author
William Ridley
1819–1878
An English Presbyterian minister and scholar, he is best remembered for his careful work recording Australian Aboriginal languages, especially Gamilaraay. His writing brings together missionary life, linguistics, and a lasting interest in the cultures and speech of First Nations people in colonial Australia.
1 Audiobook
Gurre Kamilaroi, or, Kamilaroi Sayings (1856)
by William Ridley
About the author
Born in Essex in 1819, William Ridley was educated at King's College and the University of London. He went to Australia in 1850 and worked as a Presbyterian minister, serving communities in places including Portland Bay, Brisbane, and the Manning River.
Ridley became known for his serious study of Aboriginal languages at a time when very few settlers treated them with scholarly care. He traveled widely, gathered vocabularies and observations, and published work on Indigenous languages and culture, with a particular focus on Gamilaraay.
Alongside his religious and academic work, he also taught and wrote extensively, earning a place in Australian intellectual history as a missionary, linguist, and recorder of language. He died in Sydney in 1878.