The following are short descriptions of the women and men who have contributed to the shaping of Global African 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.
Raphaël Élizé was an early 20th century French politician and the first black mayor of a metropolitan town in France: Sablé-sur-Sarthe (Sarthe). He was born in 1891 in Martinique into a racially mixed family: Augustin, his father, a tax collector and active Freemason, and his … Read MoreRaphaël Élizé (1891-1945)
Tatiana Silva Braga Tavares is best known as the woman who was crowned Miss Belgium in 2005 and who represented Belgium in the Miss World competition in Sanya, China later that year. Silva was born in the Brussels suburb of Uccle on February 5, 1985. … Read MoreTatiana Silva (1985- )
Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, Prime Minister of Guyana from 1966 to 1980 and then President of the nation from 1980 to 1985, was one of the Caribbean region’s most controversial political leaders. He gravitated between support for Marxist regimes such as Fidel Castro’s Cuba and … Read MoreForbes Burnham (1923-1985)
Yannick Noah is a former professional tennis player who is best known as the winner of the French Open in 1983 and later as the captain of the French Davis Cup and Fed Cup teams. After his tennis career ended Noah became a well-known pop … Read MoreYannick Noah (1960- )
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Born in Cayenne, French Guiana to parents Marc Saint-Yves Monnerville and Marie-Françoise Orville, Gaston Monnerville was the grandson of a slave. His family was from Case-Pilote in Martinique, but moved to French Guiana where two sons were born: Pierre and Gaston. … Read MoreGaston Monnerville (1897–1991)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Beauty contest winner, designer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Véronique de la Cruz is best known as the first woman of African ancestry to be selected as Miss France. De la Cruz was born in the small city of Saint-François on the French … Read MoreVéronique De la Cruz (1974- )
“Image Ownership: Ministério da Cultura“ From June 2007 until August 2010 Paula Marcela Moreno Zapata served as one of the highest government officials in Colombia, the first woman of African descent and at 29 the youngest person ever to occupy a cabinet-level post in that … Read MorePaula Marcela Moreno Zapata (1978- )
Born March 19, 1784 in the northern coastal territory of La Guajira, Colombia, José Padilla is recognized as one of the first South American-born naval commanders, a founder of the Colombian navy, and a hero in the Latin American wars of independence and the Afro-Hispanic … Read MoreJosé Prudencio Padilla Lopez (1784-1828)
“Image Ownership: Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Perú“ Politician, mining engineer and expatriate intellectual Luis Gilberto Murillo grew in a poverty stricken village of Andagoya, Colombia, an area inhabited mostly by people of African descent. Murillo was one of six children of a mine … Read MoreLuis Gilberto Murillo (1967- )
“Image Ownership: EneasMx” Politician, social and peace activist Piedad Córdoba was born in Medellin, Colombia, on January 25, 1955. She was the second of ten children of Zabulón Córdoba, an Afro-Colombian who rose from humble origins to become a sociology professor and university dean. … Read MorePiedad Esneda Córdoba Ruiz (1955- )
