Buell Quain

Buell Halvor Quain (May 31, 1912 – August 2, 1939) was an American ethnologist who, after graduating from University of Wisconsin–Madison and studying as a graduate student at Columbia University, worked with native peoples in Fiji and Brazil.[1][2] He published a total of four books, three of them posthumously.

Buell Quain
Born
Buell Halvor Quain

(1912-05-31)May 31, 1912
Bismarck, North Dakota, USA
DiedAugust 2, 1939(1939-08-02) (aged 27)
Brazil
Cause of deathSuicide
Nationality American
Alma materUniversity of Wisconsin - Madison Columbia University
OccupationEthnologist

In 1938, Quain travelled to Brazil to work with the Kraho people of the Brazilian rainforest, where he also spent time in the Trumai village[3].

Death

On August 2, 1939, at the age of 27, Buell Quain committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree in the Brazilian rainforest. The reason for the suicide is somewhat unclear - some reports suggested that he had written about having caught an incurable disease, but other reasons were mooted.[4]

Other

The mystery surrounding his death by suicide was the subject of Brazilian author Bernardo Carvalho's 2002 novel Nine Nights.[5]

Bibliography
  • The Iroquois - 1937
  • The Flight of the Chiefs - 1942
  • The Trumai Indians of Central Brazil - 1955 (with Robert Francis Murphy)
  • Fijian Village - 1970

References
  1. Cyril Belshaw (2002-03-27). "The Effects of Limited Anthropological Theory on Problems of Fijian Administration". Anthropologising.ca. Archived from the original on 2008-05-04. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
  2. Elma Lia Nascimento (2003-01-19). "White Chief's Gone". Brazzil.com. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
  3. Quain, Buell; Murphy, Robert F. (1955). The Trumai Indians of Central Brazil (PDF). Locust Valley, N.Y.: J. J. Augustin.
  4. ERIKSMOEN, CURT. "Promising anthropologist from Bismarck died young". Bismarck Tribune. Retrieved 2017-06-05.
  5. "Nine Nights". Metro.co.uk. Retrieved 2008-06-18.

External links


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