An African History of Africa by Zeinab Badawi
BOOK REVIEW
‘It is a gross crime for anyone to impose himself on another, to seize his land and his history, and then to compound this by making out that the victim is some kind of ward or minor requiring protection. It is too disingenuous.’
- Chinua Achebe
© Jamie Simonds
The proverb “To the victor go the spoils”, illuminates that the gains of conflicts can be deeper than what is tangible. The du jour socio-political question for Africans is how to correct the course set by the past conquering of its land and subsequently its collective psyche.
Compiling African history into a coherent narrative is the immense task undertaken by veteran British-Sudanese journalist and President of SOAS, University of London - Zeinab Badawi. Badawi’s debut book An African History of Africa: From the Dawn of Humanity to Independence, shall be released on 18th April by Penguin Random House UK.
Throughout Badawi’s decorated career particularly her time on the candid political show BBC Hardtalk, there has been marked focus on topical challenges affecting the continent. This throughline led to the eponymous 2017 BBC documentary, released in conjunction with the UNESCO project called General History of Africa (GHA) which aims to promote in-depth research into Africa’s heritage. The author gives much credit to the GHA for facilitating the considerable resources and network of experts based on the continent, who contributed their knowledge to the production of this book.
“For many, the history of Africa begins only a few centuries ago, with the arrival of the Europeans. It has been dominated by the subjects of slavery, imperialism and colonialism, and written mostly by Western historians, missionaries and explorers.”
(Re)Capturing the Imagination
© Commercial Map of Africa (1884), The Daily Mail, George Philip & Son.
The predominant perception of Africa is it only became relevant once Europeans landed on its shores, climaxing with its partitioning at the Berlin Conference of 1884-85. All civilisations, cultures, and customs before this point are a dark, irrelevant chasm. The genesis of this “heart of darkness” trope laid the foundation for extractive paternalistic conquest. The novelty of native historical perspectives cannot be overstated: most sources are not from indigenous points of view.
“I searched in vain for an accessible history of Africa, highlighting key chapters in its story - and told by Africans themselves.”
- Zeinab Badawi
Badawi works diligently to deconstruct the original sin, notably the bulk of the book concerns the pre-colonial period. From the onset the author acknowledges it would be an impossible feat to cover the vast history and peoples in their entirety. Opting instead to select localities and civilisations that are of historical, cultural, and personal significance.
Given this is a historical text there are no spoilers as such. An African History of Africa commences at the beginning of life itself – with the oldest known humanoid ancestor Lucy aka Dinkenesh who lived 3.2 million years ago, discovered in Harar, Ethiopia. Thereafter, each chapter focuses on a specific theme or kingdom of import. Refreshingly there are no lazy amalgamations of the continental enthnosphere, Africa after all is not a country.
Readers will be introduced to grand personages (amongst many others) such as:
Oba Ewuare the Great, the Benin Kingdom
Mansa Musa, the Ancient Malian Kingdom
Osei Tutu I and Yaa Asentwaa, the Ashanti Kingdom
King Shaka Zulu, the progenitor of the modern Zulu Kingdom
The Queen of Sheba and King Menelik I, as retold in the foundational Ethiopian epic, the Kebra Nagast
At several points Badawi provides nuanced analysis of overshadowed ancient civilisations such as the Kush Kingdom located in modern day Sudan and Egypt. At its height the 300-year-old empire rivalled ancient Egypt, yet it remains little known. As Sudanese archaeologist Dr Shadia Taha states this dearth of awareness illustrates how biases shape which societies are deemed worthy of research thus humanisation. Badawi frequently laments the lingering promise of what still lies undiscovered due to lack of funding by successive African governments into archaeological and historical exploration.
Oba and Queen, from Edo, Nigeria
(Re)Claiming the Narrative
Throughout the book, Badawi challenges the reader to reimagine their understanding of what constitutes “civilisation”, whose standards must be used to determine what is valid and worthy of veneration? Although the author deconstructs prejudicial assertions, her lens is eruditely rooted in constructing an African retelling of events. Whilst discussing the repatriation of pillaged artefacts such as the much contested Benin Bronzes, the Badawi emphasises her wish to
‘… dispel preconceptions about Africans by providing a more holistic understanding of their history; one that moves beyond gratuitous mentions of cannibalism and human sacrifice, intended to denigrate the culture and devalue the history of an entire people.’
Whilst reading An African History of Africa I had the opportunity to meet historian Dr Nigel Penn, former Professor Emeritus at the University of Cape Town. His extensive work on the Khoi and San peoples and early settler colonisation in South Africa’s Western Cape is featured both in the book and the documentary. I wanted to understand how people today can piece out a reliable picture of life prior to the advent imperialism. Dr Penn emphasised utilising various sources including archaeology, rock art, even the anthropological study of modern hunter-gatherer societies to extrapolate how the Khoi and San peoples may have behaved hundreds of years ago.
“To a surprising extent there are traces of Khoi and San people in the written historical record. They were vigorous participants in history, they had to be... The Khoi San are there, as are women, as are slaves, as are hordes of minority suppressed groups. They are there in the records and what you have to do is find a way of telling their stories.”
- Dr Nigel Penn
It would be facile for Badawi to present a utopian account, instead she opts to reveal how Africans were not passive bystanders in their history. This agency includes complicity in violent episodes such as the slave trade. For example. when discussing African participation of East African slave traders like Tippu Tib, in the ‘prolific’ Indian Ocean Slave Trade, there is neither villainisation nor valorisation.
(Re)forging the Path Forward
The ability to conceptualise the future and the past is part of what makes us human.
- Zeinab Badawi
The overall tone and outlook of An African History of Africa is positive. Badawi provides an accessible entry point from which readers can launch further historical investigations.It is easy to pick out a section focusing on one’s area of interest. The book is a great retelling of general African history.
Thank you to Ebury Publishing for providing Harare Book Club with an advance reviewer’s copy.
Written by - Tondi Mudambo
