Research Seminar (395-0-20)

Topic

Commodities and Culture in Atlantic Africa

Instructors

Akin Ogundiran
Akin Ogundiran is the Cardiss Collins Professor of Arts and Sciences, Professor of History, and Courtesy Professor of Anthropology and of Black Studies at Northwestern University. His research interests focus on the political, cultural, economic, and social histories of West Africa from 400 BC to the mid-nineteenth century. Ogundiran’s publications include The Yoruba: A New History (Indiana University Press, 2020), recipient of the Vinson Sutlive Book Prize. He directs the Material History Lab at Northwestern University. He is a Senior Fellow of Gardens and Landscape Studies at Dumbarton Oaks (Washington, DC), a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Meeting Info

University Hall 318: Mon, Wed 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

This research seminar offers students the opportunity to conduct primary historical research on the relationships between transoceanic commerce and cultural formations in Western Africa between 1500 and 1850. With emphasis on the commodity chains that linked Western Africa to the other parts of the Atlantic Basin, especially Western Europe and the Americas (US, Caribbean, Brazil, etc.), the seminar will examine the impacts of transatlantic trade networks on taste, aesthetics, social valuation, epistemology, religion, political culture, science and technology, ethnic and gender identities, and everyday lives. Among the commodities that will be discussed are tobacco, tobacco pipes, cowries, beads, metal objects, cloth, alcohol, and enslaved people. Students will have the option to use quantitative, qualitative, or object-focused primary sources, including the artifacts in the Material History Lab at Northwestern University.

Registration Requirements

Juniors, Seniors, and Graduate Students Only

Learning Objectives

Develop skills in primary source analysis and writing a research paper; a deep understanding of the relationships between economics and culture; and the acquisition of proficiency in early modern African history.

Class Notes

History Major Concentration(s): Africa/Middle East
History Minor Concentration(s): Europe, United States, Latin America, Africa, Economics and Labor

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Historical Studies Foundational Discipline
Historical Studies Distro Area

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Freshmen may not register for this course.