Bâ, Amadou Hampâté (1901-1991)

The Malian writer and ethnologist Amadou Hampâté Bâ (1901-1991) is a major figure in African anthropology, both a collector and a teller of stories, legends and oral narratives, especially from West Africa, which he presented in book form. An anti-hegemonic thinker and a pioneer of claiming the historical past through oral literature, he also examined the socio-political changes at work in colonial and post-colonial Africa. Member of UNESCO’s Executive Board (1962-1970) and author of a vast body of work, he became an essential reference for all those who claim the legacy of orature and refused to confine African traditions to the past.

Keywords: History | Literature | Collectors and collections | French colonialism | 20^th century | Mali | French West Africa | West Africa | African Studies | African civilizations | Oral literature | Oral tradition | UNESCO