Research on pre-modern Africa focuses yet on north-east Africa, the sub-saharan part of the continent is much less explored in this respect. Studies on the land of the pharaohs and late antique Coptic Egypt already has a long tradition. But pre-Islamic Nubia and Sudan are also being investigated in Münster, as is ancient Algeria. The literary creativity of the 10th-19th centuries in Egypt is another special research focus at the University of Münster.
This field of research brings together scholars at and outside of the University of Münster, who explore colonial and postcolonial African societies, cultures, religions and political-legal transformations from different disciplinary vantage points. The research projects of this research field are empirically grounded in particular national, regional and local settings. They simultaneously illustrate, and reflect on, the long-standing transnational ties of travel and of intellectual and economic exchange that have connected people in Africa to the world beyond the subcontinent.
This field of research is dedicated to contemporary philosophical scholarship stemming from Africa and the African diaspora as well as transcultural encounters between African, European and other philosophical traditions. African Philosophy in postcolonial times critically reflects on the history of slavery, colonialism and neo-imperialism and their reverberations in the presence. Conversely, it searches for new ethical foundations to confront the many challenges of our contemporary global order; including climate change, economic exploitation, forced migration and diverse forms of sexism.
DFG-funded Research Project "Diversity, Power and Justice. Transcultural Perspectives" (2015-2021)