Brian Andrew Lang (born 2 December 1945) is a Scottish

social anthropologist 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 ...

who served as deputy chairman of the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

and Principal of the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

2001–2008. He was Chair of the

Royal Scottish National Orchestra The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) ( gd, Orcastra Nàiseanta Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a British orchestra, based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the O ...

2008–2015. He is a trustee of

National Museums Scotland National Museums Scotland (NMS; gd, Taighean-tasgaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government. It runs the national museums of Scotland. NMS is one of the country's National Collections ...

since 2014.

Early life

Lang was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

and educated at the Royal High School of Edinburgh and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

where he studied

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 ...

, graduating MA in 1968. He started research for a PhD in 1969 with a year of fieldwork in Kenya, and his thesis was accepted six years later.

Career

He lectured in social anthropology for some years at

Aarhus University Aarhus University ( da, Aarhus Universitet, abbreviated AU) is a public research university with its main campus located in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the second largest and second oldest university in Denmark. The university is part of the Coimbra Gr ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. Returning to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, he joined the scientific staff of the

Social Science Research Council The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) is a US-based, independent, international nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing research in the social sciences and related disciplines. Established in Manhattan in 1923, it today maintains a he ...

, where he was latterly Principal Scientific Officer. In 1979 and 1980 he was head of the Historic Buildings Branch of the Scottish Development Department, and from 1980 to 1987, was Director of the

National Heritage Memorial Fund The National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) was set up in 1980 to save the most outstanding parts of the British national heritage, in memory of those who have given their lives for the UK. It replaced the National Land Fund which had fulfilled the ...

, based in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. After this, he spent four years as Director of Public Affairs for the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

, before his appointment as

Chief Executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and Deputy

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of the

from 1991 until 2000. During this period, the British Library made the delayed and over-budget move into its new building at St Pancras. Lang also instituted a controversial policy of disposing of archives of historic foreign newspapers, which was halted by his successor

Lynne Brindley Dame Lynne Janie Brindley, , HonFBA (born 2 July 1950) is the former Master of Pembroke College, Oxford, a post she held until June 2020. Prior to this appointment she was a professional librarian, and served as the first female chief executive ...

. Lang is a trustee of the

Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

, a member of the Cultural Commission. He has chaired the Heritage Lottery Fund committee for Scotland.

St Andrews

Lang succeeded

Struther Arnott Struther Arnott (25 September 1934 – 20 April 2013) was a Scottish molecular biologist and chemist who specialised in cancer research. He was a Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of St Andrews. __TOC__ Education and career Stru ...

as Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

in January 2001. At his inauguration that year, he stated a commitment to social inclusion. In 2003, analysis of admissions to UK universities from state schools against benchmarks set for each university, found St Andrews performed least well. The following year, Lang announced fifty scholarships for Scottish school pupils intended to tackle elitism by at improving diversity among the student body. While Lang was at St Andrews, the university rose from twentieth in the UK in 2001 to fifth in 2008, according to some league tables. Lang, upon retirement as Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of St Andrews, was succeeded by

Louise Richardson Dame Louise Mary Richardson (born 8 June 1958 ) is an Irish political scientist whose specialist field is the study of terrorism. In January 2016 she became the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, having formerly served as the Principa ...

. He departed office on 31 December 2008.

After St Andrews

In August 2008 he was appointed as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the

and served for seven years until August 2015. Lang became a Trustee of

in September 2014, with his second term of appointment being extended to March 2023.

Controversies

During his first year at St Andrews, a member of the University's administrative staff sought compensation after making allegations that Lang had bullied, intimidated and

sexually harassed Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...

her. Lang denied the claims. Although an

employment tribunal Employment tribunals are tribunal public bodies in England and Wales and Scotland which have statutory jurisdiction to hear many kinds of disputes between employers and employees. The most common disputes are concerned with unfair dismissal, red ...

hearing was scheduled, the university and former employee reached an

out of court settlement In law, a settlement is a resolution between disputing parties about a legal case, reached either before or after court action begins. A collective settlement is a settlement of multiple similar legal cases. The term also has other meanings in t ...

in May 2002. In retrospect, the out of court settlement was considered to have contributed to Lang's lack of popularity while Principal. At an unrelated employment tribunal in 2004, Lang drew on his background in social anthropology to compare an academic department at St Andrews to the Ik tribe of

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

, who, he said, were noted for their "dishonesty, lying and cheating". (This view of the Ik, due to

Colin Turnbull Colin Macmillan Turnbull (November 23, 1924 – July 28, 1994) was a British-American anthropologist who came to public attention with the popular books '' The Forest People'' (on the Mbuti Pygmies of Zaire) and '' The Mountain People'' (on the ...

, has been repeatedly criticized.) Lang was accused of

hypocrisy Hypocrisy is the practice of engaging in the same behavior or activity for which one criticizes another or the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. In moral psychology, it is the ...

by the St Andrews student newspaper ''

The Saint The Saint may refer to: Fiction * Simon Templar, also known as "The Saint", the protagonist of a book series by Leslie Charteris and subsequent adaptations: ** ''The Saint'' (film series) (1938–43), starring Louis Hayward, George Sanders an ...

'' for promoting the University's environmental policy by asking other members of the university not to use cars, while continuing to use his

Jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus '' Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the th ...

to make the 1.1 mile journey to his office.

Awards and honours

In 2008, Lang was awarded an honorary degree by the University of St Andrews. Lang was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(CBE) in the 2016 Birthday Honours for services to the arts, heritage, and education. In 2006, Lang was inducted as a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

References

*University of St Andrews: The Principal - Dr Brian Lan

*National Heritage Memorial Fund - Brian Lan

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lang, Brian 1945 births Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Living people People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Scottish anthropologists Principals of the University of St Andrews Academics from Edinburgh Social anthropologists Academic staff of Aarhus University Scottish civil servants British charity and campaign group workers Commanders of the Order of the British Empire