Stephen Fuchs

Stephen Fuchs
Born(1908-04-30)April 30, 1908
DiedJanuary 17, 2000(2000-01-17) (aged 91)
St. Gabriel, Mödling, Austria
NationalityAustrian[1]
OccupationAnthropologist
Known forResearch on the cultures of tribal and dalit peoples of India
Board member ofex–editorial board member of Asian Folklore Studies
AwardsCross of Honour for Science and Art, First Class
Academic background
EducationDoctor of Philosophy
Alma materUniversity of Vienna (Ph.D.)
InfluencesWilhelm Schmidt
Academic work
DisciplineAnthropology
Sub-disciplineEthnology
Ethnography
InstitutionsFounder and ex–director of Institute of Indian Culture, Mumbai
Main interestsEthnology and prehistory of India

Stephen Fuchs (April 30, 1908 – January 17, 2000) was an Austrian Catholic priest, missionary, and anthropologist who researched the ethnology and prehistory of India. After obtaining a Ph.D. in ethnology and Indology from the University of Vienna in 1950, Fuchs moved to India where he assisted in founding the Department of Anthropology at St. Xavier's College in Bombay.[note 1] After a brief imprisonment for being misidentified as a German missionary by the British government during World War II, Fuchs founded the Indian Branch of the Anthropos Institute, later renamed the Institute of Indian Culture. Fuchs, because of health concerns, moved to Austria in 1996 and died at the age of 91 in Mödling, Austria.

In his research, Fuchs conducted field studies in Central India. He focused particularly on the customs and beliefs of modern Indian tribes. Originally when he moved to India, he researched solely the social and cultural customs of modern-day central Indian tribes. After founding the Institute of Indian Culture, Fuchs researched the cultures of ancient India, back to India's original inhabitants.

  1. ^ Zubrzycki, John (2018). Empire of Enchantment: The Story of Indian Magic. Oxford, UK; New York, US: Oxford University Press. p. 121. ISBN 978-0190914394. OCLC 1102419431.
  2. ^ Conlon, Frank F. (2009). "Speaking of Caste? Colonial and Indigenous Interpretations of Caste and Community in Nineteenth–century Bombay". In Banerjee–Dube, Ishita; Dube, Saurabh (eds.). From Ancient to Modern: Religion, Power, and Community in India (2, illustrated ed.). New Delhi, India; Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. p. 308. ISBN 978-0195696622. LCCN 2009341314.


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