Dias,Jorge. — Os Macondes de Moçambique. [Parte} I - IV. [Complete 4-volume set].

Lisboa, Junta de Investigacoes do Ultramar, Centro de Estudos de Antropologia Cultural, 1964-1970. 4 vols. 180; 192; 445, [1]; 351,[1] pp. Fold. maps, num. (col.) photogr. plates & ills. Orig. unif. publisher's hardcover bindings (cloth with gilt lettering on spines), d./j. 4to. - Dust jackets parly frayed and / or dam. (little loss). - Overall in very good condition.With a loosely printed card from the Centro de Estudos de Antropologia Cultura with a handwritten dedication in pen and ink by Margot Dias (1908-2001), a German-born Portuguese musician, self-taught ethnologist, documentary filmmaker, and the husband of Jorge Dias. She is best known for her contributions to Portuguese socio-anthropological studies in the 1950s and her ethnographic films and photographs of the Makonde people of Mozambique. - - A fundamental study of the historical and economic aspects, material culture, social and ritual life, wisdom, language, literature, and games of Makonde culture. The four volumes have the following subtitles: [Parte] I. Aspectos Históricos e Económicos; [Parte] II. Cultura material; [Parte] III. Vida social e ritual; [Parte] IV. Sabedoria. Lingua, Literatura e Jogos. - Text in Portuguese. - - "Makonde" refers to the Makonde people, a Bantu-speaking community in southeastern Tanzania and northeastern Mozambique, with a small presence in Kenya, known for their wood carving. The Makonde and their language (also called Makonde or Kimakonde) originate from the area around the Makonde Plateau in Tanzania and the adjacent Mueda Plateau in Mozambique, separated by the Ruvuma River. They are a matrilineal community where polygamy and bride price are common. Their economy is based on slash-and-burn agriculture with crops such as maize, sorghum, and cassava, supplemented by hunting.