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Documentary Research on Sub-Saharan Africa in Belgium*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 May 2014

Marcel d'Hertefelt
Marcel d'Hertefelt*
Affiliation:
Musée royal de l'Afrlque centrale, Tervuren
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Extract

Belgian bibliographical research on Africa dates back to 1887 when G. Kayser published in Brussels a compilation of 2276 notices relating to works on the exploration and civilization of the continent which had appeared since the beginning of printing. With the publication in 1895 of the Bibliographie du Congo, 1880-1895 of A-J Wauters and A. Buyl--a catalog of 3800 works, brochures, notices, and maps relating to the history, geography, and European occupation of the Congo Free State--documentary works took a direction which, with only a few exceptions, would not be broadened until after 1960: Congo (Zaire), Rwanda, and Burundi were clearly privileged.

In a series of articles and pamphlets Théodore Heyse described the development of Belgian colonial bibliography during different periods, followed by a synthetic overview of the whole. Each of these contributions outlined in an introduction of a few pages the most significant moments of the period under review and was comprised of a list of references classified by topic as well as an onomastic index.

Historian and chronicler of Belgian colonial documentation, Heyse was also one of the most productive bibliographers of his time. A jurist by training, with additional diplomas in politics and in social sciences, he became an official in the Ministry of Colonies in 1910, retiring in 1947 with the rank of Director General. Assigned to the Direction des Concessions, he became a renowned specialist in colonial law, especially property law. To his numerous historical and juridical publications he combined intensive activity in the field of bibliography.

Type
Research Article
Information
History in Africa , Volume 9 , 1982 , pp. 105 - 117
Copyright
Copyright © African Studies Association 1982

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Footnotes

*

With a few minor changes, this paper is a translation of a report appearing in Etudes africaines en Europe. Bilan et inventaire(2 vols.: Paris, 1981), 1: 156-67.

References

NOTES

1. Heyse, Théodore, “A propos d'un index bibliographique général du Congo belge et du Ruanda-Urundi.” Bulletin des Séances de l'Institut royal colonial belge (1947), 736–77Google Scholar; idem, “Le travail bibliographique colonial belge de 1976 jusqu'en 1933.” Zaire, 2 (1948), 639-56; idem, Documentation générale sur le Congo et le Ruanda-Urundi (1940-1953) (Brussels, 1954); idem, Documentation générale sur le Congo et le Ruanda-Urundi (1953-1955) (Brussels, 1956); idem and J. Berlage, Documentation générale sur le Congo et le Ruanda-Urundi (1955-1958) (Brussels, 1958); idem and idem, Documentation générale sur le Congo et le Ruanda-Urundi (1958-1960) (Brussels, 1960); Heyse, , Afrique-Congo belge-Ruanda-Urundi. Problèmes fonciers et régime des terres. Aspects économiques, juridiques et sociaux (Brussels, 1960)Google Scholar; idem, “Bibliographie et documentation générales” in Livre Blanc. Apport scientifique de la Belgique au développement de l'Afrique centrale, I (Brussels, 1962), 43-56.

2. Heyse, , Index bibliographique colonial. Congo beige et Ruanda-Urundi (3 vols.: Brussels, 1937–1940).Google Scholar

3. Heyse, “Bibliographie juridique du Congo beige et du Ruanda-Urundi (1939-1951),” Anglo-Belgian Trade Journal, various numbers between 1944 and 1947, and Belgique coloniale et commerce international, various numbers from 1949 to 1952.

4. Heyse, , Bibliographie du Congo belge et du Ruanda-Urundi [Cahiers 4-7, 9-12, 16–22](Brussels, 1946–1953).Google Scholar

5. Heyse, “Documentation générale;” idem, Documentation générale; idem and Berlage, Documentation générale; idem and idem, Documentation générale (1958-1960).

6. See Geeraerts, P., La Bibliothèque africaine. Quatre-vingtcinq ans d'activité bibliographique africaine (Brussels, 1972)Google Scholar; van Grieken, E., “La Bibliothèque royale du Ministère des Affaires africaines. Son rôle, ses collections et ses ouvrages précieux,” Bulletin des Séances de l'Académie royale des Sciences d'Outre-Mer (1961), 186–201Google Scholar; Walraet, M., Documentation belge et Tiers Monde(Brussels, 1965).Google Scholar

7. Boone, Olga, “La documentation ethnographique au Musée royal de l'Afrique centrale.” Africa-Tervuren, 10/4 (1964), 99–102Google Scholar; M. d'Hertefelt, “De afrikanistische documentatie op het Koninklijk Museum voor Midden-Afrika,” Bulletin de l'ARSOM, forthcoming.

8. Walraet, M., Bibliographie du Katanga (3 vols.: Brussels, 1954–1960).Google Scholar

9. Walraet, M., “Le Centre de Documentation africaine de la Bibliothèque royale de Belgique,” Bulletin de l'ARSOM (1967), 349–56.Google Scholar

10. Walraet, M., Documentation belge et Tiers Monde (Brussels, 1965)Google Scholar; idem, Les sciences au Rwanda. Bibliographie (1894-1965) (Brussels, 1966).

11. Special temporary staffs have been instituted by the Belgian government as a measure to curb youth unemployment. They may be granted to official or non-profit organizations.

12. Personal communication from Catherine Oukhow.

13. Walraet, M., “Le Centre de Documentation économique et sociale africaine: CEDESA.” Bulletin de la Commission belge de Bibliographie, III/4 (1959), B45–B48Google Scholar; idem, documentation belge; Geeraerts, La Bibliothèque africaine.

14. Walraet, M., Les études africaines dans le monde. Hier-aujourd'hui-demain (Brussels, 1971).Google Scholar

15. Simons, E. and Kerremans, M-L, Les périodiques zairois, 1970-1977 (Brussels, 1978)Google Scholar; Simons, E., Les périodiques congolais, 1960-1968, (Brussels, 1978)Google Scholar; idem, Les périodiques zairois, 1970-1977 (supplément) (Brussels, 1979). These total 1818 references. Verheust, T. and Simons, E., L'éducation en République du Zaire, 1960-1979 (Brussels, 1980)Google Scholar, which has 770 references.

16. Vanderlinden, J., African Law Bibliography/Bibliographie de droit africain, 1947-1966 (Brussels, 1972).Google Scholar

17. Personal communication from J. Vanderlinden.

18. d'Hertefelt, M., African governmental systems in static and changing conditions. A bibliographic contribution to political anthropology (Tervuren, 1968).Google Scholar

19. d'Hertefelt, M. and de Lame, D., “Bibliographie analytique des sciences humaines au Rwanda,” Rapport pour les années 1971 à 1976 [Institut national de Recherche scientifique, Butare], 104–06.Google Scholar

20. Bastin, Y., Bibliographie bantoue sélective (Tervuren, 1975)Google Scholar; Meheus, A. and Wildiers, P., Bibliographie médicale du Rwanda (Antwerp, 1980)Google Scholar; Rodegem, F., Documentation bibliographique sur le Burundi (Bologna, 1978).Google Scholar