volume 7: Index., BHL