Louis-Vincent Thomas (20 May 1922 – 22 January 1994) was a French sociologist, anthropologist,

ethnologist 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, social, or sociocultural anthropology) ...

, and scholar whose specialty was

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. He was the founder of

thanatology Thanatology is the scientific study of death and the losses brought about as a result. It investigates the mechanisms and forensic aspects of death, such as bodily changes that accompany death and the postmortem period, as well as wider psycho ...

. After having taught at

Cheikh Anta Diop University Cheikh Anta Diop University (french: Université Cheikh Anta Diop or UCAD), also known as the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar, is a university in Dakar, Senegal. It is named after the Senegalese physicist, historian and anthropologist Chei ...

, he became a sociology professor at Paris Descartes University. His writings deal with

socialism Socialism is a left-wing Economic ideology, economic philosophy and Political movement, movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to Private prop ...

, burials, and systems of thought in sub-Saharan Africa. He conducted comparative studies on death in

Western culture Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions">human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise ''De architectura''. image:Plato Pio-Cle ...

and

African culture African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

. He often denounced the idea that anthropology and sociology are separate areas of study.

Writings

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External links

CAIRNInformation about thanatology
doesn't exist {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Louis-Vincent 1922 births 1994 deaths French anthropologists French ethnologists French sociologists Academic staff of the University of Paris Academic staff of Cheikh Anta Diop University French male writers 20th-century anthropologists 20th-century French male writers

Writings

See also

Bibliography

External links