Anne Walbank Buckland facts for kids

Anne Walbank Buckland (1832–1899) was a British expert who studied human societies and cultures. She also wrote about her travels. Anne shared new and interesting ideas about myths, symbols, and traditions.

Early Life and Education

Anne Walbank Buckland was born in 1832. Her father, William Buckland, was a civil engineer and surveyor. The family lived in a small village called Bremilham in Wiltshire, England. By the time she was 19, Anne was working as a governess in Netherbury, Dorset.

Becoming an Anthropologist

Anthropology is the study of humans, their societies, cultures, and how they developed over time.

Joining Important Groups

In 1875, Anne Buckland became one of the first women to join The Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. This was a big step, as the Institute had only recently started allowing women to become members. She helped the Institute by donating a photograph. This photo was used to teach other members how to collect good pictures for their research on different cultures.

The president of the Institute, Frederick William Rudler, praised Anne's work. He said that she did more than any other woman in the country to make anthropology popular.

Anne also joined the British Association for the Advancement of Science. She became an honorary member of the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution (BRLSI). She helped organize the anthropology section of their museum. Even though the Royal Colonial Institute did not allow women to be full members during her lifetime, Anne still attended their meetings.

New Ideas in Anthropology

Anne Buckland had some ideas about myths and customs that were different from other experts at the time. For example, she believed that farmers were the first to worship the moon. She thought this moon worship happened before people in places like Egypt and China started worshipping the sun. She also suggested that people who worked with metals were the ones who started worshipping the sun and snakes.

Anne also noticed how important rabbits were in ancient American art and writings. She wondered if this meant that ideas and customs traveled between the Eastern world and prehistoric America, or vice versa.

Some people saw Anne Buckland as an early supporter of "hyperdiffusionism." This idea suggests that parts of ancient cultures spread to other cultures and continents. This happened through trade and people moving around. Later experts, like Sir Grafton Elliot Smith, built on her ideas.

Published Works

Anne Buckland wrote many papers on anthropology. These were published in magazines like The Westminster Review and the Journal of the Anthropological Institute. Many of these papers were first given as talks at scientific meetings.

A collection of her scholarly essays was called Anthropological Studies. This book was recognized around the world. It was even added to the library of the US Bureau of Ethnology in 1883.

Legacy and Collections

Great Britain recognized Anne Buckland's scientific work by adding her to the Civil List Pension. This was an annual money award.

She gave many interesting items to the BRLSI museum. These included stone tools and weapons collected from South Africa by Dr. Langham Dale. Dr. Dale was one of the first experts to find and write about ancient stone tools in southern Africa.

Items connected to Anne Buckland can also be found at the Pitt Rivers Museum. This includes an ancient bored stone from the Cape of Good Hope. Her 1893 book of international recipes, which included historical details, is still considered an important cooking text today. It continues to be printed and is widely available.