Amazonia has long been a focus of debate about the impact of the tropical rain forest environment on indigenous cultural development. This edited volume draws on the subdisciplines of anthropology to present an integrated perspective of Amazonian studies. The contributors address transformations of native societies as a result of their interaction with Western civilization from initial contact to the present day, demonstrating that the pre- and postcontact characteristics of these societies display differences that until now have been little recognized. CONTENTS-Amazonian Anthropology: Strategy for a New Synthesis, Anna C. Roosevelt: The Ancient Amerindian Polities of the Amazon, Orinoco and Atlantic Coast: A Preliminary Analysis of Their Passage from Antiquity to Extinction, Neil Lancelot Whitehead: The Impact of Conquest on Contemporary Indigenous Peoples of the Guiana Shield: The System of Orinoco Regional Interdependence, Nelly Arvelo-Jimenez and Horacio Biord-Social Organization and Political Power in the Amazon Floodplain: The Ethnohistorical Sources, Antonio Porro: The Evidence for the Nature of the Process of Indigenous Deculturation and Destabilization in the Amazon Region in the Last 300 Years: Preliminary Data, Adelia Engracia de Oliveira-Health and Demography of Native Amazonians: Historical Perspective and Current Status, Warren M. Hern-Diet and Nutritional Status of Amazonian Peoples, Darna L. Dufour-Hunting and Fishing in Amazonia: Hold the Answers, What are the Questions?, Stephen Beckerman-Homeostasis as a Cultural System: The Jivaro Case, Philippe Descola-Farming, Feuding, and Female Status: The Achuara Case, Pita Kelekna-Subsistence Strategy, Social Organization, and Warfare in Central Brazil in the Context of European Penetration, Nancy M. Flowers-Environmental and Social Implications of Pre- and Post-Contact Situations on Brazilian Indians: The Kayapo and a New Amazonian Synthesis, Darrell Addison Posey-Beyond Resistance: A Comparative Study of Utopian Renewal in Amazonia, Michael F. Brown: The Eastern Bororo Seen from an Archaeological Perspective, Irmhilde Wust-Genetic Relatedness and Language Distributions in Amazonia, Harriet E. Manelis Klein-Language, Culture, and Environment: Tupi??-Guarani?? Plant Names Over Time, William Balee and Denny Moore-Becoming Indian: The Politics of Tukanoan Ethnicity, Jean E. Jackson
