Monica Wilson, née Hunter (3 January 1908 – 26 October 1982) was a South African anthropologist, who was professor of
social anthropology
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 ...
at the
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa.
Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...
.
Life
Monica Hunter was born to missionary parents in
Lovedale in the
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony (), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope. It existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with three ...
, speaking
Xhosa from childhood. She studied history at
Girton College, Cambridge, before gaining a Cambridge doctorate in anthropology in 1934. Her thesis, the fieldwork for which was undertaken with the
Pondo in the Eastern Cape between 1931 and 1933, was presented in the monograph ''Reaction to Conquest''.
['Professor Monica Wilson', ''The Times'', 1 November 1982.]
Marrying
Godfrey Wilson
Godfrey Wilson (1908 – 19 May 1944) was a British anthropologist who studied social change in Africa.
Wilson first joined Hertford College, Oxford, Hertford College with an open scholarship in 1927, and received a Lit. Hum. degree in 193 ...
in 1935, the pair undertook fieldwork with the
Nyakyusa in
Tanzania
Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...
between 1935 and 1938. Their fieldwork was sponsored by the
International African Institute,
Godfrey Wilson died in 1944. Monica taught at the
University College of Fort Hare from 1944 to 1946 and at
Rhodes University from 1947 to 1951. She was Professor of Social Anthropology at the
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa.
Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...
from 1952 until retirement in 1973.
She died in
Hogsback,
Cape Province at her home, which is now a research centre for the University of Fort Hare.
Works
*
* with Godfrey Wilson
*
* (ed. with Leonard Thompson)
*
References
*
Further reading
*
External links
UCT Libraries Digital Collections – Monica and Godfrey Wilson Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Monica
1908 births
1982 deaths
People from Raymond Mhlaba Local Municipality
Alumni of Girton College, Cambridge
Academic staff of the University of Cape Town
Academic staff of Rhodes University
South African women scientists
South African women anthropologists
South African women academics
People associated with the Rhodes-Livingstone Institute
20th-century South African anthropologists
Fellows of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland