The Encyclopedia of Native-American Economic History - Hardcover

by Bruce E. Johansen (Author)

Economic themes underlie many aspects of Native American history from the fur trade, the devastating impact of European diseases, and the taking of Native American land to the current issues of uranium mining on Navajo land and casino gambling. Yet this is the first encyclopedia to analyze Native American history against an economic background. Describing the impact of Euro-American settlement from a Native American perspective, the book profiles the economies of roughly forty Native American tribes and nations from pre-Columbian times to the present. Other entries focus on demographics, such historical issues as the Allotment Act of 1887, and modern efforts at economic development. The book provides a valuable guide to an important area in Native American Studies and American economic history.

Basing entries on Native nations, the work includes peoples living in present-day Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, and the United States. Along with nation profiles, the book includes historical information on demographics, economic conditions on reservations, and the economic basis for present-day attempts to increase Native American sovereignty. It is a concise, readable account of Native American history in a format suitable for undergraduates.

Author Biography

BRUCE E. JOHANSEN is Robert T. Reilly Professor of Communication and Native American Studies at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. His academic specialty is the influence of Native American political systems on U.S. political and legal institutions. His best-known books in this area are Forgotten Founders (1982) and Exemplar of Liberty (1991). His most recent books include Native American Political Systems and the Evolution of Democracy: An Annotated Bibliography (Greenwood, 1996) and The Encyclopedia of Native American Legal Tradition (Greenwood, 1998).