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Africanist

Africanist

1 7.9
A person who studies the people, languages, history, or politics of Africa
  • noun
  • /ˈæfrɪkənɪst/
  • Specialized
: africanista
  • The conference brought together Africanists from around the world to discuss historical perspectives on colonialism.

Examples

  • African art should be presented by Africanists, Southeast Asian art by its own specialists, and so on.

    Academic text (2006)
  • In another essay, in which Patrick McNaughton tries to make sense of the differing interests of private collectors, such as Horstmann, and academics and public institutions, he notes that Africanists have, in most cases, focused on studying contexts of production since the mid-twentieth century.

    Academic text (2004)
  • I use the word "power" to make a point about the practice of art history by Africanists.

    Academic text (1991)
  • For example, there are Africanists in India and Japan who are largely outside of international conversations.

    Academic text (1997)
  • Our union being a recent one, this was also her first encounter with a meeting of Africanists.

    Academic text (1997)
  • Invariably, this task involves collaboration and intellectual exchange with Africanists based in the United States.

    Academic text (1997)
  • Africanists have certainly worked with African colleagues to find ways for them to present their own visual epistemologies.

    Academic text (2008)
  • A number of poignant cases of visual repatriation suggest how Africanists might adapt and apply this tactic to their own research contexts.

    Academic text (2008)
  • In The Black Man's Burden, the preeminent British Africanist Basil Davidson forays into the roots of the African crisis.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Because of these reasons, the respect and tolerance for non-African writing in Africa was waning, reinforced by the growing inaccessibility of Africanists' work because of high import costs and the rapidly increasing volume of local publications and cross-referencing among African scholars.

    Academic text (1997)

How Knowledgeable

expert
165 3.5
scholar
290 4.1
Africanist
  • Specialized
1 7.9
student
∞ 1.0
enthusiast
81 3.4

Surface Forms

Africanist singular
Africanists plural

Morphology

Africanist = African (transparent) = Africa + an + ist

The agentive/occupational suffix '-ist' on 'African' yields 'a person who studies or specialises in Africa', a straightforward derivation.

Etymology

Africanist is made from Africa and the ending -ist, the same ending you see in scientist, and it can mean 'a person who studies or knows a lot about Africa'. So an Africanist is someone who studies African history, languages, or culture.