John Ross (1842–1915), (his Chinese name: ) was a Scottish

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

Northeast China Northeast China or Northeastern China () is a geographical region of China, which is often referred to as "Manchuria" or "Inner Manchuria" by surrounding countries and the West. It usually corresponds specifically to the three provinces east of t ...

who established

Dongguan Church Donguang Church (), located in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China, is one of the largest and oldest Protestant churches in Northeast China. It is also known as the cradle of Christianity of the Koreans in China and in the Korean Peninsula. ...

Shenyang Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a major China, Chinese sub-provincial city and the List of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Lia ...

. He is also known for translating the first

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

Bible.

Life

John Ross was born at Rarichie in

Easter Ross Easter Ross ( gd, Ros an Ear) is a loosely defined area in the east of Ross, Highland, Scotland. The name is used in the constituency name Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, which is the name of both a British House of Commons constituenc ...

where

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

was his native language. He received his education at Fearn School,

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

and Theological Hall,

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. In 1872 he was sent by the Scottish United Presbyterian Mission () to

, known at that time as

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...

. John Ross, called in , went first to

Yingkou Yingkou () is a coastal prefecture-level city of central southern Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, on the northeastern shore of Liaodong Bay. It is the third-smallest city in Liaoning with a total area of , and the ninth most populo ...

, then moved to

Mukden Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu name Mukden, is a major Chinese sub-provincial city and the provincial capital of Liaoning province. Located in central-north Liaoning, it is the provi ...

(the present-day

) and established a church there in 1889. This church was called

(East Gate Church) because it was built just outside East Gate, as Christian churches were not allowed within the city wall. It was rebuilt after the

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, the Boxer Insurrection, or the Yihetuan Movement, was an anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by ...

, and is now still used as a Protestant church. He also started a mission in Fushun. While in China, John Ross met traders from Korea one day, and decided to make a Korean translation of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

, which was completed in 1887 and brought to Korea. This was the first Korean version In 1892 he was visited from Korea by

James Scarth Gale James S. Gale (February 19, 1863 – January 31, 1937; in modern Korean 제임스 스카스 게일, in old Sino-Korean characters 奇一 (기일)) was a Canadian Presbyterian missionary, educator and Bible translator in Korea. Early life Gale was ...

. Ross returned to Scotland in 1910, but continued to help the Scotland-China Society. He died in

and is buried there mid-way along the east side of the main north-south path in

Newington Cemetery Newington Cemetery is a cemetery in Edinburgh, Scotland. Technically it lies beyond Newington itself, standing on an awkward elongated kite-shaped site between a railway line and Dalkeith Road, between Prestonfield and Peffermill. History ...

. There is a plaque commemorating John Ross on the sea front at Balintore in Easter Ross.

Family

He was married to Isabella Strapp McFadyen (d.1930) who travelled with him in China.

Recognition

In 1877,

John Gilbert Baker John Gilbert Baker (13 January 1834 – 16 August 1920) was an English botanist. His son was the botanist Edmund Gilbert Baker (1864–1949). Biography Baker was born in Guisborough in North Yorkshire, the son of John and Mary (née Gilber ...

named ''

Iris rossii ''Iris rossii'', the long-tail iris, is a beardless iris in the genus ''Iris'', in the subgenus '' Limniris'' and in the series '' Chinenses'' of the genus. It is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial from Japan, Korea and China. It has narrow, gras ...

'' in his honour. Ray Desmond (Editor).

Works

''Corean primer: being lessons in Corean on all ordinary subjects, transliterated on the principles of the "Mandarin primer", by the same author'' (1877)The Manchus, or The reigning dynasty of China: their rise and progress (1891)

History of Corea, Ancient and Modern; with Description of Manners and Customs, Language and Geography (1891)

References

External links

Father of the Korean Church

Ross and Bible women in the early Protestant mission of northern Korea and Eastern China
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, John Scottish Presbyterian missionaries Presbyterian missionaries in China Presbyterian missionaries in Korea 1842 births 1915 deaths Translators of the Bible into Korean 19th-century translators British expatriates in China British expatriates in Korea Missionary linguists