African Studies
Welcome to the African Studies subject guide - your guide to using the library resources, services and facilities for your subject.
Research a topic
A major part of your learning at university is doing your own research for assignments, projects, your dissertation, etc. This means you need to be able to do a comprehensive search for books, journal articles, and other sources relevant to a specific topic that provide a base of knowledge, help you explore a topic and allow you to form your own ideas and opinions on the topic. This is often referred to as literature searching.
On this page we have gathered together a range of online resources that allow you to do this kind of searching and help you do better research.
For more guidance on literature searching see our Literature Searching guide.
Finding scholarly literature
We have organised our collections of digital resources and databases by subject areas, and alphabetically. Use these databases to search for scholarly literature e.g. journal articles, book chapters & reviews, conference reports and proceedings, etc., for your subject area.
Using DiscoverEd to find scholarly literature
As well as searching the Library's physical and local collections i.e. books, e-books, journals, etc., DiscoverEd is also searching a wide range of the e-journals and databases the Library has access to so it's easy to find scholarly literature. DiscoverEd is always a good place to start your searching.
Using Google Scholar to find scholarly literature
Google Scholar provides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. From one place, you can search across many disciplines and sources: articles, theses, books, abstracts and court opinions, from academic publishers, professional societies, online repositories, universities and other web sites. Like DiscoverEd, Google Scholar can be a good place to start your search but it does not allow for advanced or complex searching as in the databases.
Google Scholar may not provide access to full-text, however, by linking to the Library you can access full-text where there is a University subscription.
- Select Settings from the top of the Google Scholar Home Page
- Select Library Links
- Search for University of Edinburgh. Select it from the list and Save your settings
You will now see FindIt@Edinburgh links next to items in your Google Scholar results that you can use to access the full-text.
This short video below demonstrates how to do this.
Additional resources for research on African Studies
- ACASA: Arts Council of the African Studies Association
- Africa Portal
- African Studies Association
- Africultures:Le site et la revue de reference des cultures africaines
- Association of African Universities
- British Academy for the Humanities and Social Sciences
- Connecting Africa
- Gateway to African studies on H-net
- International Council of African Museums
- Life under apartheid: BBC archive 1948-1991
- NORRAG: Network for Policy Review Research and Advice on Education and Training
- New York University Libraries: Africana studies
- Nordic Africa Institute
- Open Directory Project: Africa
- Open Directory Project: African studies
- SCOLMA: Standing Conference on Library Materials on Africa
- Spla (south planet): portal to cultural diversity
- United Nations: Economic Commission for Africa
- University of Illinois: Centre for African Studies
- University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies
- University of Wisconsin: Africana digitisation project
- WWW Virtual Library
Newspapers and news media, TV and film
Use these key databases to search for and access current full-text newspaper and news sources articles, including both UK and international titles.
- Factiva Please note that whilst Factiva can be used for academic research it is read only, bulk downloading and/or analytics of the content is restricted by the database provider. Permitted users are limited to download what can be reasonably read in one day. Excessive downloading may result in your access and the access of other University users being restricted. For more information see the Factiva User Guide - https://proquest.libguides.com/factiva
The Library has access to a large number of newspaper databases that allow you to search for both current and archive content.
Use these databases to search for and view TV news programmes, documentaries, interviews, films, etc.
- Box of Broadcasts (BoB) For access on and off-campus click the Sign In button, type University of Edinburgh in the 'Where are you from?' box and log in with EASE. The first time you log in you may be asked for your University email address.
If you're going to be using "news" sources as part of your research then it is worth taking a look at our guide on misinformation, disinformation and "fake news" which gives an overview of this area and strategies to help you meet this issue.
Historical research
Use these databases to search for and access a wide range of historical documents relevant to learning, teaching and research in African history e.g. government documents, newspapers, pamphlets, legal documents, organisation and personal papers,etc.
- African Diaspora, 1860-present This link opens in a new window The Library's subscription to this resource expires 31 July 2024. The African Diaspora, 1860-present uses digitized primary source documents, secondary sources and videos from around the world to provide a window into the African diasporic communities formed throughout the world after the abolition of slavery. With a focus on communities in the Caribbean, Brazil, India, United Kingdom, and France, content is provided by key partners including The National Archives and Records Administration (US), National Archives at Kew (UK), Royal Anthropological Institute, and Senate House Library (University of London).
- African Newspapers, Series 1, 1800-1922 This link opens in a new window This groundbreaking online collection provides more than 60 searchable African newspapers published in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Featuring English and foreign-language titles from Angola, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, African Newspapers, Series 1, offers unparalleled coverage of the issues and events that shaped the continent and its peoples between 1800 and 1922. From repercussions of the Atlantic slave trade, life under colonial rule and the results of the Berlin Conference to the emergence of Black journalism, the Zulu Wars and the rejection of Western imperialism, these newspapers provide a wide range of viewpoints on diverse cultures.
- Church Missionary Society Periodicals, module 1: Global Missions and Contemporary Encounters, 1804-2009 This link opens in a new window From its roots as an Anglican evangelical movement driven by lay persons, this resource encompasses publications from the CMS and the latterly integrated South American Missionary Society. Documenting missionary work from the 19th to the 21st century, the periodicals include news, journals and reports offering a unique perspective on global history and cultural encounter.
- Church Missionary Society Periodicals, module 2: Medical Journals, Asian Missions and The Historical Record, 1816-1986 This link opens in a new window The focus of this second module is on the publications of CMS medical mission auxiliaries, the work of the Church of England Zenana Missionary Society among women in Asia and the Middle East, newsletters from native churches and student missions in China and Japan, and 'home' material including periodicals aimed specifically at women and children subscribers. Articles, often in the form of letters authored by missionaries abroad, are enhanced by detailed illustrations and photographs of their surroundings, the mission community and the people among whom they worked.
- Colonial Law in Africa, 1946 -1966 This link opens in a new window This database provides access to the African Government Gazettes from 1946-1966. These gazettes contain copies of the laws and ordinances which were introduced in the years they cover. Each item was originally published as the Government Gazette for a colony and year. Their contents include tenders of property, probate records and insolvency notices. The papers in this database cover the Mau Mau uprising, the creation of the first legislative councils and legal changes to transfer power to those councils.
- Empire Online This link opens in a new window Collection of 60,000 images of original manuscripts and printed material with accompanying thematic essays. The content comes from library and archive collections worldwide, and can used to support teaching and learning. Full details of how to incorporate images into course materials are provided. Covers the period 1492-1962.
- Evangelism in Africa: Correspondence of the Board of Foreign Missions, 1835-1910 This link opens in a new window The records of the Board of Foreign Missions (BFM) of the Presbyterian Church provide valuable information on social conditions in developing nations and on efforts to spread the gospel during the nineteenth century. Among the missions’ responsibilities was the establishment of indigenous churches, educational facilities, hospitals, orphanages, and seminaries. The majority of the material in this collection consists of incoming correspondence from the mission field and outgoing correspondence from the Board headquarters. Other primary sources include diary accounts, sermon manuscripts, receipts of sale, and field accounts.
- Kenya Under Colonial Rule, in Government Reports, 1907-1964 This link opens in a new window The colony of Kenya was managed by the government departments who wrote these A1:F79 reports. They start when Kenya was a part of the East Africa Colony and continue until independence. The statistics for Kenya are included in Colonial Africa in official statistics, 1821-1953. These reports explain why those statistics are at the levels recorded. The contents pages at the front of each report list the departments which existed at that time. Comparing the contents pages reveals how the structure of the colonial government changed over time.
- Liberia and the U.S.: Nation-Building in Africa, 1864-1935 (via Archives Unbound) This link opens in a new window This series consists of correspondence and telegrams received and sent by the United States’ diplomatic post in Liberia. The topics covered by these records include all aspects of relations with Liberia, and interactions of American citizens with the Liberian government and people. There are two separate collections in Archives Unbound, the first collection covers 1864-1918 while the second collection covers 1918-1935. You can access both collections by clicking on "Browse Collections" in Archives Unbound.
- Malawi Under Colonial Rule, in Government Reports, 1907-1967 This link opens in a new window This collection contains annual reports compiled by the British colonial government of Nyasaland (modern day Malawi). The documents cover the period from the dissolution of the Central African Protectorate in 1907 to Malawi’s declaration of independence and beyond. The Annual Departmental Reports provide a unique insight into the colonial administration’s evolving attitude towards native power structures. For convenience, the documents are divided into nine sections. These are Administration, Finance, Judicial and Police, Natural Resources (1), Natural Resources (2), Social Services, Transport and Public Works, Communication and Post Office Savings, and Miscellaneous.
- Missionary Studies This link opens in a new window Missionary Studies is a global resource for the study of missionary work, educational work, medical work, evangelism, political conflict, and the emergence of indigenous churches. Formed from archival collections relating to Africa, East and South Asia, Australasia and the Pacific, and the Americas, it includes records of female missionaries and women’s missionary organisations.
- Olive Schreiner Letters Online This link opens in a new window The database provides transcriptions of Olive Schreiner’s more than 4800 extant letters located in archives across Europe, the US and South Africa, with detailed editorial notes and background information, thanks to the Olive Schreiner Letters Project (http://www.oliveschreinerletters.ed.ac.uk/). The letters are fully searchable with free text or with the Boolean search method. Transcriptions include every insertion and deletion as well as the main text. Guides to the archival locations of all her letters are also available.
- Royal Geographical Society (with Institute of British Geographers) – by Wiley Digital Archives This link opens in a new window The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) digital archive contains more than 150,000 maps, charts and atlases complemented by manuscripts, field notes, expedition reports. Includes primary source material related to colonization, de-colonization, British Empire, polar and desert expeditions.
- Struggles for Freedom: Southern Africa (Aluka) This link opens in a new window This digital resource documents the liberation struggles in Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, including archival materials, periodicals, oral histories, books, and photographs. Struggles for Freedom brings together materials from various archives and libraries throughout the world documenting colonial rule, dispersion of exiles, international intervention, and the worldwide networks that supported successive generations of resistance within the region.
- Tanzania and Malawi in records from colonial missionaries, 1857-1965 This link opens in a new window Containing over 54,000 digitised pages from Bodleian's Commonwealth and African manuscripts and archives, this database contains documents relating to the UMCA’s (Universities’ Mission to Central Africa) activities in Tanzania and Malawi during the period 1857-1965. The papers provide an insight into the spread of Christianity in Central Africa. Made up of 5 volumes it includes ‘Central Africa’ magazine, missionaries’ correspondence and journals as well as miscellaneous correspondence, press cuttings, books and conference papers.
- Uganda Under Colonial Rule, in Government Reports, 1903-1961 This link opens in a new window The colony of Uganda was managed by the government departments who wrote these progress reports. Some reports start in the 1900’s, but most reports cover from the 1920’s until independence. These reports explain why those statistics are at the levels recorded. The contents pages at the front of each report list the departments which existed at that time. Comparing the contents pages reveals how the structure of the colonial government changed over time.
- Zimbabwe Under Colonial Rule, in Government Reports, 1897-1980 This link opens in a new window This collection contains annual reports by successive colonial administrations in Rhodesia. It ranges from the period of corporate colonisation in the late 19th century right through to the creation of an independent Zimbabwean republic in 1980. The documents provide an overview of the evolution of colonial rule from the perspective of colonial administrators. They highlight their response to early anti-colonial resistance such as the Shona and Ndeble Risings of 1896-1897. The records also highlight the difficulties caused by the Smith government’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965 and ensuing decades of white minority rule.