Synopses & Reviews
On October 12, 1992, five hundred years will have passed since Christopher Columbus made landfall on San Salvador. His voyage across the Atlantic Ocean set in motion a series of unprecedented social, political, economic, and cultural forces that changed the entire world.
The Historical Dictionary of the Spanish Empire looks at the process by which Spain extended its influence across the globe. It provides more than 1,200 brief descriptive essays covering colonies, individuals, political institutions, legislation, treaties, conferences, wars, revolutions, technologies, social and religious groups, and military battles. References at the end of each entry provide sources of additional information for those wishing to pursue the subject further.
Cross-references within the text, designated by an asterisk, will help the reader to find related items. Two appendixes provide a chronology of Spanish imperialism and a list of the individuals who presided over the viceroyalties of New Granada, New Spain, Peru, and Rio de la Plata. The Historical Dictionary of the Spanish Empire is an invaluable reference tool for scholars and students alike. It should be of interest to reference librarians at college and university libraries, as well as large public libraries.
Review
This is the first historical dictionary of the Spanish Empire (although Scribner's multivolume Encyclopedia of Latin American History is scheduled for publication in late 1992). Unlike many reference works on Spanish colonial history, the editors provide coverage from 1402, when Castile expanded into the Canary Islands, to the surrender of the Spanish Sahara in 1975. The dictionary offers brief descriptive essays for more than 1,200 topics ranging from colonies, individuals, and institutions to revolutions, technologies, and military battles. . . .[It] will make a useful addition to academic and many large public libraries." Booklist "The armada of books greeting the quincentenary of Columbus's transatlantic voyage of discovery will almost certainly raise many questions about the globe-girdling empire that Spain acquired in Columbus's wake, questions that Olsen's dictionary is ideally suited to answer. Its brief articles focus on "the people, institutions, and colonies of the Spanish empire, from Castile's expansion to the Canary Islands in 1402 to the surrender of Spanish Sahara in 1975." Articles on political events, treaties, and wars in Europe that affected the empire are integrated alphabetically with articles on the colonies themselves, noted individuals, events, industries, institutions, cities, commodities, native peoples, and political offices of the imperial possessions in the Americas, Africa, and the Pacific. Articles on former colonies cover the period from conquest or acquisition to the time of independence or transfer to another nation. Index, bibliography, and end-of-article references add value to the articles. Given the five-century span of coverage, articles on major topics tend to be a rapid-fire series of factual statements summarizing major events in a single sentence. Abundant internal cross-references allow readers to supply needed context to comprehend such articles. This fine dictionary will continue to answer questions long after this year's Columbus hoopla subsides.Wilson Library Bulletin
Synopsis
"This encyclopedic A-Z volume for all level readers is an excellent source of documentation on the glory and plummeting fate of the Spanish empire. . . . Highly recommended for college and large public libraries." Library Journal
Synopsis
This authoritative reference book looks at the process by which Spain extended its influence throughout the modern world. It provides more than 1,200 brief descriptive essays covering colonies, individuals, political institutions, legislation, treaties, conferences, wars, revolutions, technologies, social and religious groups, and military battles. References at the end of each entry provide sources of additional information for those wishing to pursue the subject further. Cross-references within the text, designated by an asterisk, will help the reader to find related items.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [667]-678) and index.
About the Author
JAMES S. OLSON is Professor of History at Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, Texas.
Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction
The Dictionary
Appendix A: A Historical Chronology of the Spanish Empire
Appendix B: Colonial Viceroys of the Spanish Empire, 1535-1824
Selected Bibliography
Index