Karl Hermann Berendt
Encyclopedia
Karl Hermann Berendt was a German-American physician
, collector, explorer and investigator of Mesoamerica
n linguistics
.
in 1842. In 1843, he began practice at Breslau and also acted as Privatdozent
in surgery and obstetrics at the University of Breslau. In 1848 he was a member of the Vorparlament at Frankfurt
.
His political sympathies forced him to move to America in 1851. He proceeded from New York City
to Nicaragua
, and spent two years in the study of the ethnography
, geography
, and natural history
of that region. Two years later he moved to Orizaba
, Mexico
, and thence to Veracruz
, where he remained from 1855 to 1862. He then gave up medicine and devoted himself to natural science, linguistics, and ethnology, paying special attention to the Mayan
tribes. He spent a year in Tabasco
, and thence came in 1863 to the United States.
In the United States, he devoted the greater part of the following year in copying manuscripts in the library of John Carter Brown
. At the request of the Smithsonian Institution
, he visited Yucatan
. The results of this visit are published in its report for 1867. In 1869 he explored the ruins of ancient Centla
, in the plains of Tabasco. He visited the United States several times between this date and 1876, his last visit.
In 1874 he settled at Cobán
, Vera Paz, partly to study the Maya dialects of the region and partly to raise tobacco. At the request of the Berlin museum he spent a winter in securing and forwarding the sculptured slabs of Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa
, Guatemala, but an attack of fever terminated his work.
's Mittheilungen (Communications) and the Deutsch-Amerikanisches Conversations-Lexicon (German-American Encyclopedia). Much of his work is unpublished, some manuscripts being in the National Anthropological Archives
in Washington, D.C.
, and others deposited in the University of Pennsylvania Museum library as part of the Daniel Garrison Brinton
bequest. Among Berendt's published works are:
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, collector, explorer and investigator of Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
n linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
.
Biography
He studied at various German universities, receiving his degree of M.D. at the University of KönigsbergUniversity of Königsberg
The University of Königsberg was the university of Königsberg in East Prussia. It was founded in 1544 as second Protestant academy by Duke Albert of Prussia, and was commonly known as the Albertina....
in 1842. In 1843, he began practice at Breslau and also acted as Privatdozent
Privatdozent
Privatdozent or Private lecturer is a title conferred in some European university systems, especially in German-speaking countries, for someone who pursues an academic career and holds all formal qualifications to become a tenured university professor...
in surgery and obstetrics at the University of Breslau. In 1848 he was a member of the Vorparlament at Frankfurt
Frankfurt Parliament
The Frankfurt Assembly was the first freely elected parliament for all of Germany. Session was held from May 18, 1848 to May 31, 1849 in the Paulskirche at Frankfurt am Main...
.
His political sympathies forced him to move to America in 1851. He proceeded from New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, and spent two years in the study of the ethnography
Ethnography
Ethnography is a qualitative method aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena which reflect the knowledge and system of meanings guiding the life of a cultural group...
, geography
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
, and natural history
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
of that region. Two years later he moved to Orizaba
Orizaba
Orizaba is a city and municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is located 20 km west of its sister city Córdoba, and is adjacent to Río Blanco and Ixtaczoquitlán, on Federal Highways 180 and 190. The city had a 2005 census population of 117,273 and is almost coextensive with its small...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, and thence to Veracruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
, where he remained from 1855 to 1862. He then gave up medicine and devoted himself to natural science, linguistics, and ethnology, paying special attention to the Mayan
Maya peoples
The Maya people constitute a diverse range of the Native American people of southern Mexico and northern Central America. The overarching term "Maya" is a collective designation to include the peoples of the region who share some degree of cultural and linguistic heritage; however, the term...
tribes. He spent a year in Tabasco
Tabasco
Tabasco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tabasco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 17 municipalities and its capital city is Villahermosa....
, and thence came in 1863 to the United States.
In the United States, he devoted the greater part of the following year in copying manuscripts in the library of John Carter Brown
John Carter Brown
John Carter Brown II was a book collector whose library formed the basis of the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University.-Biography:...
. At the request of the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
, he visited Yucatan
Yucatán
Yucatán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Yucatán is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 106 municipalities and its capital city is Mérida....
. The results of this visit are published in its report for 1867. In 1869 he explored the ruins of ancient Centla
Centla
Centla is a municipality in Tabasco in south-eastern Mexico.-References:...
, in the plains of Tabasco. He visited the United States several times between this date and 1876, his last visit.
In 1874 he settled at Cobán
Cobán
The city of Cobán is the capital of the department of Alta Verapaz in central Guatemala. It also serves as the administrative center for the surrounding Cobán municipality. It is located 219 km from Guatemala City....
, Vera Paz, partly to study the Maya dialects of the region and partly to raise tobacco. At the request of the Berlin museum he spent a winter in securing and forwarding the sculptured slabs of Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa
Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa
Santa Lucía Cotzumalguapa is a municipality in the Escuintla department of Guatemala.The municipality includes the pre-Columbian archaeological sites of El Baúl and Bilbao....
, Guatemala, but an attack of fever terminated his work.
Works
He contributed many articles in English, German, and Spanish to such works as PetermannAugust Heinrich Petermann
August Heinrich Petermann was a German cartographer.-Early years:Petermann was born in Bleicherode, Germany. When he was 14 years old he started grammar school in the nearby town of Nordhausen...
's Mittheilungen (Communications) and the Deutsch-Amerikanisches Conversations-Lexicon (German-American Encyclopedia). Much of his work is unpublished, some manuscripts being in the National Anthropological Archives
National Anthropological Archives
The National Anthropological Archives and Human Studies Film Archives are a collection of historical and contemporary documents maintained by the Smithsonian Institution, which document the history of anthropology and the world's peoples and cultures...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and others deposited in the University of Pennsylvania Museum library as part of the Daniel Garrison Brinton
Daniel Garrison Brinton
Daniel Garrison Brinton was an American archaeologist and ethnologist.-Biography:Brinton was born in Thornbury Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. After graduating from Yale University in 1858, Brinton studied at Jefferson Medical College for two years and spent the next travelling in Europe....
bequest. Among Berendt's published works are:
- Analytical Alphabet for the Mexican and Central American Languages (New York, 1869)
- Los escritos de D. Joaquin Garcia Icazbalceta (Merida, 1870)
- Los trabajos linguisticos de Don Pio Perez (Mexico, 1871)
- Cartilla en lengua Maya (Merida, 1871)
- “On a Grammar and Dictionary of the Carib or Karif Language,” in the Smithsonian report for 1873
- “Die Indianer des Isthmus von Tehuantepec” in Zeitschrift für Ethnologie, 1873
- “The Darien Language” in the American Historical Record, 1874