Louisiana Folklife Theses & Dissertations
This database includes bachelor's theses, master's theses, and doctoral dissertations from American and European universities that focus on topics related to Louisiana folklife. Selection criteria include conventional themes of folklore research, historical and sociological research that deal either with the population of the entire state at important moments and on crucial issues, or research that treats the history or sociology of people that are classically identified as "the folk."
In June 1999 Marc David submitted to the Division of the Arts a database of 683 titles after updating the one by C. Paige Gutierrez that was first published in Louisiana Folklife: A Guide to the State. The primary search instruments used by Marc David were the Louisiana Online University Information Service (LOUIS) Catalogs and UMI's Dissertation Abstracts, but more details on his strategies and criteria for selection are provided in his Contract Final Report.
The Louisiana Folklife Program continues to maintain the database and adds citations each year using the parameters in the Contract Final Report. We welcome suggestions for items to be added, especially bachelor's and master's theses from non-Louisiana universities since those are the most difficult to identify. Contact the Louisiana Folklife Program, folklife@crt.la.gov.
