Wilkinson, Richard James (1867-1941), was a British statesman and scholar. He is best known for his study of the Malay language and for producing a comprehensive Malay-English dictionary.
Wilkinson was born to British parents on May 29, 1867, in Salonika (also known as Thessaloniki). At that time, the city was part of Turkey. Today, it is part of Greece. Wilkinson studied at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.
In 1889, Wilkinson moved to the Straits Settlements, a British colony that included Singapore and parts of what is now Malaysia. He joined the Straits Settlements civil service. Wilkinson was particularly interested in improving educational opportunities for Malays. He founded the first Malay teacher-training college in Melaka and established libraries in schools. In 1905, he helped set up the Malay Residential School (now the Malay College) in Kuala Kangsar.
The colonial secretary of the Straits Settlements was impressed with Wilkinson’s linguistic abilities and persuaded him to compile a Malay-English dictionary. The two-volume work, which was published in 1901 and 1902, was met with widespread acclaim. A revised and expanded edition was published in 1932. Wilkinson also wrote numerous books and articles on Malay life, history, and culture.
Wilkinson became colonial secretary of the Straits Settlements in 1911. In 1916, he became governor of the British colony of Sierra Leone in western Africa. In 1922, he retired to the Greek island of Lesbos. In 1941, during World War II, Germany invaded Greece. Wilkinson fled to the western Turkish city of Izmir. He died there on Dec. 5, 1941.
