Historical geography Books

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Book Synopsis"Lost States" is a tribute to great unrealized states like West Florida, Forgotonia, Texlahoma, and Chicago (yes, Chicago wanted to be its own state). Fans of U.S. history will be entertained and enlightened by these bizarre-but-true stories.Trade Review“We all know the 50 states, but how much do you know about the hundreds of statehood proposals that never came to pass? These fascinating maps of states that might have been are from Michael J. Trinklein’s Lost States: True Stories of Texlahoma, Transylvania, and Other States That Never Made It.”—Country Magazine “Fascinating, funny book.”—The New Yorker, Book Bench “This book is geared to the general reader and has a larger format that encourages perusal. It is recommended for history, geography, and general trivia buffs.”—Library Journal “Amusing and lavishly illustrated book.”—Christian Science Monitor “Complete with maps, Lost States is an interesting travel guide to the world of ‘what-if history.’”—McClatchy Newspapers"Trinklein is hilarious in his own right. I laughed out loud before I even got to the book’s main content ... it [covers] more states-that-never-were than any other source I've seen.”—Jenny Bristol, GeekDad.com

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Book SynopsisSince then new texts have appeared (such as the Artemidoros palimpsest), and new editions of existing texts (by geographical authorities who include Agatharchides, Eratosthenes, Pseudo-Skylax and Strabo) have been produced. There has been much archaeological research, especially at the perimeters of the Greek world, and a more accurate understanding of ancient geography and geographers has emerged. The topic is therefore overdue a fresh and sustained treatment. In offering precisely that, Duane Roller explores important topics like knowledge of the world in the Bronze Age and Archaic periods; Greek expansion into the Black Sea and the West; the Pythagorean concept of the earth as a globe; the invention of geography as a discipline by Eratosthenes; Polybios the explorer; Strabo's famous Geographica; the travels of Alexander the Great; Roman geography; Ptolemy and late antiquity; and the cultural reawakening of antique geographical knowledge in the Renaissance, including Columbus' use of ancient sources.Trade Review'For the first time in several generations, Duane Roller offers readers a clear, comprehensive and authoritative survey of ancient geographical thought from its mythic origins in Homer right through to the fall of the Roman Empire. Ancient Geography is the distillation of decades of work on the subject by Roller, who is also a distinguished translator of the key books he discusses here. Ancient Geography immediately eclipses the introductions to the subject offered by previous scholars and should hold its place as the single key treatment of the topic for generations to come for classicists, geographers and historians alike.' -Robert Mayhew, Professor of Historical Geography and Intellectual History, University of Bristol, 'In this elegant and readable narrative, Duane Roller adroitly recreates the sense of wonder, excitement, and adventure that permeated Greek and Roman geographical initiatives. The result is a vivid tapestry of the many threads of ancient geographical thought that have been untangled from myriad layers of discord, transmission, redaction, and (mis)interpretation in the ancient sources. The book will be warmly and appreciatively welcomed by students of classical history and geography and indeed by anyone with an interest in how antiquity conceived of the world and its features.' - Georgia L Irby, Associate Professor of Classical Studies, The College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, 'What Duane Roller has achieved in this book is impressive and invaluable. The Greek and Roman grasp of geography, from both spatial and scientific perspectives, developed remarkably over more than half a millennium. So while the approach taken here of explaining this growth chronologically might seem a straightforward task, in fact it is no such thing. Most of the relevant geographical writings and maps are lost. Even some fundamentally important Greek ideas have to be reconstructed from references by later authors who did not always agree with them, let alone perhaps fully understand them. Roller's earlier studies of such giants in this story as Pytheas, Eratosthenes and Strabo make him uniquely qualified to craft an informed, balanced, up-to-date synthesis in defiance of the never-ending obstacles. He writes in a concise, accessible style. Anyone whose imagination is fired by the absorbing puzzle of how the Greeks and Romans envisioned and recorded their surroundings both near and far should read this important book.' - Richard J A Talbert, William Rand Kenan, Jr., Professor of History and Classics, University of North Carolina, editor of Ancient Perspectives: Maps and Their Place in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome

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Book SynopsisDiscover the most impactful and incredible episodes from human history, from the prehistoric era to the early twenty-first century, through fifty of the most surprising and often less well-known places in the world.From the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, where remains of some of our earliest tool-using ancestors were found, to the CERN laboratory, where revolutionary technologies such as the World Wide Web were developed, each entry shows its influence on not just politics, but on the economy, culture, religion and society, as well as their links to great historical figures such as Alexander the Great, Buddha and Nelson Mandela. The size of the places ranges from small geographical features like a cave in Saudi Arabia where Islam began, to larger areas or regions, like Hollywood. Many entries are cities, such Jerusalem, Amritsar, and Rome, some others are buildings, like Anne Frank’s House in the Netherlands or the Confucius Temple in China, and there are even some that are rooms, such as the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles Palace. No place is too big or too small to be included, as long as it has had a significant impact on history.

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Book SynopsisRoald Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer whose team were the first to reach the South Pole – this is his astonishing story, in his own words.Amundsen begins by explaining that he was not born with an urge to explorer the farthest, uncharted regions of the world. At fifteen he received as a gift the memoirs of Sir John Franklin, a famous British explorer, which roused an immediate interest. This was increased further by Amundsen’s compulsory military service, part of which consisted of roaming the rugged, snowy outdoors. Almost immediately after the end of his time in the army, further explorations deep in the Arctic circle beckoned.At twenty-five, Amundsen was accepted into the Belgian Antarctic Expedition – an event he considers very lucky. For it was here that he gained his first experiences of the Antarctic climate, and began to contemplate organizing a team to reach the South Pole. It was an epic journey; Amundsen’s team, equipped with sleds run by dogs and clad in thick furs, famously became the first people ever to set foot on the South Pole.Later in the book, Amundsen explains his efforts to chart the Northwest Passage in the remotest wildernesses of Canada. To this end, he made use of aircraft in the early 1920s. However, owing to the economic turmoil after World War One he found it difficult to finance his expeditions. Nevertheless, his spirit remained undaunted – indeed, the tenacity that got Roald Amundsen so far shines in these pages.

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Book SynopsisKintyre poet and historian Angus Martin's interest in placea'names extends back over 40 years. This meticulously researched exploration covers over 200 Gaelic place-name elements, plus many others of Norse, Scots and English origin. Over 1200 individual place-names are examined, from the well-known to the obscure and forgotten. These names are drawn from a diverse range of sources, from mid-19th century Ordnance Survey maps and field notebooks to fishermen and shepherds whose store of names contained many known only to themselves. As well as looking at the origin and meaning of place-names, Martin also looks at their historical associations - the events and families connected with them - to provide a full and fascinating account which will illuminate the landscape of his native Kintyre. This, then, is a book which will interest not only students of place-names, but also archaeologists, local historians, genealogists, naturalists, and anyone with a passion for Kintyre and its colourful past.Trade Review'What we have here is far from being the average book on place-names. There is history - There's genealogy - There are notes on Kintyre writers and bards - The pages are full - as the now-deserted steadings and sheilings once were - of Kintyre people from the distant and the more recent past, working, fishing, farming, living hard but well.' Moira Burgess, Kintyre Magazine.

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Book SynopsisThis social history of the 'ordinary' people of the south-western peninsula of Argyll, in Western Scotland, has become a classic since its original publication in 1984. It is reprinted here with a new Introduction by the author, a native of Kintyre who knows its geography intimately. The greater part of the book is based on original research from a wide range of sources, from nineteenth century registers of the poor to material passed on through the oral tradition. It traces the evolution of the extraordinarily mixed stock of Kintyre from the Gaelic settlement in the fifth century AD through the subsequent settlements of the Lowlanders and Irish, and explores the nature of these diverse cultural legacies. The darker aspects of social history - epidemic diseases, sanitary and housing conditions and destitution - are also explored, and the sinister activities of grave-robbers in nineteenth century Kintyre are substantiated for the first time. There is also information on Irish immigrant families, the anglicisation of native surnames and surviving Gaelic elements in the local dialect.

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Book SynopsisThis book, a much-augmented translation of the author's original Hungarian version, is an account of Hungary's past from the perspective of environmental history, incorporating a wide range of environmentally-relevant research findings. Data on climate, agriculture, mining, hunting, urban development and political administration are synthesised to create a rich account of a people in the environment, and the processes of adaptation, exploitation and co-existence required for survival. Importantly, it offers anglophone readers access a considerable digest of important scholarship previously only available in Hungarian. Until now, there has been no environmental history in English of Hungary and the wider region from which the present country crystallised. The book covers the environmental history of Hungary prior to the Industrial Revolution. It begins with the prehistory of the two protagonists in this environmental story, the Carpathian Basin and the Hungarians; and traces the transformation of the Hungarians, under environmental, social and economic forces, from nomadic tribes to a settled society in the Middle Ages. The environmental developments of the later Middle Ages, a period of relative stability, are explored before the story turns to a long era of war with the Ottoman Empire, during which the key to survival lay in finding adaptive forms of settlement and subsistence systems. Finally, the book chronicles the age of reconstruction following the Ottoman wars and the challenges posed as the country's population more than doubled, a growth unmatched by agricultural or industrial development. The present volumes leaves Hungary at the dawn of the Industrial Age, a country displaying symptoms of over-population and environmental over-exploitation.Table of ContentsCHAPTER 1. THE PRINCIPALS CHAPTER 2. CONQUEST AND SETTLEMENT CHAPTER 3. THE LATE MIDDLE AGES CHAPTER 4. THE OTTOMAN AGE CHAPTER 5. THE CENTURY OF REBUILDING EPILOGUE. NOTES FOR A FURTHER STUDY BIBLIOGRAPHY APPENDIX: TABLE OF PLACE-NAMES IN THE CARPATHIAN BASIN INDEX

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisAndré Reyes Novaes is an Associate Professor at the Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He is currently an Honorary Research Associate in the Department of Geography at the Royal Holloway University of London and a member of the commission on the history of geography at the International Geographical Union. Elizabeth Baigent is University Reader in the History of Geography at the University of Oxford, UK. She is Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, the Royal Historical Society, the Royal Geographical Society, and the Higher Education Academy.Trade ReviewWith a regional focus on South American geographers and their works, the new edition of Geographers: Biobibliographical Studies literally puts geographical traditions and trajectories from the Global South on the map of geography’s history. The five biographies of the volume provide insightful accounts on academic landscapes off the beaten track and are a great starting point to learn more about geography beyond Europe and North America. * Jörn Seemann, Associate Professor of Geography, Ball State University, USA *In this volume, GBS travels South - to Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Salvador and Recife. The careers of four geographers and one historian are situated in their local, national and international contexts. These biographies highlight the political agency of these remarkable authors as well as the intellectual and institutional significance of their work. * Felix Driver, Professor of Human Geography Royal Holloway, University of London, UK *By focusing on geographers from the Global South, GBS volume 40 contribute to a better understanding of the history of geography, enlarging and enriching its perspectives. The biographical memoirs presented cover five relevant authors that now may become known for an international audience. * Sergio Nunes, Dr. in Human Geography from the Universidade Federal Fluminense, Brazil *Table of ContentsList of Contributors List of Illustrations Preface: On Southern Traditions and Geographic Trajectories. Elizabeth Baigent and André Reyes Novaes, (University of Oxford, UK, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) 1.Elina González Acha de Correa Morales 1861-1942 Marcelo Ezequiel Lascano Kezic and Susana Isabel Curto, (Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina, CONICET, Argentina) 2. Bernardino de Souza 1884 – 1949, André Nunes de Sousa (Instituto Federal da Bahia, Brazil) 3. Jaime Cortesão 1884-1960, Francisco Roque de Oliveira(Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal) 4. Josué Apolônio de Castro 1908-1973, Archie Davis and Federico Ferretti (University of Sheffield, UK, University College Dublin, Ireland) 5. Antônio Carlos Robert de Moraes 1954-2015, Carlos Eugenio Nogueira (Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Brazil) Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisGeographers: Biobibliographical Studies, Volume 37 explores the concept of distinction in geography. Through the lives of six geographers working in Brazil, North America, Europe and Réunion, it investigates what distinction consists of, how we identify and celebrate it and how it relates to quotidian practices in the discipline.The volume highlights the continuing importance of biography and the International Geographical Union in recording and assessing distinction. It also considers the relevance of personal networks for the circulation and translation of distinguished geographical knowledge, and how this knowledge can underpin applied projects and critical appraisal of geographical scholarship, both at a national and sub-national level. Gendered notions of distinction are also addressed, particularly through June Sheppard, who found limited recognition for her work as a result of gendered expectations within the discipline and society at large.By reflecting on how we locate Trade ReviewGeographers: Biobibliographical Studies, Volume 37 will be most helpful to geographers interested in the history of their own field and subfields. But beyond their use to this specialized audience, the book’s essays demonstrate the many forms a scholarly life can take and different ways of making meaningful contributions to the profession. * Isis Journal *Table of ContentsList of Contributors 1. Introduction: How are Distinguished Geographers Created and Identified? - Elizabeth Baigent (University of Oxford, UK) and André Reyes Novaes (Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) 2. Anne Buttimer (1938-2017) - Federico Ferreti and Alun Jones (both of University College Dublin, Ireland) 3. Milton de Almeida Santos (1926-2001) - Pedro de Almeida Vasconcelos (Universidade Federal da Bahia, Brazil) 4. Stanley Gregory (1926-2016) - Ron Johnston (University of Bristol, UK) 5. Paul Veyret (1912-1988) and Germaine Veyret-Verner (1913-1973) - Hugh Clout (University College London, UK) 6. Jean Defos du Rau (1914-1994) - Christian Germanaz (University of La Réunion, Réunion) 7. June Alice Sheppard (1928-2016) - Robin Alan Butlin (University of Leeds, UK) Index

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Book SynopsisPioneering comparative study of how and why migrants from Scotland, Ireland, England and Wales displayed attachment to home on headstones and memorial markers erected across the British World between the 17th and 20th centuries.

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