David Friend Aberle (1918–2004) was an American anthropologist. He was well renowned for his work with the American Southwestern culture of the Navaho.[1]
Aberle was born on November 23, 1918, in Saint Paul, Minnesota. He received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, graduating summa cum laude and had attended three field schools in the summer at the University of New Mexico. These field schools consisted of two archaeological expeditions, and one ethnographic expedition. In the fall of 1940, Aberle began graduate work in anthropology at Columbia University. Like many others, Aberle's graduate work was interrupted by the Second World War. Aberle spent three and a half years in the United States Army; most of his time was as a chief clerk in the outpatient psychiatric service performing psychological interviewing and testing for patients in his clinic.[2] Once Aberle finished his stint in the army, he resumed his studies. Aberle finished his dissertation at Columbia in 1947 titled The Reconciliation of Divergent Views of Hopi Culture Through the Analysis of Life-History Material[3] with Ruth Benedict as chair of his dissertation committee. Aberle received his PhD in 1950.
Marriage and careerEdit
After Aberle completed both his undergraduate and graduate work at Harvard and Columbia University, he began to study in more detail the culture of the Navaho, which he had been deeply interested in since his fieldwork with the University of New Mexico. Aberle also took on several teaching positions at universities, including Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Michigan, Brandeis, Oregon, and beginning in 1967 until his retirement in 1983, the University of British Columbia. In the year 1954, Aberle met fellow anthropologist Kathleen Gough; they married in 1955, and had a son, Stephen Aberle, in 1956. Aberle and Gough both held interests in kinship, social Movements, and social justice. One interest that they did not share was the area which they would conduct their research. While Aberle was interested in the American Southwest, Gough was interested in South Asia. Both Gough and Aberle sought to resolve conflict, and promote social justice and tolerance in various areas of the world. In the 1950s and 1960s they were active in the movements for civil rights and against the Cold War and the war in Vietnam in the United States; they continued their work after moving to Canada in 1967.[4] Aberle wrote and published his work concerning Navaho religion, cultural practices, and kinship, titled The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho in 1967[5] and his second publication regarding the kinship system of the Athapaskan-speaking communities, Lexical Reconstruction: The Case of the Proto-Athapaskan Kinship System in 1974.[6] In the late 1960s to the early 1980s, Aberle supervised many students who completed dissertations and theses that had topics related to Athapaskan speakers. Aberle had also taken part in several research projects that held relevance to the kinship practices of Proto-Athapaskan speech communities.
ThoughtEdit
Aberle was commonly looked upon as an experienced cultural anthropologist who studied the American Southwest, which is represented by his work The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho. Aberle examined kinship and religious practices among the Navaho and Proto-Athapaskan speaking communities of Alaska. Aberle's work The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho shows how the economic and political forces at play in the Navaho culture reflects the everyday operation of cultural practices, religion, and ways in each Navaho community. These factors represent the different religious movements at play during his research time within this cultural community. This book also helped outline his subject community's cultural beliefs and practices in more detail than previously available. In Lexical Reconstruction: The Case of the Proto-Athapaskan Kinship System Aberle defines the focus of his study on kinship systems in relation to proto-language which could have existed as far back as 1500 years in Western Canada, Alaska, Southwestern United States, and within Oklahoma:
Anthropologists are interested in reconstructing the kinship system as it might have existed at the time of a proto-language. A kinship system can be regarded as composed of two correlated systems: a system of kinship terminology and a set of behaviors that are patterned in relation to the terminological system. We know of no way in which we can rigorously infer the kinds of behavior directly, but it is generally regarded as possible to reconstruct the terminology at least in part. If rigor can be introduced in the procedure of reconstructing kinship terminology, then a generalization of that rigorous procedure is lexical reconstruction.[7]
Lexical Reconstruction consisted of over twenty years of collaboration with linguist Isidore Dyen. During this study, Aberle contributed his cultural knowledge of Athapaskan communities and linguist Dyen contributed his linguistic skills to reconstruct historical kinship patterns of these communities. They also looked at the origins of matriliny in these cultures. This book was best known for information on matriliny and for its wealth of information regarding Athapaskan speaking communities.[8]
WorksEdit
Aberle, David (1951). The Psychosocial Analysis of a Hopi Life-History. University of California Press.
Aberle, David (1953). The Kinship System of the Kalmuk Mongols. University of New Mexico Press.
Aberle, David (1957). Navaho and Ute Peyotism: A Chronological and Distributional Study. University of Colorado Press.
Aberle, David (1962). Chahar and Dagor Mongol Bureaucratic Administration: 1912-1945. HRAF Press.
Aberle, David (1967). The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho. Aldine Publishing Co.
Aberle, David (1969). A Plan for Navajo Economic Development. US GPO.
Aberle, David (1974). Lexical Reconstruction: The Case of the Proto-Athapaskan Kinship System. Cambridge University Press.
ReferencesEdit
^McKeen, Pecho (2009). "David Aberle" (PDF). University of British Columbia Archives. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
^Leland, Donald (2010). "David F. Aberle 1918-2004" (PDF). Royal Society of Canada. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
^Aberle, David (1950). The Reconciliation of Divergent Views of Hopi Culture Through the Analysis of Life History Material. Columbia University Press.
^Leland, Donald (2006). "David Friend Aberle 1918 2004". American Anthropologist. 108 (1): 263–266. doi:10.1525/aa.2006.108.1.263.
^Aberle, David (1982). The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho. University of Chicago Press.
^Aberle, Isidore, David, Dyen (2010). Lexical Reconstruction: The Case of the Proto-Athapaskan Kinship System. Cambridge University Press.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Aberle, Isidore, David, Dyen (2010). Lexical Reconstruction: The Case of the Proto-Athapaskan Kinship System. Cambridge University Press. p. 7.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Kuper, Leynseele, Adam, Pierre (October 1978). "Social Anthropology and the 'Bantu Expansion'". Africa. 48 (4): 335–352. doi:10.2307/1158800. JSTOR 1158800.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
External linksEdit
Quotations related to David Aberle at Wikiquote
August 29, 2023
david, aberle, david, friend, aberle, 1918, 2004, american, anthropologist, well, renowned, work, with, american, southwestern, culture, navaho, borndavid, friend, aberle, 1918, november, 1918saint, paul, minnesota, usdiedseptember, 2004, 2004, aged, vancouver. David Friend Aberle 1918 2004 was an American anthropologist He was well renowned for his work with the American Southwestern culture of the Navaho 1 David AberleBornDavid Friend Aberle 1918 11 23 November 23 1918Saint Paul Minnesota USDiedSeptember 23 2004 2004 09 23 aged 85 Vancouver British Columbia CanadaNationalityAmericanSpouseKathleen Gough m 1955 wbr Academic backgroundAlma materHarvard UniversityColumbia UniversityThesisThe Reconciliation of Divergent Views of Hopi Culture Through the Analysis of Life History Material 1950 Doctoral advisorRuth BenedictAcademic workDisciplineAnthropologySub disciplineCultural anthropologyInstitutionsUniversity of MichiganBrandeis UniversityUniversity of OregonUniversity of British ColumbiaNotable studentsRobert N Bellah Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Marriage and career 3 Thought 4 Works 5 References 6 External linksEarly life and education EditAberle was born on November 23 1918 in Saint Paul Minnesota He received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University graduating summa cum laude and had attended three field schools in the summer at the University of New Mexico These field schools consisted of two archaeological expeditions and one ethnographic expedition In the fall of 1940 Aberle began graduate work in anthropology at Columbia University Like many others Aberle s graduate work was interrupted by the Second World War Aberle spent three and a half years in the United States Army most of his time was as a chief clerk in the outpatient psychiatric service performing psychological interviewing and testing for patients in his clinic 2 Once Aberle finished his stint in the army he resumed his studies Aberle finished his dissertation at Columbia in 1947 titled The Reconciliation of Divergent Views of Hopi Culture Through the Analysis of Life History Material 3 with Ruth Benedict as chair of his dissertation committee Aberle received his PhD in 1950 Marriage and career EditAfter Aberle completed both his undergraduate and graduate work at Harvard and Columbia University he began to study in more detail the culture of the Navaho which he had been deeply interested in since his fieldwork with the University of New Mexico Aberle also took on several teaching positions at universities including Harvard Johns Hopkins Michigan Brandeis Oregon and beginning in 1967 until his retirement in 1983 the University of British Columbia In the year 1954 Aberle met fellow anthropologist Kathleen Gough they married in 1955 and had a son Stephen Aberle in 1956 Aberle and Gough both held interests in kinship social Movements and social justice One interest that they did not share was the area which they would conduct their research While Aberle was interested in the American Southwest Gough was interested in South Asia Both Gough and Aberle sought to resolve conflict and promote social justice and tolerance in various areas of the world In the 1950s and 1960s they were active in the movements for civil rights and against the Cold War and the war in Vietnam in the United States they continued their work after moving to Canada in 1967 4 Aberle wrote and published his work concerning Navaho religion cultural practices and kinship titled The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho in 1967 5 and his second publication regarding the kinship system of the Athapaskan speaking communities Lexical Reconstruction The Case of the Proto Athapaskan Kinship System in 1974 6 In the late 1960s to the early 1980s Aberle supervised many students who completed dissertations and theses that had topics related to Athapaskan speakers Aberle had also taken part in several research projects that held relevance to the kinship practices of Proto Athapaskan speech communities Thought EditAberle was commonly looked upon as an experienced cultural anthropologist who studied the American Southwest which is represented by his work The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho Aberle examined kinship and religious practices among the Navaho and Proto Athapaskan speaking communities of Alaska Aberle s work The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho shows how the economic and political forces at play in the Navaho culture reflects the everyday operation of cultural practices religion and ways in each Navaho community These factors represent the different religious movements at play during his research time within this cultural community This book also helped outline his subject community s cultural beliefs and practices in more detail than previously available In Lexical Reconstruction The Case of the Proto Athapaskan Kinship System Aberle defines the focus of his study on kinship systems in relation to proto language which could have existed as far back as 1500 years in Western Canada Alaska Southwestern United States and within Oklahoma Anthropologists are interested in reconstructing the kinship system as it might have existed at the time of a proto language A kinship system can be regarded as composed of two correlated systems a system of kinship terminology and a set of behaviors that are patterned in relation to the terminological system We know of no way in which we can rigorously infer the kinds of behavior directly but it is generally regarded as possible to reconstruct the terminology at least in part If rigor can be introduced in the procedure of reconstructing kinship terminology then a generalization of that rigorous procedure is lexical reconstruction 7 Lexical Reconstruction consisted of over twenty years of collaboration with linguist Isidore Dyen During this study Aberle contributed his cultural knowledge of Athapaskan communities and linguist Dyen contributed his linguistic skills to reconstruct historical kinship patterns of these communities They also looked at the origins of matriliny in these cultures This book was best known for information on matriliny and for its wealth of information regarding Athapaskan speaking communities 8 Works EditAberle David 1951 The Psychosocial Analysis of a Hopi Life History University of California Press Aberle David 1953 The Kinship System of the Kalmuk Mongols University of New Mexico Press Aberle David 1957 Navaho and Ute Peyotism A Chronological and Distributional Study University of Colorado Press Aberle David 1962 Chahar and Dagor Mongol Bureaucratic Administration 1912 1945 HRAF Press Aberle David 1967 The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho Aldine Publishing Co Aberle David 1969 A Plan for Navajo Economic Development US GPO Aberle David 1974 Lexical Reconstruction The Case of the Proto Athapaskan Kinship System Cambridge University Press References Edit McKeen Pecho 2009 David Aberle PDF University of British Columbia Archives Retrieved 25 February 2012 Leland Donald 2010 David F Aberle 1918 2004 PDF Royal Society of Canada Retrieved 25 February 2012 Aberle David 1950 The Reconciliation of Divergent Views of Hopi Culture Through the Analysis of Life History Material Columbia University Press Leland Donald 2006 David Friend Aberle 1918 2004 American Anthropologist 108 1 263 266 doi 10 1525 aa 2006 108 1 263 Aberle David 1982 The Peyote Religion Among the Navaho University of Chicago Press Aberle Isidore David Dyen 2010 Lexical Reconstruction The Case of the Proto Athapaskan Kinship System Cambridge University Press a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Aberle Isidore David Dyen 2010 Lexical Reconstruction The Case of the Proto Athapaskan Kinship System Cambridge University Press p 7 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Kuper Leynseele Adam Pierre October 1978 Social Anthropology and the Bantu Expansion Africa 48 4 335 352 doi 10 2307 1158800 JSTOR 1158800 a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link External links Edit Quotations related to David Aberle at Wikiquote Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title David Aberle amp oldid 1145467046, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
