László Magyar (1818–1864) was a Hungarian explorer and map-maker of Southwest Africa.

Biography

László Magyar was born on November 13, 1818, in

Szombathely } Szombathely (; ; also see #Etymology, names) is the 10th largest city in Hungary. It is the administrative centre of Vas County in the west of the country, located near the border with Austria. Szombathely lies by the streams ''Perint'' and '' ...

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, and lived 17 years in Ponte de Cuio,

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

, where he died on November 9, 1864. His geographical explorations, as well as his ethnological research, were supported by his father-in-law, the king of Bié. The king's relations, as well as his donation of 300 slaves, enabled Magyar to go on six exploring journeys in Angola. Unlike other European travellers, he did not only explore one area, but also described the life of the people living there. The African people called him "Mister What-Is-This", because he always asked them questions about his interests: the local people, their habits and the way they administered themselves. Magyar spent over a decade living among the native people and learning their languages. In 1848 the Hungarian ascended the

Congo River The Congo River, formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second-longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the third-largest river in the world list of rivers by discharge, by discharge volume, following the Amazon Ri ...

to the Yellala Falls, before spending five years exploring the region to the south.

Travels in Africa

Apart from a few major essays, his travels in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

became known through his diary fragments and letters. No matter how valuable and interesting they are, they cannot compensate for an expert, scientific report of his observations. Since these fragments and sketches were often written in a hurry and the experiences were not always reported in a well-organised form, it was easy to find mistakes and contradictions in them, so soon reviews became less favourable and László Magyar's reports were regarded as unreliable. Magyar may have been a good sailor but the study of his maps demonstrates that his knowledge of geography was fairly poor. Consequently, his maps are distorted and

August Petermann Augustus Heinrich Petermann (18 April 182225 September 1878) was a German cartographer. Early years Petermann was born in Bleicherode, Germany. When he was 14 years old, he started grammar school in the nearby town of Nordhausen. Despite famil ...

had to redraw Magyar's maps based on reliable determinations of position before he had published the map of the Hungarian explorer's first big inland journey. He kept the original watercourses and his routes untouched and shortened the distances proportionately.

References

* Zsombor Nemerkényi
László Magyar - a Hungarian explorer and map-maker of Southwest Africa

Sources

External links

*Laszlo Magyar
László Magyar's Travels in Southern Africa Between 1849 and 1857
(in Hungarian, description in English) at

World Digital Library The World Digital Library (WDL) is an international digital library operated by UNESCO and the United States Library of Congress. The WDL has stated that its mission is to promote international and intercultural understanding, expand the volume ...

. * Laszlo Magyar
Travels in South Africa in the Years 1849 to 1857
(in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, description in English) at World Digital Library. {{DEFAULTSORT:Magyar, Laszlo 1818 births 1864 deaths People from Szombathely Explorers of Africa People from the Austrian Empire People from Portuguese Angola Hungarian cartographers