William Feindel

William Howard Feindel (July 12, 1918 – January 12, 2014 ) was a Canadian neurosurgeon, scientist and professor.

Born in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, he received a B.A. in Biology from Acadia University in 1939, a M.Sc. from Dalhousie University in 1942, and an M.D., C.M. from McGill University in 1945.

After completing his residency, Feindel was in neurosurgical practice for two years with Wilder Penfield at the Montreal Neurological Institute. In 1955 he founded the Neurosurgical Department at the University Hospital in Saskatoon. Feindel discovered the role of the amygdala in patients with temporal lobe seizures, which, with related studies at the MNI, led to the operation of antero-mesial temporal lobe resection often referred to as "the Montreal procedure", an operation adopted worldwide for the surgical cure of many thousands of patients with epilepsy.

Feindel was curator of the Wilder Penfield Archive. He was the Chancellor of Acadia University from 1991 to 1996 and then Honorary Governor. In 1982 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. In 1983 he received an honorary LLD from Mt Allison University. In 1984 he received an honorary D.Sc from McGill University. In 2002 he was made a Grand Officer of the National Order of Quebec. In 2003 he was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame. In 2004 he was inducted into L'Academie des Grand Montrealais.