Bernard Crettaz (29 May 1938 – 28 November 2022) was a Swiss sociologist and ethnologist.
Biography
After his secondary education in
Sion
Sion may refer to
* an alternative transliteration of Zion
People
* Sion (name) or Siôn, a Welsh and other given name and surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name
* Shion or Sion, a Japanese given name
Pl ...
, Crettaz earned a doctorate in sociology from the
University of Geneva
The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centur ...
in 1979 with the thesis ''Nomades et sédentaires''. He first worked as an assistant at the University before becoming a teacher at the ''Institut d'études sociales'' and later a researcher at the ''Institut de médecine légale sur la prison de Saint-Antoine''.
In 1976, Crettaz became curator of the European Department of the ''
Musée d'ethnographie de Genève'', which contained the Collection . He also directed the department of sociology at the University of Geneva until 2003. In 1977, he met anthropologist
Yvonne Preiswerk, whom he later married. In 1992, he openly supported an accession of Switzerland to the European Union.
In 1982, the asked Crettaz and his wife to co-found the ''Société d'études thanatologiques de Suisse Romande'', of which he served as founding president.
After his wife's death in 1999, he organized the ''Café mortel'' to create public discussions about death.
On 31 May 2000, he retired from his activities with the ''Musée d'ethnographie de Genève''. In 2002, he moved to
Anniviers
Anniviers is a municipality in the district of Sierre in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. It was formed through the merger of six municipalities in Val d'Anniviers: Ayer, Chandolin, Grimentz, Saint-Jean, Saint-Luc and Vissoie. The merge ...
, where he wrote literature.
Bernard Crettaz died in Austria on 28 November 2022, at the age of 84.
Bibliography
*''Nomades et sédentaires, dans le Val d'Anniviers'' (1979)
*''Grimentz, un village suisse'' (1982)
*''Le pays où les vaches sont reines'' (1986)
*''Zinal défi à la montagne'' (1989)
*''La race d'Hérens est-elle en péril?'' (1992)
*''La beauté du reste. Confession d'un conservateur de musée sur la perfection et l'enfermement de la Suisse et des Alpes'' (1993)
*''A la table des reines'' (1993)
*''Juste l'ordinaire'' (1994)
*''Au-delà du Disneyland alpin'' (1995)
*''Est-ce la fin des grandes lignées?'' (1995)
*''75 ans pour que vive la race d’Hérens!'' (1997)
*''Vous parler de la mort'' (2003)
*''Le curé, le promoteur, la vache, la femme et le président, que reste-t-il de notre procession?'' (2008)
*''Les Anniviards, barbares et civilisés'' (2009)
*''Cafés mortels : Sortir la mort du silence'' (2010)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crettaz, Bernard
1938 births
2022 deaths
Swiss sociologists
Swiss ethnologists
University of Geneva alumni
People from Sierre District