Histories of Maize in Mesoamerica
Title | Histories of Maize in Mesoamerica PDF eBook |
Author | John Staller |
Publisher | Routledge |
Pages | 281 |
Release | 2016-06-16 |
Genre | Social Science |
ISBN | 1315427281 |
Abridged and updated version of the basic work on the development of maize, including 20 chapters of interest to Mesoamerican specialists, updated with recent findings and interpretations.
HISTORIES OF MAIZE
Title | HISTORIES OF MAIZE PDF eBook |
Author | John Staller |
Publisher | Left Coast Press |
Pages | 706 |
Release | 2006-05-15 |
Genre | Science |
ISBN | 1598744623 |
Histories of Maize is the most comprehensive reference source on the botanical, genetic, archaeological, and anthropological aspects of ancient maize published to date.
Maize Cobs and Cultures: History of Zea mays L.
Title | Maize Cobs and Cultures: History of Zea mays L. PDF eBook |
Author | John Staller |
Publisher | Springer Science & Business Media |
Pages | 266 |
Release | 2009-12-02 |
Genre | Social Science |
ISBN | 3642045065 |
Our perceptions and conceptions regarding the roles and importance of maize to ancient economies is largely a product of scientific research on the plant itself, developed for the most part out of botanical research, and its recent role as one of the most important economic staples in the world. Anthropological research in the early part of the last century based largely upon the historical particularistic approach of the Boasian tradition provided the first evidence that challenged the assumptions about the economic importance of maize to sociocultural developments for scholars of prehistory. Subsequent ethnobotanic and archaeological studies showed that the role of maize among Native American cultures was much more complex than just as a food staple. In Maize Cobs and Cultures, John Staller provides a survey of the ethnohistory and the scientific, botanical and biological research of maize, complemented by reviews on the ethnobotanic, interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary methodologies.
Corn
Title | Corn PDF eBook |
Author | Michael Owen Jones |
Publisher | Reaktion Books |
Pages | 161 |
Release | 2017-12-15 |
Genre | Cooking |
ISBN | 1780238169 |
Originating in Mesoamerica 9,000 years ago, maize—or, as we know it, corn—now grows in 160 countries. In the New World, indigenous peoples referred to corn as “Our Mother,” “Our Life,” and “She Who Sustains Us.” Today, the United States is the world’s leading producer of corn, and you can find more than 3,500 items in grocery stores that contain corn in one way or another—from puddings to soups, margarine to mayonnaise. In Corn: A Global History, Michael Owen Jones explores the origins of this humble but irreplaceable crop. The book traces corn back to its Mesoamerican roots, following along as it was transported to the Old World by Christopher Columbus, and then subsequently distributed throughout Europe, Africa, and Asia. Jones takes readers into the deliciously disparate culinary uses of corn, including the Chilean savory pie pastel de choclo, Japanese corn soup, Mexican tamales, a Filipino shaved ice snack, and the South African cracked hominy dish umngqusho, favored by Nelson Mandela. Covering corn’s controversies, celebrations, and iconic cultural status, Jones interweaves food, folklore, history, and popular culture to reveal the vibrant story of a world staple.
Pre-Columbian Foodways
Title | Pre-Columbian Foodways PDF eBook |
Author | John Staller |
Publisher | Springer Science & Business Media |
Pages | 691 |
Release | 2009-11-24 |
Genre | Social Science |
ISBN | 1441904719 |
The significance of food and feasting to Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures has been extensively studied by archaeologists, anthropologists and art historians. Foodways studies have been critical to our understanding of early agriculture, political economies, and the domestication and management of plants and animals. Scholars from diverse fields have explored the symbolic complexity of food and its preparation, as well as the social importance of feasting in contemporary and historical societies. This book unites these disciplinary perspectives — from the social and biological sciences to art history and epigraphy — creating a work comprehensive in scope, which reveals our increasing understanding of the various roles of foods and cuisines in Mesoamerican cultures. The volume is organized thematically into three sections. Part 1 gives an overview of food and feasting practices as well as ancient economies in Mesoamerica. Part 2 details ethnographic, epigraphic and isotopic evidence of these practices. Finally, Part 3 presents the metaphoric value of food in Mesoamerican symbolism, ritual, and mythology. The resulting volume provides a thorough, interdisciplinary resource for understanding, food, feasting, and cultural practices in Mesoamerica.
Maize for the Gods
Title | Maize for the Gods PDF eBook |
Author | Michael Blake |
Publisher | Univ of California Press |
Pages | 280 |
Release | 2015-08-28 |
Genre | Social Science |
ISBN | 0520276876 |
Maize is the worldÕs most productive food and industrial crop, grown in more than 160 countries and on every continent except Antarctica. If by some catastrophe maize were to disappear from our food supply chain, vast numbers of people would starve and global economies would rapidly collapse. How did we come to be so dependent on this one plant? Maize for the Gods brings together new research by archaeologists, archaeobotanists, plant geneticists, and a host of other specialists to explore the complex ways that this single plant and the peoples who domesticated it came to be inextricably entangled with one another over the past nine millennia. Tracing maize from its first appearance and domestication in ancient campsites and settlements in Mexico to its intercontinental journey through most of North and South America, this history also tells the story of the artistic creativity, technological prowess, and social, political, and economic resilience of AmericaÕs first peoples.
Our Sacred Maíz Is Our Mother
Title | Our Sacred Maíz Is Our Mother PDF eBook |
Author | Roberto Cintli Rodríguez |
Publisher | University of Arizona Press |
Pages | 288 |
Release | 2014-11-06 |
Genre | Social Science |
ISBN | 0816530610 |
Weaving archival records, ancient maps and narratives, and the wisdom of the elders, Roberto Cintli Rodriguez offers compelling evidence that maíz is the historical connector between Indigenous peoples of this continent. Rodriguez brings together the wisdom of scholars and elders to show how maíz/corn connects the peoples of the Americas.