Cordwainer Smith (, ) was the pen-name used by American author
Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger (July 11, 1913 – August 6, 1966) for his science fiction works. Linebarger was a noted
East Asia scholar and expert in
psychological warfare. ("Cordwainer" is an archaic word for "a worker in cordwain or cordovan
leather; a
shoemaker", and a "smith" is "one who works in
iron or other metals; esp. a
blacksmith or
farrier": two kinds of skilled workers with traditional materials.) Linebarger also employed the literary pseudonyms "Carmichael Smith" (for his political thriller
Atomsk), "Anthony Bearden" (for his poetry) and "Felix C. Forrest" (for the novels
Ria and
Carola). He died of a heart attack in 1966 at Johns Hopkins University Medical Center in
Baltimore,
Maryland, at age 53.