History

The "General History of Africa" project description by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):

"In 1964, UNESCO launched the elaboration of the General History of Africa (GHA) with a view to remedy the general ignorance on Africa’s history. The challenge consisted of reconstructing Africa’s history, freeing it from racial prejudices ensuing from slave trade and colonization, and promoting an African perspective. UNESCO therefore called upon the then utmost African and non African experts. These experts’ work represented 35 years of cooperation between more than 230 historians and other specialists, and was overseen by an International Scientific Committee which comprised two-thirds of Africans.

The General History of Africa (GHA) is a pioneering corpus, unparalleled in its ambition to cover the history of the entire African continent, since the appearance of human beings to contemporary challenges faced by Africans and their Diasporas in the world. It is a history that no longer leaves the pre-colonial period in the shadows and that deeply integrates the destiny of Africa into that of humanity by highlighting its relations with the other continents and the contribution of African cultures to the general progress of humanity.

The complete collection is published in eight volumes. All volumes are richly illustrated with maps, charts, figures and diagrams and a selection of black and white photographs. The texts, for the most part, are fully annotated and there is an extensive bibliography and index."

Volume I - Methodology and African Prehistory (file size: about 28 MB)

Volume II - Ancient civilizations of Africa (file size: about 27 MB)

Volume III - Africa from the Seventh to the Eleventh Century (pages 1-435) (file size: about 16 MB)

Volume III - Africa from the Seventh to the Eleventh Century (pages 436-end) (file size: about 15 MB)

Volume IV - Africa from the Twelfth to the Sixteenth Century (file size: about 27 MB)

Volume V - Africa from the Sixteenth to the Eighteenth Century (pages 1-452) (file size: about 17 MB)

Volume V - Africa from the Sixteenth to the Eighteenth Century (pages 453-end) (file size: about 22 MB)

Volume VI - Africa in the Nineteenth Century until the 1880s (pages 1-447) (file size: about 17 MB)

Volume VI - Africa in the Nineteenth Century until the 1880s (pages 448-end) (file size: about 15 MB)

Volume VII - Africa under Colonial Domination 1880-1935 (pages 1-381) (file size: about 14 MB)

Volume VII - Africa under Colonial Domination 1880-1935 (pages 382-end) (file size: about 17 MB)

Volume VIII - Africa since 1935 (pages 1-521) (file size: about 18 MB)