African and African American Studies Research Guide

From Project MUSE: "Africa is the premier journal devoted to the study of African societies and culture. Published as the journal of the International African Institute, editorial policy encourages an interdisciplinary approach, involving the social sciences, history, the environment and life sciences. Africa aims to give increased attention to historical trends, issues of development and links between local and national levels of society. At the same time, it maintains its commitment to the theoretically informed analysis of the realities of Africa's own cultural categories." Note: Many older issues from 1928-on are available via HathiTrust

"Advances the analytical and interrogative discourse that constitutes the distinctive field of African diaspora studies in the production of knowledge by focusing on issues such as power, knowledge, gender, race and other forms of social identity."

"As the official publication of the Division on Black American Literature and Culture of the Modern Language Association, the quarterly journal African American Review promotes a lively exchange among writers and scholars in the arts, humanities, and social sciences who hold diverse perspectives on African American literature and culture. Between 1967 and 1976, the journal appeared under the title Negro American Literature Forum and for the next fifteen years was titled Black American Literature Forum. In 1992, African American Review changed its name for a third time and expanded its mission to include the study of a broader array of cultural formations. Currently, the journal prints essays on African American literature, theatre, film, the visual arts, and culture generally; interviews; poetry; fiction; and book reviews. AAR has received three American Literary Magazine Awards for Editorial Content in the 1990s." Coverage: 1992-roughly 3 years prior to current year.

AJOL is "the world's largest and pre-eminent collection of peer-reviewed, African-published scholarly journals." Includes more than 200 open access journals!

From JStor, 1987-1997 - renamed Journal of African Cultural Studies in 1998.

"African Studies Review, a multi-disciplinary scholarly journal, publishes original research and analyses of Africa and book reviews three times annually. It encourages scholarly debates across disciplines. The editing of the African Studies Review is supported by Five Colleges, Inc., a consortium representing Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, and the University of Massachusetts." Coverage: 1970-roughly 5 years prior to current year.

Online available 2010-present; back years 1985-2009 available at Parks HC501 A5321x

"Focuses on the social sciences dealing with Africa and aims to promote a deeper understanding of African peoples and cultures." (publisher's description)

Journal of the Black Left Unity Network

From Indiana University, this journal provides "... a forum for the scholarly critiques; debates every aspect of Black Diaspora studies, including its mission, curricula, ideology and/or scholarly methodologies, linkages to other academic disciplines links to extra-academic communities, and its future." (publisher description)

Digital archived copies of this important Black LGBTQ+ journal; part of the LGBT Thought and Culture database.

"Founded in 1969 and hailed by The New York Times as “a journal in which the writings of many of today’s finest black thinkers may be viewed,” THE BLACK SCHOLAR has firmly established itself as the leading journal of black cultural and political thought in the United States and remains under the editorship of Robert Chrisman, Editor-In-Chief, Robert Allen, Senior Editor, and Maize Woodford, Executive Editor. In its pages African American studies intellectuals, community activists, and national and international political leaders come to grips with basic issues confronting black America and Africa." Coverage is 1969-roughly 5 years before current year.

"Callaloo, the premier African and African-American literary journal, publishes original works by and critical studies of black writers worldwide. The journal offers a rich mixture of fiction, poetry, plays, critical essays, cultural studies, interviews, and visual art. Frequent annotated bibliographies, special thematic issues, and original art and photography are some of the features of this highly acclaimed international showcase of arts and letters. Special issues on Haiti and on Puerto Rican Women Writers have received awards from the Council of Editors of Learned Journals and the Association of American Publishers Professional Scholarly Publishing Division." Coverage: 1976-roughly 5 years prior to current year.

Online full-text current articles (1995-present) of this important literary and arts research journal. See Callaloo via JSTOR for older volumes of this journal.

Important journal founded by W. E. B. Du Bois, covering years 1910-1922.

Higher education information, statistics, and short articles relevant to African American issues & diverse populations in the U.S.

Amazing full text archive of this important African American news and culture magazine, 1950-2008

From JSTOR Journals Open Access

"Devoted to advancing scholarship and practice on African American males in education" (publisher's description)

"The Journal of African American Studies examines topics concerning social transformations that impact the life chances of continental Africans and the African diaspora. It publishes original research on issues of professional and disciplinary concern for the social progress of people of African descent. The journal features empirical, methodological, and theoretical papers as well as literary criticism. It covers the full spectrum of this interdisciplinary field, containing diverse methods and perspectives that include anthropology, art, economics, law, literature, management science, political science, psychology, sociology, social policy research, and others." Coverage: 2003-roughly 3 years prior to current year.

?The Journal of African Cultural Studies is an international journal providing a forum for perceptions of African culture from inside and outside Africa, with a special commitment to African scholarship. It focuses on dimensions of African culture including African literatures both oral and written, performance arts, visual arts, music, the role of the media, the relationship between culture and power, as well as issues within such fields as popular culture in Africa, sociolinguistic topics of cultural interest, and culture and gender." Coverage: 1998 to roughly 3 years prior to current year.

"The striking importance of higher education in the lives of black Americans is a major reason for The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education (JBHE). JBHE provides new information about the governance, policies, and practices in our colleges and universities. JBHE also publishes articles which address the broader intellectual issues, policies, and strategies that affect the progress of blacks in institutions of higher education." Coverage: 1993-2010

Complete full-text facsimiles of this important core journal in African American and African studies. Coverage is 1970-1996; includes powerful search engine. From JSTOR.

Complete full-text of this important core journal in African American and African studies. Coverage is 1970 through roughly 4 years before the current year; includes powerful search engine. From JSTOR.

"The Journal of Modern African Studies offers a quarterly survey of developments in modern African politics and society. Its main emphasis is on current issues in African politics, economies, societies and international relations. It is intended not only for students and academic specialists, but also for general readers and practitioners with a concern for modern Africa, living and working both inside and outside the continent. Editorial policy avoids commitment to any political viewpoint or ideology, but aims at a fair examination of controversial issues in order to promote a deeper understanding of what is happening in Africa today. The journal also includes an invaluable book review section." Coverage: 1963-roughly 5 years prior to current year.

"Review of Black Political Economy (RBPE), peer-reviewed and published quarterly, is the leading outlet for research that examines issues related to the economic status of African-Americans, the African diaspora throughout the world." Coverage: 1995-2017

Complete online full-text from 1961-1994 of this important and unique contribution to radical Black cultural studies worldwide. From JSTOR; includes powerful search engine.