Mesoamerican Healers / / ed. by Alan R. Sandstrom, Brad R. Huber.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter University of Texas Press eBook-Package Backlist 2000-2013
• MitwirkendeR: Cosminsky, Sheila,; Dow, James W.,; Finkler, Kaja,; Foster, George M.,; Harrison, Margaret E.,; Huber, Brad R.,; Hurtado, Elena,; Lipp, Frank J.,; McMahon, Clancy,; Montellano, Bernard Ortiz de,; Paul, Benjamin D.,; Sandstrom, Alan R.,; Sáenz, Luz María Hernández,; Tejada, Eugenia Sáenz de,; Treviño, Carlos Viesca,
• HerausgeberIn: Huber, Brad R.,; Sandstrom, Alan R.,
• Place / Publishing House: Austin : : University of Texas Press, , [2021]; ©2001
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (419 p.)

Healing practices in Mesoamerica span a wide range, from traditional folk medicine with roots reaching back into the prehispanic era to westernized biomedicine. These sometimes cooperating, sometimes competing practices have attracted attention from researchers and the public alike, as interest in alternative medicine and holistic healing continues to grow. Responding to this interest, the essays in this book offer a comprehensive, state-of-the-art survey of Mesoamerican healers and medical practices in Mexico and Guatemala. The first two essays describe the work of prehispanic and colonial healers and show how their roles changed over time. The remaining essays look at contemporary healers, including bonesetters, curers, midwives, nurses, physicians, social workers, and spiritualists. Using a variety of theoretical approaches, the authors examine such topics as the intersection of gender and curing, the recruitment of healers and their training, healers' compensation and workload, types of illnesses treated and recommended treatments, conceptual models used in diagnosis and treatment, and the relationships among healers and between indigenous healers and medical and political authorities.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- List of Tables -- List of Figures -- Foreword -- Acknowledgments -- CHAPTER 1 Introduction -- CHAPTER 2 Curers and Their Cures in Colonial New Spain and Guatemala: The Spanish Component -- CHAPTER 3 Curanderismo in Mexico and Guatemala Its Historical Evolution from the Sixteenth to the Nineteenth Century -- CHAPTER 4 Central and North Mexican Shamans -- CHAPTER 5 A Comparative Analysis of Southern Mexican and Guatemalan Shamans -- CHAPTER 6 Mistress of Lo Espiritual -- CHAPTER 7 Recruitment, Training, and Practice of Indigenous Midwives From the Mexico–United States Border to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec -- CHAPTER 8 Maya Midwives of Southern Mexico and Guatemala -- CHAPTER 9 Relations between Government HealthWorkers and Traditional Midwives in Guatemala -- CHAPTER 10 Mesoamerican Bonesetters -- CHAPTER 11 Mexican Physicians, Nurses, and SocialWorkers -- CHAPTER 12 Mesoamerican Healers and Medical Anthropology: Summary and Concluding Remarks -- Glossary -- References Cited -- Contributors to the Volume -- Index