File: Department of Social Anthropology

Scope and Content

The Department was established in 1949 when Max Gluckman was appointed professor. Gluckman proved highly successful in building up his department's reputation, rapidly expanding the number of staff and students. The Department also included sociologists for most of the period covered by this file.

Most of the material concerns routine administration, although Professor Gluckman appears to have shared his thoughts on many other subjects with the vice-chancellor. There are a number of documents concerning grant applications to bodies such as the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations. There are also progress reports for research undertaken including W. Watson's (sociological) research into communities at Leigh, Lancashire. Also of interest are papers relating to two separate episodes when departmental staff were refused entry to countries to undertake anthropological research on political grounds: R.J. Frankenberg from certain West Indian islands in 1952 and Professor Gluckman from Papua New Guinea by the Australian government in 1960.

The file includes a copy of Gluckman's Maxwell Cummings lecture "Community ideals and individual interest" at McGill University, 1971.

Former reference: 137

Related Material

See VCA/7/626 for the later period. See VCA/7/87, 548 and 549 for appointments to chairs in this subject. Professor Gluckman's papers also include material relating to the Department (GLU.