Holland, W. L. (William Lancelot), 1907-

W.L. Holland, 1938

William Lancelot Holland was born in South Malvern, New Zealand in 1907, the oldest of four sons. He came from humble beginnings: his father was a railroad worker and he worked on sheep stations to support himself. While at Canterbury College, a professor recommended that he work at a conference put on by the Institute of Pacific Relations (IPR) in Japan. So began a more than thirty year association with the organization, serving in various roles: as Research Secretary (1933-1934), Secretary-General (1946-1960), and editor of its periodicals Far Eastern Survey and Pacific Affairs . Holland twice took leave from the organization: in 1934 to pursue a degree in economics at King's College, Cambridge University under the tutelage of John Maynard Keynes, and from 1944-1945 to serve as acting director of the Office of War Information in Chungking, China.

The IPR was immensely important as a forum to discuss the internationalist approach to understanding political relations of the countries around the Pacific Rim. Long before the Far East became a part of the common consciousness as a result of the Pacific Theater in World War II, the IPR advocated increased understanding of Asian-North American relations through rigorous scholarly pursuit. Because of its internationalist philosophy and supposed pro-Communist leanings, the IPR came under attack by Alfred Kohlberg and Joseph McCarthy and was formally investigated under the McCarran act in the 1950s. In 1955, the institute lost its tax exempt status, and it subsequently engaged in a five-year political battle to regain its status. Though the IRS eventually ruled that the IPR was not guilty of spreading any partisan-propaganda, the drain on funds due to taxes and legal fees caused the IPR to disband in 1960. However, they continued to separately publish Pacific Affairs, the institute's journal, with Holland serving as editor until 1978. Pacific Affairs is published to this day.

Upon leaving the Institute in 1960, Holland became head of the newly-created Asian Studies department at the University of British Columbia. Holland led the growth of the department into one of the pre-eminent Asian Studies departments in America. In 1972 he achieved the title of Professor Emeritus, while in 1989 the University Awarded him an honorary Doctorate of Laws due to his contributions to the field of International Law. Holland lived in British Colombia until 1990, when he left after the death of his wife, Doreen. He reloacted to Amherst, Massachusetts to live with his only child, Patricia G. Holland. William L. Holland died at the age of 100 in 2008.

From the guide to the W. L. Holland Papers MS 782., 1907-2008, 1930-1990, (Special Collections and University Archives, University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries)