View source for Book of Mormon geography/Models/Limited/Sorenson 1955

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Sorenson first developed his model in 1953 and committed it to paper in 1955.<ref>{{GeoSourcebook1|start=182}}</ref>

Sorenson outlined his model in his seminal 1985 work, ''An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon'',<re>{{Aas1|start=1}}</ref> provided a detailed description of his method in creating his model in 1992,<ref>{{GeoSourcebook1}}</ref> and in 2000 published a more 'theoretical' approach to Book of Mormon geography.<ref>{{MormonsMap1|}}</ref>

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|[[Image:Sorenson1985-plausible.jpg|frame|'''Figure 3:'''Sorenson's proposed geography, with the narrow neck of land at the Tehuantepec Isthmus.<ref>From {{Aas1|start=front cover}}; graphic from {{ChartingBoM1|start=160}}</ref>]]
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Real world suggested correlates in this model:

* Narrow neck of land - Tehuantepec Isthmus
* River Sidon - Grijalva River
* Hill Ramah/Cumorah -  Cerro Vigia in Veracruz, Mexico.

Sorenson's model has been critiqued,<ref>Critiques include {{Dialogue|author=Earl M. Wunderli|article=Critique of a Limited Geography for Book of Mormon Events|vol=35|num=3|date=2002|start=161|end=197}}{{link|url=http://content.lib.utah.edu/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/dialogue&CISOPTR=29050&REC=15}}; a review is available at {{FR-16-2-11}}.  Another critique of Sorenson's model can be found in Deanne G. Matheny, "Does the Shoe Fit? A Critique of the Limited Tehuantepec Geography," in ''New Approaches to the Book of Mormon: Explorations in Critical Methodology'', edited by Brent Lee Metcalfe, (Salt Lake City, Utah: Signature Books, 1993), 269&ndash;328.  This latter volume is dedicated to the proposition that "the Book of Mormon isn't historical."  It has been exhaustively critiqued and reviewed, especially in [http://farms.byu.edu/publications/reviewvolume.php?volume=6&number=1 Vol. 6] of the ''FARMS Review''.</ref> and Sorenson has written a reply to the criticism.<ref>{{FR-6-1-10}}</ref>  A chief complaint has been Sorenson's model's "skew" of the cardinal directions ("Nephite North" is not "geographic north".)  Critics have often caricaturized Sorenson's position, and ignored the fact that (as a non-LDS researcher noted):

:It is clear that prehispanic people [of Mesoamerica] did not share our view of accurate geography. Only occasionally did their placement of toponyms [on their geographical diagrams] reflect true spatial relations in the sense that we demand of our maps. Mesoamerican cultures were unconcerned with the exact mileage between places and the exact placement of north and south.<ref>Joyce Marcus, ''Mesoamerican Writing Systems: Propaganda, Myth, and History in Four Ancient Civilizations'' (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992), 189; cited in {{JBMS-2-1-11}}.  Hamblin further discusses issues of directionality in {{reexploring|author=William J. Hamblin|article=Directions in Hebrew, Egyptian, and Nephite Language|start=183|end=186}}</ref>

Other researchers have offered some refinements of the model which may offer another elegant solution to the directional issues. (See, for example, [[Book_of_Mormon_geography/Models/Limited/Poulsen_2004|Poulsen 2004]].)

Sorenson's model is strengthened by evidence for active volcano activity mainly confined to the time period around A.D. 30, which correlates with the three days of darkness following Jesus' crucifixion, as reported by 3 Nephi (see [[Book_of_Mormon/Anachronisms/Three_days_of_darkness|Three days of darkness: due to volcanoes?]]
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[[fr:Book of Mormon geography/Models/Limited/Sorenson 1955]]