David Roy Simmons (6 September 1930 – 30 November 2015), also known as Rawiri Te Puru Terehou, was a New Zealand ethnologist, historian and author.

Biography

Born in 1930, Simmons studied at

Victoria University College Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

and the

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

, graduating from the latter with a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

with honours. From 1962 to 1968 he was the keeper in anthropology at

Otago Museum Tūhura Otago Museum is located in the city centre of Dunedin, New Zealand. It is adjacent to the University of Otago campus in Dunedin North, 1,500 metres northeast of the city centre. It is one of the city's leading attractions and has one of t ...

in Dunedin. He was appointed as the ethologist at the Auckland Institute and Museum in 1968, and became the assistant director of

Auckland War Memorial Museum The Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira (or simply the Auckland Museum) is one of New Zealand's most important museums and war memorials. Its collections concentrate on New Zealand history (and especially the history of the Aucklan ...

in 1978. He wrote many books relating to

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

art, culture and history, including: * ''The Maori Hei-tiki'' (1966) with Henry Devenish Skinner * ''The Great New Zealand Myth'' (1976) * ''Tā Moko'' (1986) * ''Whakairo'' (1994) He is credited with effectively demolishing Percy Smith's "

great fleet Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

" hypothesis. He also edited: * J.D.H. Buchanan's ''The Māori History and Place Names of Hawke's Bay'' (1973) *

George Graham George Graham (born 30 November 1944), nicknamed "Stroller", is a Scottish former Association football, football player and manager (association football), manager. In his successful playing career, he made 455 appearances in England's Football ...

's ''Maori Place Names of Auckland'' (first published 1980). In the 1985 Queen's Birthday Honours, Simmons was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, for services to ethnology and the Māori people, and in 2013 he was awarded the Auckland Museum Medal and appointed an associate emeritus of Auckland War Memorial Museum. Simmons died on 30 November 2015.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Simmons, David 1930 births 2015 deaths Victoria University of Wellington alumni University of Auckland alumni New Zealand ethnologists 20th-century New Zealand historians New Zealand Members of the Order of the British Empire Writers from Auckland 20th-century New Zealand male writers People associated with the Auckland War Memorial Museum