Types of Research among American anthropologists,

though they called them life

Contemporary social
histories. This interest was
antropologists are doing a variety
aroused in 1926 with the
of types of historical research,
publication of Paul Radins
some similar to the kinds of
Crashing Thunder. Research on life
research that historians do and
histories did not become popular,
others dictated by traditional
however, until the 1930s and
interest of social anthropology. In
1940s, through the influence of
reviewing research in this area, one
Edward Sapir and ClydeKluckhohn ;
can separate the work of social
and perhaps as a result of their
anthropologists from that of
influence life histories were
historians and scholars in other
distinctly psychological in pointof
fields only in the most arbitrary
view. In recent years, however, a
fashion. And rather than do this it
number of excellent bioghraphies
has seemed wiser to include some
of people in other cultures have
work by nonanthropologists.
been published which are not at all
Life Histories. Biographies of historical. One need only mention
individuals in exotic societies Oscar Lewis The Children of
probably constitute the most Sanchez (1961) and Pedro Martinez
concrete and obvious kind of (1964) and Theodora Kroebers
historical research in social incomparable Ishi (1961). In
anthropology. There were, of addition to being a legitimate and
course, many examples of this kind useful means of documenting life in
of bioghrapy before anthropology other cultures from an individual
existed in a formal sense. Many perspective, the biographical form
biographies of American Indians is an effective means of
were written in the nineteenth communicating to the layman what
century, most of them coming out anthropology has to teach.
at about the same time that the
Biographies and Tme Depth.
last remaining American Indians
Collecting biographies can also be
lost their autonomy (Langness
used as a research technique in
1965:5-7). Most of these
anthropological fieldwork (Lagness
biographies have been ignored by
1965:20-46), and is particularly
anthropologists, quite unjustly, on
useful in fieldwork that attempts to
the grounds that they are too
add time depth to a synchronic
literary.
study. There are two principal ways
The writing of biographies of doing this: the extended case
enjoyed a brief period of popularity method and the developmental
cycle method (Olien 1967). In the particulary useful in working out
extended case method, the complicated variables governing
fieldworker follows a single set of succession to office in tribal
persons throught time, using the societies (I. M. Lewis, ed., 1968:xvi-
incidents in which they become xvii). In tribal politics and in many
involved as a means of clarifying other areas of social life it is
the relationships among them. The becoming apparent that a flat,
fieldworker observes the behavior synchronic analysis misses much.
of the group of persons over an For example, in the light of a purely
extended period of time, collects synchronic study a social institution
their oral accounts of events in the might appear to be defunct, only to
past, and consults any written appear later in changed social
records that may be available conditions as a fully viable social
(Mitchell 1956, Gluckman 1961). In form. An example of just this kind
the developmental cycle method, of thing has been found by E.R.
the interest is in the statistical Cregeen (1968) in his historical
properties of groups that have a study of Scottish clanship. In light
life cycle, a regular course of of this, we see that Durkheims
development (Fortes 1949, Goody realization of the value of historical
1958). When the developmental research in sociological studies was
cycle method is used, it often turns especially prophetic.
out that seemingly different types
Ethnohistory. Ethnohistory, or
of domestic groups are simply
historical ethnology, bases its
different stages of a single
research primarily on the study of
structure that changes through
documentary information. There
time. In both of these methods
are as many varieties of historical
biographical information is quite
ethnology as there are kinds if
useful. The two methods can be
history. Following the precedent of
combined in the same piece of
historians, social anthropologists
research, as was done by John
produce critical editions of primary
Middleton in his Lugbara Religion
historical documents, which, thus
(1960).
edited, become accessible to the
Fieldwork and Documentary general reader and more useful to
Data. These firsthand field studies the scholar. Examples are John
that incorporate time depth shade C.Ewers edition (1967) of George
imperceptibly into studies that Catlins O-kee-pa, a Mandan
combine field data with religious ceremony Catlin
documentary data. The use of witnessed in 1832, and his edition
documentary records has been of Jean Louis Berlandiers (1969)
description of Indians in Texas in economics (Obeysekere 1967), and
1830. A long this same line are belief system (Leon-Portilla 1963).
critical editions of documents by
As historical equivalents of
literate members of exotic cultures,
traditional, holistic ethnographies,
such as Leon-Portillas (1962)
many fine historical ethnographies
version of the Aztec account of the
of societies in most of the major
conquest of Mexico and James
areas of the world have been
Mooney and Frans Olbrechts
produced by anthropologists in
(1932) version of the Swimmer
recent years. Selecting a few
manuscript, a notebook written by
arbitrarily, for Africa we have
a Cherokee medicine man in the
Argyles (1966) work on the Fon of
Sequoyah syllbary.
Dahomey and Alagoas (1964)
The Kinds of research done history of the nembe people of the
by historical ethnologists is similar Niger Delta. For North America we
to anthropologists analyses of have Hickersons (1962,1970) work
their field data on particular social on the Chippewa, Tookers (1964)
institutions or aspects of culture. ethnography of the early
Any selection from the works in this seventeenth-century Huron
category is bound to be arbitrary. Indians, and Welthfishs (1965)
One can mention Lancaster' reconstruction of a year in the life
(1958) study of the bilateral kinship of the Pawnee Indians. For Latin
system of the Anglo-Saxons and America we have Ronald Spores
Maurice Freedmans (1958) study book on the Mixtec of northwestern
of lineage organization in China. Oaxaca in Mexico, derived from
Nor is kinship the only subject of archaeological, ethnographic, and
interest to historical ethnologists. historical sources.
There have been historical studies
One further topic on which
of political organization (Evans-
Pritchard 1949,M. G. Smith 1960),