Handbook on Race Relations in South Africa

Handbook on Race Relations in South Africa (Oxford University Press, 1949) is a landmark sociological study that examines the complex racial dynamics and policies shaping South Africa on the eve of apartheid. Compiled under the auspices of the South African Institute of Race Relations, this comprehensive volume brings together contributions from leading academics, policymakers, and social observers of the time to provide an authoritative overview of the country’s political, economic, and cultural landscape.

Covering topics such as segregation laws, labor relations, education, housing, and native administration, the handbook offers an unflinching analysis of the inequalities and systemic structures that defined South African society in the mid-twentieth century. Its objective, research-based approach makes it an essential historical document for understanding the roots and rationale behind apartheid’s formalization in 1948.

Both critical and informative, Handbook on Race Relations in South Africa remains a foundational resource for historians, sociologists, and scholars of African studies. As an early attempt to grapple with the realities of race relations through data and dialogue, it stands as a significant record of a pivotal era in South Africa’s social history—valuable for researchers and collectors of political and historical literature alike.