Handbook of South American Indians

Handbook of South American Indians
Title	Handbook of South American Indians
Editor	Julian H. Steward
Country	United States
Language	English
Subject	Indigenous peoples of South America
Publisher	Smithsonian Institution
Media type	Print
Release date	1940–1947

Handbook of South American Indians is a multi-volume compendium surveying the indigenous peoples of South America assembled under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution and edited by Julian H. Steward. Commissioned as part of the Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology series, the handbook brought together specialists from institutions such as the American Museum of Natural History, Field Museum of Natural History, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Carnegie Institution of Washington, and the Bureau of American Ethnology. Its publication between 1940 and 1947 coincided with major events including World War II and the early years of the United Nations era, shaping scholarly networks across the United States Department of State and international museums.

Background and Publication History

The project originated in the 1930s under the direction of the Smithsonian Institution leadership and scholars linked to the National Research Council (United States), reflecting priorities influenced by figures such as Alexander Wetmore and Henry Fairfield Osborn. Funding and institutional support involved bodies like the Carnegie Institution of Washington and logistical coordination with the United States Geological Survey for cartographic work. Publication of volumes occurred amid administrative changes at the Smithsonian Institution Bureau of American Ethnology and during the tenure of secretaries such as Charles Greeley Abbot. The editorial timeline overlapped with scientific debates at the American Anthropological Association and dissemination channels including the Library of Congress and academic presses.

Scope and Organization

The handbook's stated scope covered ethnography, archaeology, linguistics, material culture, and ethnohistory across geographic areas including the Amazon Basin, Andes Mountains, Patagonia, Gran Chaco, and the Orinoco River basin. It attempted synthesis drawing on collections from the British Museum, Musée de l'Homme, Royal Ontario Museum, National Museum of Brazil, and field reports by scholars affiliated with Columbia University, Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University. Organization followed regional and thematic divisions intended to serve readers at institutions like the American Philosophical Society and government archives including the National Archives and Records Administration.

Editorial Approach and Contributors

Steward convened contributors from a wide network including notable figures such as Claude Lévi-Strauss, Ruth Benedict, Bronisław Malinowski, Samuel Alfred Harper, Paul Rivet, and Alfred Kroeber—many associated with museums and universities like the London School of Economics, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, University of Chicago, and Stanford University. Contributors combined fieldwork from expeditions funded by the Rockefeller Foundation and data from collections at the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology and the American Museum of Natural History. Editorial practices reflected contemporary methods debated in forums like the American Anthropological Association meetings and publications in journals such as American Anthropologist, Ethnology, and Journal de la Société des Américanistes.

Content Summary by Volume and Region

Volume arrangements addressed cultural areas with case studies on groups such as the Tupi people, Guaraní, Arawak, Quechua, Aymara, Mapuche, Yanomami, Asháninka, Kayapó, Shuar, Moche culture, Nazca culture, Tiwanaku, and Wari culture. The Amazon volumes synthesized linguistic data on families like Tucanoan languages, Arawakan languages, Cariban languages, Panoan languages, and Tupian languages, with archaeological coverage referencing sites analogous to Kaffiøyane-period finds and Andean complexes such as Chavín de Huántar. Coastal and southern volumes discussed industries and artifacts represented in collections at the Museo Nacional de Antropología (Madrid), Museo de La Plata, Museo Nacional de Antropología (Mexico City), and the Museu do Índio. Regional chapters engaged with ethnohistorical sources including chronicles by Pedro Cieza de León, Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo, Father José de Acosta, Bernal Díaz del Castillo, and cartographic traditions influenced by Alexander von Humboldt.

Reception and Impact

Upon release, reviews appeared in venues such as American Anthropologist, Science (journal), Nature (journal), The New York Times, and regional outlets across Argentina, Brazil, Peru, and Chile. The handbook influenced curricula at universities like Columbia University, Harvard University, University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, University of São Paulo, Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, and research agendas at museums including the Field Museum of Natural History and the British Museum. Policymakers in agencies such as the United States Agency for International Development and cultural institutions like the National Endowment for the Humanities later cited its syntheses. Critics associated with schools of thought led by Franz Boas and Julian Steward debated its assumptions alongside emerging positions by scholars including Marshall Sahlins, Eric Wolf, and Clifford Geertz.

Legacy and Modern Relevance

The handbook remains a frequently consulted historical source in archives at the Smithsonian Institution, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, American Museum of Natural History, and university libraries including Harvard College Library and the Bodleian Library. Contemporary scholars from institutions such as University of California, Berkeley, University of Chicago, Stanford University, University of Michigan, and University College London revisit its data in light of advances by researchers at centers like the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia. Debates in journals including Latin American Research Review, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Current Anthropology, and Ethnohistory reflect its continuing relevance for studies involving indigenous rights movements tied to legal frameworks like the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and cultural heritage policies enacted in nations including Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, and Colombia.

Category:Anthropology books Category:Smithsonian Institution publications Category:Indigenous peoples of South America