McKim Marriott (February 1, 1924 – July 3, 2024) was an American anthropologist who specialized in Indian society, revolutionising the study of

caste A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...

and South Asian studies.

Background

Marriott was born on February 1, 1924. Growing up in

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

, Marriot attended

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 ...

at the age of 17 in 1941, studying anthropology with Clyde Kluckhohn, alongside Japanese. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Marriot volunteered for the war effort at the age of 19 in 1943, and was enlisted at the rank of

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. Due to his knowledge of Japanese, Marriott was stationed in India, where he translated Japanese radio transmissions. Inspired by his time in India, Marriott continued his education at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

, where he received a

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from the

in 1955 after performing 18 months of dissertation fieldwork from 1950–1952 in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

on caste in post-Independence 'Village India'. Marriott turned 100 in February 2024, and died five months later on July 3.Remembering Professor McKim Marriott
University of Chicago

India Experience

His initial exposure to India came during World War II when he worked as a signals analyst. This experience sparked his interest in the country's unique social structures. Despite training as an Indologist, Marriott felt existing Western academic disciplines were inadequate for capturing the essence of Indian culture. Marriott's central work on India was his ethnographic research on rural India conducted post-Independence, which culminated in his seminal edited volume '' Village India: Studies in the Little Community''. This edited volume contains eight chapters, by eight different authors, focusing on eight different rural indian villages. Marriott's chapter, '' Little Communities in an Indigenous Civilization'', is an ethnographical account of his time in the village Kishan Garhi ('' Kiṣaṇ Gaṛhī'') in

, in which he explored the following: '(1) can such a village be satisfactorily comprehended and conceived as a whole in itself, and (2) can understanding of one such village contribute to understanding of the greater culture and society in which the village is imbedded'. Marriot's findings not only deepened understandings of the

Indian caste system The caste system in India is the paradigmatic ethnographic instance of social classification based on castes. It has its origins in ancient India, and was transformed by various ruling elites in medieval, early-modern, and modern India, espe ...

, they highlighted the relationship between the village of Kishan Garhi and the 'Indian universe' through aspects of its social structure and through parts of its religious culture. Alongside contributions to Social Anthropology in India, Marriott made contributions to the Anthropology of Religion and

Secularism Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...

in India, with his research into

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

and caste highliting the need to utilise indigenous philosophical systems to accurately understand and explain social facts, emphasising that "the study of Indian thought could not be studied with non-Indian categories". Marriott studied villagers and urbanites of Asia and professionals of Asia, including Japan, Thailand, and other Asian states. He criticized Western categories which often present obstacles to understanding peoples, and he elaborated alternative models for studying differing cultural realities.

Impact and recognition

Marriott's work influenced generations of anthropologists, including his students who went on to become prominent scholars themselves. He was celebrated for his dedication to cultural sensitivity and his ability to bridge the gap between Western and Indian perspectives. A felicitation ceremony at the University of Chicago Smart Museum marked his 90th birthday, where colleagues and former students acknowledged his lasting influence.

Selected publications

*1955 Village India: Studies in the Little Community *1998 The female family core explored ethnosociologically. Contributions to Indian Sociology. 32: 279–304 *1997 A Description of SAMSARA, A Realization of Rural Hindu Life. Chicago: McKim Marriott. *1992 Alternative social sciences. In J. MacAloon, ed., General Education in the Social Sciences. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, pp. 262–278. *1991 On ‘Constructing an Indian ethnosociology’ Contributions to Indian Sociology. 25:295-308. *1990 (Editor) India through Hindu Categories. New Delhi/Newbury Park/London: Sage Publications.

References

External links