Griffen, William B.

Anthropologist, professor and chairman of the Anthropology Dept. at Northern Arizona University.

Anthropologist, served as chair of the Anthropology Department at Northern Arizona University, 1964 to 1968 and 1971 to 1990.

William B. Griffen was born January 30, 1928 in Los Angeles, California. He remained in southern California throughout his childhood and earned a BA in Political Science and Economics from Whittier College in 1951. Two years later, Griffen began graduate studies at Mexico City College, where he was encouraged to study the Seri Indians of Sonora. In the Spring of 1955, Griffen spent five weeks at the coastal Seri village Desemboque, located west of Caborca and north of Kino Bay. He then returned to Mexico City to complete his thesis and received his MA in June, 1955. A version of his thesis was published as Notes on Seri Indian Culture, Desemboque, Sonora, Mexico in 1959.

In 1960, Griffen entered a doctoral program in anthropology at the University of Arizona and was awarded a PhD in 1965. He spent most of his career as a professor in the Anthropology Department at Northern Arizona University, where he was chair of the department from 1964-1968 and 1971-1990.