William Ridley (14 September 1819 – 26 September 1878 ) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their n ...

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 ...

who studied

Australian Aboriginal languages The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

, particularly

Gamilaraay The Gamilaraay, also known as Gomeroi, Kamilaroi, Kamillaroi and other variations, are an Aboriginal Australian people whose lands extend from New South Wales to southern Queensland. They form one of the four largest Indigenous nations in Au ...

Early life and education

Ridley was born in

Hartford End Hartford End is a hamlet in the civil parish of Felsted and the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. The hamlet is on the B1417 road approximately from the village of Felsted Felsted (sometimes spelt Felstead) is a village and civil paris ...

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

, England. He was educated at King's College and

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

where he graduated B.A. Dr. John Lang brought him to Australia and he arrived on the ''Clifton'' in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

on 19 March 1850. Ridley taught languages at the Australian College.

Career

Ridley was ordained in the Scots Church by Lang in 1850, the following year he was appointed to

Dungog, New South Wales Dungog is a country town on the Williams River in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. Located in the middle of dairy and timber country, it is the centre of the Dungog Shire local government area and at the 2016 census it had a po ...

. In 1853 he began an itinerant ministry in the

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

region. This was extended in 1855 to include

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

where he formed the Moreton Bay Aborigines Friends' Society in February. In the same year he published ''Report … of a Journey Along the Condamine, Barwan and Namoi Rivers '', and in 1856 published ''Gurre Kamilaroi: or Kamilaroi Sayings''. In 1857 Ridley resumed parish work with the United Presbyterian Church of Victoria at

Portland, Victoria Portland is a city in Victoria, Australia, and is the oldest European settlement in the state. It is also the main urban centre in the Shire of Glenelg and is located on Portland Bay. As of the 2021 census the population was 10,016, increasin ...

, the next year he returned to

and in 1861 became a

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

. He was assistant editor of the ''Empire'', then editor of the ''Evening News'' in 1873, and the ''

Australian Town and Country Journal Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

''. He also helped edit the ''Australian Witness'' for two years and also wrote for the '' Sydney University Magazine''. In conjunction with Dr. Robert Steel he obtained government aid for the Maloga mission. Ridley published ''Kamilaroi, Dippil, and Turrubul: Languages Spoken by Australian Aborigines'' in 1866, revised and enlarged as ''Kamilaroi and Other Australian Languages'' in 1875, which was well received. Ridley also contributed to the works of R. B. Smyth and E. M. Curr. In 1861 he provided an opinion to the Select Committee on the Native Police Force of Queensland. This was regarding "considerations as to the means to be adopted for civilizing the Aborigines of Australia, suggested by a three-years' mission among that people."

References

External links

* * * * Select Committee on the Native Police Force. 1861 pages 165, 166. https://aiatsis.gov.au/sites/default/files/catalogue_resources/92123.pdf {{DEFAULTSORT:Ridley, William 1819 births 1878 deaths Missionary linguists English Presbyterian missionaries Australian Presbyterians Presbyterian missionaries in Australia Ethnologists Pre-Separation Queensland