Visiting the SOAS archives is an important part of the course African Missionaries, convened by Dr Jörg Haustein of the Department of the Study of Religions, SOAS. The course is concerned with the historical analysis of published and unpublished missionary materials pertaining to Africa. It explores how these sources can be read critically in order to gain a better understanding of the complex dynamics between African societies and European missionaries
As SOAS marks Black History Month we continue to highlight historical collections held by SOAS Archives, which reveal the long-standing Black presence in the UK, as well as the contributions and achievements of Black peoples in local, national and international arenas. This week we look at the archives of africa95, a registered company with charitable status founded in 1992 to organise a nationwide season of the arts of Africa to be held in the UK in the last
As SOAS marks Black History Month we continue to hi-light historical collections held by SOAS Archives, which reveal the long-standing Black presence in the UK, as well as the contributions and achievements of Black peoples in local, national and international arenas. This week we look at the papers of Sol Plaatje, South African writer, linguist, politician and activist . Born on 9 October 1876, Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje was a descendant of the Barolong royal house. His
Today we continue our celebration of Black History Month 2014 by taking a closer look at some of the manuscripts by the leading Kenyan author Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, which are available at SOAS Archives as part of the Heinemann Educational Books Ltd collection. These include prepublication annotated typescripts of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s famous novels ‘Weep Not, Child’, ‘A Grain of Wheat’, ‘Devil on the Cross’ [translated version of Caitaani mũtharaba-Inĩ],
As SOAS marks Black History Month we will be highlighting a number of historical collections held by SOAS Archives, and which reveal the long-standing Black presence in the UK, as well as the contributions and achievements of Black peoples in local, national and international arenas. This week we look at the papers of Dr Robert Wellesley Cole, surgeon, author and advocate for the rights of African peoples in the UK, West Africa, and across the Global African
To mark the United Nations’ (UN) International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition on 23rd August each year, we are highlighting some papers collected and created by the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society on the campaign against slavery. The archive of the (Wesleyan) Methodist Missionary Society, held at SOAS, contains the minutes, correspondence, visual material and personal papers, documenting the missionary endeavours around the globe of a
To mark International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples – which took place on the 9th August – we are today highlighting the Survival International collection of research papers on resettlement and villagisation in Ethiopia which are available at SOAS Archives. Survival International & Resettlement and Villagisation in Ethiopia Survival International is a global human rights non-governmental organisation (NGO) which campaigns for the protection of the rights of tribal, indigenous,
The Life and Afterlife of David Livingstone: exploring missionary archives has been running at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, over the past 6 months, and has just closed its doors to the public. This blog series highlights some of the fascinating stories and archives selected for the exhibition from the collections at SOAS Library. The history of how Livingstone’s life has been remembered and reinterpreted is a complex and changing one. Initially missionaries
The Life and Afterlife of David Livingstone: exploring missionary archives is running at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, until 17 May 2014. This blog series highlights some of the fascinating stories and archives selected for the exhibition from the collections at SOAS Library. As the British Navy began to crack down on the East Coast slave trade, they were faced with the question of what to do with the hundreds of young enslaved
In celebration of Women’s History Month and UNESCO World Poetry Day, we are taking a look at the life of Alice Werner, writer, poet and teacher of the Bantu language. Born in Trieste on 26 June 1859 and educated in Germany and England, Alice traveled extensively, living in New Zealand, Mexico, America and throughout Europe She is notable for her many achievements. Not only was she was one of the first women to graduate from Newnham College,
