Paper
THEIR ANTHROPOLOGIES; OUR ANTHROPOLOGY: REIMAGINING AFRICAN ANTHROPOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES AND PRACTICE FOR THE NEXT DECADE
presenters
Paul-Kolade Tubi
Nationality: Nigeria
Residence: Nigeria
Federal university Lokoja, kogi state, Nigeria.
Presence:Online
Keywords:
Africa, Anthropology, ethnography, ethno-africanity, theories
Abstract:
The study calls for reimagining and reinventing of African ethnography and anthropology that is capable of producing authentic autobiographies of African peoples and cultures as incumbent on African scholars. This self imposed task demands a critical examination of Anthropological knowledge and ethnographic practices in Africa. The study notes that Anthropology in African clime is frontally challenged by two irreconcilable binaries; foreign imposed ethnographies versus field-sourced ethnographies on one hand and foreign imposed theories versus home sources theories on the other hand. The result of the dichotomy is the African Anthropological knowledge is divided into "their anthropologies" versus "our anthropology". The former is suffused with Arabised ethnographies, Eurocentric ethnographies and ongoing sinoization of our culture which proved highly deficient in revealing the pristine aspects of our cultures. Methodologically, the study adopts radical Gluckmanian perspectives which ground African culture withing time and space of the locals. Importantly the study notes the dearth of home grown theories while foreign imposed theories dominate Anthropological treaties. The study calls on African scholars to initiate and develop Afrocentric theory in Anthropology that addresses the uniqueness of African peoples and cultures because foreign ethnographies of Africans we're incapable of explaining the dynamism of African cultures. The study is relevant to the study of Africa Anthropology in advocating for a critical reading and rereading, reinventing and reimagining the practice and perspectives of Anthropology in Africa. The study advocates Ethno-africanity as a model for Anthropological study in Africa for two reasons; it is a most capable paradigm for documenting and interpreting our pristine cultures and traditions and it also posseses the flexibility that expresses the dynamism of African peoples.