July 23
Africa: Pandemic Effects Linger, and Art Invites Us to Pause and Behold Distance, Time and Trauma
When I finished the manuscript for my book The Pause, which looked at the COVID-19 pandemic through the idea of "pausing," a notion frequently invoked in pandemic discussions of… Read more »
July 14
South Africa: How Old Are South African Fossils Like the Taung Child? New Study Offers an Answer
One hundred years ago the discovery of a skull in South Africa's North West province altered our understanding of human evolution. The juvenile skull was dubbed the Taung Child by… Read more »
July 12
Nigeria: Wole Soyinka At 90 - Writer and Activist for Justice
Akinwande Oluwole Soyinka, the legendary African author and activist, is proof of what words and acts can achieve in the struggle for justice and human rights. Soyinka, aged 90,… Read more »
July 11
South Africa: Brenda Fassie's 1997 Hit Song Vulindlela Still Raises Questions About South Africa As a Nation
In 1997, South Africa's most famous music star had a huge hit. Brenda Fassie's Vulindlela became a national pop anthem, played especially at weddings and celebrations. Read more »
July 02
Nigeria: The Road to the Village - Novelist Chigozie Obioma On Nigeria's Brutal Civil War, Love and Redemption
Chigozie Obioma is the Nigerian author of the novels The Fishermen (2015) and An Orchestra of Minorities (2019), both shortlisted for the Booker Prize for their unique, folkloric… Read more »
June 27
Ethiopia: Lucy, Discovered 50 Years Ago in Ethiopia, Stood Just 3.5 Feet Tall
In 1974, on a survey in Hadar in the remote badlands of Ethiopia, U.S. paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson and graduate student Tom Gray found a piece of an elbow joint jutting… Read more »
June 28
South Africa: Ordinary White South Africans and Apartheid - Bound to a Racist System They Helped Prop Up
In South Africa, apartheid was a divisive political system entrenched by a white minority who regarded other ethnic groups as inferior, creating townships on the outskirts of… Read more »
June 27
South Africa: Peter Randall - a Pioneering Publisher Who Established the Radical Ravan Press in South Africa
Peter Randall, a pioneering South African activist publisher and educator, passed away on 5 June 2024 in Johannesburg. He was the co-founder of Ravan Press, which published books… Read more »
June 24
Africa: Is Social Media Making You Unhappy? the Answer Is Not So Simple
You may have seen headlines that link social media to sadness and depression. Social media use goes up, happiness goes down. But recent studies suggest those findings might not be… Read more »
June 20
Africa: House of the Dragon - If Dragons Were Real, How Might Fire-Breathing Work?
In George R.R. Martin's fantastical land of Westeros in Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, the spectacle of dragons breathing fire captivates his audience through a blend of… Read more »
South Africa: Goema Superstar - How Composer Mac Mckenzie Reshaped the Sound of Cape Town
Gerald "Mac" McKenzie passed away on 29 April 2024. He will be remembered as a renegade spirit and innovator in South African music. The composer and bassist changed Cape Town's… Read more »
June 18
South Africa: Mother City - a Tough, Passionate Film About the Battle for Affordable Housing in Cape Town
A third of the way into Mother City there's a scene that characterises this tough, passionate film about Cape Town and its paradoxes of beauty and hardship, wealth and poverty, and… Read more »
June 14
Zimbabwe: Zimbabwe's New Dinosaur Discovery - Inside the Find
Visitors to Lake Kariba - the world's largest man-made lake, along the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe - come to enjoy the abundant wildlife, fine fishing or spectacular… Read more »
June 13
Senegal: Senegal Has a Rich History of Traditional Music - How It Lives On in Modern Music
Senegal has a rich history of traditional music - and this lives on as it influences the west African country's modern music today. Read more »
June 12
South Africa: South Africa's Biggest Arts Festival Turns 50 - We Assess Its Impact
The National Arts Festival was established in 1974 in Grahamstown (now Makhanda) in South Africa's Eastern Cape province. Each year, in winter, the rural town transforms into a… Read more »
June 11
Africa: Girls Usually Read Better Than Boys. Why This Isn't the Case in Some African Countries
In most parts of the world, girls outperform boys in reading. Girls are more likely to read at or above the expected level of proficiency for their grade compared to boys. Read more »
June 04
South Africa: Why Musicians Die in Poverty - South African Study Reveals Battle to Make Ends Meet
Benefits and appeals were recently launched to support the medical costs of veteran South African guitarist Madala Kunene. It's not the first time such initiatives have been… Read more »
May 31
Ghana: Stevie Wonder's Ghanaian Citizenship Reflects Long-Standing Links Between African Americans and the Continent
There's a long history of African Americans settling in Ghana or keeping in close contact with the first African country to gain independence. This relationship has most recently… Read more »
May 28
South Africa: TikTok Activism - How Queer Zimbabweans Use Social Media to Show Love and Fight Hate
In Zimbabwe, there is a long held public view that queerness is "unAfrican" and imported to Africa from the west. Even though numerous studies have proven this not to be true,… Read more »
May 26
South Africa: Clothed Pig Carcasses Are Revealing the Secrets of Mummification - South African Study Provides Insights for Forensic Scientists
It was the kind of task any competent seamstress has completed hundreds of times before: altering denim jeans and jerseys. But there was something different about this piece of… Read more »
May 24
South Africa: Eugen Sandow Was the Posterboy of Physical Culture - His 1904 Visit to South Africa Reinforced Racist Ideas
Eugen Sandow was an internationally famous strongman. The German-born British showman (1867-1925) toured the world challenging other strongmen and staging displays of strength. He… Read more »
May 22
Senegal: The Mother of African Dance At 80. Why Senegal's Germaine Acogny Is So Influential
Africa's most celebrated dancer and choreographer, Germaine Acogny, turns 80 on 28 May. I have had the privilege of meeting the Senegalese artist, learning from her, and… Read more »
May 20
Africa: How Neanderthal Language Differed From Modern Human - They Probably Didn't Use Metaphors
The Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) fascinate researchers and the general public alike. They remain central to debates about the nature of the genus Homo (the broad biological… Read more »
May 09
Botswana: African Sci-Fi - Body Hopping, Artificial Wombs and Angry Ghosts in a Future Botswana
Tlotlo Tsamaase has already proved her talent for African science fiction. Her masterly short stories, one previously shortlisted for the Caine Prize, are helping put Botswana on… Read more »
May 08
Africa: Fossilised Circles in the Sand On South Africa's Coast May Be Artwork By Our Early Ancestors
If you have walked on a dune surface after windy conditions have settled, you may have been privileged to recognise one of Nature's wonders: scratch circles. These are structures… Read more »