Ramos, Arthur (1903-1949)

Arthur Ramos (1903-1949) was one of the most prominent Brazilian anthropologists of the first half of the 20^th century, specialized in Afro-Brazilian populations. His work was influenced by Raimundo Nina Rodrigues; from 1935 on, he had fruitful exchanges with Melville J. Herskovits. Ramos also had a relevant role in the institutionalization of anthropology in Brazil; he was appointed professor of Anthropology and Ethnography in 1939 at the National Faculty of Philosophy of the Universidade do Brasil in Rio do Janeiro and founded the Brazilian Society of Anthropology and Ethnology in 1941. He became the first head of the Department of Social Sciences at UNESCO in 1949, but he held this position for only a short time, as he died a few months after his arrival in Paris. His legacy for Brazilian anthropology is remarkable and influenced generations of Brazilian anthropologists.

Keywords: Cultural anthropology | Psychoanalysis | Cultural anthropologist | Brazil | African-American studies | Afro-brazilian Religions | Race | Acculturation | Melville Herskovits | UNESCO | Raimundo Nina Rodrigues