Basin-Plateau Aboriginal Sociopolitical Groups

Julian H. Steward (1902-1972), one of the foremost exponents of cultural evolution in the United States, made important contributions to the study of social organizations and to North American ethnography. He published his monumental seven volume Handbook of South American Indians while working as an anthropologist at the Bureau of American Ethnology at the Smithsonian Institution.

Preface Introduction * Objectives of the study * History of the Basin-Plateau Geographical environment and subsistence * The physical landscape * Plant foods * Animal foods * The economic pattern Population density Sociopolitical groups of different areas * Western localized Northern Paiute bands: Owens Valley * Western independent Northern Paiute villages * Western independent Shoshoni villages * Western independent Southern Paiute villages * Northern Shoshoni bands * Western Ute bands Analysis of data * Ecological determinants * Social determinants * Social and political patterns Some general implications of the present study * Sociopolitical groups among hunters and gatherers * Ecology in cultural studies Appendices: A. Tribal distributions B. Vocabularies C. Kinship terms D. Native names of plants E. Miscellaneous uses of plants F. MH's biography G. Status terms Bibliography Index