Böcker i Historical Ecology Series-serien

The Huaorani of Ecuador lived as hunters and gatherers in the Amazonian rainforest for hundred of years, largely undisturbed by western civilization. This book provides description of Huaorani society and culture according to modern standards of ethnographic writing.

Intrigued by a slide showing a woman breast-feeding a monkey, anthropologist Loretta A. Cormier spent fifteen months living among the Guaja, a foraging people in a remote area of Brazil. The result is this ethnographic study of the extraordinary relationship between the Guaja Indians and monkeys. While monkeys are a key food source for the Guaja, certain pet monkeys have a quasi-human status. Some infant monkeys are adopted and nurtured as human children while others are consumed in accordance with the "e;symbolic cannibalism"e; of their belief system.The apparent contradiction of this predator/protector relationship became the central theme of Cormier's research: How can monkeys be both eaten as food and nurtured as children? Her research reveals that monkeys play a vital role in Guaja society, ecology, economy, and religion. In Guaja animistic beliefs, all forms of plant and animal life-especially monkeys-have souls and are woven into a comprehensive kinship system. Therefore, all consumption can be considered a form of cannibalism.Cormier sets the stage for this enlightening study by examining the history of the Guaja and the ecological relationships between human and nonhuman primates in Amazonia. She also addresses the importance of monkeys in Guaja ecological adaptation as well as their role in the Guaja kinship system. Cormier then looks at animism and life classification among the Guaja and the role of pets, which provide a context for understanding "e;symbolic cannibalism"e; and how the Guaja relate to various forms of life in their natural and supernatural world. The book concludes with a discussion of the implications of ethnoprimatology beyond Amazonia, including Western perceptions of primates.

This collection of studies by anthropologists, botanists, ecologists, and biologists is an important contribution to the emerging field of historical ecology. The book combines cutting-edge research with new perspectives to emphasize the close relationship between humans and their natural environment.Contributors examine how alterations in the natural world mirror human cultures, societies, and languages. Treating the landscape like a text, these researchers decipher patterns and meaning in the Ecuadorian Andes, Amazonia, the desert coast of Peru, and other regions in the neotropics. They show how local peoples have changed the landscape over time to fit their needs by managing and modifying species diversity, enhancing landscape heterogeneity, and controlling ecological disturbance. In turn, the environment itself becomes a form of architecture rich with historical and archaeological significance. Time and Complexity in Historical Ecology explores thousands of years of ecological history while also addressing important contemporary issues, such as biodiversity and genetic variation and change. Engagingly written and expertly researched, this book introduces and exemplifies a unique method for better understanding the link between humans and the biosphere.

Experts in a variety of disciplines in the natural and social sciences--including geology, climatology, history, and anthropology--consider such topics as the dynamics of climate, human perceptions of and responses to the environment, and issues of sustainability and resiliency.

Experts in a variety of disciplines in the natural and social sciences--including geology, climatology, history, and anthropology--consider such topics as the dynamics of climate, human perceptions of and responses to the environment, and issues of sustainability and resiliency.

This work offers an alternative view of the "New World" before the arrival of the Europeans. Drawing on knowledge from the fields of palaeo-climatology, historical ecology, and botany, this book examines how the Western Hemishpere's indigenous inhabitants transformed their natural environment.

Bridging the divide between social and natural sciences, this text uses a holistic perspective to explore the relationships between humans and their environment. The contributors focus on traditional societies where lands are most at risk from the incursions of complex, state-level societies.