José Juan Arróm

José J. Arróm received his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. from Yale University, teaching in its Department of Anthropology until his retirement in 1979. Living and writing in North Haven, Connecticut at the time of the exhibit project in 1997, Dr. Arróm was one of the foremost scholars of the Taino Indians. His twelve books discussed various aspects of the Taino legacy including archaeological reconstructions of Taino culture, Taino language, and analyses of contemporary Spanish descriptions of Taino culture. His 1974 book "Relaciones acerca de las antigüedades de los indios" was in its eighth printing, and was translated into Catalan, and published in the U.S. in English by Duke University Press. Dr. Arróm enthusiastically agreed to be a consultant to the project, offering to lend Taino artifacts from his personal collection and to participate in the panel discussion held in October 1997.