Darrell A. Posey
| Darrell Addison Posey | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 14, 1947 Henderson, Kentucky |
| Died | March 6, 2001 Oxford, UK |
| Nationality | USA |
| Fields |
Entomology, Ethnobiology |
| Institutions | Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi |
| Alma mater |
Louisiana State University B.A., M.A. University of Georgia Ph.D. Anthropology |
| Doctoral advisor | Michael D. Olien |
| Other academic advisors | William G. Haag |
| Known for | Defense of Amazonian Indians and indigenous intellectual property rights |
| Notable awards | UN Global 500 award |
Darrell Addison Posey (March 14, 1947 – March 6, 2001) was an American anthropologist and biologist who vitalized the study of traditional knowledge of indigenous and folk populations in Brazil and other countries. He called his approach ethnobiology and combined research with respect for other cultures, especially indigenous intellectual property rights.
An obituary described him as an "anthropologist who gave up scholarly detachment to fight for the rights of native peoples." He never married and was survived by his parents and brother. He died of a brain tumor, at 53 years of age, in Oxford, England, where he made his home after 1992.
Darrell A. Posey was born on March 14, 1947, son of Henry and Pearl Posey, in rural Henderson, Kentucky. From an early age he was a member of the Anglican Church. Educated at Henderson County High School, he had a biology teacher, Mr. Ned Barra, who encouraged his interest in insects.
In 1970, Posey was graduated with a B.Sc. in Entomology, by the Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He obtained a M.A. in Anthropology, in 1974, also at the Louisiana State University, with the thesis The Fifth Ward Settlement: A Tri Racial Marginal Group. He obtained a Ph.D. in Anthropology, in 1979, at the University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, with the thesis Ethnoentomology of the Gorotire Kayapó of Central Brazil.
Posey's switch from entomology to anthropology was due to his friendship with anthropology professor William G. Haag at Louisiana State University. This is explained in a memorial by Posey.
Even after his move to anthropology, Posey did not cut his ties with entomology. At the University of Georgia, he was a close associate of entomology professor Murray S. Blum. Years afterward, he continued to research the ethnobiology of insects, a field he termed "ethnoentomology" in his 1979 doctoral thesis.
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