The Institute of Social Anthropology was an autonomous unit of the Smithsonian Institution which existed from 1942-1952. The objectives of the Institute of Social Anthropology were to work in cooperation with the institutions in certain Latin American republics which had requested assistance in anthropological work; the Institute of Social Anthropology had two main objectives:
1) Training of personnel in the concepts and techniques of anthropology;
2) Acquisition of a body of scientific information concerning the basic rural populations that is fundamental to any program affecting Latin Americans as well as to science and education.
The research provided an understanding of the manner of living, agricultural systems in relation to environmental factors, economic life, crafts and industries, food habits, health status, social organization, religion, language, literacy, and basic attitudes and interests of the people. From a scientific point of view, these studies revealed the most recent changes and the factors making for change in cultures that in many instances can be traced back more than 2,000 years through archaeology and post-conquest written history. From a practical point of view, the findings were indispensable to any action programs, both governmental and private, concerned with matters of health, education, soil erosion, commercial development, colonization, marketing, and so on.
Scope and Contents:
These documents reflect the correspondence and other office records of the Institute of Social Anthropology of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Included are annual reports, correspondence, memoranda, printed material, and financial records that cover the period of the Institute's existence 1942-1952. The majority of the material relates to the office files of the Institute and its correspondence with its social scientists in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala, and Peru.
Also included are documents that relate to the Institute of Social Anthropology and its relations with the State Department. There is also correspondence concerning the ISA and Acta American, Bollingen Foundation, Guggenheim Foundation, National Indian Institute, Pan American Institute of Geography and History, Rockefeller Foundation, UNESO, Wenner-Gren Foundation, Inter-American Society of Anthropology and Geography, Escuela Nacional de Anthropología e Historia, Instituto Nacional de Anthropología e Historia, Escola Livre de Sociología e Política, Instituto de Anthropología Social.
Historical Note:
The Institute of Social Anthropology was established under the directorship of Julian H. Steward on September 8, 1943, as an autonomous unit of the Bureau of American Ethnology. Its purpose was to set up cooperative Institutes of Social Anthropology for scientific research and training in certain Latin American countries, each working under the guidance of the Smithsonian Institution. This program was carried out under the auspices of the Interdepartmental Committee on Scientific and Cultural Cooperation in Latin American of the U.S. Department of State, and was financed by funds transferred from the State Department to the Smithsonian Institution. Dr. Steward directed the Institution of Social Anthropology until September, 1946, when he was succeeded by George M. Foster, who continued as director until the Institute was abolished in 1952.
At its outset, the ISA staff consisted of eight social scientists (four social anthropologists, two cultural geographers, a linguist, and a sociologist) stationed in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru (for a short time in 1950 a station was established in Guatemala, but it was discontinued the same year for lack of funds). Their duties consisted in instructing local students (in collaboration with Latin American universities and other institutions) in social science research techniques through classroom, laboratory, and field situations, and in assisting with publication projects. In 1948, the budget was cut to allow for only six scientists. The ISA continued in this capacity until 1949, when the Inter-departmental Committee on Scientific and Cultural Cooperation was abolished, and it was placed under the Division of International Exchange of Persons, another State Department Committee. The ISA did not form an organic part of this new program, and the State Department decided to terminate its support as of December 31, 1951.
Following this time, the ISA integrated its activities with the Institute of Inter-American Affairs. In the spring of 1952, the IIAA requested that all ISA personnel who so desired be permanently incorporated into the IIAA organization. This terminated the activities of the Institute of Social Anthropology as such
Related Materials:
Other material in the National Anthropological Archives that relates to the Institute of Social Anthropology can be found among the correspondence files of the Bureau of American Ethnology 1907-1950, consisting of fifty linear feet files in one continuous alphabet in ninety seven boxes.
Restrictions:
The Institute of Social Anthropology records are open for research.
Access to the Institute of Social Anthropology records requires an appointment.
Beautyway: a Navaho ceremonial / myth recorded and translated by Father Berard Haile ; with a variant myth recorded by Maud Oakes ; and sandpaintings recorded by Laura A. Armer, Franc J. Newcomb, and Maud Oakes ; edited with commentaries by Leland C. Wyman
