ABSTRACT

The study of acculturation in Latin America has emphasized the initial effects of Hispanization, the destruction of indigenous Indian society, and the emergence of complicated new patterns of culture. Indian society and political development were recognized by Europeans in the eighteenth century as being at relatively the same level as European society. The earliest direct observers of the Indian caste system in modern times were Portuguese adventurers, administrators, merchants, and priests, who began primarily on the Malabar coast to have direct experience with Indian society. The missionary view of India developed slightly later than the orientalist view. Three major traditions of approach to Indian society can be seen by the end of the eighteenth century: the orientalist, the administrative and the missionary. The earliest direct observers of the Indian caste system in modern times were Portuguese adventurers, administrators, merchants, and priests, who began primarily on the Malabar coast to have direct experience with Indian society.