National Anthropological Archives

Guide to the Harold K. Schneider papers, 1919-1960,bulk 1949-1960

Summary

Collection ID:
NAA.1994-19
Creators:
Fallers, Lloyd
Evans-Pritchard, Edward Evans
Forde, Cyril Daryll, 1902-
Godelier, Maurice
Fortes, Meyer
Hansen, Judith
Goody, Jack
Humphrey, Hubert H. (Hubert Horatio), 1911-1978
Herskovits, Melville J. (Melville Jean), 1895-1963
Merriam, Alan P. (Alan Parkhurst), 1923-1980
Fenton, William N. (William Nelson), 1908-2005
Winter, Edward H.
Tax, Sol, 1907-1995
Southall, Aidan, 1920-2009
Schneider, Harold Kenneth, 1925-1987
Richards, Audrey
Peristiany, John
Narroll, Raoul
Murdock, George Peter, 1897-1985
Moore, Joseph G.
Bascom, William Russell, 1912-1981
Dates:
1919-1960
bulk 1949-1960
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
21 Sound tape reels
10.3 Linear feet
Repository:
Harold K. Schneider was an economic anthropologist specialized in Africa. He was trained at Northwestern University (Ph.D., 1953) and taught at Lawrence University (1953-1970) and Indiana University (1970-1987). The Schneider papers comprise mainly sets of documents relating to fieldwork in East Africa. The collection includes a few original fieldnotes, complete copies of expanded typscript versions of the notes, collations of data on subject categories, lexicons and other linguistic material, indexes, maps, and a few photographs. Also among the material are translations of German sources and copies of notes based on archival material, particularly material produced in colonial district offices. A small quantity of material concerning Africa generally reflects Schneider's broad interest in Africa and African pastoral economies.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The papers of Harold K. Schneider are primarily comprised of documents relating to his fieldwork in East Africa. One part concerns the Pokot (Suk), a pastoral people of Kenya, among whom Schnieder conducted fieldwork in 1951-1952 and about whom he wrote his dissertation. Another part concerns the Turu, a pastoral people of Tanzania, whom Schneider visited in 1959-1960.
The collection includes original fieldnotes, complete copies of expanded typescript versions of the notes, collations of data by subject categories, lexicons and other linguistic material, indexes, maps and a few photographs. Also among the materials are translations of German documents, copies of archival items, and notes from archival research, especially in records of colonial district offices. A small quantity of material concerning Africa in general reflects Schneider's broad interests in Africa and African pastoral economies. There are also a number of sound recordings, mainly recordings of Schneider's own lectures but also including a lecture by historian George Stocking.
There is also an alphabetical file based on personal names that includes correspondence, obituaries and publications. Notable contacts include William R. Bascom, G. Boulogne, John Bucklew, Stephan Borhegyi, E.E. Evans-Pritchard, Father Delbert Ewing, Lloyd A. Fallers, George Fathauer, William N. Fenton, Daryll Forde, Meyer Fortes, H.A. Fosbrooke, Padraic Frucht, Alexander Galloway, James Gibbs, Maurice Godelier, J.R. Good, Melville J. Herskovits, Hubert H. Humphrey, Father Raymond F. Kelly, Edward E. LeClair, Jr., Alan P. Merriam, James Moody, Joseph G. Moore, Leonard Moss, Raoul Narroll, Maxine Nimitz, J. Peristiany, Nathan M. Pusey, Audry I. Richards, Chandler W. Rowe, Aidan W. Southall, Kathleen Stahl, Roy Swanson, Curtis W. Tarr, Sol Tax, and E.H. Winter.
Please note that the contents of the collection and the language and terminology used reflect the context and culture of the time of its creation. As an historical document, its contents may be at odds with contemporary views and terminology and considered offensive today. The information within this collection does not reflect the views of the Smithsonian Institution or National Anthropological Archives, but is available in its original form to facilitate research.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged into 6 series: 1. Personal name file (includes correspondence); 2. Pokot Material; 3. Turu Material; 4. Other Materials (comprising draft manuscripts, conference papers, lecture notes and typescripts of Turu fieldnotes; 5. General Africa Materials; 6. Sound recordings.

Biographical Note

Biographical Note
Harold K. Schneider was an economic anthropologist who specialized in Africa. He began his undergraduate studies at Macalester College, attended Seabury-Western Theological Seminary (1946-48), then returned to Macalester to complete his degree, majoring in sociology with a minor in biology (B.A., 1949). He received his Ph.D. in anthropology from Northwestern University (where he studied with Melville Herskovits) in 1953. Following his fieldwork among the Pokot of Kenya, Scheider accepted a position as instructor of anthropology at Lawrence University (1953-1970). He conducted fieldwork among the Turu of Tanzania in 1959-60, from which he further developed his theories in economic anthropology. He served as the president of the Central States Anthropological Society (1965); as founding president of the Society for Economic Anthropology (1982-84); and as associate editor for American Ethnologist (1980-84). In 1970, he joined the faculty of Indiana University, where he remained until his death on May 2, 1987.
1925
Born in Aberdeen, South Dakota, on August 24, 1925
1946-48
Attends Seabury-Western Theological Seminary
1949
Receives his B.A. in sociology from Macalester College
1948
Marries Carol Snyder on September 11, 1948
1951-52
Receives a Fulbright grant to conduct fieldwork among the Pokot (Suk) of Kenya
1953
Receives his Ph.D. in Anthropology from Northwestern University
1953-70
Begins as an Instructor at Lawrence University
1959-60
Receives the National Science Foundation research grant to conduct fieldwork among the Turu of Tanzania
1961
Chairman of the anthropology department at Lawrence University
1965
President of the Central States Anthropological Society
1970
Professor of Anthropology at Indiana University at Bloomington
1980-84
Associate editor for American Ethnologist
1980-82
First president of the Society for Economic Anthropology
1987
Remains employed at Indiana University until his death on May 2.

Administration

Author
Aivia Monitto
Sponsor
Digitization and preparation of a portion of these materials for online access has been funded through generous support from the Arcadia Fund
Separated Materials
Films from this collection were transferred to the Human Studies Film Archives (Harold K. Schneider films, HSFS.1995.06).
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Received from Carol S. Schneider in 1987 and 1994.

Using the Collection

Preferred Citation
Harold K. Schneider Papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Conditions Governing Use
Contact the repository for terms of use.
Conditions Governing Access
The Harold K. Schneider papers are open for research.
Access to the Harold K. Schneider papers requires an appointment.

More Information

Bibliography

Bibliography
1957 The Subsistence Role of Cattle among the Pakot and in East Africa. American Anthropologist 59 (2): 278-300.
1964 A Model of African Indigenous Economy and Society. Comparative Studies Society and History 7:35-55.
1966 Turu Esthetic Concepts. American Anthropologist 68(1): 156-160.
1968 Economic Anthropology: Readings in Theory and Analysis. Co-Edited by Edward E. LeClair Jr. NY: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.
1968 Exchange of Cattle in Africa. American Anthropologist 70(4): 757-758.
1970 The Wahi Wanyaturu: Economics in an African Society. Chicago: Aldine.
1973 A Comment on Gray's Review of the Wahi Wanyaturu. American Anthropologist 75(2): 611-612.
1974 Economic Man. NY: Free Press.
1974 Economic Development and Economic Change: The Case of East African Cattle. Current Anthropology 15: 259-265.
1975 Economic Development and Anthropology. Annual Review of Anthropology 3: 271-292.
1977 Prehistoric Transpacific Contact and the Theory of Culture Change. American Anthropologist 79(1): 9-25.
1979 Livestock and Equality in East Africa: The Economic Bases for Social Structure. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
1981 The Africans. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
1981 Livestock as Food and Money. In The Future of Pastoral Peoples, edited by J.G. Galaty et.al., pp. 210-223. Ottawa: International Development Research Center.
1981 The Pastoralist Development Problem. Journal of Asian and African Studies. XV (1&2).


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Suk (African people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Pokot Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Uriha -- Turu Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Turu Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Language and languages -- Documentation Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Nyaturu (African people) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Africa Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Society for Economic Anthropology (U.S.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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