“Written Documents and Kongo Administration”
Professor John Thornton, Professor of African American Studies and History; Director of African American Studies Program and Graduate Studies – Boston University, USA
Arts Complex Link 1, 3-5 Woodland Road, , Bristol BS8, UK
4 July 2017, 3.00 PM – 5.00 PM
“Written Documents and Kongo Administration”
The Kingdom of Kongo developed a literate elite very soon after the contact with Portugal in 1483. Thanks to conversion to Christianity and the efforts of King Afonso I (1509-42), the kingdom had a comprehensive school system that had delivered Christian instruction as well as elite literacy by 1550 at the latest. As a result, historians have had access to a limited but important series of written documents from Kongo. This paper examines the degree to which Kongo used written documentation as part of its administrative process. Although actual documentation is limited, thanks to the destruction of archives through the centuries there is sufficient evidence that it did indeed issue instructions, certifications, and judicial processes in written form.
For further information, please contact Dr Jose Lingna Nafafe