William Pettigrew

Reverend William Pettigrew (5 January 1869 – 19 January 1943) was a Scottish Christian missionary who came to India in 1890, eventually introducing western education in Manipur, and converting the Tangkhul Naga Tribe, inhabiting Ukhrul District to Christianity, "in masses".

William Pettigrew was born at Edinburg, in Scotland on January 5, 1869. After his mother died at childbirth of his younger brother, his father who worked as Captain in an Irish Ship remarried, and add two more brothers and one sister to the family. Pettigrew siblings were brought up in a strict Anglican religion, where the children attended Bible Camp every week. During one of such visit, Pettigrew heard about the first American Missionary Adoniram Judson working as a Christian Missionary in Burma (now Myanmmar). Inspired by this story, Pettigrew was convinced that he will become a Missionary and spread Christianity in India. To fulfil this desire, he underwent aboriginal training after completing High School at the Ardington Aborigines Training Centre. He was certified to go to India as Christian Missionary on 28 November 1890, and arrived in India at Calcutta with three other Missionaries and one Doctor during the same year. Pettigrew later married his high school sweetheart Alice Goreham on 13 November 1896, at Calcutta, and they lived in India till 1933 before they depart for England.

From his arrival till 1894, Pettigrew worked with the Ardington Aborigines Missionary group, but from 1894, he started to work with the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society (ABFMS), after he converted from the Anglican to Baptist faith in India. When he finally started working in Manipur, Pettigrew therefore worked as a Baptist Missionary. He was given an official approval by the Political Agent of Manipur of the then British-India, Major Maxwell in 1894, to work as Christian Missionary at Ukhrul -one of the hilly regions of Manipur. The order from the Political Agent for William Pettigrew to work among the head hunting Tangkhul-Naga tribe living at Ukhrul came in such manner: "Confined and restricted to one section of the country, the North-East area among the Tangkhul Nagas, Headquarters of the past and still practiced in the outlying and frontier villages, the writer and his wife at their own risk according to Governent order from 1896 to 1918 made the largest and most important village of the tribe Ukhrul, their headquarters". Pettigrew started his work as an Educationist at the Ukhrul Headquarter, Hunphun, on 19 February 1897, when 20 students enrolled to learn rudimentary western education. He also learned Tangkhul dialect from the Hunphun Chief Raihao Hunphun Awungshi, which was followed by writing Tangkhul Primers, Arithmetic, and Catechism in Roman script, and finally translating the English Bible into Tangkhul dialect. From Ukhrul Headquarter, Hunphun, education and setting up of schools swiftly spread to the surrounding villages including Humbum (Hungpung), Talla (Talloi), Faling (Halang), Paoyi (Peh), Chingjui (Chingjaroi), Phadang (Phalee), Somdal, Horton, Longpi (Nungbi), Khangkhui, and Nambisha. These villages with their schools were structured under 'single teacher school' system. By 1897, the Manipur State Government also started to award the students with stipend cum scholarship of 3 Rupees, in order to encourage them towards education.

Imparting western education was followed by converting 12 Tangkhuls from their primal religion of nature-worshiping to Christianity on 29 September 1901. This day is regarded as the day, Phungyo Baptist Church, the first Church of Manipur, was born in the State. Thereafter, Christianity grew at a rapid rate, leading to the entire conversion of the Tangkhul Nagas into Christianity in the process. Pettigrew returned to the United Kingdom in 1933, and lived out the rest of his live in England before his death in 1943.

For his contribution towards spreading Western education and his service in the rural areas, the Imperial British India awarded him with the honor of Kaisar-I-Hind Medal. From 1917-1919, Pettigrew also took 2000 Labour Corps from Manipur to France, thereby conferring him with title of Captain, and a War Medal. While working at Hunphun, Pettigrew was a member of the Honorary British Foreign Bible Society; the Asiatic Linguistic Society; and the Manipur State Educational Standing Committee.