Sonja Luehrmann/Соня Люрман (1975–2019)

It is hard to register the grim news that Sonja Luehrmann is no longer with us. I had the pleasure of teaching her in the introductory course for doctoral students in history at the University of Michigan. For complicated logistical reasons having to do with the fact that she was a student in the innovative Anthro-History Program rather than in history alone, Sonja ended up taking the introductory class in her second rather than her first year. The fit was uncomfortable in every way. Not only was she already a seasoned second-year graduate student amid a crop of fresh arrivals, still wet behind the ears, but she brought with her the rigor, theoretical sophistication, and intellectual heft that would distinguish her throughout her career. This was not simply a product of one extra year of training, but rather a defining characteristic of Sonja as a person and a thinker. She exuded an intellectual and personal gravitas that made her a formidable presence even so early on. She was already at that point impressively learned, steeped in theory, and intellectually demanding. Already she displayed the dignified thoughtfulness and fundamental seriousness that would propel her to do such important work, to explore possibilities fully, honestly, and to reach substantive conclusions.

In subsequent years, as our research interests increasingly intersected, I was fortunate to get to know her better both personally and professionally. I was happy and even honored when she began to send me updates from her new life at Simon Fraser. She and I talked infrequently over the years but, I think, in ways that mattered. We weighed the rewards and challenges of balancing family and career, a feat that she accomplished with grace. We celebrated the joyful milestones: her great job and publications, her wonderful marriage to her beloved Ilya, her growing family. Both in her life and in her brilliant work she accomplished astonishing things in far too short a time.