FRIEDRICH, Adolf. Hofheim am Taunus 22.4.1914 — Rawalpindi 25.4.1956. German Anthropologist. Professor in Mainz. Son of the Reichsbahnoberinspector Ernst Friedrich and Wilhelmine Rauber. Educated in Frankfurt a.M., then from 1933 studies of anthropology and Indology at Frankfurt (under Frobenius, Lommel, et al.). Ph.D. 1939 Frankfurt. PD 1942 Vienna (but 1938-45 in army). PD 1946 Mainz. From 1947 ao. Professor für Völkerkunde at Mainz. In the school of Frobenius, his early interests lied in Africa, then moved to Eurasia. In Mainz he organized the German Kongo-Expedition 1951-54 and the German Hindukush-Expedition 1955-56, which he himself directed. In this fieldwork in Gilgit Agency he was assisted by G. Buddruss, K. Jettmar and P. Snoy. The strain of the mountain country was too much for his health, already precarious from war experiences, he got a heart attack in Kalash and died soon. His notebooks were later much used by Jettmar and Snoy. Unmarried.

Publications: Diss. Afrikanische Priestertümer. 10+390 p. St. 1939

– With G. Buddruss: Schamanengeschichten aus Sibirien. 326 p. Munich 1955..

– Published not much, mainly articles.

Sources: Jettmar 1975, 10; V. Kokot, germananthropology.com with photo; W.E. Mühlmann, N.D.B. 5, 1961, 600; *H. Nachtigall, Zeitschrift für Ethnologie 81, 1956, 303-306; *I. Stellrecht, “Feldforschung als Erfahrung – Adolf Friedrich und Karl Jettmar in Nordpakistan”, 60 Jahre Institut für Ethnologie und Afrikastudien. Mainzer Beitr. zur Afrikaforschung 15. Cologne 2006, 23-48 (possibly also other articles there); German Wikipedia briefly.