Professor Anthony Cohen,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

is a British

social anthropologist Social anthropology is the study of patterns of behaviour in human societies and cultures. It is the dominant constituent of anthropology throughout the United Kingdom and much of Europe, where it is distinguished from cultural anthropology. In t ...

and served as Principal &

Vice Chancellor A vice-chancellor (commonly called a VC) serves as the chief executive of a university in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Kenya, other Commonwealth countr ...

of Edinburgh’s

Queen Margaret University Queen Margaret University is a public university located wholly within the county of East Lothian on the outskirts of Musselburgh, Scotland. It is named after the Scottish Queen Saint Margaret (1045–1093). The university can trace its ...

from 2003 until his retirement in 2009. Cohen was born in London in 1946. Educated at Whittingehame College, Brighton, the

University of Geneva The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public university, public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by French theologian John Calvin as a Theology, theological seminary. It rema ...

and the

University of Southampton The University of Southampton (abbreviated as ''Soton'' in post-nominal letters) is a public university, public research university in Southampton, England. Southampton is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universit ...

, he is a social anthropologist with specialist interests in personal, social and national identity. He conducted fieldwork in Springdale,

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

(1968–70) on local-level politics; and in

Whalsay Whalsay ( or ''Hvals-øy'', meaning 'Whale Island') is the sixth largest of the Shetland Islands in the north of Scotland. Geography Whalsay, also known as "The Bonnie Isle", is a peat-covered island in the Shetland Islands. It is situated ea ...

(1973–90), the longest sustained study of a rural British community ever undertaken. He then did research on personal and national identity in Scotland, and on the literary influences on Scottishness. Anthony Cohen was a research fellow at the

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, or MUN (), is a Public university, public research university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook ...

; assistant professor at Queen's University and lecturer and senior lecturer in social anthropology at the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

. In 1988 he was appointed Professor of Social Anthropology at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, a post he held until 2003. He was Provost of Law and Social Sciences, and Dean of Social Sciences at Edinburgh for five years (1997—2002). In 2003, he was appointed Honorary Professor of Social Anthropology. In 2003, he became

Principal Principal may refer to: Title or rank * Principal (academia), the chief executive of a university ** Principal (education), the head of a school * Principal (civil service) or principal officer, the senior management level in the UK Civil Ser ...

and Vice-Patron of Edinburgh’s

Queen Margaret University College Queen Margaret University is a public university located wholly within the county of East Lothian on the outskirts of Musselburgh, Scotland. It is named after the Scottish Queen Saint Margaret (1045–1093). The university can trace its ...

, and Professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology. In January 2007, QMUC was awarded university title, and Professor Cohen became the founding Principal and Vice-Chancellor of

. He was elected Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

in 1994, and was awarded the honorary degree of D.Sc by the

in 2005, and the degree of D.Sc (honoris causa) by the University of St Andrews in 2017. He was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in the 2008 Birthday Honours.

Works

* ''The Management of Myths'', 1975,

Manchester University Press Manchester University Press is the university press of the University of Manchester, England, and a publisher of academic books and journals. Manchester University Press has developed into an international publisher. It maintains its links with t ...

* ''The Symbolic Construction of Community'', 1985, Routledge * ''Whalsay: Symbol, Segment and Boundary in a Shetland Island Community'', 1987,

* ''Self Consciousness: an Alternative Anthropology of Identity'', 1994, Routledge

As editor

* ''Symbolising Boundaries: Identity and Diversity in British Cultures'', 1986, Manchester University Press * ''Humanising the city?: Social contexts of urban life at the turn of the millennium'', 1993, Edinburgh University Press * (with Nigel Rapport) ''Questions of consciousness'', 1995, Routledge * ''Signifying Identities: Anthropological perspectives on boundaries and contested values'', 2000, Routledge

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cohen, Anthony 1946 births Academics of the University of Edinburgh Academics of the Victoria University of Manchester Alumni of the University of Southampton Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Living people Academic staff of the Memorial University of Newfoundland People associated with Queen Margaret University Academics from London Academic staff of Queen's University at Kingston British social anthropologists University of Geneva alumni Academics of Queen Margaret University