• PART I: BACKGROUND, THEORY, AND PRACTICE


• 1. Introduction: Definition, Concepts, and Questions of Folklore and Folklife in a Diverse, Mobile Nation / Simon J. Bronner


• 2. Historiography and Intellectual History of American Folklore and Folklife Studies / Jill Terry Rudy


• 3. American Folk Ideas, Themes, and Worldview / Jay Mechling


• 4. Methods and Tools of American Folklore and Folklife Studies / Anthony Bak Buccitelli


• 5. Applications and Representations of the Uses of American Folklore and Folklife / Gregory Hansen


• PART II: GENRES, PROCESSES, AND PRACTITIONERS


• 6. American Folk Speech, Names, and Gestures / Charles Clay Doyle


• 7. American Proverbs and Related Sayings / Wolfgang Mieder


• 8. American Folk Poetry / Elizabeth Tucker


• 9. American Storytelling, Myths, and Tales / Frank de Caro


• 10. American Jokes, Pranks, and Humor / Moira Marsh


• 11. American Legends, Anecdotes, and Personal Narratives / Elizabeth Tucker


• 12. American Custom, Ritual, and Holidays / Jack Santino


• 13. American Folk Drama and Festival / Lisa Gabbert


• 14. American Folk Music, Folk Songs, and Ballads / Stephen D. Winick


• 15. American Folk Dance and Movement / Eric César Morales


• 16. Play, Game, and Sport in American Folklore and Folklife / Fernando Orejuela


• 17. American Folk Buildings, Constructions, and Landscapes / Simon J. Bronner


• 18. American Folk Art and Crafts / C. Kurt Dewhurst and Marsha MacDowell


• 19. American Gravemarkes and Memorial Assemblages / Holly Everett


• 20. American Bodylore and Folk Dress / Amy K. Milligan


• 21. American Food, Foodways, and Eating / Lucy M. Long


• 22. American Folk Medicine and Health Practices / Andrea Kitta


• PART III: SETTINGS, CONTEXTS, AND INSTITUTIONS


• 23. Regions, Borders, and Nation in American Folklore and Folklife / Simon J. Bronner


• 24. Farm, Town, and Country in American Folklore and Folklife / R. Troy Boyer


• 25. American Urban, Suburban, and Metropolitan Folklore and Folklife / David J. Puglia


• 26. Waters, Islands, and Shores in American Folklore and Folklife / Shelly Drummond


• 27. Internet and Media in American Folklore and Folklife / David J. Puglia


• 28. Home and Vehicle in American Folklore and Folklife / Cory Thomas Hutcheson


• 29. Schools and Colleges in American Folklore and Folklife / Simon J. Bronner


• 30. Total Institutions: Camps, Boarding Schools, Military Bases, Hospitals, and Prisons in American Folklore and Folklife / Jay Mechling


• PART IV: GROUPS, NETWORKS, AND COMMUNITIES


• 31. Folklore and Folklife in Native and Indigenous America / Tom Mould


• 32. African American Folklore, Folklife, and Race / Anand Prahlad


• 33. Asian American Folklore and Folklife / Fariha Khan


• 34. Folklore and Folklife of Latinx America / Norma E. Cantú


• 35. Folklore and Folklife of European Americans / Anthony Bak Buccitelli and Cory Thomas Hutcheson


• 36. Folklore and Folklife of American Religious and Other Belief-Based Communities / William M. Clements


• 37. American Occupational Folklife: Work, Workers, and Workscapes / Nancy Groce


• 38. Folklore and Folklife of American Age Groups and Aging / Mary Sellers


• 39. Folklore and Folklife of American Family and Friends / Caren Neile


• 40. Folklore and Folklife of American Organizations and Networks / Simon J. Bronner


• 41. Folklore and Folklife of Women, Men, and Other Gendered Identities / Lisa Gilman


• 42. Folklore and Folklife of American LGBTQIA+ Communities and Queer Culture / James Tyler Chadwell and Simon J. Bronner


• 43. Folklore and Folklife of Body, Neurodiverse, and Ability-Centered American Identities / Sheila Bock


• Index

Simon J. Bronner is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of American Studies and Folklore at the Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg, and held the Maxwell C. Weiner distinguished professorship at Missouri University of Science and Technology. He has also taught folklore and ethnology at Harvard University, University of California-Davis, Leiden University (Netherlands), Beijing Normal University (China), and Osaka University (Japan). The author or editor of over 40 books, he is also the editor of book series on material culture and folklore and ethnology. He was president of the Fellows of the American Folklore Society and received lifetime achievement awards from the Society for his academic leadership and scholarship on youth culture.

The Oxford Handbook of American Folklore and Folklife Studies surveys the materials, approaches, concepts, and applications of the field to provide a sweeping guide to American folklore and folklife, culture, history, and society. Forty-three comprehensive and diverse chapters explore the extraordinary richness of the American social and cultural fabric, offering a valuable resource not only for scholars and students of American studies, but also for the global study of tradition, folk arts, and cultural practice.