William Edward Sawhill (186 1- 1935) was born in Halifax, Yorkshire, England. He was a British missionary (later renamed Methodist Church) and was a leading educator at that time. "William Edward Sawhill" may be the transliteration of his own Chinese name, namely "Sawhill William". A famous British missionary in China, he preached in Wenzhou, China for 26 years. He is a professor in the Chinese Department of Oxford University and a well-known British sinologist.