The following are short descriptions of individuals, places and events which have contributed to the shaping of African American history. These encyclopedia entries serve as a starting point for much more inclusive descriptions and discussions that appear in other sources. For additional information please consult the print or website sources cited in the entry.
Louis-Benoit Zamor is best known for helping to send French Aristocrat Madame Jeanne du Barry to the guillotine during the French Revolution (1789-1794). Born in Chittagong, India (present-day Bengal), probably of Siddi ancestry (the Siddi were Indians of African descent), Zamor’s birth year is generally … Read MoreLouis-Benoit Zamor (1762-1820)
Journalist, publisher, farmer, legal advisor, and political activist Ralph D. de Magne de Chabert, the son of Louis de Chabert and Laura de Chabert, was born in Saint Croix, Danish West Indies, on January 12, 1890. However, the 1940 US Census indicates his date of … Read MoreRalph D. de Magne de Chabert (1890-1955)
The Lycée Victor-Schœlcher is a secondary school located in Fort-du-France, Martinique. Initially built in 1902, the Lycée Victor-Schœlcher has served as the foundational home for significant intellectual figures of Caribbean literary, political, and philosophical traditions including Aimé Césaire, Léon-Gontran Damas, and Frantz Fanon. It is … Read MoreLycée Victor-Schœlcher (1902- )
Alessandro Sinigaglia was among several notable anti-fascist and anti-Nazi partisan fighters in Europe during World War II who were of African descent. Sinigaglia, born in the town of Fiesole near Florence, Italy, on January 2, 1902, was the son of an Italian Jew, David Sinigaglia, … Read MoreAlessandro Sinigaglia (1902-1944)
The most celebrated African artist of the 20th century was the modernist sculptor-painter from Onitsha, Anambra, Nigeria, born Odinigwe Benedict Chukwukadibia Enwonwu on July 14, 1917. One of the twin sons of cloth merchandiser Chinyelugo Nweze and Omenka Enwonwu, an engineer with the Royal Niger … Read MoreBen Enwonwu (1917-1994)
Guinean national political independence martyr, women’s rights activist, and national heroine of the Democratic Party of Guinea, M’Balia Camara, was born in 1929 in the village of Posséya, Guinea, near Gonga Khimbéli and Yenguissa. Despite humble beginnings, she refused to allow herself to be limited … Read MoreM’Balia Camara (1929-1955)
Joice Runaida Mujuru, also known as Teurai Ropa Nhongo, is a Zimbabwean revolutionary and politician who served as Vice President of Zimbabwe from 2004 to 2014. Prior to that, she had served as a government minister. She was also vice president of ZANU–PF, one of … Read MoreJoice Mujuru (1955- )
Nehanda Charwe Nyakasikana, also known as Mbuya Nehanda, was a Svikiro or spirit medium of the Zezuru Shona people. She was also one of the leaders of the Chimurenga Uprising in the 1890s against the British South Africa Company under the leadership of Cecil John … Read MoreMbuya Nehanda (c. 1840-1898)
Mmanthatisi was the chief military strategist of the Tlowka people in early 19th Century South Africa. Mmanthatisi was born in 1784 to Mothaha, chief of the Basia ethnic group and an unnamed mother. At a young age, Mmanthatisi was sent to marry her cousin, Mokotjo, … Read MoreMmanthatisi (1784-1847)
Rose Lomathinda Chibambo was a prominent politician in the British protectorate of Nyasaland in the years leading up to independence as the state of Malawi in 1964 and immediately thereafter. Chibambo organized Malawian women in their political struggle against the British as a political force … Read MoreRose Chibambo (1928-2016)
