oa Oriëntaties in Midden-Afrika - Beeldvorming van ‘Arabieren’ in equatoriaal Afrika door Europese explorateurs en Leopold II, circa 1880-1900

In the second half of the nineteenth century an amalgam of European and American adventurers travel towards the unknown centre of Africa. Confrontations with powerful Arab traders in equatorial Africa discharge into a bloody colonial war: king Leopolds ‘Arab Campaigns’. This article attempts to spread a new light on the Arab question, by examining, from a cultural point of view, Western perceptions and representations of the Arabs and their practices in the Central African context. How do European expeditions deal with Arabs? By which standards do Europeans evaluate the Arab grade of civilization? What images and explorational activities or mentalities lead towards the war? Throughout the article, the goal is to reveal how different cultures of exploration interact with Arab presences.