Origins & Early Life

Lila Abu-Lughod (Arabic: ليلى أبو لغد; born 1952) is an American anthropologist. She is the Joseph L. Buttenweiser Professor of Social Science at Columbia University. She specializes in ethnographic research in the Arab world, and her seven books cover topics including sentiment and poetry, nationalism and media, gender politics and the politics of memory.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Lila Abu-Lughod was born on October 21st, 1952, in Champaign, Illinois, where her father, Ibrahim Abu-Lughod, graduated from the University of Illinois. Ibrahim Abu-Lughod was a prominent Palestinian academic well-known for his academic work and activism for Palestine. Her mother, Janet Abu-Lughod (née Lippman), was a leading Jewish American urban sociologist. Abu-Lughod went to New Trier High School and graduated in 1970. She went on to study at Carleton College in 1974, graduating with distinction in social anthropology.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

She obtained her M.A. in 1978 and her Ph.D. in social anthropology in 1984, both from Harvard University. Abu-Lughod's body of work is grounded in long-term ethnographic research in Egypt. Her interest in Egypt came from spending several years...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Albert Bassermann — Contemporary (Died in 1952) (1952): Esteemed German stage and screen actor, celebrated for his dramatic versatility.
• Amy Tan — Contemporary (Born in 1952) (1952): Acclaimed American novelist celebrated for exploring Chinese-American family dynamics.
• Angela Strank — Contemporary (Born in 1952) (1952): British engineer and Chief Scientist at BP, specializing in downstream technology.
• 5th Dalai Lama — Shared historical date (10-21 · Born) (1617): Spiritual and political unifier of Tibet, establishing the Ganden Phodrang.
• Alfred Nobel — Shared historical date (10-21 · Born) (1833): Pioneering chemist, inventor of dynamite, and founder of the Nobel Prizes.
• Bedřich Hrozný — Historical peer (Died in 1952) (1952): Pioneering Czech orientalist who deciphered the ancient Hittite language.
• Benedetto Croce — Historical peer (Died in 1952) (1952): Italian idealist philosopher, historian, and political liberal.
• Abraham Maslow — Historical peer (Died in 1970) (1970): Pioneering American psychologist known for the Hierarchy of Needs and self-actualization theory.
• Alan Shearer — Historical peer (Born in 1970) (1970): English football legend, record goalscorer, and respected pundit.
• Adria Petty — Historical peer (Born in 1974) (1974): American director, editor, and artist known for music video work with Beyoncé.
• 1952 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1952
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