Sir Richard Olaf Winstedt (2 August 1878 – 2 June 1966), or more commonly R. O. Winstedt, was an English
Orientalist and colonial administrator with expertise in
British Malaya
The term "British Malaya" (; ms, Tanah Melayu British) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. ...
.
Life and career
Winstedt was born in Oxford and educated at
Magdalen College School and
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at ...
, from which he received an MA. His brother was
Eric Otto Winstedt, a
Latinist and
gypsiologist.
In 1902 he became a cadet in the Federated Malay States Civil Service, and was posted to
Perak
Perak () is a state of Malaysia on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula. Perak has land borders with the Malaysian states of Kedah to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, and Selangor to the south. Thailand' ...
where he studied Malay language and culture. In 1913 he was appointed District Officer in
Kuala Pilah
Kuala Pilah (Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Kolo Pilah''), or simply Pilah, is a town in Kuala Pilah District, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.
Townscape
Kuala Pilah is an old valley town with many of the pre-war Chinese shop houses still fronting the ...
, and in 1916 appointed to the Education Department. In 1920 he received his
DLitt
Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...
degree from
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. He married
Sarah Winstedt, a physician and surgeon with the
Colonial Medical Service
The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...
whom he had met in Kuala Pilah, in 1921.
He served as the first President of
Raffles College, Singapore, 1928–1931. During his presidency, he also served as acting Secretary to the High Commissioner, 1923, Director of Education for
Straits Settlements
The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore for more than a century, it was originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Com ...
and
Federated Malay States
)Under God's Protection
, capital = Kuala Lumpur1
, religion = Islam
, legislature = Federal Legislative Council
, type_house1 = State level
, common_languages =
, title_leader = Monarch
, leader1 ...
(FMS), as a member of Legislative Council, Straits Settlements, 1924–1931 and as a member of the FMS Federal Council, 1927–1931. He was president of the
Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society in 1927, 1929 and 1931. After a term as General Adviser to
Johore
Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares maritime bor ...
, 1931–1935, Winstedt retired from the Malayan Civil Service.
He returned to England and was appointed Lecturer, then Reader, and ultimately Honorary Fellow, in Malay at the
School of Oriental Studies
SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ar ...
in London, where he also served as a member of the Governing Body, 1939–1959. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, he broadcast in Malay to Japanese-occupied Malaya. He retired from active teaching in 1946.
Winstedt served on numerous boards and advisory groups, most notably at the
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...
in London, of which he was repeatedly the president and a Gold Medallist in 1947. Other organisations included the
Association of British Malaya, of which he was president in 1938, the Colonial Office Advisory Committee on Education, 1936–1939, and the
Royal India Society. He was a Fellow of the
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences.
It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars s ...
, an Honorary Member of the
Southeast Asia Institute, the
Royal Batavian Society, and the
Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde.
Accomplishments
He was instrumental in preserving several works of Malay literature including ''
The Malay Annals'' as well as producing important works regarding the Malays and their language such as ''
A History of Malaya'' and ''
A Dictionary of Malay Language''. According to ''Australian Journal of Politics and History'', "Winstedt was the first British scholar to make a systematic survey of Malay material for historical purposes, and laid the true foundation of a scientific approach to the writing of Malayan history."
He also played an important role in the Malayan and Singaporean education system. Specifically, he was interested in educating the Malays. Upon his suggestion,
Sultan Idris Training College was established in 1922 with the purpose of producing Malay teachers. In 1997, the Malaysian government upgraded the institution into a university.
In the
1926 Birthday Honours
The 1926 Birthday Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the British Empire. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birthday of The King on 3 June, ...
list, Winstedt was made a Companion of the
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III.
It is named in honour ...
by the British sovereign to honour his contributions. He was made
Knight Commander 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 ...
in 1935, and received an Honorary LLD from
University of Malaya
The University of Malaya ( ms, Universiti Malaya, UM; abbreviated as UM or informally the Malayan University) is a public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest and highest ranking Malaysian institution of highe ...
in 1951.
Winstedt's papers are archived at the
School of Oriental and African Studies
SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ...
.
Selected works
History and society
* ''Arts and Crafts'' (Papers on Malay Subjects; Malay industries, pt. 1), Kuala Lumpur: F.M.S. Government Press, 1909.
* ''The Circumstances of Malay Life: The kampong. The house. Furniture. Dress. Food'' (Papers on Malay Subjects; no. 2), Kuala Lumpur: F.M.S. Government Press, 1909.
* ''Fishing, Hunting and Trapping'' (Papers on Malay Subjects; Malay industries, pt. 2), Kuala Lumpur: F.M.S. Government Press, 1911.
* ''Malayan Memories'', Singapore: Kelly & Walsh, 1916.
* ''Malaya: the Straits Settlements and the Federated and Unfederated Malay States'', London: Constable, 1923.
* ''Shaman, Saiva and Sufi: a study of the evolution of Malay magic'', London: Constable, 1925.
* ''A History of Johore'', Singapore, 1932.
* ''A Malay History of Riau and Johore, etc.'' (Malay text of the ''Tuḣfat al-nafīs''), Singapore, 1932.
* ''Right Thinking and Right Living: a primer on moral & social topics, etc.'', Singapore : Malaya Publishing House, 1933.
* ''A History of Perak'', Singapore, 1934.
* ''A History of Malaya'', Singapore, 1935.
* ''Britain and Malaya, 1786–1941'', London, 1944.
* ''The Malays: a cultural history'', Singapore: Kelly & Walsh, 1947.
Language and texts
* ''Cherita jenaka: ya-itu Pa Kadok, Pa Pandir, Lebai Malang, Pa Belalang, Si Lunchai'', Singapore: Methodist Publishing House, 1908 (folk tales, written down by Raja Haji Yahya; joint editor with A. J. Sturrock).
**New ed. Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press, 1963
* ''Hikayat Anggun Che Tunggal'', Singapore: Methodist Publishing House, 1914 (folk tale; joint editor with A. J. Sturrock).
* ''Pantun Melayu'', Singapore: Methodist Publishing House, 1914 (Malay Literature Series). Co-author:
Richard James Wilkinson
Richard James Wilkinson (29 May 1867 – 5 December 1941) was a British Colonial administrator, scholar of Malay, and historian. The son of a British Consul, Richard James Wilkinson was born in 1867 in Salonika ( Thessaloniki) in the Ottoman ...
.
* ''An English-Malay Dictionary'', 2 vols. Singapore:
Kelly & Walsh, 1914–15 (2nd ed. 1922, 3rd ed. 1939).
* ''Colloquial Malay: a simple grammar with conversations'', Singapore: Kelly & Walsh, 1916 (later editions: 2nd 1920, 3rd 1929, 4th 1938, revised 1945)
* ''A Malay Reader'', Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1917.
* ''Misa Melayu''; by
Raja Chulan
Raja Chulan ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdullah Muhammad Shah II Habibullah KBE (1 July 1869 – 10 April 1933) was a member of the Perak royal family. He was born on 1 July 1869 at Tanjung, Brambong. He was the son of Sultan Abdullah Muhammad Sha ...
, Singapore: Methodist Publishing House, 1919 (editor; reissued in 1966 by Pustaka Antara, Kuala Lumpur).
* ''Dictionary of Colloquial Malay: Malay-English & English-Malay'', Singapore: Kelly & Walsh, 1920 (reissued several times until 1951).
* ''A Malay History of Riau and Johore, etc.'' (Malay text of the ''Tuḣfat al-nafīs''), Singapore, 1932.
* ''A Simple Malay Reader'', London: Kegan Paul & Co., 1944
References
* E. C. G. Barrett, "Obituary: Sir Richard Winstedt", ''Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies'', University of London, Vol. 30, No. 1, 1967, pp. 272–275.
AIM25 ArchivesBritish Library ''Presidents of Raffles College: A Biographical Sketch''. Extracted 18 March 2006.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winstedt, Richard Olaf
1966 deaths
1878 births
People of British Singapore
People educated at Magdalen College School, Oxford
Alumni of New College, Oxford
English orientalists
Administrators in British Malaya
Historians of the British Empire
Historians of Southeast Asia
Presidents of the Royal Asiatic Society
Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George
Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire