Stephen O. Murray (May 4, 1950 – August 27, 2019) was an American
anthropologist,
sociologist, and
independent scholar
A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researche ...
based in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
,
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. He was known for extensive scholarly work on the sociology, anthropology, and
comparative history
Comparative history is the comparison of different societies which existed during the same time period or shared similar cultural conditions.
The comparative history of societies emerged as an important specialty among intellectuals in the Enlight ...
of sexual and gender minorities, on
sociolinguistics
Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any or all aspects of society, including cultural Norm (sociology), norms, expectations, and context (language use), context, on the way language is used, and society's effect on languag ...
, history of the
social sciences
Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...
, and as an important editor and organizer of scholarly work in these areas.
Early life and education
Stephen Murray grew up in rural
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
. A member of the second class at
James Madison College
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...
within
Michigan State University, Stephen Murray had an undergraduate double major in social psychology and in Justice, Morality, and Constitutional Democracy. He earned his M.A. degree from the
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory.
T ...
in
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...
in 1975, and a Ph.D. from the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...
, also in
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...
in 1979, and then undertook post-doctoral training in
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 be ...
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 ...
(1980-1982).
Career
His work included studies in
sociolinguistics
Sociolinguistics is the descriptive study of the effect of any or all aspects of society, including cultural Norm (sociology), norms, expectations, and context (language use), context, on the way language is used, and society's effect on languag ...
, history of
social sciences
Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...
(
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 be ...
,
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...
,
linguistics
Linguistics is the science, scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure ...
), and extensive publications on the
historical and cross-cultural social organizations of
homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...
. His main areas of fieldwork were in North America
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, and
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
(with his partner Keelung Hong). He also co-edited books on homosexualities in sub-Saharan Africa and across the Islamic world with
Will Roscoe Will Roscoe (February 8, 1955) is an American activist, scholar, and author based in San Francisco, California.
Early life
Will Roscoe was born on February 8, 1955. He grew up in Missoula, Montana.
Gay activism
Roscoe helped found the Lambda Alli ...
.
With
Regna Darnell
Regna Darnell (born July 10, 1943, Cleveland, Ohio) is an American-Canadian anthropologist and professor of Anthropology and First Nations Studies at the University of Western Ontario, where she has founded the First Nations Studies Program.
Ov ...
, he co-edited the
monographic series "Critical Studies in the History of Anthropology" for the
University of Nebraska Press
The University of Nebraska Press, also known as UNP, was founded in 1941 and is an academic publisher of scholarly and general-interest books. The press is under the auspices of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, the main campus of the Unive ...
. He worked for more than a decade in public health with California county health departments and also wrote on public health issues, particularly in regard to
HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
/
AIDS.
He held positions on the editorial boards of several social science journals including the ''
Journal of Homosexuality
The ''Journal of Homosexuality'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering research into sexual practices and gender roles in their cultural, historical, interpersonal, and modern social contexts.
History
The founding editor-in-chief was C ...
'' and the ''Histories of Anthropology Annual'', and was a contributor to the online encyclopedia of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer culture, GLBTQ and other reference volumes. He was a regular contributor at epinions.com and associatedcontent.com.
Stephen Murray died in San Francisco, California on August 27, 2019 of complications of a
B-cell lymphoma
The B-cell lymphomas are types of lymphoma affecting B cells. Lymphomas are "blood cancers" in the lymph nodes. They develop more frequently in older adults and in immunocompromised individuals.
B-cell lymphomas include both Hodgkin's lympho ...
.
Selected publications
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* (Rev. ed. of ''Theory groups and the study of language in North America: a social history'' (1994).
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References
External links
Stephen Murrayat
glbtq: An Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Culture.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, Stephen O.
1950 births
2019 deaths
Michigan State University alumni
University of Arizona alumni
American sociologists
Cultural anthropologists
LGBT anthropologists
American gay writers
American sexologists
American anthropologists
LGBT scientists from the United States
Gay scientists
Independent scholars
Deaths from lymphoma