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Title: Joel Martin Halpern papers
Date (inclusive): 1922-2007
Collection Number: 76035
Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives
Language of Material: English, with some documents in Serbian and Croatian
Physical Description:
110 manuscript boxes, 4 oversize boxes
(49.9 Linear Feet)
Abstract: The collection contains grant proposals, conference papers, minutes, reports, studies, writings, notes, correspondence, electronic
bulletins, and printed matter related to economic and social development of the Southeast Asia region, and American social
science studies of the area; ethnology and social and economic conditions in Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe (especially Yugoslavia),
and developing countries elsewhere; and the Yugoslav civil war.
Creator:
Halpern, Joel M. (Joel Martin), 1929-
Creator:
Asia Society
Creator:
Southeast Asia Development Advisory Group
Physical Location: Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Boxes 1-5 and 92-95 closed until 2023 December 20. The remainder of the collection is open for research; materials must be
requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection, they
must be reformatted before providing access.
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 1976, with additional increments between 1976 and 2008.
[Identification of item], Joel Martin Halpern papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
| 1950 | Studied Eskimo settlements on the Seward Peninsula of Alaska |
| B.A., history, University of Michigan | |
| 1951-1952 | Studied at the Russian Institute, Columbia University |
| 1953-1954 | Conducted research in former Yugoslavia |
| 1955 | Lecturer, Department of Anthropology, Columbia University |
| 1956 | Research associate, Human Relations Area Files, American University, Washington, D. C. |
| Author, dissertation, Social and Cultural Change in a Serbian Village | |
| Ph.D., anthropology, Columbia University | |
| 1956-1958 | Field Service Officer, Community Development Division, International Cooperation Administration, Luang Prabang, Laos, Foreign Service Reserve |
| 1958 | Author, Aspects of Village Life and Culture Change in Laos |
| Author, A Serbian Village | |
| 1929 April 8 | Born, New York City, New York |
| 1958-1963 | Assistant professor of anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles |
| 1959 | With support of the Rand Corporation, conducted research in Laos, resulting in the study The Lao Elite: A Study of Tradition and Innovation |
| 1959-1961 | Consultant, Rand Corporation |
| 1963-1967 | Associate professor of anthropology, Brandeis University |
| 1964 | Director, Brandeis Summer Field Training Program, Bosnia, Yugoslavia |
| 1965-1967 | Fellow, Russian Research Center, Harvard |
| 1966-1970 | Member, Mekong Seminar of the Southeast Asia Development Advisory Group (SEADAG), Asia Society |
| 1967 | Author, The Changing Village Community |
| 1967-1992 | Professor of anthropology, University of Massachusetts at Amherst |
| 1970-1971 | Visiting professorship, Albert-Ludwigs-Universitat and Arnold Bergstrasser Institute, Freiburg, Germany |
| 1972 | Author, with Barbara Kerewsky-Halpern, A Serbian Village in Historical Perspective |
| 1974 | Senior research fellow, Center for Urban and Community Studies, University of Toronto |
| 1975 | Served on a grant review panel for the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health |
| 1975, 1978 | Senior exchange scientist, National Academy of Sciences |
| 1976 | Author, The Changing Peasantry of Eastern Europe |
| 1983- | Joint appointment with Judaic Studies Program, University of Massachusetts |
| 1989 | Author, with Lucy Hong Nhiem Nguyen, The Far East Comes Near |
| 1992- | Professor emeritus |
| 1969-1970 | Resident fellow, MIT-Harvard Joint Center for Urban Studies |
Scope and Content of Collection
The Joel Martin Halpern papers document Halpern's career as an anthropologist. The collection includes grant proposals, conference
papers, minutes, reports, studies, writings, notes, correspondence, printouts of electronic bulletins, and printed matter
related to economic and social development of the Southeast Asia region, and American social science studies of the area;
ethnology and social and economic conditions in Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe (especially Yugoslavia), and developing countries
elsewhere; and the Yugoslav civil war. Although the collection has not been arranged, the index to major groups can serve
as a guide to the collection.
During his career as an anthropologist, Halpern traveled extensively for his scholarly work. He conducted fieldwork in a number
of countries, including former Yugoslavia (in the areas of Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, and Bosnia) and Laos. Halpern
began his fieldwork endeavors as a student, spending his summers in northern Ontario, the Swedish Lapland, and Eskimo settlements
in Alaska. His doctoral research took him to former Yugoslavia, where he and his wife, Barbara Kerewsky-Halpern, spent a year
in the Serbian village of Orašac. Yugoslavia would become a primary area of focus for Halpern, along with Laos. Later in his
career, Halpern studied Jewish communities in Massachusetts. Halpern's curriculum vitae, which can be found in the
Biographical file, details his fieldwork, as well as his professional positions and numerous writings.
Throughout his career, Halpern frequently traveled to former Yugoslavia for research purposes. The
Yugoslavia file contains Halpern's fieldwork notes, including kinship charts of Orašac residents, and Halpern's research and notes, including
photocopies of archival documents from the 1600s to 1900s. Box 36, folder 7 contains information on various projects related
to Yugoslavia.
In addition to his work in Yugoslavia, Halpern also conducted research in Laos. The
Laos file contains fieldwork notes, conversation transcripts, and detailed letters written by Joel and Barbara Halpern describing Laos
and their work.
Based on his fieldwork and research, Halpern produced a wealth of articles and books, many of which were coauthored by Barbara
Kerewsky-Halpern. The
Writings contain materials written and edited by Halpern, as well as pamphlets for other projects he was involved with, such as photograph
exhibits. The collection includes many Laos Project papers based on research done in 1956 and 1957.Halpern wrote and edited
many of the papers, although some were written by other scholars. Also included are writings published for the University
of Massachusetts at Amherst International Area Studies Programs Occasional Paper Series.
In addition to his fieldwork, Halpern taught courses at University of Massachusetts at Amherst, University of California Los
Angeles (UCLA), and Brandeis University. The collection includes
Course material
for classes Halpern taught on Eastern Europe, the USSR, and rural peasant societies.
While Halpern was a professor at UCLA in the 1960s, he was given funds to select and purchase materials on Yugoslavia for
the library. In the early 1970s, Halpern worked on a project to create a handbook of research resources on Eastern, Central,
and Southeastern Europe. Material documenting these projects can be found in the
UCLA file.
Halpern was involved in the
Southeast Asia Development Advisory Group (SEADAG) of the Asia Society as a member of the Mekong Seminar from 1966 to 1970. The mission of SEADAG included promoting scholarly
collaboration between Asians and Americans, encouraging indigenous research capabilities in Southeast Asia, stimulating an
interdisciplinary approach to development research and encouraging research on development problems, and supporting the research
of graduate students. Material on SEADAG includes grant proposals and evaluations (including for a research program funded
by the Agency for International Development), scholarly papers, executive committee correspondence, and seminar reports, which
detail the general content and major conclusions of SEADAG meetings.
Barbara Kerewsky-Halpern, the wife of Joel Halpern, was a medical anthropologist and professor at the University of Massachusetts
at Amherst. She often conducted research with Joel and coauthored papers with him. In 1990, Barbara gave an interview for
Bulgarian TV to promote interest in creating a Bulgarian multiple sclerosis organization. For years after the interview, Barbara
received letters from members of the Bulgarian public regarding multiple sclerosis. In addition to these letters, the
Barbara Kerewsky-Halpern file contains a curriculum vitae and flyer for one of her projects. See also the writings series for articles cowritten with Joel
Halpern.
The collection includes several typescripts of Serbian poet and essayist, Milovan Danojlić, which were given to Halpern by
the author for safekeeping.
The
Subject file mainly contains articles and speeches (including drafts and conference papers) by other academics on topics such as development
and agricultural economics. There are also several files on United States culture.
The collection includes
Printed matter, such as academic papers, development reports, newspapers, magazines, and clippings related to countries where Halpern conducted
research, especially countries of former Yugoslavia and Laos. The collection includes textbooks and other published educational
aids from Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Russia, and the United States. Conference papers and programs for
various conferences on Eastern Europe and Russia can be found in the
Conference file.
The
Photographs series contains black and white slides of life in Eastern Europe and photocopies of photographs of Bosnia. The
Audiovisual material contains three VHS video tapes, including video produced for Serbian television.
- Biographical file, 1960-1990.
- Includes curriculum vitae of Halpern and documents related to accusations of Halpern's involvement with United States intelligence services. Box 7, 13, 24, 31, 42, 43, 55.
- Yugoslavia file, 1948-1975.
- Includes fieldwork notes, research, photocopies of archival documents, and information on various projects involving Yugoslavia. Box 21-22, 30-32, 36-37, 67.
- Laos file, 1956-1988.
- Includes fieldwork notes, correspondence, conversation transcripts, and interview transcripts. Box 24, 27-30, 91.
- Writings, 1950-1998.
- Includes articles, bibliographies, edited volumes, and exhibit catalogs on Yugoslavia, Laos, and other countries of research. Includes articles coauthored by Barbara Kerewsky-Halpern. Box 8-10, 14-15, 19-21, 23-27, 29-30, 34, 36-37, 41, 43, 48-49, 53, 55, 65, 67-68, 91, 98-99, 101, 104.
- Course material, 1964, 1980-1990.
- Includes course descriptions, syllabi, and reading assignments. Box 40, 47, 99.
- UCLA file, 1962-1973.
- Includes correspondence and invoices related to projects to collect library materials and create a bibliography. Box 32-33.
- Southeast Asia Development Advisory Group (SEADAG) file, 1961-1976.
- Includes grant proposals and evaluations, reports, correspondence, and meeting minutes. Includes material related to the Mekong Seminar. Box 6, 10, 13-14, 44-48.
- Russian Research Center, Harvard University, 1951-1979.
- Includes seminar notes, papers, correspondence, and calendars. Box 10, 14-15, 37, 51, 91.
- Barbara Kerewsky-Halpern file, 1990-1995, undated.
- Contains correspondence from members of the Bulgarian public regarding multiple sclerosis. Box 42, 51, 70-78, 101, 104.
- Milovan Danojlić file, 1974-1981.
- Includes typescripts of essays and poetry. Box 49.
- Subject file, 1946-2004.
- Includes writings by others, printed matter, and correspondence. Box 20-21, 31-32, 38, 52, 56-61, 66, 68, 96-97, 100-104, 106-108.
- Printed matter, 1927-2007, undated.
- Includes academic papers, reports, textbooks, and clippings on Yugoslavia, Laos, and other countries. Box 6, 7-9, 12-13, 15-20, 27, 29-31, 33-35, 37-40, 42-44, 51-54, 56, 61-63, 65, 68-69, 79-89-91, 98-103, 105-106, 108-113.
- Conference file, 1959-1999.
- Includes conference papers and programs. Box 6, 7, 11-13, 17, 30, 33-34, 40-41, 43-44, 59, 62-63, 67, 89-91, 101, 105, 108.
- Photographs, 1922-2007.
- Includes black and white slides of life in Eastern Europe and photocopies of images in Bosnia. Box 14, 30, 32, 38, 96.
- Audiovisual material, 1986-1993.
- Contains three VHS video tapes. Titles are inscribed from labels and may not match tape content. Box 114.
Joel Martin Halpern Papers, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Joel Martin Halpern Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Joel M. Halpern Papers, John F. Kennedy Library and Museum
Joel Halpern Photograph Collection, Jones Library
Joel M. Halpern Papers, National Anthropological Archives, Smithsonian Institution
Joel M. Halpern Collection, University of Alberta Libraries
Joel M. Halpern Balkan Archive, University of Bradford
Joel Halpern Collection, University of Graz
Joel M. Halpern Laotian Slide Collection, University of Wisconsin Madison
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Yugoslav War, 1991-1995
Developing countries
Social sciences -- United States
Ethnology
Southeast Asia -- Social conditions
Yugoslavia -- Social conditions
Europe, Eastern -- Social conditions