Movements, Borders, and Identities in Africa (Rochester Studies in African History and the Diaspora, 40) - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1580462960 ISBN 13: 9781580462969

Publisher: University of Rochester Press, 2009

Synopsis

Migration, whether forced or voluntary, continues to be an issue vital to Africa, arguably the continent most affected by internal displacement. Over centuries -- in groups or as individuals -- Africans have been forced to leave their homes to escape unfavorable natural, social, or political circumstances, or simply to seek better lives elsewhere. This essential volume establishes the centrality of human migration and movement to the evolution of African societies. Using oral, archaeological, and written sources, and focusing on various geographical areas, the contributors show that migration is a multifaceted phenomenon, historically varied in nature and character. Movements, Borders, and Identities in Africa incorporates carefully selected case studies drawn from across the continent, and provides a broad but insightful overview of migration and its complex relationships to slavery, commerce, religion, architecture, material culture, poverty, diaspora life and identity formation, and the development of states and societies on the continent. Taken as a whole, this collection offers a groundbreaking interrogation of the myriad causes and effects of African migration, from the precolonial to the modern era. Contributors: Edmund Abaka, Maurice Amutabi, Toyin Falola, Ghislaine Geloin, Issiaka Mande, Jean-Luc Martineau, Pius S. Nyambara, Akinwumi Ogundiran, Adisa Ogunfolakan, Olatunji Ojo, Brigitte Kowalski Oshineye, Meshack Owino, Gerald Steyn, and Aribidesi Usman. Toyin Falola is the Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities and University Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Aribidesi Usman is Associate Professor of African and African American Studies and Anthropology at Arizona State University.

About this title

About the Author:

Toyin Falola is the Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities and University Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Aribidesi Usman is Associate Professor of African and African American Studies and Anthropology at Arizona State University.

Review:

Broad and well-informed...recommend(ed) to readers who are interested either in Yoruba history or mobility and identity in Africa. AFRICAN STUDIES REVIEW (This book) demonstrates the breadth of scholarship that is emerging in Africa studies today. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF AFRICAN HISTORICAL STUDIES (Tony Waters) A wonderful volume. . . highly recommended. CHOICE Movements, Borders, and Identities in Africa is an excellent multidisciplinary contribution to African Studies, emphasizing the migratory experiences of Africans across the continent and globally, from the crucible of humanity in east Africa to trans-regional movements across Africa and internationally. --Gloria Emeagwali, Professor of History and African Studies, Central Connecticut State University Falola and Usman have set the standard by bringing together in one volume some of the best studies on migration, border crossings, population movement, and shifting identities within the African continent. A remarkable contribution to the understanding of the dynamics and forms of such understudied areas within African history. The volume comes in handy as a textbook on the history and ethnography of migration and population displacement in the precolonial, colonial and postcolonial Africa. --Salah M. Hassan, Goldwin Smith Professor and Director of Africana Studies and Research Center and History of Art, Cornell University Addresses hugely important and frequently overlooked themes and should, therefore, be a significant addition to archaeology as well as the intriguing range of disciplines it covers. AZANIA

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Rochester Press
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1580462960
• ISBN 13: 9781580462969
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 332
• Editor: Falola Professor Toyin, Usman Aribidesi