Historical Dictionary of Haiti

Michael R. Hall

One of the world’s poorest nations, Haiti shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic. Haiti proclaimed its independence from France on January 1, 1804 following the only successful slave revolt in the Americas. As a result of the Haitian Revolution (1791-1804), Haiti became the first independent Latin American nation and the second independent nation in the Western Hemisphere, after the United States. Throughout its history it has suffered political violence, and in 2010 it suffered a devastating earthquake, which killed over 200,000 people and countless people lost homes and businesses.

The Historical Dictionary of Haiti covers the history of Haiti starting in 1492 with the initial discovery of the island Haiti shares with the Dominican Republic to the present day. The dictionary itself contains over 400 cross-referenced entries on crucial aspects of Haitian history, and it is the most extensive single-volume reference work on Haiti available. In addition to the dictionary, this book provides a chronology containing important dates and events and an informative bibliographical section organized by subject. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Haiti.

Scarecrow Press

Pages: 330 • Trim: 6 x 9

978-0-8108-7810-5 • Hardback • January 2012 • $126.00 • (£97.00)

978-0-8108-7549-4 • eBook • January 2012 • $119.50 • (£92.00)

Series: Historical Dictionaries of the Americas

Subjects: History / Caribbean & West Indies / General, History / Latin America / General, History / Reference, Reference / Dictionaries

Historical Dictionary of Haiti

Hardback

eBook

Summary

One of the world’s poorest nations, Haiti shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic. Haiti proclaimed its independence from France on January 1, 1804 following the only successful slave revolt in the Americas. As a result of the Haitian Revolution (1791-1804), Haiti became the first independent Latin American nation and the second independent nation in the Western Hemisphere, after the United States. Throughout its history it has suffered political violence, and in 2010 it suffered a devastating earthquake, which killed over 200,000 people and countless people lost homes and businesses.

The Historical Dictionary of Haiti covers the history of Haiti starting in 1492 with the initial discovery of the island Haiti shares with the Dominican Republic to the present day. The dictionary itself contains over 400 cross-referenced entries on crucial aspects of Haitian history, and it is the most extensive single-volume reference work on Haiti available. In addition to the dictionary, this book provides a chronology containing important dates and events and an informative bibliographical section organized by subject. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Haiti.

Details

Scarecrow Press

Pages: 330 • Trim: 6 x 9

978-0-8108-7810-5 • Hardback • January 2012 • $126.00 • (£97.00)

978-0-8108-7549-4 • eBook • January 2012 • $119.50 • (£92.00)

Series: Historical Dictionaries of the Americas

Subjects: History / Caribbean & West Indies / General, History / Latin America / General, History / Reference, Reference / Dictionaries

Author

Michael R. Hall is professor of Latin American history at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Georgia. He has also taught in the Dominican Republic and conducted extensive research there and in Haiti. He has written extensively on countries in the region including articles and a book.

Table of Contents

Editor’s Foreword (Jon Woronoff)
Preface
Reader’s Note
Acronyms and Abbreviations
Map
Chronology
Introduction
The Dictionary
Appendix: Haitian Heads of State and Prime Ministers
Bibliography
About the Author

Reviews

This dictionary by Hall (Armstrong Atlantic State Univ.) is a concise, accessible reference book on Haiti beginning with Columbus's landfall on the island of Hispaniola in 1492 and ending with the election of Michel Martelly as president in 2011. The volume features over 400 alphabetically arranged, cross-referenced entries. A focus is on political leadership--a major concern, given the large number of Haitian presidents who were either killed or forced to resign after only brief periods in office. Hall's dictionary updates Roland Perusse's Historical Dictionary of Haiti (CH, Oct'77). And it is twice the size (295 pages versus Perusse's 124 pages), contains more entries, and offers a more extensive bibliography (16 pages versus Perusse's 8 pages). Like Perusse, Hall offers a useful chronology and a topical listing of books covering art, literature, education, public health, sports, entertainment, geography, archaeology, the Haitian diaspora, folklore, and economics. He also provides 18 Internet sources. Hall's dictionary is strongest for the 20th century. Treatment of religion and culture are not as thorough as treatment of politics. Nevertheless, this new dictionary constitutes the most extensive single-volume reference work available on Haiti. It will prove an excellent starting place for those who want to know more about Haitian history and culture. Summing Up: Highly recommended.
— CHOICE

I would recommend this one-volume dictionary for public, academic, and special libraries' country studies collections.
— American Reference Books Annual

Historical Dictionary of Haiti

Michael R. Hall

Historical Dictionary of Haiti

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