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.
Born in Africa and enslaved in America, Thomas Peters is best known for his influence in settling Canadian blacks in the African colony of Sierra Leone. The earliest documentation of Peters’ life is as a 38-year-old slave in North Carolina. When the Revolutionary War began … Read MoreThomas Peters (1738-1792)
In 1993 South African political activist Nelson Mandela shared the annual Nobel Peace Prize with South African President F.W. de Klerk. Mandela’s Nobel Peace Prize address on December 10, 1993 in Oslo, Norway appears below. Your Majesty the King, Your Royal Highness, Honourable Prime Minister, … Read More(1993) Nelson Mandela, “Nobel Peace Prize Address”
Khartoum, the capital of the modern state of Sudan, is located in an area of rich farmland where the Blue Nile and the White Nile meet. Khartoum initially grew because of the Turko-Egyptian conquest of Sudan in 1821. Mohammed Ali Pasha (1769-1849), nominally an Ottoman … Read MoreKhartoum, Sudan (1821- )
Lagos is the largest city and chief port of modern Nigeria. The area that is now Lagos was settled by Yoruba people during the fourteenth century. The founders created a coastal village they called Eko. In the 1760s, Portuguese traders settled there and began using … Read MoreLagos, Nigeria (ca. 1350- )
Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa. Before the 1837 arrival of the Transvaal Boers, descendants of Dutch settlers, the area that is now Johannesburg was occupied by the Sotho-Tswana peoples. In early 1886, gold was discovered on the Witwatersrand ridge. By 1889, Johannesburg … Read MoreJohannesburg, South Africa (1886- )
Cape Town is the second largest city in South Africa and one of the nation’s cultural and economic centers. Before the arrival of Europeans, the area was inhabited by San and Khoikhoi peoples. In 1652, Jan van Riebeeck established a small colony on the Cape … Read MoreCape Town, South Africa (1652- )
Accra is the political and economic capital of modern Ghana on the Gold Coast. Between 1500 and 1578, a fortress operated by the Portuguese stood at the site of modern Accra. This fort provided the Europeans with an outlet for trade, particularly in slaves, with … Read MoreAccra, Ghana (ca. 1500- )
Abidjan is the former capital of Côte d’Ivoire as well as the country’s principal city. The lagoon on which the city now sits was occupied by the Ebrié people long before the French selected the site of Abidjan in 1903. Intended as the terminus for … Read MoreAbidjan, Côte d’Ivoire (1903- )
In January 1962, Nelson Mandela, the emerging leader of the South African campaign against apartheid, spoke at a convention of Pan African advocates meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In that speech he outlined the history of the freedom struggle that he would one day personify. … Read More(1962) Nelson Mandela, “Address at the Conference of the Pan-African Freedom Movement of East and Central Africa”
The Brixton Riots of April 10-12, 1981, described as the first serious riots of the 20th century in England, were the first large scale racial confrontations between black British youth and white British police. The rioting was sparked by antagonism between black youths and the … Read MoreBrixton Riots (April 10-12, 1981)
