(R = Y, Ce and Tm) and ( R= Y and Ce) intermetallic compounds have been irradiated for the first time by swift heavy-ion beams (U, Pb) of energy 1 - 5 GeV at GANIL (Caen, France). The compounds , and are found to be partially amorphized after irradiation. The amorphized volume fraction has been determined as a function of the ion beam fluence by x-ray diffraction and magnetic measurements. Results are found to be in agreement. By means of a phenomenological model, associating the phenomena of amorphization and recrystallization, the diameters of the latent tracks are estimated to lie in the range 2 - 3 nm. In contrast, no amorphization is observed in and . The different behaviours observed are well understood, in the framework of the thermal spike model, in terms of the different values of the electron - phonon coupling constant of the irradiated compounds.