On this day – 22 February 1913

Lucy Catherine Lloyd (1834 – 1914)

Lucy Catherine Lloyd was the first woman to be awarded with an honorary doctorate from the then, University of the Cape of Good Hope.

Lucy Lloyd (1834 – 1914)
Born in England in 1834, Lucy Catherine Lloyd moved to South Africa with her family in 1849, when her father, a clergyman, was appointed colonial chaplain for Natal.

Records indicate that Lucy was privately educated, both in England and South Africa, and initially became a school teacher before having to leave the profession due to chronic ill health. In 1862, Lucy joined her sister and brother-in-law Wilhelm Bleek at their house in Cape Town and spent 13 years assisting Wilhelm with his research into Bushman folklore and language.

When Wilhelm passed away, Lucy continued his work, leading to the publication and editing of various manuscripts, including Specimens of Bushman Folklore and the Folklore Journal. In 1884, Lucy returned to England due to ill health and spent her remaining years moving between England and Germany. She died in 1914.

Honorary doctorate
Specimens of Bushman Folklore, together with Lucy’s immense contribution to research and knowledge on Bushman culture and traditions, resulted in her receiving the honorary doctorate of literature from the University of the Cape of Good Hope in 1913. At the time of the conferring of her doctorate, the citation read “an original production worthy of the highest praise. It is not only a masterly exposition of the folklore of a vanishing race that has remained primitive, but the philological value of the work, greater still, and the work will remain an authority on the language of the “Bushman and kindred races”.

Interesting facts:

• Lucy’s first voyage to South Africa in 1849 lasted 80 days by voyage under sail.
• In their initial research, Wilhelm and Lucy obtained permission from the government to allow four Bushmen prisoners, together with their families, to live in the gardens of their estate. In this way, the pair were able to study the Bushmen language more intensely.
• When Wilhelm died, Lucy took over his job as custodian of the Grey Collection at the South African Public Library for a salary of £125 per year.
• Lucy and Wilhelm were among the first to provide accounts of the Bushmen dialect and helped lay the foundation for the study of Bushmen culture.

Sources:
C.J. Beyers. Dictionary of South African Biography Vol. IV, Melville: Chris Van Rensburg Publications.
Pippa Skotnes. Claim to the Country: The Archive of Wilhelm Bleek and Lucy Lloyd.