Sylvia M. Broadbent, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at the University of California, Riverside, was born in London on February 26, 1932. In 1947, her family immigrated to the United States and settled in Carmel, California, where Broadbent finished high school the following year at the age of 16. She began her undergraduate studies at the University of California, Berkeley in the fall of 1948, graduating with highest honors in 1952. Broadbent remained at Berkeley for graduate school, earning her Ph.D. in Anthropology in 1960. She wrote her dissertation on the Southern Sierra Miwok language.

Dr. Broadbent's teaching career began in the spring quarter of 1961 when she taught a linguistics course at Northwestern University. She moved to New York City in September of 1961, taking up a position in the Anthropology Department at Columbia University's Barnard College. In the fall of 1964, Broadbent relocated to Bogotá, Colombia to teach at the Universidad de Los Andes, where she stayed for approximately two years.

Her academic career at UC Riverside began in the fall of 1966. During her tenure at UCR, she has taught courses on topics studied in her research, including linguistics, symbolism, and language and culture. Her specialties include archaeology, ethnohistory, and descriptive and historical linguistics. Much of her research is focused on the Chibcha culture of Colombia and North American Indians of California and the Desert West. Broadbent has served as Chairman for the Anthropology Department as well as Administrator for the Archaeological Research Unit. A fellowship at UC Riverside has been named in her honor and provides support for graduate students in Anthropology.

In addition to her formal work as a professor and scholar, Broadbent devoted significant time to extracurricular activities and organizations of various types.