Biography.guide
Home › People › Anthropologist › Ann Chowning
Portrait of Ann Chowning

Ann Chowning

1929 – 2016

American anthropologist

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Ann Chowning

Lived 1929 – 2016 (aged 86). Ann Chowning was an American anthropologist, ethnographer and archaeologist.

Martha Ann Chowning (18 April 1929 – 25 February 2016) was an American anthropologist, ethnographer, archaeologist and linguist known for her work on the peoples, languages, cultures and histories of Oceania.

Biography Chowning was born on 18 April 1929, in Little Rock, Arkansas. Raised in Arkansas, Chowning studied Spanish at Bryn Mawr College and anthropology at Barnard College, Columbia, before beginning her PhD in anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania in 1952. There she was taught by Ward Goodenough, who engaged her in a project on the Lakalai people of Papua New Guinea. After finishing her PhD in 1957, Chowning subsequently revisited the Lakalai many times between the 1960s and 1990s, and carried out comparative fieldwork on Molima, Sengseng, and Kove.

Chowning was awarded an Honorary Life Membership of the Association of Social Anthropologists of Aotearoa/New Zealand (ASAA/NZ).

Iris 'Ann Chowning' is a beardless iris, described as having "intense, velvety red flowers with deep yellow highlights", bred by Chowning's father, lawyer Frank Chowning, and presumably named in her honour.

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Education
Bryn Mawr College, University of Pennsylvania, Australian National University, University of Papua New Guinea
Positions held
Full professor, Honorary fellow
Employers
Barnard College, Australian National University, University of Papua New Guinea, Victoria University of Wellington
Also known as
Martha Ann Chowning, Martha A Chowning, Martha Chowning, M. Ann Chowning, MA Chowning

People in Ann Chowning's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Ann Chowning's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Ann Chowning?

American anthropologist (1929–2016)

When was Ann Chowning born?

Ann Chowning was born on 18 April 1929 in Little Rock.

When did Ann Chowning die?

Ann Chowning died on 25 February 2016 in Auckland.

What was Ann Chowning's occupation?

Ann Chowning was an anthropologist, ethnographer and archaeologist.

What nationality was Ann Chowning?

Ann Chowning was American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Ann Chowning

· Wikidata: Q55946614

· DBpedia: Ann Chowning

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Ann Chowning. https://biography.guide/ann-chowning/

MLA: "Ann Chowning." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/ann-chowning/.

Chicago: "Ann Chowning." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/ann-chowning/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:28 UTC