The Area Studies subject guide gives you access to useful library databases and trusted Web resources, relevant for researching many topics with a geographic focus
Gateway to information for researchers of African issues. This includes a digital library of books, journals, and digital documents related to African policy. Project of the Center for International Governance Innovation, Makerere University, and South African Institute of International Affairs. Note: the portal is not updated with any new content as from June 2022
Dutch gateway to African studies resources, sponsored by the Netherlands African Studies Association and the African Studies Centre at Leiden University.
DiCAMES is L’archive du Conseil africain et malgache pour l’enseignement supérieur (CAMES) - an open access repository of research from Francophone African institutions
Free access to Africana Periodical Literature which covers over 500 journals that specialise in African Studies (1974-). Indexed by country and topic. Plus other specialised databases
Compiled by the African Studies Centre at Leiden & covering about 250 journals in the field. Coverage begins from 2003 (the database replaces the well-known printed publication of the same name) and ceased in 2017
Maintained by The Library of Congress Office in Kenya. A free database of references to articles from over 300 journal titles published in over 25 African nations from 1991-2011
International collaborative research project exploring 20th century anti-colonial, anti-imperial and related left periodicals of the Global South. Outputs include a directory of key publications, browsable by geography, date, theme, language
Collaborative effort of Michigan State University with the Association of African Universities and the African Studies Association. Provides free access to a digital archive of a small number of historic humanities and social science titles published in Africa
Free access to digitised back runs of African journals in all subjects. Note that this is part of the larger Sabinet African Journals database, which is free to search, but access to full text is restricted to subscribers (Essex does not currently subscribe)
Project of the Association Science Afrique to support French language open access journal publishing in Africa. Currently offers a selection of titles in the social sciences & beyond focused on African issues
Library of Congress digitised collection of around 1300 historical photographic postcards, documenting an important visual record of Africa and its people during the main period of European colonialism (1895 to 1960). Has work by some African photographers, including Demba N’Diaye from Senegal, W.S. Johnston from Gold Coast (now Ghana) or Sierra Leone, F.W.H. Arkurst from Gold Coast, Frederick Grant from Gold Coast, N. Walwin Holm from Gold Coast and Alex Agbablo Accolatse from Togo
Project hosted by Boston University & part funded by the British Library aims to digitise Ajami documents (which use Arabic script to translate local African dialects). Documents digitised so far are a major source of local Islamised West African knowledge
Project by Michigan State University and partners around the world to build a digital library of African cultural heritage. Covers a really interesting range of topics & materials
The Library has purchased a number of digitised primary source collections relating to Africa that are available through the British Online Archives platform. These include:
Apartheid Through the Eyes of South African Political Parties, 1948-1994;
Colonial Africa in Official Statistics, 1821-1953;
Colonial Law in Africa, 1808-1919;
Colonial Law in Africa, 1920-1945;
Colonial Law in Africa, 1946-1966;
Liverpool Shipping Records: Imports and Exports;
Slave Trade Records from Liverpool, 1754-1792;
Slavery Through Time: from Enslavers to Abolitionists, 1675-1865;
South Africa Under Apartheid: Reports and Research by a Journalist, 1949-1995;
Zimbabwe Under Colonial Rule, in Government Reports, 1897-1980
The Genocide Archive of Rwanda is the first of its kind in Rwanda. The collections include photographs, objects, audio recordings, video recordings, documents and publications as well as interactive mapping data.
The Rand Daily Mail, a Johannesburg daily, is a critically important title that pioneered popular journalism in South Africa. It is renowned today for being the first newspaper to openly oppose apartheid and contribute to its downfall. Search news articles from 1902-1985.
LSE project to digitise population censuses undertaken from 1865 until 1960. There are also annual reports of the Superintendent/Director of Education, Cape of Good Hope, 1881-1985
Non-partisan people's history project established in 2000, aims to create the most comprehensive online encyclopaedia of South African history & culture
The liberation of Southern Africa and the dismantling of the Apartheid regime was one of the major political developments of the 20th century. This collection focuses on the complex and varied liberation struggles in the region, with an emphasis on Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
free digital access to knowledge about all regions of Sudan. It is an expanding, searchable, full-text database of historical and contemporary books and documents.
