Alfred Louis Kroeber, a prominent American anthropologist, made significant contributions to the field of American Indian ethnology. He was the first person to receive a doctorate in anthropology from Columbia University and became an influential figure in the first half of the 20th century. Kroeber’s work extended beyond culture and its processes, encompassing linguistics, folklore, and social structures. Notably, he conducted studies on the Yahi people, collaborating closely with the last surviving member of the tribe, Ishi. Kroeber believed in understanding living organisms as indivisible wholes in terms of their developmental tendencies. His personal experiences as a German immigrant in the United States sparked his interest in studying cultural behaviors. Additionally, he made significant contributions to archaeology and had a lifelong fascination with languages. Known for his hard work, calm demeanor, and patience, Kroeber earned the respect of all who worked with him.
Quick Facts
- Also Known As: Alfred Louis Kroeber
- Died At Age: 84
- Family:
- Spouse/Ex-: Henrietta Rothschild, Theodora Krakow Brown
- Father: Florence Kroeber
- Mother: Johanna Muller
- Children: Clifton Brown Kroeber, Karl, Ted, Ursula Kroeber
- Anthropologists
- American Men
- Died on: October 5, 1960
- Place of death: Paris, France
- City: Hoboken, New Jersey
- U.S. State: New Jersey
- More Facts
- Education: Columbia University
- Awards: 1912 – Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Childhood & Early Life
Alfred Kroeber was born on June 11, 1876, in New Jersey, to a German immigrant father, Florence Kroeber, and his wife Johanna Muller. He was the eldest of their four children. The family moved to New York when Alfred was young.
When he was around seven years old, he was tutored by Dr. Bamberger, whom he later credited as a brilliant teacher who instilled in his students a great curiosity for learning.
He went to Sachs’ Collegiate Institute, a grammar and high school modeled on German gymnasium, which prepared boys for college.
He went to Columbia College in 1892 when he was 16 and received his A.B. in English in 1896 and an M.A. in Romantic drama the following year. However, he decided to change his field to anthropology.
In 1901, he received his doctorate degree in Anthropology from Columbia University for his thesis on decorative symbolism on his fieldwork among the Arapaho. His guide for Ph.D. had been Franz Boas.
Career
In 1901, he embarked on his professional career at the University of California, Berkeley, where he would spend most of his career. He would eventually serve as both a Professor of Anthropology and the Director of the then University of California Museum of Anthropology (now the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology).
Anthropology at that time was an emerging field, and thus Kroeber and his contemporaries were assigned vaguely defined academic positions that offered uncertain financial support. However, with his dedication and hard work, he eventually succeeded in popularizing the field of anthropology.
For the first five years of his career at the university, his salary was fixed at $1200 per annum. Along with teaching semesters, he investigated the little-known languages and cultures of native California along with P.E. Goddard.
In 1923, he published the book ‘Anthropology,’ which was one of the most influential books on the subject during that time. Since anthropology was an emerging field, his book was the only textbook available for aspiring anthropologists.
Kroeber was aided by his students in research, and together they did significant works in studying the western tribes of Native Americans. The data collected by them and the research they conducted was published in the ‘Handbook of the Indians of California’ (1925).
His research in the “culture area” was of immense importance. He developed several concepts related to this field, which were published in the book ‘Cultural and Natural Areas of Native North America’ in 1939.
In his ‘Basic and Secondary Patterns of Social Organization,’ which was first published in 1938 and republished in ‘Nature of Culture’ in 1952, he related the problems of kinship systems to the question of what is primary and secondary in a total culture.
The book ‘Configurations of Culture Growth’ (1944), considered to be among his greatest works, deals with the superorganic nature of culture and shows that individual achievements may express culture but do not explain it.
He was also famous for working with Ishi, who was believed to be the last California Yahi Indian. Ishi was taken in at the University of California, where Kroeber and other anthropologists interviewed him and studied him.
Awards & Achievements
He was made a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1912 in recognition of his contributions to the field of anthropology. He is the recipient of several honorary degrees from reputed institutions like Yale University, Columbia University, and Harvard.
Personal Life & Legacy
He married Henrietta Rothschild in 1906. Unfortunately, his wife contracted tuberculosis and suffered several years of ill health before succumbing to her illness in 1913.
Several years after his first wife’s death, he married Theodora Kracaw Brown, a widow, in 1926. Theodora had two sons from her previous marriage whom Kroeber adopted. The couple had a happy marriage that produced two more children.
Alfred Kroeber died on October 5, 1960, at the age of 84.