Larissa Adler Lomnitz (June 17, 1932 - April 13, 2019)Douglas S. Massey: "Larissa Adler Lomnitz: Anthropologist who showed how the poor used social networks to survive and the rich to thrive." PNAS. 119 (33) e2212472119, August 2022, doi:10.1073/pnas.2212472119. was a French-born Chilean-Mexican

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 ...

, researcher, professor, and academic. After living in France, Colombia, and Israel, she received Chilean nationality by marriage and Mexican nationality by residence. She conducted research and studies regarding the way in which marginalized classes survive in

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

. She pioneered the study of

social network A social network is a social structure made up of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), sets of dyadic ties, and other social interactions between actors. The social network perspective provides a set of methods for an ...

s and the study of the importance of trust for the

economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...

and

politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...

. Her first study in this regard focused on the exchange of favors in the Chilean

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...

. Lomnitz completed her doctoral thesis about the importance of exchanging favors and confidence in the informal economy in Mexico City. She then explored the importance of social networks in very diverse fields: scientific communities, the Mexican upper class, and the teaching profession in Chile, among others. She wrote more than 70 chapters in books, nine books, and various popular articles for magazines.

Early life and education

Larissa Adler Milstein was born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, France, 1932, to Jewish-Romanian parents. Her father was the anthropologist, Miguel Adler, who trained with

Paul Rivet Paul Rivet (7 May 1876, Wasigny, Ardennes – 21 March 1958) was a French ethnologist known for founding the Musée de l'Homme in 1937. In his professional work, Rivet is known for his theory that South America was originally populated in p ...

. Her mother was Noemi Lisa Milstein de Adler (1910-1976). Shortly after Lomnitz was born, her family moved to live in Colombia. In 1948, when the State of Israel was formed, her family joined the

Kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

movement. In 1950, she married the Chilean

geophysicist Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' som ...

Cinna Lomnitz Cinna Lomnitz Aronsfrau (4 May 1925 – 7 July 2016) was a Chilean-Mexican geophysicist known for his contributions in the fields of rock mechanics and seismology. Early life and education Lomnitz was born to a Jewish family in Cologne, Ger ...

, with whom she lived in Chile and the United States. Their children were Jorge (1954-1993),

Claudio Claudio is an Italian and Spanish first name. In Portuguese it is accented Cláudio. In Catalan and Occitan it is Claudi, while in Romanian it is Claudiu. Origin and history Claudius was the name of an eminent Roman gens, the most important me ...

, Alberto, and Tania. Lomnitz received a bachelor's degree with Honors in Social Anthropology at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

. In 1974, she earned a doctorate in the same specialty at the

Universidad Iberoamericana The Ibero-American University ( es, Universidad Iberoamericana), also referred to by its acronym ''UIA'' but commonly known as ''Ibero'' or ''La Ibero'') is a private, Catholic, Mexican higher education institution, sponsored by the Mexican provi ...

(UIA) of

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Career

In 1967, Lomnitz affiliated with the Center for Mental Health Research at the

University of Chile The University of Chile ( es, Universidad de Chile) is a public research university in Santiago, Chile. It was founded on November 19, 1842, and inaugurated on September 17, 1843.

. In Mexico, she affiliated with the Children's Hospital of the

Secretariat of Health The Secretariat of Health (Spanish Language, Spanish: ''Secretaría de Salud'') is the Ministry (government department), government department in charge of all social health services in Mexico, and an integral part of the Healthcare in Mexico, Mexi ...

, as well as the Center for Technological Innovation and the Institute of Applied Mathematics Research of

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico ( es, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It is consistently ranked as one of the best universities in Latin America, where it's also the bigges ...

. Lomnitz taught

ethnology Ethnology (from the grc-gre, ἔθνος, meaning 'nation') is an academic field that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural anthropology, cultural, social anthropolo ...

and

economic anthropology Economic anthropology is a field that attempts to explain human economic behavior in its widest historic, geographic and cultural scope. It is an amalgamation of economics and anthropology. It is practiced by anthropologists and has a complex re ...

at Universidad Iberoamericana;

Urban sociology Urban sociology is the sociological study of life and human interaction in metropolitan areas. It is a normative discipline of sociology seeking to study the structures, environmental processes, changes and problems of an urban area and by doing ...

and Exchange Systems at the Faculty of Architecture of the

; and Urban

Methodology In its most common sense, methodology is the study of research methods. However, the term can also refer to the methods themselves or to the philosophical discussion of associated background assumptions. A method is a structured procedure for bri ...

and

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...

at the

National School of Anthropology and History National School of Anthropology and History (in Spanish: ''Escuela Nacional de Antropología e Historia, ENAH'') is a Mexican Institution of higher education founded in 1938 and a prominent center for the study of Anthropology and History in the A ...

). She was a visiting professor at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, the Graduate School of Arts and Science of the

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

, the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

, the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...

, the Fundación José Ortega y Gasset, the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

, and the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

among others. She specialized in research and study on how people live and help marginalized classes in Latin America. As with

Oscar Lewis Oscar Lewis, born Lefkowitz (December 25, 1914 – December 16, 1970) was an American anthropologist. He is best known for his vivid depictions of the lives of slum dwellers and his argument that a cross-generational culture of poverty transcen ...

, Lomnitz rejected the relationship between

human migration Human migration is the movement of people from one place to another with intentions of settling, permanently or temporarily, at a new location (geographic region). The movement often occurs over long distances and from one country to another (ex ...

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...

, and disorganization proposed by the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

environmentalist An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with and/or advocates for the protection of the environment. An environmentalist can be considered a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that se ...

s based on the theories of

Richard Adams Richard George Adams (9 May 1920 – 24 December 2016) was an English novelist and writer of the books ''Watership Down'', ''Maia'', ''Shardik'' and ''The Plague Dogs''. He studied modern history at university before serving in the British Army ...

. She conducted studies of the Mexican university world indicating that there were four “life careers”: academic, professional,

ideological An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied prim ...

politics, and

pragmatic Pragmatism is a philosophical movement. Pragmatism or pragmatic may also refer to: *Pragmaticism, Charles Sanders Peirce's post-1905 branch of philosophy *Pragmatics, a subfield of linguistics and semiotics *''Pragmatics'', an academic journal in ...

politics. In the area of

political anthropology Political anthropology is the comparative study of politics in a broad range of historical, social, and cultural settings. History of political anthropology Origins Political anthropology has its roots in the 19th century. At that time, thinkers ...

, she demonstrated that highly centralized systems generate a parallel system of

informal economy An informal economy (informal sector or grey economy) is the part of any economy that is neither taxed nor monitored by any form of government. Although the informal sector makes up a significant portion of the economies in developing countrie ...

, as happened in the former

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. Lomnitz was a member of several societies and academies, including the Mexican Society of Anthropology, the

Mexican Academy of Sciences The Mexican Academy of Sciences ''(Academia Mexicana de Ciencias)'' is a non-profit organization comprising over 1800 distinguished Mexican scientists, attached to various institutions in the country, as well as a number of eminent foreign coll ...

, the Society of Urban Anthropology and Economics, The College of Ethnologists and Anthropologists, and the Javier Barros Sierra Foundation. She served as president of the Society for Latin American Anthropology, and was the director of the War and Peace Studies Commission of the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences. She was a member of the Scientific Committee of the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Forum on Higher Education Research and Knowledge. She was an emeritus researcher for the National System of Researchers and a member of the Science Advisory Council of the Presidency of the Republic. In 2010, she was elected a member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

. Guillermo de la Peña Topete published Lomnitz's biography, ''Larissa Adler Lomnitz: Antropóloga latinoamericana'', in 2004. She died in Mexico City, Mexico, April 13, 2019.

Awards and honors

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...

, 1977 * Premio Universidad Nacional, in the area of social sciences, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), 1990 * Investigadora Emérita,

Sistema Nacional de Investigadores Sistema Nacional de Investigadores (National System of Researchers) or SNI is a governmental agency established in Mexico in 1984 to promote both the quantity and quality of research in Mexico, especially in the sciences. In the 1980s, the countr ...

, 1996 * Honorary doctorate,

University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medica ...

, 1998 * Alfonso Reyes Chair,

, 2000 * Chair of Mexican Studies,

, 2001. * Emeritus Researcher, Institute of Applied Mathematics and Systems Research, UNAM, 2005 *

National Prize for Arts and Sciences The National Prize for Arts and Sciences ( es, Premio Nacional de Ciencias y Artes) is awarded annually by the Government of Mexico in six categories. It is part of the Mexican Honours System and was established in 1945. The prize is a gold medal a ...

, 2006 * Member,

, 2010

Selected works

* ''Reciprocity of Favors in the Middle Class of Chile'', 1971 * ''Networks and marginality (Cerrada del Cóndor, engl.) Life in a Mexican shantytown.'', 1977 * ''¿Cómo sobreviven los marginados?'' * ''A Mexican Elite Family 1820-1980 : Kinship, Class and Culture'', 1987 * ''Chile's middle class : a struggle for survival in the face of neoliberalism'', 1991 * ''Redes sociales cultura y poder : ensayos de antropologia latinoamericana'', 1994 * ''Chile's political culture and parties : an anthropological explanation'' 2000 * ''Simbolismo y ritual en la política mexicana'' * ''Lo formal y lo informal en las sociedades contemporáneas'', 2008 * "Migration" in ''Networks and Marginality'', 1977 * “Supervivencia en una barriada de la ciudad de México” in ''Demografía y Economía'' * "Problemática de la ciencia en México" in ''Ciencia'' * “Anthropology and Development in Latin America” in ''Human Organization''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lomnitz, Larissa Adler 1932 births 2019 deaths 20th-century Chilean women writers 20th-century Mexican women writers 20th-century Mexican writers 21st-century Chilean women writers 21st-century Mexican women writers Academic staff of the University of Chile Chilean anthropologists Mexican anthropologists Chilean women anthropologists Mexican women anthropologists French women educators Mexican women educators Chilean women educators Chilean non-fiction writers Mexican non-fiction writers French people of Romanian-Jewish descent University of California, Berkeley alumni Universidad Iberoamericana alumni Academic staff of the National Autonomous University of Mexico New York University faculty Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences National Prize for Arts and Sciences (Mexico)