Professor Emeritus of Sociology Edward Tiryakian is remembered for his pioneering contributions to the field of sociology, his decades of dedication to the University and his thoughtful mentoring of the next generation of scholars.
Tiryakian died at age 95 at his home in Durham Feb. 1. Throughout his over-five-decade tenure at the University, Tiryakian oversaw the development of sociology as an academic discipline all while fostering close relationships across the department and with his students.
“He was a role model that, to me, embodied what a lifelong career in academia meant in terms of your passion for your work, but also the fact that as academics, we're very privileged to be able to pass on what we know,” Professor Emeritus of Sociology Gary Gereffi said.
Tiryakian was born in 1929 and grew up in Bronxville, New York. After completing a bachelor’s degree in sociology at Princeton University, Tiryakian attended Harvard University to pursue a master’s and doctoral degree in sociology. Before coming to Duke, Tiryakian and his wife Josefina Cintron Tiryakian were Fulbright Scholars who conducted research in the Philippines and then went on to teach at Princeton and Harvard.
During his academic career at Duke, Tiryakian served as chair of the department of sociology and anthropology and director of Duke’s Center for International Studies, working to boost the University’s international engagement.
Going beyond theory
In the 1960s, when Duke expanded its academic programs and charted its path towards national prominence, the prospect to “build something” at the “charming Southern private university” appealed to the young Harvard doctorate, according to Professor Emeritus of Sociology Angela O’Rand, Tiryakian’s colleague.
After studying sociology under Talcott Parsons and Pitirim Sorokin, two of the most prominent sociologists of the 20th century who were instrumental in developing the department of sociology at Harvard, Tiryakian arrived in Durham in 1966 and “stuck around until, literally, the end.”
“[Sociology is] a discipline that's managed to hold together in spite of the diversity in thinking and in style and in method,” O’Rand said. “… He was part of a department founded in the ‘50s and ‘60s, which continued to have this kind of respect for each other and for the general discipline and his presence kind of kept that alive as others left.”
Few exemplified the diversity of interest in the field as Tiryakian did, Gereffi said, pointing to Tiryakian’s “unusual breadth.” Throughout Tiryakian’s academic career, his contributions spanned from the classical sociological theories of Emile Durkheim and Max Weber to contemporary questions of modernity and nationalism.
According to Gereffi, what distinguished Tiryakian was his success integrating 19th century sociology principles with 20th century theories and contemporary questions of identity and culture.
“He was a bridge between two worlds that was not common, because sometimes people who do theory just stay in theory,” Gereffi said.
Though Tiryakian specialized in comparative theory and methods, he displayed curiosity and willingness to explore other areas in the field. Gereffi noted that Tiryakian helped expand the sociology department’s presence in the University by supporting the creation of the markets & management studies certificate in 1990 and the establishment of the Global Value Chains Center in 2006, where Gereffi served as founding director.
O’Rand agreed, adding that Tiryakian was always interested in studying people and gathering data. She recalled that Tiryakian would conduct interviews with police officers and airport staff during his travels to learn about their lives.
“He was constantly processing information about people's lives,” O’Rand said. “It was a very humanistic approach, a very humane style of dealing with people in his research.”
In the classroom, Tiryakian’s broad knowledge across the discipline often offered valuable insights into the past. Jess Dawson, Graduate School ‘16, recalled how she thrived in Tiryakian’s learning environment because there were no “[questions] that stumped him.”
Building a ‘family atmosphere’
Those in the sociology department who knew Tiryakian cherished the “family atmosphere” he cultivated that made academic work feel like home.
Gereffi shared that when he first met the professor, Tiryakian warmly welcomed him into his circle. As a colleague, he remembered that Tiryakian invited faculty members to his house, building a community beyond the office.
“[Tiryakian] helped create that community spirit of being part of sociology … that didn't just involve teaching, but involved the faculty getting together with each other as people and families, to kind of share what we were doing,” Gereffi said.
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O’Rand recalled Tiryakian being “down the hall” for over 40 years and how he would always drop by her office for a conversation after a long day at work. She noted that even as a “computerized environment” has facilitated remote work at home, Tiryakian was always present in the office, even during the weekends.
O’Rand also described Tiryakian as a caring individual who acted as a mentor for other scholars.
“He just kind of adopted anybody, no matter what state their career was in, and was willing to share whatever he thought would be helpful to them,” she said.
Dawson remembered her first tour of Duke’s campus, where she met Tiryakian and was surprised by his curiosity about her military background. The exchange marked the start of a fruitful mentorship between the two.
For Dawson, Tiryakian’s encouragement helped her delve into topics that mattered to her. Along with his genuine curiosity in people, she said that Tiryakian’s approachable personality made others feel valued.
“He made [sociology] feel valuable. He made [sociology] feel like it was worth studying, and that was something I badly needed,” Dawson said.
‘Part of his personality’
For O’Rand, Tiryakian’s legacy is defined by his unwavering passion for the field and relentless pursuit of knowledge.
“He just had this steady embrace for what's going on in the world and trying to understand it with the tool kit of ideas that he had,” she said.
After leaving Duke, Dawson found it “comforting” to learn that Tiryakian was “still engaging with the world” when he published his final article in 2020. She believes that Tiryakian should be remembered for his lasting impact on the field as well as the thousands of students he nurtured.
Dawson added that “generations of scholars” at Duke can “trace their lineage” back to Tiryakian.
“He was the real definition of what a great scholar is: … somebody who lives it [and] doesn't just do it as a job, but [makes it] part of his personality,” Gereffi said.
Lucas Lin is a Trinity sophomore and a university news editor of The Chronicle's 120th volume.