Herbert William Williams (10 October 1860 – 7 December 1937) was the 6th

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

Bishop of Waiapu The Diocese of Waiapu is one of the thirteen dioceses and hui amorangi of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The Diocese covers the area around the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand, including Tauranga, Tau ...

and a distinguished

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 ...

scholar. Williams was born at Waerenga-ā-Hika,

Gisborne, New Zealand Gisborne ( mi, Tūranga-nui-a-Kiwa "Great standing place of Kiwa") is a city in northeastern New Zealand and the largest settlement in the Gisborne District (or Gisborne Region). It has a population of The district council has its headquarter ...

, the son of Sarah Williams and Leonard Williams. He was educated at

Christ's College, Christchurch Christ's College, Canterbury is an independent Anglican secondary day and boarding school for boys, located in the city centre of Christchurch, New Zealand. Founded in 1850 by Reverend Henry Jacobs in Lyttelton as a school for early settlers, ...

, The

University of New Zealand The University of New Zealand was New Zealand's sole degree-granting university from 1874 to 1961. It was a collegiate university embracing several constituent institutions at various locations around New Zealand. After it was dissolved in 196 ...

and

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...

; graduating

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

(BA) in 1884. He was ordained in 1886, then embarked on his ecclesiastical career with a

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

West Wratting West Wratting is a village and civil parish 10 miles southeast of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire. At above sea level, it can claim to be one of the highest villages in Cambridgeshire. The parish covers 3,543 acres in south east Cambridge, a thin ...

, Cambridge diocese, Ely from 1886-1888. Williams married Bertha Mason on 27 September 1888 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Their children include Nigel Williams (a priest; 23 March 1901 – 25 July 1980). He was a member of the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...

(CMS). From March 1890 to 1894 he was a tutor at Te Rau Kahikatea Theological College, which had been established in Gisborne by his father, Leonard Williams. He became the vice-principal in 1894, and from 1894 to 1902 he was the principal of the college. He was appointed as the

Superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

of the Missionary East Coast District. He established Te Rau Press, which published religious texts including ''Te Māramataka'', a

lectionary A lectionary ( la, lectionarium) is a book or listing that contains a collection of scripture readings appointed for Christianity, Christian or Judaic worship on a given day or occasion. There are sub-types such as a "gospel lectionary" or evang ...

, from 1899 to 1921. From 1907 to 1930 he was

Archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...

of Waiapu. In that year he followed in the footsteps of his grandfather ( William Williams, the first

) and his father ( Leonard Williams, the third) and was appointed to the

episcopate A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, "Who was Who" 1897-1990 London,

A & C Black A & C Black is a British book publishing company, owned since 2002 by Bloomsbury Publishing. The company is noted for publishing '' Who's Who'' since 1849. It also published popular travel guides and novels. History The firm was founded in 18 ...

, 1991 at Waiapu Cathedral. Williams campaigned with

Āpirana Ngata Sir Āpirana Turupa Ngata (3 July 1874 – 14 July 1950) was a prominent New Zealand statesman. He has often been described as the foremost Māori politician to have served in Parliament in the mid-20th century, and is also known for his work ...

for the recognition of Māori language as a subject for study in the University of New Zealand, with the study of Māori becoming eligible for a degree of bachelor of arts in 1928. In 1917 Williams published the fifth edition of ''A dictionary of the New Zealand language'', which updated the work of his father and grandfather. Williams received honorary doctorates in literature from the Universities of New Zealand (1924) and Cambridge (1925). In 1923 he was made a Fellow of the

Royal Society of New Zealand Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

and he was the president of the Royal Society of New Zealand from 1935 to 1936, and president of the

Polynesian Society The Polynesian Society is a non-profit organisation based at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, dedicated to the scholarly study of the history, ethnography, and mythology of Oceania. History The society was co-founded in 1892 by Percy ...

from 1929 until his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Herbert 1860 births 1937 deaths People from Gisborne, New Zealand People educated at Christ's College, Christchurch University of New Zealand alumni Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge Anglican archdeacons in New Zealand Anglican bishops of Waiapu 20th-century Anglican bishops in New Zealand 20th-century New Zealand writers 20th-century New Zealand male writers Fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand Presidents of the Royal Society of New Zealand