University of California, San Diego. Melanesian Archives

Historical Background

The Melanesian Archive was started in 1982 by Donald Tuzin and Fitz John Poole, both faculty members of the Department of Anthropology at UCSD. The Archive is dedicated to the collection, preservation, dissemination, and repatriation of unpublished materials on all aspects of Melanesian society, culture, linguistics, and history.

Original funding for the Melanesian Archive was provided by the U.S. Dept. of Education, under Title II-C of the Higher Education Act. Current funding is provided by the UCSD Library and campus administration. Additional funding has been supplied by the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research.

The Melanesian Archive's collections have been and continue to be built primarily through direct solicitation and gifts of materials from Melanesian scholars. Authors are urged to give copies of their unpublished works to the archive and, if possible, to grant open access to their works and permission to make copies.

From the guide to the Melanesian Archive Miscellaneous Manuscript Collection, 1900 - 1996, (University of California, San Diego. Geisel Library. Mandeville Special Collections Library.)