Linguistic Colonization: Then and Now

To what extent has African literature been able to wrest itself free of linguistic colonization? Can the predominance of English still be stopped, or is it a lost cause? A conversation with the American-Kenyan writer, poet, university lecturer in English and activist Mukoma Wa Ngugi and with Ellah Wakatama, Editor-at-Large of Scottish publishing firm Cannongate Books. She is also a senior Research Fellow at Manchester University and Chair of the Caine Prize for African Writing.

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Date and time Friday 17 January 2020 22:15 tot 22:55 uur
Location Theater aan het Spui - Zaal 2

To what extent has African literature been able to wrest itself free of linguistic colonization? And what about other languages? Can the predominance of English still be stopped, or is it a lost cause? Liberian-Dutch writer and poet Vamba Sherif discusses the issue with American-Kenyan writer, poet, university lecturer in English and activist Mukoma Wa Ngũgĩ and with Ellah Wakatama, Editor-at-Large of Scottish publishing firm Cannongate Books. She is also a senior Research Fellow at Manchester University and Chair of the Caine Prize for African Writing. 

Tip: Mukoma Wa Ngũgĩ also appears at the Storytelling Symposium "Decolonising the Mind: What Happened to You?" on Thursday, 16 January, at the International Institute of Social Studies.

Line-up

Mukoma Wa Ngũgĩ

(USA, 1971) grew up in Kenya but returned to the US to study political science, English and creative writing. He is a writer, political analyst and columnist for BBC Focus on Africa Magazine. Wa Ngũgĩ wrote several novels, including Nairobi Heat (2009), Black Star Nairobi (2013) and Mrs. Shaw (2015), as well as two volumes of poetry: Hurling Words at Consciousness (2006) en Logotherapy a decade later. He also wrote non-fiction titles, including Conversing with Africa: Politics of Change (2003) and The Rise of the African Novel: Politics of Language, Identity and Ownership (2018). He has written many political essays and columns for publications like the LA Times and World LIterature Today. Wa Ngũgĩ is a professor of English at Cornell University in New York and the son of the Kenyan writer Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o.
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Vamba Sherif

(Liberia, 1973) is a novelist, essayist, journalist and film critic. His debut novel Land of the Fathers (1999) is partly based on his grandmother's stories and deals with the clash between slaves returning from the US and other Liberians. The novel The Black Napoleon (2015) portrays Samori Touré, who founded the Wasulu-empire in western Africa in the 19th century. His journalism, including film reviews, appears in publications such as The New York Times, Trouw and One World. Together with  Ebissé Rouw he compiled Zwart (Black, 2018), a collection of stories by Afro-European authors from the Low Countries. Ongekende liefde (Unprecedented Love), in which he tells his life story to his ten-year-old daughter Bendu, was published in 2021. Sherif's historical novel The Emperor’s Son (2023) follows Zaiwulo, a young prodigy who trains under sage Talata of the Haidarah family in Musadu. Entangled in the intrigues of Emperor Samori, the 'Black Napoleon,' Zaiwulo matures into a formidable soldier.
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Ellah Wakatama

(Zimbabwe, 1966) is Editor-at-Large of Scottish independent publishing firm Canongate Books, a senior Research Fellow at Manchester University and Chair of the Cain Prize for African Writing. A London-based editor and critic, she was the founder Publishing Editor of Indigo Press. Her journalism has appeared in The Telegraph, Guardian and Observer newspapers, and she is a contributor to the 2019 anthology New Daughters of Africa. Her broadcasting includes reviews for NPR and BBC4.
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