Eugenics, Hygienism and Racism in Portugal in the first half of the twentieth century

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5212/Rev.Hist.Reg.v.29.23742

Keywords:

Eugenics, Hygienism, Racism, Modernization, Colonialism

Abstract

This paper aims to highlight the influence and dissemination of eugenics, hygienist and racist conceptions in Portuguese society in the first half of the twentieth century. However, eugenicist theories and practices have never been strong enough to have translated, as has happened in other European countries, into the institutionalization of radical eugenic measures. The hygienist tradition, Catholic opposition and the reduced acceptance of eugenics in liberal conservative and progressive circles in Portugal ended up conditioning the reception of eugenic theories and practices in the country. This reality, similar in many respects to what has occurred in other Latin countries of Catholic origin, nevertheless has some specific characteristics that require explanation. In particular, the singularities of the relations between science, society and political projects at the time of the reception of the different models of eugenics. The methodology used was essentially analytical-bibliographic.

Author Biography

António Rafael Amaro Amaro, Universidade de Coimbra

Associate Professor at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Coimbra. Coordinator of the Economic and Social History Unit of the Faculty of Economics.
Integrated Researcher at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies of the University of Coimbra (CEIS20/UC), of which he was Scientific Vice-Coordinator (2012-2016), Coordinator of the Research Group History, Memory and Public Policies (2017-2023) and Director of the PhD Programme in Contemporary Studies (2020-2022).
He is a member of the Portuguese Association of Political Economy, where he also teaches the PhD programme in Political Economy.

References

ALLEN, Garland E. «Eugenics and Modern Biology: Critiques of Eugenics, 1910-1945» In Annals of Human Genetics, 2011, n. 75, p. 314.

ALMEIDA, Miguel Vale de. «Longing for oneself: hybridism and miscegenation in colonial and postcolonial Portugal» In Etnográfica, v. 1, 2002, pp. 181-200.

AMARO, António Rafael. A Revista Seara Nova nos anos vinte e trinta: Memória, Cultura, Poder (1921-1939). Viseu: Universidade Católica Portuguesa, 1995.

BASHFORD, Alison; LEVINE; Philippa (Eds.). The Oxford Handbook of the History of Eugenics. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.

CATROGA, Fernando. Antero de Quental. História. Socialismo. Política. Lisboa: Editorial Notícias, 2001.

CLEMINSON, Richard. «Eugenics in Portugal, 1900–1950: setting a research agenda» In East Central Europe, v. 38 n. 1, 2011, pp. 133-154.

_______. Catholicism, Race and Empire. Eugenics in Portugal, 1900-1950. Budapest: Central European University Press. 2014.

_______. «Between Germanic and Latin eugenics: Portugal, 1930-1960» In História, Ciências, Saúde – Manguinhos, Rio de Janeiro, v.23, supl., dez. 2016, pp. 73-91.

FITAS, Augusto; PRÍNCIPE, João (Eds). A Seara Nova e os Debates Contemporâneos. Lisboa: Caleidoscópio, 2022.

FOUCAULT, Michel. Microfísica do Poder. 23, Ed. S. Paulo, Graal, 2004.

GIESBRECHT, Daniel F. «Divus contra Galton: o debate eugênico a partir da produção intelectual católica brasileira na década de 1930» In ARIES. Anuario de Antropología Iberoamericana, pp: 1-6, 2023.

KEVLES, Daniel J. In the Name of Eugenics: Genetics and the Uses of Human Heredity. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1995.

MATOS, Patrícia Ferraz de. «Aperfeiçoar a “raça”, salvar a nação: eugenia, teorias nacionalistas e situação colonial em Portugal» In Trabalhos de Antropologia e Etnologia, 50, 2010, pp. 89-111.

_______. Anthropology, Nationalism and Colonialism: Mendes Correia and the Porto School of Anthropology. Oxford-Nova Iorque: Berghahn Books, 2023.

NINHOS, Cláudia. «A discussão em torno da eugenia em Portugal» In PIMENTEL, Irene Flunser; NINHOS, Cláudia. Salazar, Portugal e o Holocausto. Lisboa: Temas e Debates, 2013, pp. 209-242.

NOVIDADES, n.º 11 759, 24 de junho, 1933, p. 1.

PEREIRA, Ana Leonor. Darwin em Portugal (1865-1914). Filosofia. História. Engenharia Social. Coimbra: Livraria Almedina, 2001.

_______. «Eugenia em Portugal?» In Revista de História das Ideias, Vol. 20, 1999, pp. 531-60.

PIMENTEL, Irene Flunser. «A assistência social e familiar do Estado Novo nos anos 30 e 40» In Análise Social, n.151-152, 1999, pp. 477-508.

_______. «O aperfeiçoamento da raça: a eugenia na primeira metade do século XX» In História, n.3, 1998, pp. 18-27.

PINTO, António Costa. «A Formação do Integralismo Lusitano, 1907-1917» In Análise Social, Vol. XVIII (72-73-74), 1982, pp. 1409-1419.

PIO XI. Carta encíclica casti connubii do Papa Pio XI sobre o matrimónio Cristão.

PORTUGAL. Portaria 7948, Diário do Governo, I Série, n.º 293, de 14 de dezembro de 1934. (https://files.diariodarepublica.pt/gratuitos/1s/1934/12/29300.pdf)

STEPAN, Nancy Leys. «Eugenia no Brasil, 1917-1940» In HOCHMAN, Gilberto; ARMUS, Diego (Orgs). Cuidar, Controlar, Curar. Ensaios Históricos sobre Saúde e Doença na América Latina e Caribe [online]. Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro, pp. 330-391.

TURDA, Marius. Modernism and Eugenics. Basingstroke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.

TURDA, Marius; GILLETTE, Aaron. Latin Eugenics in Comparative Perspective. London: Bloomsbury, 2014.

WEBER, Maria Julieta. «Eugenia Latina em Portugal e no Brasil (primeira metade do século XX)» In Trabalhos de Antropologia e Etnologia, vol. 63, 2023, pp. 205-217.

WEINGART, P. «Science and Political Culture. Eugenics in Comparative Perspective» In Scandinavian Journal of History, vol. 24, 2, 1999, pp. 163-177.

Published

2024-11-22

How to Cite

AMARO, A. R. A. Eugenics, Hygienism and Racism in Portugal in the first half of the twentieth century. Revista de História Regional, [S. l.], v. 29, 2024. DOI: 10.5212/Rev.Hist.Reg.v.29.23742. Disponível em: https://revistas.uepg.br/index.php/rhr/article/view/23742. Acesso em: 23 nov. 2024.

Issue

Section

Dossiê Engenharia Social e Modernidade: os impactos do darwinismo social e da eugenia no contexto intelectual do Brasil e de Portugal