Alexander Hetherwick CBE (1860–1939) was a Scottish minister remembered as a missionary in Africa. Based in Blantyre, Nyasaland he wrote extensively on local languages and also was a competent map-maker. W. P. Livingstone described him as a "Prince of Missionaries".

Life

He was born in Savoch in

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire (; ) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeenshire, which had substantial ...

on 12 April 1860. He originally studied Mathematics at

Aberdeen University The University of Aberdeen (abbreviated ''Aberd.'' in post-nominals; ) is a public research university in Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1495 when William Elphinstone, Bishop of Aberdeen and Chancellor of Scotland, petitioned Pope Al ...

but after graduation (around 1880) decided to train for the ministry, despite having the highest marks in Mathematics.Dictionary of African Christian Biography: Hetherwick He was ordained by the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

in the

Kirk of St Nicholas The Kirk of St Nicholas is a historic church in Aberdeen, Scotland. It is the original parish church of the city, and is also known locally as the Mither Kirk or mother church. Following the Reformation, it was divided between two congregations, ...

in Aberdeen in 1883. He requested transfer to do missionary work in Africa in 1885 and moved to the mission in Blantyre in what is now known as

Malawi Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over and ...

. He was charged with working with the then hostile tribes of the

Zomba plateau The Zomba Plateau, also called the Zomba Massif, is a mountain of the Shire Highlands in southern Malawi. Its total area is about , with a highest point of . The plateau is roughly pear-shaped. The southern portion is known as Zomba Mountain, ...

. He was a speaker at the International Mission Conference in London in 1888. In 1898 he succeeded Rev

David Clement Scott David Clement Ruffelle Scott (23 April 1853 – 18 October 1907) was a Scottish born polymath who became a Church of Scotland missionary in Africa. He was the supervisor in Blantyre until he was relieved in 1898. He then went to Kenya in 1901 wher ...

as head of the Blantyre mission. In 1893 he married Elizabeth Chisholm who he had met as a member of the Scotts' household. Elizabeth was the widow of George Fenwick had been killed after he had murdered the Makololo chief Chipatula. David and Bella Scott had taken Elizabeth into their home. Elizabeth had previosly been a missionary and she had again become a valued teacher at the mission. In 1915 he was involved in the enquiry into the

John Chilembwe John Chilembwe (June 1871 – 3 February 1915) was a Baptist pastor, educator and revolutionary who trained as a minister in the United States, returning to Nyasaland in 1901. He was an early figure in the resistance to colonialism in Nyasaland ...

Rebellion. In conjunction with

Robert Laws Robert Laws FRGS FRSGS (1851–1934) was a Scottish missionary who headed the Livingstonia mission in the Nyasaland Protectorate (now Malawi) for more than 50 years. The mission played a crucial role in educating Africans during the colonial ...

he founded the Church of Central Africa Presbytery in 1924. He retired in 1928 and returned to Aberdeen. Hetherwick showed his pugnacious character when he criticised W. P. Livingstone for his inaccuracy in his 1921 biography of

. Hetherwick thought that Livingstone was incorrect in his recounting how Henry Henderson had chosen the site at Blantyre for the mission. He called Livingstone's account a travesty. W. P. Livingstone wrote Hetherwick's biography in 1931 in which he called him a "Prince of Missionaries". Hetherwick died in Aberdeen on 3 April 1939.

Memorials

A brass plaque to Hetherwick was placed in the

in the 1940s.

Publications

*''Introductory Handbook of the Yao Language'' (1889) *''Dictionary of the

Chichewa Chewa ( ; also known as Nyanja ) is a Bantu language spoken in Malawi and a recognised minority in Zambia and Mozambique. The noun class prefix ''chi-'' is used for languages, so the language is often called or Chinyanja. In Malawi, the name wa ...

Language'' *'' Robert Hellier Napier'' (1926) *''The Romance of Blantyre'' (1931) *''A Practical Manual of the

Nyanja Chewa ( ; also known as Nyanja ) is a Bantu language spoken in Malawi and a recognised minority in Zambia and Mozambique. The noun class prefix ''chi-'' is used for languages, so the language is often called or Chinyanja. In Malawi, the name wa ...

Language'' (1920 reprinted 1932) *''The Gospel and the African'' (1932)

Maps created

* Lake Shirwa and Neighbourhood (1888)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hetherwick, Alexander 1860 births 1939 deaths Clergy from Aberdeenshire Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Scottish Presbyterian missionaries Presbyterian missionaries in Malawi Commanders_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire