Égide de Bœck
Égide de Bœck (born November 13, 1875 in Oppuurs , Belgium ; † December 20, 1944 ) was a religious priest and linguist in what was then the Belgian Congo .
Life
De Bœck grew up in Flanders . His father was a primary school teacher, his mother a very religious woman. He had several younger siblings: Alphonse, a priest in Belgium, Marle, Achilles and Jules, both missionaries in Scheut, a sister who worked as a nun in the Philippines, and a brother who was married.
After secondary school in Mechelen , he entered the novitiate of the Missionaries von Scheut in 1894 . He was ordained a priest on July 1, 1900 and sent to New Antwerp (today Makanza ) in the Congo on September 1 of the same year . From 1913 to 1916 he was apostolic prefect of Kasaï Supérieur .
On May 8, 1921, he was ordained bishop and titular bishop of Azotus. On January 4, 1921, he took up the post of Vicar Apostolic of New Antwerp, which he held until January 27, 1936. On that day, as a result of the reorganization of the Congolese bishoprics, he was appointed Apostolic Vicar of Lisala , which he remained until his death.
Lingala
As the son of a teacher, the school system was important to de Bœck. From the beginning he worked to improve the education system in the Belgian Congo. Schools were always given special attention in his travels, and he introduced school inspectors. In doing so, he found that many variants of Bangala were spoken in the region . He compiled all available information and standardized it into a standard language, the Lingala . This work resulted in a translation of the New Testament and a grammar and dictionary . His linguistic work has always been a means to an end, especially for school.
Sometimes the criticism is expressed that de Bœck introduced Lingala everywhere and displaced the local languages. This may partly be true because the missionaries' limited capabilities did not allow them to write textbooks in over 200 languages. On the other hand, de Bœck always campaigned for the local languages to be cultivated next to the Lingala and, for example, that religious instruction was not held on Lingala. He had appropriate teaching aids created for Lingombe , Ebudja and Gbaka .
Varia
The Égide de Bœck cultural centers in Mongala , Equateur and southern Ubangi are named after de Bœck.
Works
- Cours théorique et pratique de Lingala, avec vocabulaire et phrases usuelles. Antwerp, 1942: Impr. Saint Norbert.
- Some terms of lingala: met woordenlijst en gebruikelijke volzinnen = Quelques notions du lingala avec vocabulaire et phrases actuelles. Brussels, 1914: Impr. Th. Dewarichet.
- Grammaire et Vocabulaire de Lingala. New Antwerp, 1904: Mission du Sacré Cœur.
- Langue congolaise. Exercises de lecture à l'usage des colonies de l'état par un père de la Congrégation de Scheut. Brussels, sa: J. Lebègue & Cie.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Grammaire et Vocabulaire de Lingala, 1904.
- ↑ a b c biography on Aequatoria
- ↑ Lisala diocesan directory
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | de Bœck, Égide |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | de Boeck, Egide |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Belgian priest and editor of the first grammar and dictionary on Lingala |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 13, 1875 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Oppuurs , Flanders |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 20, 1944 |