Aparna Rao

Aparna Rao
Born	(1950-02-03)February 3, 1950[1] New Delhi, India
Died	June 28, 2005(2005-06-28) (aged 55)
Citizenship	Germany[2]
Spouse	Michael Casimir
Awards	Choice
Academic background
Education	Doctor of Philosophy
Alma mater	University of Strasbourg (M.A.) Paris-Sorbonne University (Ph.D.)
Thesis	Les Sinté du Pays Rhénan. Essai d'une Monographie d'un Sous–groupe Tsigane (M.A.) Les Ghorbat d'Afghanistan. Aspects Économiques d'un Groupe Itinerant 'Jat'[note 1] (Ph.D.)[1]
Doctoral advisor	Xavier de Planhol[1]
Academic work
Discipline	Anthropology
Sub-discipline	Ethnography Ethnology
Institutions	Former co-chairperson, Commission on Nomadic Peoples of the International Union of Ethnological and Anthropological Sciences

Aparna Rao (February 3, 1950 – June 28, 2005) was a German anthropologist who performed studies on social groups in Afghanistan, France, and some regions of India. Her doctorate studies focused on anthropogeography, ethnology, and Islamic studies. Rao taught anthropology at the University of Cologne, serving for a brief time as chair of the Department of Ethnology at the South Asia Institute of Heidelberg University, Germany.

Rao's research focused on peripatetic, agrarian populations in Afghanistan, France, Jammu, Kashmir, and western Rajasthan. Rao researched the impact of the conflict in Kashmir on the environment and lives of people. Her 1982 work, Les Ġhorbat d'Afghanistan. Aspects Économiques d'un Groupe Itinérant 'Jat', researched the ethnic makeup and local economy of Afghanistan. Her book Autonomy: Life Cycle, Gender, and Status among Himalayan Pastoralists received the 1999 Choice award.

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