James George Frazer

Born in Glasgow in 1854, he studied at the University of Glasgow and then at Trinity College, Cambridge. He became one of the most widely read interpreters of myth and belief in the English-speaking world, bringing together stories, rituals, and customs from many cultures in an effort to understand how people make sense of life, nature, and the sacred.

His most famous work, The Golden Bough, began as a two-volume study and grew into a much larger project that made his name internationally. He also translated and edited classical texts and wrote on topics ranging from ancient religion to folklore, combining classical scholarship with a broad comparative approach.

Frazer was knighted in 1914 and later received the Order of Merit. Although many of his ideas have been debated and revised by later scholars, his writing had a lasting impact on anthropology, comparative religion, and literature. He died in Cambridge in 1941.