Historical Dictionary of Colombia

This volume covers the political and historical growth of Colombia from the development of the San Augustin culture until July 4, 2011. The author chose this date because, ‘First, it was the 20th anniversary of the current Constitution; second, I needed a cutoff date [because Colombia changes dramatically every day.’ This volume serves as a comprehensive yet simple review of the country’s interesting past. Arranged in typical dictionary format, it contains boldfaced cross-references and extensive see also references. … The dictionary is successful in providing explanations of acronyms and abbreviations, a chronology, and an introduction that includes details concerning the land, people, pre-Colombian period, Spanish colonization, independence, and the transition of presidents. Entries describe political groups, historical issues, events, and important locations. The length of the dictionary entries varies from a quarter of a page to four pages. Appendixes include a list of Colombian presidents, city and area populations, and average levels of violence for various times in the country’s history. The book concludes with an extensive bibliography broken down by subject for more in-depth research. This is a general-information resource that is appropriate for most public and academic libraries.

This work follows the same format as the others titles in Scarecrow Press’s Historical Dictionaries of the Americas series and libraries that find those titles useful and well used will find this one useful as well. Because there is not a lot of information available about this country, however, more libraries may want to consider its purchase.