Lydia T. Black (; December 16, 1925 – March 12, 2007) was an American anthropologist. She won an

American Book Award The American Book Award is an American literary award that annually recognizes a set of books and people for "outstanding literary achievement". According to the 2010 awards press release, it is "a writers' award given by other writers" and "the ...

for ''Russians in Tlingit America: The Battles of Sitka, 1802 And 1804''. She also received a Historian of the Year award from the

Alaska Historical Society Alaska Historical Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit state historical society in Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the st ...

Life

She grew up in Kyiv. Her father was executed in 1933, and her mother died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

in 1941. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, she was sent to a German forced labor camp. After the war, in Munich, she was a janitor. She was enlisted by the Americans as a translator, at the

United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) was an international relief agency, largely dominated by the United States but representing 44 nations. Founded in November 1943, it was dissolved in September 1948. it became part o ...

displaced children's camp, since she could speak six languages. She married Igor Black, and immigrated in 1950. She graduated from

Brandeis University , mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = NECHE , president = Ronald D. Liebowitz , ...

with a B.A., and M.A. in 1971, and

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, ...

with a Ph.D. in 1973. She taught at Providence College beginning in 1973. She taught at the

University of Alaska Fairbanks The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public land-grant research university in College, Alaska, a suburb of Fairbanks. It is the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. UAF was established in 1917 and opened for c ...

from 1984 to 1998. She worked translating and cataloging the Russian archives of

Saint Herman's Orthodox Theological Seminary Saint Herman’s Orthodox Theological Seminary (russian: Свято-Германовская духовная семинария) is an Orthodox Christian seminary located in Kodiak, Alaska, with a campus in Anchorage. Established as a pastoral sc ...

, earning the Cross of St. Herman. In April 2001, she, along with fellow anthropologist and historian and close colleague Richard Pierce, historians Barbara Sweetland Smith, John Middleton-Tidwell, and Viktor Petrov (posthumous), was decorated by the

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

with the Order of Friendship Medal, which they received at the Russian consulate in San Francisco. She is buried at Kodiak City Cemetery.

Family

She married Igor A. Black (died 1969), an engineer for

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

contractors; they had four daughters.

Works

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References

External links

Dr Lydia Black documents
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Lydia T. 1925 births 2007 deaths American women anthropologists Writers from Kyiv People from Kodiak, Alaska Soviet emigrants to the United States University of Alaska Fairbanks faculty Writers from Alaska 20th-century American women scientists 20th-century American scientists American Book Award winners 20th-century American anthropologists American women academics 21st-century American women