ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an auto-biographical review of Edward A. Tiryakian's journey into the intellectual and social-political contexts. Edward's entire academic career has been as a sociologist, from being an undergraduate major to becoming emeritus, a milestone in anyone's career, to be sure, but for him not the end point of being professionally active in coming years. The trajectory that he have taken has other elements in his fields of research and major preoccupations, since if theory is a primary area of self-identification, he also much taken with interaction of theory and questions of religion, ethnicity and ethnic conflicts, national identity, development, and modernity. To provide a simple structure to a rather complex excursion, he follows a modified chronological route of tracing the career in four major stages: childhood years, formative years, early adult years and mature years. Mel Tumin was not only Edward's advisor but also opened his home to Edward, which for an undergraduate student was almost a privilege.
