José de Acosta

José de Acosta was a Spanish Jesuit missionary, theologian, and chronicler who worked in Peru and served as provincial of the Jesuits there from 1576 to 1581. He participated in the Third Council of Lima and wrote influential works on missionary practice and the natural, social, and religious history of the Americas. His best-known book, *Historia natural y moral de las Indias* (1590), combined observations of Mexico and Peru with broader discussions of geography, nature, and Indigenous societies.