Covering the period from the seventeenth century, when trade between the United States and Latin America began, to the present, this historical dictionary provides information on the people, organizations, institutions, and events associated with the United States' presence in Latin America. Entries on people include those who visited and lived in Latin America, including sea captains and merchants, explorers, filibusters and adventurers, military officers, missionaries, government officials, businessmen, anthropologists and scientists, diplomats, and writers. Entries on organizations include business firms, missions, colleges, and naval and military bases.

The volume includes some 1,200 entries, arranged alphabetically. Additional features include a short chronology and an appendix listing of chiefs of United States diplomatic missions. Access to the material is provided by an appendix listing of subjects by occupation and a full subject index. Sources of additional information are given both at the end of entries and in a bibliographical essay.

Shavit, David

DAVID SHAVIT is Associate Professor in the Department of Library and Information Studies at Northern Illinois University. He is the author of The United States in the Middle East: A Historical Dictionary (Greenwood Press, 1988), The United States in Africa: A Historical Dictionary (Greenwood, 1989), and The United States in Asia: A Historical Dictionary (Greenwood, 1990).