
Sidi Mubarak Bombay
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Sidi Mubarak Bombay: Life and Legacy
This chapter explores the later years of Sidi Mubarak Bombay in Zanzibar, reflecting on his family life, the mysterious death of his companion Speak, and the emotional turmoil that ensued. It also highlights the ongoing debates over the source of the White Nile and intertwines geographical discoveries with social issues such as slavery and Christianity in Africa.
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Sidi Mubarak Bombay was sort of a combined guide, translator and nurse, and often the supervisor of the African laborers on expeditions through eastern and equatorial Africa in the 19th century.
Research:
- "Sidi Mubarak Bombay Unsung African adventurer." BBC History Magazine, Aug. 2023, p. 56. Gale In Context: U.S. History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A756775082/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=0b775bc3. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.
- "Sidi Mubarak Bombay." Explorers & Discoverers of the World, Gale, 1993. Gale In Context: U.S. History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/K1614000037/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=ab21ce2c. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.
- Burton, Richard F. “Zanzibar: City, Island and Coast in Two Volumes.” Vol. 2. London, Tinsley Brothers. 1872.
- Cameron, Verney Lovett. “Across Africa.” New York: Harper & Bros. 1877.
- Cavendish, Richard. “The Nile’s Source Discovered.” History Today. 8/8/2008. https://www.historytoday.com/archive/nile%E2%80%99s-source-discovered
- Driver, Felix. “Hidden histories made visible? Reflections on a geographical exhibition.” Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers , 2013, Vol. 38, No. 3. Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24582457
- Fresh Air. “'River of the Gods' captures the epic quest to find the source of the Nile.” 6/15/2022. https://www.npr.org/2022/06/15/1105189330/river-of-the-gods-captures-the-epic-quest-to-find-the-source-of-the-nile
- Grant, James Augustus. “A Walk Across Africa; Or, Domestic Scenes from My Nile Journal.” Edinburgh, London, W. Blackwood and Sons. 1864.
- Hitchman, Francis. “Richard F. Burton, K.C.M.G. : his early, private and public life with an account of his travels and explorations.” London : Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington. 1887. https://archive.org/details/richardfburtonkc02hitc
- Howgego, Raymond John. “John Hanning Speke – Soldier and Explorer (1827-1864). Ligue Internationale de la Librairie Ancienne. https://ilab.org/fr/article/john-hanning-speke-english-soldier-and-explorer-1827-1864
- Lepere, Imogen. “Mbarak Mombée: An African Explorer Robbed of His Name.” JSTOR Daily. 3/11/2024. https://daily.jstor.org/mbarak-mombee-an-african-explorer-robbed-of-his-name/
- Longair, Sarah. “The Materiality of Indian Ocean Slavery and Emancipation: The Challengesof Presence and Absence.” From Being a Slave: Histories and Legacies of European Slavery in the Indian Ocean. Leiden University Press. (2020). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/jj.1011743.16
- Millard Candace. “River of the Gods: Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile.” Doubleday. 2022.
- Royal Geograophical Society. “Sidi Mubarak Bombay.” https://cdn-rgs-media-prod.azureedge.net/xs0ksumf/exploringafricafactsheetsidimubarakbombay.pdf
- Simpson, Donald Herbert. “Dark Companions: The African Contribution to the European Exploration of East Africa.” New York : Barnes & Noble Books. 1976.
- Speke, John Hanning. ““What Led to the Discovery of the Source of the Nile”.” William Blackwood and Sons. Edinburgh and London. 1864. https://archive.org/details/whatledtodiscov01spekgoog
- Speke, John Hanning. “The Discovery of the Source of the Nile.” New York, Harper. 1864.
- Stanley, Sir Henry M. “How I Found Livingstone: Travels, Adventures and Discoveries in Central Africa including four months residence with Dr. Livingstone.” 1871.
- The East African. “Bombay: Refuge for slave Africans.” https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/magazine/bombay-refuge-for-slave-africans-1296480
- UK Archives. “Bombay Africans: 1850-1910.” From 1807 Commemorated. https://archives.history.ac.uk/1807commemorated/exhibitions/museums/bombay.html
- Wisnicki, Adrian S. “Cartographical Quandaries: The Limits of Knowledge Production in Burton's and Speke's Search for the Source of the Nile.” History in Africa , 2008, Vol. 35 (2008). Via JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/25483732
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