Fallen from Heaven : the enduring tradition of Europeans as gods in the Americas / Nicholas Griffiths.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Griffiths, Nicholas, 1962- author.

Series:

Cambridge Latin American studies ; Volume 135.

Cambridge Latin American studies ; volume series number 135

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Indigenous peoples--First contact with other peoples.

Indigenous peoples.

Indigenous people--First contact with other peoples.

Europeans--First contact with other peoples.

Europeans.

Indian mythology.

Indigenous peoples--Religion.

Indigenous people--Religion.

Apotheosis--America.

Apotheosis.

America--Discovery and exploration--European.

America.

Local Subjects:

Indigenous people--First contact with other peoples.

Indigenous people--Religion.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xiv, 331 pages) : digital, PDF file(s), illustrations, maps

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, United Kingdom : Cambridge University Press, [2024]

Summary:

"This book debunks the so-called apotheosis myth that Indigenous peoples across the Americas worshipped Europeans as gods during the early modern period. This accessible synthesis will interest students and scholars of European expansion and colonialism, Native American history, the history of myths, and shamanism"-- Provided by publisher

"Debunking the so-called apotheosis myth, Nicholas Griffiths argues that Indigenous peoples in North America, Mexico, the Andes, and Hawaii during the early modern period (1492-1789) did not believe invading Europeans were gods. Instead, many perceived them as 'more-than-human' intruders of considerable spiritual power. By exploring the Indigenous context and terminology, using published primary and secondary sources, the book investigates what natives meant when they used words that Europeans translated as 'gods.' In contrast to traditional accounts, Griffiths centers native points of view and the dynamic interactions between European and Indigenous perspectives. Ultimately, both groups were fundamentally comparable since both interpreted their mutual contact in terms of their pre-existing mythology. The traditional contrast between the scientific, rational, and modern Europeans on the one hand, and the myth-bound, irrational, pre-modern Indigenous peoples on the other, is entirely misleading. The first book-length synthesis of this myth, Griffiths reinterprets ideas that have long been debated in various regional literatures." -- Provided by publisher

Contents:

The Tradition of the Apotheosis in Early Spanish America

The Tradition of the Apotheosis in Mesoamerica

The Tradition of the Apotheosis in the Andes

The European Mythology of the Indies : From the Sixteenth to the Early Eighteenth Century

The Tradition of the Apotheosis in North America

The European Mythology of the Indies : The Enlightenment

The Tradition of the Apotheosis in Hawaiʻi

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on December 13, 2024).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9781009549813

1009549812

9781009549820

1009549820

9781009549783

1009549782

9781009549790

1009549790