'The Pygmies Were Our Compass': Bantu and Batwa in the history of West Central Africa, early times to c. 1900 C.E., by Karin A. Klieman. Portsmouth NH: Heinemann, 2003. xxxiv + 253 pp. $64.00 hardback, $26.00 paperback. ISBN 0-325-07104-7 (hardback), 0-325-07105-5 (paperback)

2004 ◽  
Vol 103 (413) ◽  
pp. 688-689
Author(s):  
J. K. Thornton
Keyword(s):  
Central Africa ◽  
West Central ◽  
History Of

scholarly journals It Never Happened: Kinguri's Exodus and its Consequences

1998 ◽  
Vol 25 ◽  
pp. 387-403 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Vansina
Keyword(s):  
Central Africa ◽  
West Central ◽  
History Of ◽  
Radical Revision ◽  
Vast Area

The later precolonial history of a vast area in west central Africa between the Kwango and the Lubilash rivers starts with—and is dated by—the tradition of exodus of Kinguri and his companions from the heartland of the Lunda commonwealth. For the last two decades, however, several scholars have claimed that this tradition is merely a later addition to the older body of the traditions told by a dozen or so different peoples in west central Africa. Yet so far no one has examined where and when and how the Kinguri exodus tradition could have grafted itself onto the traditions of so many peoples over such a vast area. If true, this claim also requires a radical revision of the accepted history of western Lunda expansion. To examine the claim and its consequences is the aim of this article, which begins with the earliest written report of the Kinguri's exodus story.

Traditions of Genesis and the Luba Diaspora

1977 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 183-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Q. Reefe
Keyword(s):  
Central Africa ◽  
Early History ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Early Nineteenth Century ◽  
Story Line ◽  
Origin Stories ◽  
West Central ◽  
History Of ◽  
And Function ◽  
Different Origin

Origin stories are an important genre of central African oral traditions. Historians have long been intrigued by these stories, for their plots tell of the beginnings of societies and of the founding of ruling dynasties. It has been possible to cross-check the information in the oral traditions of many of the societies of west central Africa against data in Portuguese written records dating to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. These documents have helped to direct investigators towards the best assumptions to make when analyzing the oral traditions of west central African societies. However, writing the early history of the savanna societies in the very middle of central Africa (in southern Zaire and northern Zambia) has always been hampered by the absence of written documents which describe the area much before the early nineteenth century. Historians studying the early political history of these societies have been forced to link the events and characters of origin stories to each other without any anchor in written documentation.Recently, doubts have been raised about the nature and function of origin stories. It is no longer clear that the first step in studying the early history of central African savanna societies is to compare different origin stories with each other, as one would a group of written documents, in order to establish a consistent historical story-line or narrative. Rather, questions raised about the nature of origin stories have brought out the point that the first step in writing the early history of this area is to resolve methodological and historiographical issues, before the historical essence can be distilled from these tales.

Bryophytes from the Republic of Equatorial Guinea (West-Central Africa) I. Introduction and preliminary checklist.

1996 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-58
Author(s):  
Patxi Heras Pérez ◽  
Marta Infante Sánchez
Keyword(s):  
Central Africa ◽  
Equatorial Guinea ◽  
General Overview ◽  
Western Africa ◽  
West Central ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Physical Features

A preliminary list consisting of 159 bryophyte taxa (82 liverworts and 77 mosses) has been compiled from the bryological literature on the Republic of Equatorial Guinea (Central-Western Africa) until 1995. A general overview of the physical features and vegetation of the country, and an account of the history of its bryological exploration are also included.

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