Edgar Henry Sibley

Edgar Henry Sibley died peacefully at home in Oakton, Virginia on January 12, 2020. He was surrounded by the love of his devoted wife and children. He leaves a remarkable legacy.

Born on December 19, 1926, Edgar came of age in London during the Second World War. He studied at the University of London and Massachusetts Institute of Technology with his formal education culminating in an ScD in Mechanical Engineering. He was a researcher and educator at the University of Michigan, University of Maryland, and finally a University Professor and Eminent Scholar with appointments in the School of Information Technology and Engineering and the Institute for Public Policy at George Mason University. He retired in 2011.

Edgar was a pioneer in early computing. He served on several national and international standards committees. His seminal work on relational and networked data storage and the popularization of multi-schema database architectures profoundly impacted database management and practices in civil, military, and business organizations. A privacy and e-commerce expert, he was active in most areas of large scale information and general systems design. Edgar also served as the Chairman of the Board of Editors of Information and Management since its inception in 1977 and was an associate editor of several other journals and professional organizations, including Association of Computing Machinery (ACM). Over 100 of his articles have been published.

Described by his colleagues as outspoken, impatient, honorable, and loyal, his professional relationships were based on sincere kinship rather than reciprocal power. He was a father figure and a mentor to many, judging people on intellectual merit and integrity alone. Edgar had little regard for hierarchy or convention. He was direct, honest, and generous to a fault.

Edgar was a man of science with an abiding love of the Arts. He dragged his family through museums, galleries, and theaters with childish delight. He recited Shakespeare, sang Gilbert & Sullivan, and voiced Roald Dahl with equal relish. His version of romance was snuggling up to read Beowulf with his wife.

Edgar was a man of the world who loved to explore new places, foods, and cultures. He returned home with totems, scrimshaw, jade tigers, netsuke, duck decoys, and life-sized Modiglianis… to his wife’s delight and his children’s bewilderment. He was a modest man who required little from the world. He was content with a kiss, a warm beer, and World of Warcraft.

Edgar taught his children to fight to be heard. He may have regretted this as he waited endlessly for his turn to speak at the dinner table. He loved nothing better than a full, bustling house experienced from the calm of his study. He rarely gave his children advice or directives, except in the car. He was a back seat driver, bar none. He set expectations, provided opportunities, and led by example. He was remarkably tolerant, ready to trust, quick to forgive, and never took himself too seriously.

Edgar will be honored by his wife and children, who will carry his memory in their hearts forever.

This was written by those who love Edgar Henry Sibley. We laughed through tears as we recalled stories and struggled to find the right words to honor him. In lieu of flowers we would appreciate your memories at: ehsibley2020@gmail.com. You can honor his memory with a trip to a museum or donate to the Smithsonian https://giving.si.edu/donate-now?selected=memorial or National Geographic Foundation https://give.nationalgeographic.org/page/48835/donate/1

Sonnet 73

That time of year thou mayst in me behold

When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang

Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,

Bare ruin’d choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.

In me thou seest the twilight of such day

As after sunset fadeth in the west,

Which by and by black night doth take away,

Death’s second self, that seals up all in rest.

In me thou see’st the glowing of such fire

That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,

As the death-bed whereon it must expire

Consumed with that which it was nourish’d by.

This thou perceivest, which makes thy love more strong,

To love that well which thou must leave ere long.