Susannah Jane Rankin (26 November 1897 – 24 July 1989, née Ellis) was a Welsh

Congregational Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christianity, Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice Congregationalist polity, congregational ...

minister, religious educator, linguist and translator. She spent time as a missionary in

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...

. She translated works from Welsh and English to the

Motu language Motu (sometimes called Pure Motu or True Motu to distinguish it from Hiri Motu) is a Central Papuan Tip language that is spoken by the Motuans, an indigenous ethnic group of Papua New Guinea. It is commonly used today in the region, particul ...

Early life and education

Susannah Jane Ellis was born at Pengorffwysfa farm, near

Llanfyllin Llanfyllin ( – ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales. The community (which measures 41.8 square kilometres) population in 2021 was 1,586 and the town's name means ''church or parish'' (Llan (placename), llan) ''o ...

Montgomeryshire Montgomeryshire ( ) was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It was named after its county town, Montgomery, Powys, Montgomery, which in turn was named after ...

, the daughter of Frank Ellis and Jane Ellis. In 1922, she was the first woman at the

University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...

to earn a

Bachelor of Divinity In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD, DB, or BDiv; ) is an academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies. ...

, having studied at

Bala-Bangor Theological Seminary Bala-Bangor was a theological seminary belonging to the Welsh Independents ( Undeb yr Annibynwyr Cymraeg), an association of Welsh congregationalists. It was founded in 1841 at Llanuwchllyn, then moved to a permanent location at Bala, Gwynedd ...

. She was ordained in 1925 at Pendref, Llanfyllin.

Career

After serving as a lecturer at Lawes Theological College in Fife Bay. In 1927, Rankin became an evangelist, posted to Port Moresby,

. In 1928, she went to Kalaigoro to improve the mission work there. In 1930, she moved to Saroa to unite the coastal and inland missions. She taught English and studied the

, and other local languages. She married her husband Robert Rankin, a fellow missionary, in Moru in 1932. They both returned to the mission station she had established at Saroa and where she would be involved in setting up primary schools. They would leave Saro and PNG in 1956 for a year's leave before returning to Veiru. She and her husband, were appointed Professor and Principal at Chalmers Memorial Theological College after its establishment in 1957. Her husband died three years later, and she took over the role of Principal until 1964. After retiring in 1965, she returned to Moru and mission work. For her translation work from Welsh and English to the

, Rankin received an Honorary M.A. degree from the University of Wales.

Personal life

Susannah Ellis married Robert Rankin in 1932. Robert Rankin died in 1960, during a leave in Australia. Rankin died in Australia in 1989, aged 91 years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rankin, Susannah Jane 1897 births 1989 deaths 20th-century British linguists 20th-century Welsh clergy 20th-century Welsh educators 20th-century Welsh women writers 20th-century Welsh translators 20th-century British educators 20th-century British women educators People from Montgomeryshire Congregationalist missionaries in Papua New Guinea Women Christian clergy Welsh Congregationalist ministers Female Christian missionaries Women linguists Members of the Order of the British Empire Welsh evangelists Women evangelists Alumni of the University of Wales British missionary educators Welsh Congregationalist missionaries Translators from English Translators from Welsh British missionary linguists 20th-century Congregationalist ministers