Melville Jacobs (July 3, 1902 – July 31, 1971) was an American

anthropologist An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...

known for his extensive fieldwork on cultures of the Pacific Northwest. He was born in New York City. After studying with

Franz Boas Franz Uri Boas (July 9, 1858 – December 21, 1942) was a German-American anthropologist and a pioneer of modern anthropology who has been called the "Father of American Anthropology". His work is associated with the movements known as historical ...

he became a member of the faculty of the University of Washington in 1928 and remained until his death in 1971. Especially during the earlier part of his career, from 1928 until 1936, he collected large amounts of linguistic data and text from a wide range of languages including Sahaptin, Molale, Kalapuya, Clackamas, Tillamook, Alsea,

Upper Umpqua Upper may refer to: * Shoe upper or ''vamp'', the part of a shoe on the top of the foot * Stimulant, drugs which induce temporary improvements in either mental or physical function or both * ''Upper'', the original film title for the 2013 found fo ...

, Galice and Chinook Jargon. He left funds to establish the

Jacobs Research Fund Jacobs may refer to: Businesses and organisations *Jacob's, a brand name for several lines of biscuits and crackers in Ireland and the UK *Jacobs (coffee), a brand of coffee * Jacobs Aircraft Engine Company, former American aircraft engine compan ...

, which supports anthropological research in the Pacific Northwest. His papers, including extensive raw linguistic material that has provided the basis for subsequent research on now extinct languages, are held by the University of Washington in the Jacobs Archive. In 2019, the "Melville Jacobs Collection of Native Americans of the American Northwest (1929-1939)" was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". He was married to

Elizabeth Jacobs (anthropologist) Elizabeth Derr Jacobs (1903 – May 21, 1983) was an anthropologist specializing in the native cultures of the Pacific Northwest. She is known particularly for her work on the Nehalem Tillamook, the northernmost subgroup of the Tillamook, whom ...

, also an anthropologist.

Works

*''A Sketch of Northern Sahaptin Grammar'' (1931) *''Notes on the Structure of Chinook Jargon'' (1932) *''Northwest Sahaptin Texts, I'' (1934) *''Texts in Chinook Jargon'' (1936) *''Northwest Sahaptin Texts, II'' (1937) *''Coos Narrative and Ethnologic Texts'' (1939) *''Coos Myth Texts'' (1940) *''Historic Perspectives in Indian Languages of Oregon and Washington'' (1941) *''Kalapuya Texts'' (1945) *''Outline of Anthropology'' (1947) *''General Anthropology; A Brief Survey of Physical, Cultural, and Social Anthropology'' (1952) *''Clackamas Chinook Texts'' (1959) *''The People are Coming Soon; Analyses of Clackamas Chinook Myths and Tales'' (1960) *''Pattern in Cultural Anthropology'' (1964) *''The Anthropologist Looks at Myth'' (1966)

References

*Winters, Christopher. International Dictionary of Anthropologists. New York: Garland, 1991 *Seaburg, William. "Badger and Coyote Were Neighbors: Melville Jacobs on Northwest Indian Myths and Tales", Oregon State University Press

External links

Minnesota State University biographical sketchJacobs Research Fund

Works

References

External links

Archives