Handbook of the Indians of California, with 419 Illustrations and 40 Maps (Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin No. 78) [Paperback]

A. L. Kroeber (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1976

This monumental work from a foremost American anthropologist includes demographics, linguistic relations, social structures, folkways, religion, material culture, and much more. Includes surveys of the Yurok, Pomo, Maidu, Yokuts, and Mohave receiving most attention. A remarkable piece of organization and exposition, the volume includes 479 illustrations and 40 maps.

Product Details

• Paperback: 995 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications; Second edition edition (June 1, 1976)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486233685
• ISBN-13: 978-0486233680
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.2 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #61,575 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Lasting Record, May 16, 2000

By 

Joel M Sax - See all my reviews

This review is from: Handbook of the Indians of California, with 419 Illustrations and 40 Maps (Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin No. 78) (Paperback)

Alfred Kroeber deserves admiration as one of those men who ensured that our knowledge of Native American peoples would not be lost. He is perhaps best known as the friend of Ishi and, sometimes, for his concept of "culture" as "superorganic", but it is this work that I feel is his most lasting contribution.

Though some of the information has been corrected by subsequent researchers (checking Kroeber's work against more recent publications is reasonable), the Handbook remains useful to anyone who wants an overview or details about the numerous peoples who inhabited the state before the coming of the Spanish in 1769.

Where Kroeber is sketchiest is, of course, where the peoples had been exterminated before his investigations began shortly after the turn of the century. His work on the Yokuts and the Mojave, on the other hand, is extensive and helps us to understand some of the culture of their now missing neighbors. He has left no people unaccounted for. Thanks to this volume, interest in the California Indians has been stimulated for all time and with that interest has come a desire to preserve.

All California history lovers and anthropologists need this book on their shelves.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding ethnography, and still the best, December 1, 2002

By 

magellan (Santa Clara, CA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Handbook of the Indians of California, with 419 Illustrations and 40 Maps (Smithsonian Institution, Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin No. 78) (Paperback)

California has the most culturally diverse Indian ethnography of any U.S. state. Since California habitats range from coastal near- rainforest to dry desert, the Indians have developed a wide range of cultural and technological innovations to deal with it. The linguistic relations are also complex and diverse, a particular interest of mine, and I thought Kroeber did a fine job of discussing this, too. Altogether, Kroeber spent 17 years compiling and writing this great work, and it shows.

Some of the tribes understandably receive more coverage than others, because little was known about them at the time. For example, the Wappo and Washo Indians only have four and half pages each in the book, but the Yokuts section has 70 pages, but this is understandable given the original publication date of 1925 by the U.S. Government Printing Office. Since then, our knowledge of many of the tribes has become significantly greater, or at least less sketchy, but you'll have to consult other sources for that.

One notable thing about the book is the photos of various individuals, most of which could probably not be obtained today--such as the picture of the "Karok man in warrior custume in rod armor and helmut," or the "Hupa (man) measuring dentalium money against tattoos on his forearm," two truly quite striking photographic portrayals.

Despite its deficiencies (which are still modest considering how old it is), this still ranks as the best compendium of knowledge about California Indians, and one of the greatest ethnographies ever written.

On a personal note, I thought I'd mention I had Kroeber's son, Ted, as my psychological statistics professor at San Francisco State back in the mid-70's. Although I never had the opportunity to meet the father, Ted was a really cool psych. prof., and I enjoyed his class. He said his father would often tell him and his sister Ursula (Ursula LeGuin, who became a famous science fiction author), stories about the Indians when they were children, and he would occasionally regale us with stories about his famous father in class, which helped to break up the necessary discipline and technical rigors of a statistics class.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not worth the price, December 27, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Handbook of the Indians of California (Hardcover)

The content of this book is EXCELLENT. However, the "hardcover" version is just a hard cover slapped on OVER the paperback--not worth the extra $100+.