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Peter Loizos, a great supporter of the Refugee Studies Centre, passed away on March 2 after a short illness.

Peter Loizos
Peter Loizos

Professor of Anthropology at the London School of Economics until his retirement in 2002, Peter was an eminent anthropologist who demonstrated a long term commitment both to the study of refugees and to the Refugee Studies Centre.

Peter was involved in the RSC almost from its inception, lecturing at the Centre's Summer School in Forced Migration, giving a highly praised Elizabeth Colson Lecture in 1998 on 'Half-life of the Ottoman Empire: long term studies of four communities, 1895–1995', and serving, in recent years, as a much valued Research Associate. He also used his prodigious knowledge of film to establish a documentary guide to films related to forced migration that is still used on courses taught at the RSC.

Peter's scholarship on refugees has also been highly influential. He published a number of important articles in the Journal of Refugee Studies on topics that included generations of forced migrants and on the health and well being of Cypriot refugees. His book on Cypriot refugees, The Heart Grown Bitter, prompted by his own ancestry, is widely cited by scholars to this day. Other works included pieces on 'misconceiving refugees' and Iron in the Soul, a book on displacement, livelihoods and health in Cyprus.

Peter Loizos' dedication and scholarship have profoundly influenced the modern field of refugee studies. He will be greatly missed.

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