Drivers of livelihood opportunities in the borderland communities in Nimule Border, South Sudan
April 2025
Portraying borderlands in their own right as the epicentres of economic and social activity has important implications for development actors, states themselves and regional bodies. Nevertheless, little is known about the opportunities that border presents in terms of livelihood. Most of earlier studies on cross-border mobility approach aspects of informal border movements from a human trafficking point of view and also...
Temples as cultural anchors: Narratives of belonging and tradition in Girmitya communities of Africa, field insights from Durban
April 2025
This study explores the role of temples as cultural anchors within Girmitya communities in Durban, South Africa, highlighting how these religious institutions preserve traditions and nurture a sense of belonging among descendants of Indian indentured laborers. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, including participant observations and interviews with community members, this study reveals how temples function as more than...
Anglo-Egyptian Sudan: Where the Arab and African Worlds Collide
October 2024
This paper explores the extent to which the British colonial administration was responsible for the post-colonial conflict between North and South Sudan. Throughout the Anglo-Egyptian regime, British administrators continuously separated the Northern and Southern regions on a socio-economic basis while maintaining political unity. The combination of these policies was likely the root cause behind the postcolonial...
The religious motivation in raise and collapse of El-Mahdiyya government from 1880-1898, and its effect on the modern Sudan: Sudanese religious conflicts 4
September 2024
The objective of this article is to narrate and discuss the evolution of an Islamic movement established in 1880 by a religious leader named Mohamed Ahmed, who claimed spiritual inspiration. The theocratic government that emerged from this movement came to an end in 1898 due to the cooperation of Anglo-Egyptian troops. The article evaluates the key elements that motivated the religious leaders in their movement,...
Hanging by the fibre of a woven cultural thread: Religious body marks of the indigenous Ga Ethnic Group of Ghana
June 2024
Body marking is one of the oldest traditions in indigenous ethnic groups and is viewed today as one of the simplest ways to associate an individual with a unique identity, whether for identification, beautification, or religious inclinations. However, in recent times, the practice of body marking has dwindled due to the advocacy for human rights and the condemnation of practices considered 'inhumane'. Body...
Self-writing in postcolonial criticism: A survey of some fundamental problems (II)
March 2024
This paper surveys a few fundamental problems that relate to postcolonial self-writing in the context of global capitalism. It advances the claim that self-writing in Anglophone Postcolonial Criticism discloses an obsessive, reductionist tenet when addressing the gaps in imperial ideology, especially with the existence of an engrafted, ubiquitous protectionism from the part of the postcolonial intellectual. This...
Bride wealth payment and girl child development challenges in Ghana: Recounting the narratives
February 2024
Bride wealth payment is deeply rooted in most customary marriages in Ghana. This study examines how these entrenched practices undermine the development of the girl child, using the Bongo District in Ghana as a case study. Data were collected from 40 participants who were purposively selected in a case study design. Primary data were generated through interviews, and thematic data analysis was utilized. The study found...
Peasantry and economic violence in Cameroon rural milieu: An ethnosociology of the Lomie subdivision in the second decade of the 21st century
January 2024
The purpose of this article is to demonstrate that the peasant populations of Lomié, as well as rural populations in Cameroon and Africa more broadly, are experiencing a significant disruption in their connection with nature due to the economic impact of forestry and hunting capitalism entering African peasant communities. In the case of the studied villages in Lomié, it becomes evident that there is a...
Changes in the customary marriage traditions and their implication for the girl child: A gender perspective
December 2023
In Ghana, customary marriage traditions have witnessed some level of changes. This study examined these changes and their implications for the girl child development, using the Gurishies of Bongo in the Upper East Region as a case. Purposive and quota sampling techniques were employed to select 41 participants in a case study design. Face to face interview was employed in gathering primary data and were analysed...
Equines on the Islands of Malta from the tenth to the twenty-first centuries AD
December 2023
Donkeys probably first arrived on Malta 3000 years ago. The first written record appears in the late tenth century when wild donkeys were present on an unoccupied Malta and were captured by itinerant traders for export, mainly to Sicily. In 1091 Sicily invaded Malta and confiscated all the inhabitants’ horses and mules. Horse numbers declined from 600 animals in 1565 to 130 by 1638. Donkeys were always most...
Investigating the origin, elements and motivations of the Anglophone crisis in Cameroon
July 2023
Over the last five decades, the status of Anglophones in Cameroon as marginalized has surfaced in political and religious spaces, illustrating the politics of oppression that has persisted since the amalgamation of East and West Cameroon into the United Republic of Cameroon on May 20, 1972. Anglophone marginalization operates at various levels in the unitary state, with varying impacts. The purpose of this study is to...
The copper mine at Hofret en Nahas, Sudan
July 2023
Copper is the world’s third most important metal after iron and aluminium. It has been used for thousands of years and continues to be an important item in manufacturing, medicine, construction and the electrical industries. The world has enormous reserves of copper ore: It is found in many African countries. Sudan has considerable resources in the Red Sea area and in the southwest of the country but almost none...
Sociocultural conservation strategies of prioritized medicinal plants, their historical context and space for integration
May 2023
The conservation of medicinal plants must be an all-inclusive endeavor that factors in the contribution of all stakeholders, both formal and informal. This paper highlights the importance of sociocultural aspects in the conservation of medicinal plant sources and resources using both traditional and modern conservation strategies. Efficacious traditional conservation strategies that featured prominently in the study...
Zulu monarchy land engagements and the Section 25 of the South African constitution
February 2023
This work is an attempt to highlight some landmarks in how the Zulu descendants engaged the issue of land with the settlers of any time in South Africa. The method of telling as it happened is a way to confront the history and try to find a natural way of rectifying land rights in settings where the customary land tenure system was overturned by the fortress based on the Western ways of land management. Dispossessed...
Assessing the state (physical and functional) of the heritage buildings in Lagos State
June 2022
Heritage buildings form a critical part of the cultural heritage of any people or group, recognized by the United Nations with several international charters formed to promote, protect, and preserve them. This study assessed the physical and functional state of heritage buildings within Lagos State and determined their preferred state. The study was conducted through questionnaires and case study/observation method. The...
Sociocultural bound illnesses or syndromes: Voices from the traditional medicine markets
May 2022
The culture of the people is central to the traditional medicine knowledge, uses and trade. This indigenous knowledge is orally passed from one generation to the next and is shared through efficacious communication with the ancestral spirits, dreams and oral narratives. This traditional medicine knowledge is invaluable in the treatment of sociocultural illnesses or syndromes, for instance, bad luck, bad dreams, cultural...
Modernism and the Change of African Gender Relations: Historical Discourses
October 2021
Globally, cases of the so called gender inequality are on increase as social transformation towards modernity and liberal lives. This situation has seriously been contested and reported on matters related to land ownership, employment, education, gender-based violence, marriage lives, decision-making, power struggles, freedom of choice and so forth. Despite its existence, it has been evolving over time in terms of its...
Cultural astronomy in Uganda from the perspectives of the Acholi, Banyankole, Iteso and Lugbara
July 2021
Cultural astronomy in Uganda has been explored a second time considering another set of four ethnic groups, giving a wide range of perspectives in the subject and setting a baseline for exploring cultural astronomy in other African countries. Qualitative data have been collected using interviews and questionnaire survey, conducted with mutual consent of the respondents. Both purposive sampling and snow-ball sampling of...
The origin and disappearance of the Wambambali tradition and the succeeding Wagogo communities in Dodoma: Oral stories from elders
July 2021
The current fast growth of the city of Dodoma in central Tanzania threatens cultural heritage materials scattered on the landscape. However, natural processes such as weathering and erosion also add to this threat. Earlier, we reported on the existence of two cultural traditions on this landscape, the Middle Stone Age artefacts and the much younger Wambambali tradition based on pottery, grinding stones and remains of...
Towards a Kenyan political theology: The importance of church history for contemporary public life
July 2021
Christianity remains a substantive religion in the African continent. With various expressions such as missionary Christianity, indigenous Christianity, and Charismatic Christianity, it remains a critical force in African societies. Christian scholars in post-colonial Africa have engaged important themes in Christianity including the pertinence of African traditional religions, African identity and in the recent decade,...
The influence of the African revolution on African theology
January 2021
The main thesis of this work is to portray Pan-Africanism as a movement that is destined to give all people of African descent a sense of identity, self-determination and liberation by supplying significant context for African theologians. Pan-Africanism, notwithstanding all its limitations, can be an effective instrument of African liberation and hence, proffers great opportunity for authentic theological enterprise....
The knife of Bursa in Turkish culture: A historical and cultural study
January 2021
Scientists who document the history of humanity 100 thousand years ago claim that the first knife made was of lighters 25 thousand years ago. The 75,000-year time difference between man and the first knife should be the process of transformation of human beings into homo sapiense. Sapiens have started to transfer their experiences which have the power to design the tools they use, to the new generation beyond logical...
Civil resistance in Ethiopia: An overview of a historical development
January 2021
A history of anti-government opposition in Ethiopia is a very complex topic and a subject extremely difficult to investigate. It runs through the analysis of intractable social crisis of the entire feudal empire covering a wide range of historical processes across ages to the various people’s movements in contemporary Ethiopia. It also involved different styles and methods over the years ranging from violent to...
The failure of humanitarian intervention and the role of NGOs in Darfur
January 2021
This article examines the trends and types of arguments by scholars on the issue of humanitarian intervention and situates them within the genocide that occurred in Darfur, Sudan. The article argues that humanitarian intervention postulate by many scholars failed in Darfur and Non-Governmental organizations (NGOs) such as Amnesty International, International Committee of Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières...
A commentary on Gebreslassie Kiros’s study of social stratification and marginalization in the southern nations, nationalities and people region of Ethiopia: The case of Manjo minority groups
January 2021
This study explored the pitfalls of the Gebreslassie Kiros’s study of social stratification and marginalization in the Southern Nations Nationalities and People Region of Ethiopia. To achieve the purpose of the study, the qualitative research method was employed through semi-structured interviews, participant observation and document analysis. To that end, Six Woreda administration officials, seven educated Manjo...
The interface between Igbo traditional religion and christianity
January 2021
The first encounter of Igbo Traditional Religion with Christianity and Western culture was marked by antagonism and the rejection of Igbo traditional belief as “pagan” and “devilish.” A decisive overview by some scholars on belief and worship systems shows that Igbo traditional religion has components of monotheism, polytheism and pantheism. However, Igbo traditional religion proved resilient,...
A historical glimpse of Hiriyoo: Rethinking the indigenous defense system and military mobilization of the Kingdom of Kafa prior to 1897, Southwest Ethiopia
January 2021
The present article attempts to reconstruct the fascinating nature of the indigenous defense system and means of military mobilization of the kingdom of Kafa prior to 1897. Kafa, located in today’s South-western Ethiopia, was historically one of the powerful and independent kingdoms prior to its subjugation in 1897. In this study, the researcher relied on available previous multiple sources which include oral...
Nigeria - United States of America (USA) bilateral ties in historical perspective
January 2021
This work is the analysis of the bilateral relationship between Nigeria and the United States of America (USA) between 1960 and 2016. It carries-out a historical and systemic analysis of the relationship between the two countries in the cold war and post-cold war period. By using the qualitative research methodology, and a narrative and descriptive style, the work shows how both countries leveraged on this relationship...
The first track of cultural astronomy in Uganda: Perspectives of the Baganda, Bagisu, Banyoro and Langi
September 2020
Uganda is among the most developing countries in Africa where astronomy education and outreach activities are at infant stages. Although Uganda has a long history of organized ethnic groups and cultures, record of cultural astronomy or its exploration is scanty, a challenge that this paper tries to address. A qualitative research design was adopted with emphasis on holistic description of primary data or information....
The role of elephants as military pack animals in the Abyssinian Campaign, 1867-1868
September 2020
In late 1867 the British Government authorized a military expedition to effect the release of 59 hostages being held at Magdala by Emperor Tewodros II. The force consisted of 13,000 soldiers and 40,000 transport and pack animals. Its formidable task was to travel 650 km and ascend 3,050 m of altitude before it reached its goal. The animals comprised horses, mules, donkeys, bullocks, camels and 44 elephants....
The shared pain of a culture’s decline: A study of Femi Abodunrin’s ‘The Dancing Masquerade’
January 2020
Although in recent years Africans have, through their very rich indigenous performing traditions, began once again to re-affirm the functionality of their arts, yet not many people today have tried to relate these to questions of mass mobilization and conscientization. It is believed that African art and particularly traditional African theatre, story-telling or art serve a social function with several...
The Amharic proverbs and their use in GÇÊ¿Çz QÇne (Ethiopian poetry)
January 2020
This article aims to provide a concise impression of Amharic proverbs and their use in Gəʽəz Qəne. Qəne is an extraordinary Ethiopian poetry with special feature, beauty, and limit. There is no language restriction to compose Qəne; since its introduction in the 15th Century Gəʽəz is predominantly used to compose Qəne in different forms. Adding an Amharic proverb to Gəʽəz Qəne is a great talent which...
Critical analysis of archaeological research trends in Uganda: 1920-2018
January 2020
Much as the first collections of stone tools in East Africa were made by geologist J.W. Gregory, beginning in 1893, E.J. Wayland’s joined the government service in Uganda in 1919 to set East African Archaeology on the course that it was to follow for the next 40 years or more. However, over 90 years from its inception, a larger percentage of archaeological research in Uganda seems regionally imbalanced, dominated...
Pawnship labour and mediation in colonial Osun division of southwestern Nigeria
January 2020
Pawnship was both a credit system and an important source of labour in Yoruba land. It was highly utilised in the first half of the twentieth century Osun Division, sequel to its easy adaptation to the colonial monetised economy. This study examined pawnship as a labour system that was deeply rooted in the Yoruba culture, and accounts for the reasons for its easy adaptability to the changes epitomized by the colonial...
Increasing participatory space in Zimbabwean local governance democracy
December 2019
The purpose of this paper is to unpack the extent to which citizen participation has been enhanced in local governance in Zimbabwe. The paper points out that citizen participation in local governance have proved to be of significance to all decision-making processes. Legislative provisions guiding citizen participation in local governance in Zimbabwe are prescribed in the Urban Councils’ Act of 1996 which seeks to...
Oyo-Ondo relations: A study in pristine inter-group relations in Nigeria
November 2019
The noticeable degree of Benin and Ife influence on Ondo has not obliterated the Oyo factor as a strong force in the history of Ondo, especially its traditions of origin. This paper focuses on Oyo-Ondo connections as a study in pristine inter-group relations. It argues that although Oyo is situated in the savanna region of Yorubaland, while Ondo is placed in the forest region, certain traits offer strong proof that Ondo...
Democratization and nation-building in Nigeria, from 1914 to 2004: An appraisal
July 2019
Nigeria came into being in 1914 following the British colonial authority's amalgamation of the Northern and Southern protectorates during which various ethnicities were living independently of each other. However, the activities leading up to the 1914 amalgamation predates this date. It would therefore not be out of place to say that the most enduring legacy of British colonialism is the geo-political entity known...
Facing social-politcal challenges: A historical examination on the survival methods of the Nubi ethnic minority in Uganda
April 2019
Since the pacification of Uganda by the British Imperial Government in 1894, up to the time Nubians were recognized as an ethnic community in 1995, they continue to retain their indigenous ethnic identity, through professing Islam, speaking their traditional language (Ki-Nubi) and practicing their own traditional values, for example traditional dressings and foods. Nubians quest for survival as an ethnic group has been...
Beneficiaries’ perceptions of the contributions of community development projects to peacebuilding process in South Sudan: A case of Terekeka State
April 2019
Despite the fact that a lot of research has been done about community development in relations to peacebuilding, there are a few studies available on the contribution of community development projects to peacebuilding process. The intention of this article is to start to fill the gap by investigating beneficiaries’ perceptions of the contribution of the community development projects to peacebuilding process in...
‘‘We Did Not Come as Mercenaries…!’: Linking the Origin, Ethnic Identity and Settlement of the Nubis in Uganda
March 2019
Focusing on the period 1894 to 1995 and drawing on both written and oral sources, this article explores the origin, ethnic identity and settlement of the Nubians since their advent in Uganda. Ugandan Nubians abandoned some aspects of their former African traditional customs and adopted new ones borrowed from the Arabic culture, constituting a unique and distinct ethnic group. Using a historical research design and...
The cultural factor in conflict management/resolution: A case study of the Acholi of Northern Uganda
February 2019
The research was purposed to explore the role of positive practices in culture(s) that support the resolution and management of conflicts. The government’s militaristic options achieved no meaningful results. Lack of peace eluded the 2006 Juba Peace negotiations. This necessitated exploration of alternative approaches to conflict resolution and peace building. The main thrust of this study was the exploration of...
The predicaments of the“Grand narrative†of Ethiopian history:The challenges of post modernism
February 2019
The shadow of skepticism that post –modernist casted on the Meta narrative is so encompassing that it led to conspicuous cynicism on the objectivity of history as a scientific discipline. This article raises this issue by discussing and analyzing the arguments of Samir Yusuf; a post-modernist critique of Bahiru Zewdie’s A history of modern Ethiopia. The research, using such analytical tools as...
The unwritten historical perspectives of Akan spokespersons staffs
January 2019
The Akan of Ghana are one of the ‘richest’ ethnic groups in the country. They are known to be the first ethnic group that settled in Ghana, hence the reason for the name “kan (e)” which means ‘the first’. There are several subgroups that are classified under the eight main clans of the Akan and all of these subgroups are well known for their rich culture. Among the Akan culture the...
Muslim settlement in a Christian environment in the city of Dolisie (Republic of Congo) from 1937 to 2007
December 2018
Dolisie is the third largest city of Congo, located at the enterance of the Mayombe forest. This city became an urban center when, in 1933, the colonial administrator Blanchet set Chemin de Fer Congo-Océan (CFCO) in the center for the construction and management of the country’s main railways. At that time, Protestant and Catholic missionaries had settled there for a longtime. But at the end of the CFCO...
Revisiting the socio-economic implications of local-level political competition in Harena, Northern Ethiopia
December 2018
In Harena, Northern Ethiopia, local-level political competition for the post of metehadaderi (governor) had twofold impacts. On one hand, it played a role in ensuring the right of every person to participate in the political process, usually exercised by supporting one of the village contenders. On the other hand, it was a cause for social and economic conflict within the community. In other words, it brought winners...
Theorizing Namummaa: Oromo relational philosophy (Oromos’ Gift to the World)
November 2018
This article attempts to theorize the concept of namummaa, Oromo relational philosophy which is complex, dynamic and has values that are connected to behavior and character of a person. Namummaa is Oromo philosophy of humanness that claims what makes a person human being, not just human, is her or his potential to grow into good and mature vertical and horizontal relationships: relationship with community in which a...
The use of the History of Science to improve the understanding of the thematic of reproduction: A study with students of secondary school
September 2018
The History of Biology teaching offers immense advantages in students’ success, this fact being supported by many authors. This study mainly aims to identify the knowledge of the sample students about the reproduction of living beings. A qualitative methodology and questionnaire were used to collect data. The sample consists of 18 students from a secondary school, in North Portugal. For comparison, the same...
The new Gojjame rule and the Oromo resistance in Abbay Choman, North East Wallaga, Oromiya, Ethiopia, 1850s-1882
June 2018
This paper deals with the new administration system under Gojjame rules and the Oromo people resistance to them in Abbay Choman, South of Abbay River from 1850 to 1882. The year 1850’s was a turning point in the history of the Oromo of Abbay Choman Oromo because it was a period when the system was transformed into a semi- monarchical administration. On the other hand, the year 1882 was the period when Horro Guduru...
Marriage practices and gender role socialization among the Gumuz of Ethiopia
May 2018
The Gumuz are indigenous peoples in Northwest Ethiopia having their own unique cultural values and traditions among which marriage practices and gender role socialization are just two of them and this study aimed to explore these practices. The study was conducted in Dibate District, Benishangul Gumuz Region, using inductive qualitative ethnographic design. Participants were adolescent school girls, mothers, elderly...
A discourse on the fundamental principles of character in an African moral philosophy
April 2018
This research attempts to throw light on the indigenous African moral philosophy from the yorùbá socio-cultural paradigm, espousing the adequacy of its authentic ontological and ethical principles towards sustainable development in the contemporary period. Indigenous African morality revolves around the notion of character and character traits which aim at analyzing actions and motive of a moral agent....
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