Literary Collections / American / African American

The Historical Dictionaries of Latin America series has been changed to the Historical Dictionaries of the Americas in order to broaden the scope of the series. With a population of about a billion people, covering North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean, the Americas are a very large portion of the world and an exceedingly important one. While not the most populous, although the figures are growing rapidly, it is a powerhouse economically, in the north but also increasingly the south. And politically the countries are usually among the top players. The politics of this area range from democracy to dictatorships. Its not only a vast but also a variegated region, with some giant countries and some that are exceedingly small, some advancing rapidly economically and others struggling. Each of the historical dictionaries looks at the specific country or region very carefully and reports its findings in several different ways, all of which combine to create a better understanding. A general overview is provided in the introduction while the history is charted year by year in the chronology. But the bulk of the information comes in hundreds of cross-referenced entries on important persons, places, events and institutions relating to their history, politics, economy and culture. A list of acronyms makes it easier to follow the text while a bibliography directs readers towards numerous other, often more specialized sources.

Editor(s): Jon Woronoff