Evon Vogt
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Evon Zartman Vogt, Jr. (August 18, 1918 – May 13, 2004) was an American
cultural anthropologist Cultural anthropology is a branch of anthropology focused on the study of cultural variation among humans. It is in contrast to social anthropology, which perceives cultural variation as a subset of a posited anthropological constant. The term s ...
best known for his work among the Tzotzil Mayas of Chiapas, Mexico. Vogt was the author of numerous articles and 19 books. He was a fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...
(1960), a member of the
National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...
(1979), a member of the
American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...
(1999), and a recipient of the
Order of the Aztec Eagle The Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle () forms part of the Mexican Honors System and is the highest Mexican order awarded to foreigners. History It was created by decree on December 29, 1933, by President Abelardo L. Rodríguez as a reward to ...
, the highest honor awarded to foreigners by the Mexican government.


Biography

Vogt Jr., born in
Gallup, New Mexico Gallup is a city in McKinley County, New Mexico, United States, with a population of 21,899 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A substantial percentage of its population is Native Americans in the United States, Native American, wi ...
, to Evon Z. Vogt Sr. and Shirley Bergman. Vogt attended the
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
on a full scholarship, and earned his B.A. in geography in 1941. After spending the years of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
in the Navy, Vogt returned to the University of Chicago to pursue graduate studies. He received his M.A. in 1946 and his Ph.D. in 1948. Vogt initially joined the faculty at
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
as an instructor in the Department of Social Relations. He was later promoted to professor, and would spend the entirety of his career at Harvard, serving in time as Chairman of the Department of Anthropology, Co-Master of Kirkland House (with his wife Catherine C. Vogt), and Chairman of the Center for Latin American Studies. He directed the Harvard Chiapas Project, which focused on the indigenous
Tzotzil The Tzotzil are an Indigenous Maya people of the central highlands of Chiapas, Mexico. As cited by Alfredo López Austin (1997), p. 133, 148 and following. As of 2000, they numbered about 298,000. The municipalities with the largest Tzotzil pop ...
Maya Maya may refer to: Ethnic groups * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Mayan languages, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (East Africa), a p ...
of the central highlands of
Chiapas Chiapas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas, is one of the states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises Municipalities of Chiapas, 124 municipalities and its capital and large ...
,
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. Vogt died on May 13, 2004, in
Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...
.


Published works

Vogt's publications include: *1951 ''Navaho Means People''. Harvard University Press, with Clyde Kluckhohn, photos by Leonard McCombe. *1955 ''Modern Homesteaders. The Life of a Twentieth-Century Frontier Community''. Belknap Press (of Harvard University Press). *1959 ''Water Witching USA''. University of Chicago Press, with Ray Hyman. *1966 ''People of Rimrock; a study of values in five cultures''. Harvard University Press, edited by Evon Z. Vogt and Ethel M. Albert *1969 ''Zinacantan: A Maya Community in the Highlands of Chiapas''. Cambridge: The Belknap Press (of Harvard University Press). *1976 ''Tortillas for the Gods: A Symbolic Analysis of Zinacanteco Rituals''. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. *1979 ''Reader in Comparative Religion: An Anthropological Approach''. Allyn & Bacon; 4 edition (January 20, 1997) with William A. Lessa. *1994 ''Fieldwork Among the Maya: Reflections on the Harvard Chiapas Project''. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.


See also

*
Evon Zartman Vogt Ranch House The Evon Zartman Vogt Ranch House is a historic house in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It was constructed in 1915, in the foothills of the Zuni Mountains one mile (1.6 km) southeast of Ramah, New Mexico. It is located about east of State ...


References

1918 births Latin Americanists Mayanists Mesoamerican anthropologists American Mesoamericanists 20th-century Mesoamericanists Harvard University faculty 2004 deaths 20th-century American anthropologists Members of the American Philosophical Society {{US-anthropologist-stub