Christian Uzoma Onyeji Sr., a composer, ethnomusicologist, and pianist, is deeply dedicated to promoting classical music drawn from Nigerian-based content and methodology. Born on August 15, 1967, in Imo State, Nigeria, he carries on the musical legacy of his paternal grandfather, an Igbo master Oja … Read MoreChristian Uzoma Onyeji (1967- )
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)
Alice Banze, born and raised in Maputo, Mozambique, is a trained social scientist with a 25-year career in civil society organizations (Oxfam, Gender Links) and government. Very little is known about her personal life, including her parents. Banze is the executive director of the Gender … Read MoreAlice Banze (?- )
Queen Nandi was a South African Zulu Queen and mother to Shaka Zulu. She was born Nandi Ndlovukazi kaBhebe in Melmoth, a small town in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa in the 1760s. The word Nandi means The Sweet One. Her father, Bhebhe, was a minor chief. … Read MoreQueen Nandi (1766-1827)
Bibi Titi Mohammed was a Tanzanian politician and activist. She was born in June 1926 in Dar es Salaam, then the capital of the British colony of Tanganyika. Mohammed was a member of the Tanganyika African National Union (TANU), the party that fought for Tanzanian … Read MoreBibi Titi Mohammed (1926-2000)
Lewis Chitengwa was a Zimbabwean golfer who, in 1993, became the first Black person to win the South African Amateur Championship. Chitengwa was born on January 25, 1975, to Lewis Muridzo and an unnamed mother in Harare, Zimbabwe. Chitengwa’s father was an accomplished golf professional … Read MoreLewis Chitengwa (1975-2001)
Aviation pioneer Sibongile Sambo, who was born in Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga, South Africa, in 1974, holds the distinction of being the first woman to become a South African airline executive. Sambo founded SRS Aviation in 2004. She is a graduate of the College of Zululand, where … Read MoreSibongile Sambo (1974- )
Joseph Leabua Jonathan was the first Prime Minister of independent Lesotho. He was born on October 30, 1914, in Leribe, Basutoland now Lesotho), one of the many great-grandchildren of the polygamous King Moshoeshoe I, the founder of the Basuto nation. His parents were Jonathan Ramanemane Molapo and ‘Makatiso … Read MoreJoseph Leabua Jonathan (1914-1987)
