Orlando Ribeiro
Encyclopedia
Orlando Ribeiro was a Portuguese
geographer
and historian
.
, Portugal
.
Ribeiro devoted his life to the teaching and research in Geography
and is often labelled as one of the main reformist of this science in Portugal. He graduated in Geography and History in 1932, and completed his doctorate at the University of Lisbon in 1935. Between 1937 and 1940 (that is, during World War II
), he lived in Paris
and worked at the Sorbonne University, alongside March Bloch, Emmanuel de Martonne and A. Demangeon. In 1940 he taught at the University of Coimbra, although he soon settled in his natal city of Lisbon. In 1943 he founded the Centro de Estudos Geográficos (Centre for Geographical Studies). Ribeiro also lived in Goa
temporarily, where he worked as a geographer for the Portuguese government.
Among his publications one specific book stands out: Portugal, o Mediterrâneo e o Atlântico (1945). This is one of the cornerstones in his career, as he develops a detailed study on Portugal's "dual nature", or in other words, "a country which is Atlantic by location but mostly Mediterranean in culture". Yet, this book had a wide impact, since Ribeiro deepens in the concepts of Atlantic Europe
and Mediterranean Europe, linking central and southern Portugal to the Mediterranean culture and northern Portugal (together with Galicia) to a pan-Atlantic European culture. In fact, Ribeiro is one of the first geographers formulating the idea of Atlantic Europe as a geographical and cultural unit (it had been partially advanced by Otero Pedrayo
), an idea which would be further developed by authors such as P. Flatrès, Emyr Estyn Evans
, A. Bouhier, Meynier, J. García Fernández, Patrick O'Flanagan
, Barry Cunliffe
, Carlos Ferrás Sexto
or Xoán Paredes.
In 1966, the Centro de Estudos Geográficos begins to publish the Geography journal Finisterra, which soon would become the main referent of geographical science in Portugal, to present day.
Ribeiro was also an accomplished photographer, and he would often take the pictures himself for his works.
He died in Lisbon in 1997.
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
geographer
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 historian
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
.
Biography
Orlando Ribeiro was born in LisbonLisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
.
Ribeiro devoted his life to the teaching and research in 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 is often labelled as one of the main reformist of this science in Portugal. He graduated in Geography and History in 1932, and completed his doctorate at the University of Lisbon in 1935. Between 1937 and 1940 (that is, during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
), he lived in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and worked at the Sorbonne University, alongside March Bloch, Emmanuel de Martonne and A. Demangeon. In 1940 he taught at the University of Coimbra, although he soon settled in his natal city of Lisbon. In 1943 he founded the Centro de Estudos Geográficos (Centre for Geographical Studies). Ribeiro also lived in Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
temporarily, where he worked as a geographer for the Portuguese government.
Among his publications one specific book stands out: Portugal, o Mediterrâneo e o Atlântico (1945). This is one of the cornerstones in his career, as he develops a detailed study on Portugal's "dual nature", or in other words, "a country which is Atlantic by location but mostly Mediterranean in culture". Yet, this book had a wide impact, since Ribeiro deepens in the concepts of Atlantic Europe
Atlantic Europe
Atlantic Europe is a geographical and anthropological term for the western portion of Europe which borders the Atlantic Ocean. The term may refer to the idea of Atlantic Europe as a cultural unit and/or as an biogeographical region....
and Mediterranean Europe, linking central and southern Portugal to the Mediterranean culture and northern Portugal (together with Galicia) to a pan-Atlantic European culture. In fact, Ribeiro is one of the first geographers formulating the idea of Atlantic Europe as a geographical and cultural unit (it had been partially advanced by Otero Pedrayo
Otero Pedrayo
Ramón Otero Pedrayo was a Galician geographer, writer and intellectual. He was a key member of the Galician cultural and political movement Xeración Nós.-Biography:...
), an idea which would be further developed by authors such as P. Flatrès, Emyr Estyn Evans
Emyr Estyn Evans
Emyr Estyn Evans ,often referred to simply as E. E. Evans, was a Northern Irish geographer and archaeologist, whose primary field of interest was the Irish neolithic...
, A. Bouhier, Meynier, J. García Fernández, Patrick O'Flanagan
Patrick O'Flanagan
Patrick O'Flanagan is an Irish geographer and academic.-Career:He is emeritus professor of the at University College Cork, Ireland. He was the former Head of this department...
, Barry Cunliffe
Barry Cunliffe
Sir Barrington Windsor Cunliffe, CBE, known professionally as Barry Cunliffe is a former Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford, a position held from 1972 to 2007...
, Carlos Ferrás Sexto
Carlos Ferrás Sexto
Carlos Ferrás Sexto is a Galician geographer and academic.Carlos Ferrás is a senior lecturer at the Department of Geography of the University of Santiago de Compostela...
or Xoán Paredes.
In 1966, the Centro de Estudos Geográficos begins to publish the Geography journal Finisterra, which soon would become the main referent of geographical science in Portugal, to present day.
Ribeiro was also an accomplished photographer, and he would often take the pictures himself for his works.
He died in Lisbon in 1997.
Partial bibliography
- A Arrábida. Esboço Geográfico (1935)
- Portugal o Mediterrâneo e o Atlântico (1945 and 1990)
- A Ilha de Fogo e as Suas Erupções (1954 and 1960)
- Portugal (1955)
- Mediterrâneo. Ambiente e Tradição (1968)
See also
- Atlantic EuropeAtlantic EuropeAtlantic Europe is a geographical and anthropological term for the western portion of Europe which borders the Atlantic Ocean. The term may refer to the idea of Atlantic Europe as a cultural unit and/or as an biogeographical region....
- PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
- Mediterranean SeaMediterranean SeaThe Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...