Anthropologist David Samuel Trigger was born on 8 November 1953 and grew up in a small Jewish community in Brisbane, Australia. Initially considering a career in building construction, he pursued a cadetship with a building firm while studying at what was then known as the Queensland Institute of Technology. However, after realising he was more interested in the humanities, he enrolled in anthropology and sociology courses at The University of Queensland (UQ). During study breaks, Trigger worked as a surveyor's assistant, where he learned how to spatially map locations. He graduated from UQ with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology (First Class Honours) in 1976.

After a brief period working as an assistant lecturer at the Darwin Community College in the Northern Territory, he secured a position as a site recorder for a UQ anthropological research project in the Gulf Country region. During this time he developed an interest in the remote Aboriginal community of Doomadgee, which became the focus of his doctorate. Trigger earned his PhD from UQ in 1985. The Gulf Country and the relationship between land and cultural identity continued to be major research interests for him throughout his career.

From 1986, Trigger held various academic positions in Anthropology and Sociology at The University of Western Australia before returning to UQ in 2007, where he was appointed Professor in the School of Social Science. He served as Head of School from 2011 to 2013. Since 2019, he has held the title of Emeritus Professor.