Leo Schelbert

Book Review: La Genέse de Nova Friburgo. Emigration et Colonisation Suisse au Brέsil 1817–1827La Genέse de Nova Friburgo. Emigration et Colonisation Suisse au Brέsil 1817–1827. By NicoulinMartin. Fribourg: Editions universitaires, 1973. Pp. 364.

be better understood when read in conjunction with Almeida and Barretos Capitalismo e Emigraciio em Portugal. Indeed, the historical data analyzed by Joel Serrao constitutes fertile ground upon which any social scientist theoretically interested in European demographic movements in general, and Portuguese emigration in particular, could easily build on. There is a predictable degree of conflict between the breath of present needs in terms of raw data, and the format of this particular volume, which is one of a series primarily designed for the general public, in order to stimulate a critical analysis of the paramount problems that Portuguese society has at present to face. Many will certainly like to see a longer work written in a multidisciplinary approach. Others will still look forward in search of a throughgoing theoretical analysis of Portuguese emigration. However, it would be manifestly unfair to expect this book to be all things to all scholars. As it is, Joel Serrao has produced a relatively short, mainly historical account aimed chiefly at those who are approaching the subject seriously for the first time. Students and researchers will benefit, not only from the assembled facts, but also from his discussion of these facts in light of historiography and the conceptual bases of a nation-states development (or stagnation). The authors application of historical methodology contributes considerably towards a logical and convincing interpretation ofthe key issues involved. Let us hope to find soon an English or French translation of this important study for the general convenience of the researcher unfamiliar with the Portuguese language.