Background
Roger David Abrahams was born on June 12, 1933, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
Roger David Abrahams was born on June 12, 1933, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
Roger Abrahams had a Doctor of Philosophy in Literature and Folklore.
Abrahams' career began almost immediately after he obtained his Doctor of Philosophy in Literature and Folklore, first at the University of Texas as an instructor (1960-1963), assistant professor (1963-1966), and then associate professor (1966-1969) in the Department of English. He became a full professor in 1969 in the departments of English and Anthropology and remained there for ten years.
While a professor, Roger Abrahams also served for two years beginning in 1968 as the Associate Director for the Center for Intercultural Studies in Folklore and Oral History and for five years beginning in 1974 as department chairman.
From Texas, Roger Abrahams moved to Scripps College and Pitzer College in Claremont, California, where he was Alexander H. Kenan Professor of Humanities and Anthropology for six years.
In 1986 Roger Abrahams returned to the University of Pennsylvania, where he taught Folklore and Folklife and was named the Hum Rosen Professor of Folklore and Folklife, and founded the Center for Folklore and Ethnography.
Roger Abrahams was the author of a large number of books, among which Everyday Life: A Poetics of Vernacular Practices is a recent title, and was the founding Director of Penn's Center for Folklore and Ethnography, a research and public outreach unit associated with the Department of Folklore and Folklife.
Roger Abrahams was married to Janet Anderson.
