George Jobberns (2 June 1895 – 30 August 1974) was a New Zealand geographer and educator. Born in 1895 at Te Moana near Geraldine in the foothills of

South Canterbury South Canterbury is the area of the Canterbury Region of the South Island of New Zealand bounded by the Rangitata River in the north and the Waitaki River (the border with the Otago Region) to the south. The Pacific Ocean and ridge of the S ...

, New Zealand, Jobberns taught the first Geography I course at

Canterbury University College The University of Canterbury (UC; ; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1873 as Canterbur ...

in 1934. In 1937 he was appointed lecturer-in-charge of the first independent Department of Geography in New Zealand and in 1942 was elected to the first chair of Geography in New Zealand. On his retirement in May 1960, he was made Professor emeritus of the

University of Canterbury The University of Canterbury (UC; ; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1873 as Canterbur ...

. In the

1963 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1963 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced in supplements to ''The Lon ...

, Jobberns was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

. Jobberns died in

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

on 30 August 1974, at 79 years. The Jobberns room at the University of Canterbury's Department of Geography was opened on 9 April 1976 by Vice Chancellor Professor N. C. Phillips to commemorate George Jobberns and his significant contributions to the subject of geography in New Zealand.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jobberns, George 1895 births 1974 deaths Academic staff of the University of New Zealand Academic staff of the University of Canterbury New Zealand geographers People from South Canterbury New Zealand Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society 20th-century geographers