Krishan Kumar (born 1942 in

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

) is a British sociologist who is currently William R. Kenan, Jr., Professor of Sociology at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

Early life and education

Kumar was educated at

William Ellis School William Ellis School is a voluntary aided secondary school and sixth form for boys located in Gospel Oak, London, England. Admissions The School is located near Hampstead Heath in north London. It is situated just east of Parliament Hill an ...

in London and studied as an

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education, usually in a college or university. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, ...

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch L ...

and for a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

. He then worked as a lecturer at the

University of Kent The University of Kent (formerly the University of Kent at Canterbury, abbreviated as UKC) is a Collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom. The university was granted its roya ...

from 1967, where he also studied for a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

, and had a spell as a producer for the talks and documentaries department of the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Career

Kumar remained at Kent, attaining the position of Professor of Social and Political Thought, until his appointment at Virginia in 1996. Kumar has held several visiting professorships, including at the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

, the

Central European University Central European University (CEU; , ) is a private research university in Vienna. The university offers graduate and undergraduate programs in the social sciences and humanities, which are accredited in Austria and the United States. The univ ...

and the

École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales The School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences (, EHESS) is a graduate ''grande école'' and '' grand établissement'' in Paris focused on academic research in the social sciences. The school awards Master and PhD degrees alone and conj ...

, and has been a visiting scholar at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and a member of the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton. His research interests include

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

and European and

human history Human history or world history is the record of humankind from prehistory to the present. Early modern human, Modern humans evolved in Africa around 300,000 years ago and initially lived as hunter-gatherers. They Early expansions of hominin ...

. Kumar's publications include ''Prophecy and Progress: The Sociology of Industrial and Post-Industrial Society'' (Allen Lane, 1978), ''Utopia and Anti-Utopia in Modern Times'' (Basil Blackwell, 1987), ''The Rise of Modern Society: Aspects of the Social and Political Development of the West'' (Basil Blackwell, 1988), ''Utopianism'' (

Open University Press McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

, 1991), ''1989: Revolutionary Ideas and Ideals'' (

University of Minnesota Press The University of Minnesota Press is a university press that is part of the University of Minnesota. It had annual revenues of just over $8 million in fiscal year 2018. Founded in 1925, the University of Minnesota Press is best known for its book ...

, 2001) and ''The Making of English National Identity'' (Cambridge University Press, 2003). The latter was described by

Bernard Crick Sir Bernard Rowland Crick (16 December 1929 – 19 December 2008) was a British political theorist and democratic socialist whose views can be summarised as "politics is ethics done in public". He sought to arrive at a "politics of action", as ...

as a "scholarly masterpiece" and "the deepest and best reflection so far by a fine sociologist and an intellectual historian". His work on utopianism, meanwhile, "should...find an admired place in contemporary sociology", according to Frank Webster. Kumar has also published articles in

academic journal An academic journal (or scholarly journal or scientific journal) is a periodical publication in which Scholarly method, scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. They serve as permanent and transparent forums for the ...

s, including ''

Sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

'', the ''

European Journal of Political Research The ''European Journal of Political Research'' (EJPR) is a major journal of European political science sponsored by the European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR). It is one of the most highly respected journals in the discipline, and th ...

'', the ''European Journal of Sociology'', ''Theory and Society'', '' Political Studies'', the ''

British Journal of Sociology ''The British Journal of Sociology'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that was established in 1950 at the London School of Economics and Political Science. It represents the mainstream of sociological thinking and research and publishes high qua ...

'', the '' European Journal of Social Theory'' and '' Nations and Nationalism''.

References

External links

Krishan Kumar's homepage
at the University of Virginia
Interviewed by Alan Macfarlane 14 July 2019 (video)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kumar, Krishan 1942 births Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of the University of Kent English sociologists University of Virginia faculty Living people Trinidad and Tobago emigrants to the United Kingdom English expatriates in the United States People educated at William Ellis School Trinidad and Tobago people of Indian descent Utopian studies scholars