Muhammad Anwar

Muhammad Anwar, OBE (4 April 1945 – 11 June 2020) was a British-Pakistani sociologist who specialised in the study of race and ethnicity.

Anwar was born in Sargodha. His father was a senior civil servant.

Anwar's publications included the books Between Two Cultures (1976), The Myth of Return (1979), Race and Politics (1986), British Pakistanis: Demographic, Social and Economic Position (1996) and Between Cultures (1998). In 2007, he was awarded an OBE for services to education.

Anwar's research highlighted that democratic political participation was as a key factor when it came to improving race relations. In his 1976 book on Pakistanis in the UK, Between Two Cultures, he wrote that "racism and discrimination were rife, and participation in the political process was very low". Tahir Abbas writes that Anwar had a "subjective, but also deeply proactive, commitment to integration through political participation and engagement. He understood the importance of taking part in society to activate the rights and responsibilities individuals have as citizens but also to make a difference in race relations". According to Abbas, Anwar's most significant contribution to the sociology of ethnic relations came in The Myth of Return, which was based on his PhD research.