African Europeans: An Untold History

Name: African Europeans: An Untold History
Author: Olivette Otele
ISBN: 9781787381919

Olivette Otele

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Olivette Otele

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#731 of 3,809 books · #271 in History

Shortlisted for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for History (2021), the Orwell Prize for Political Writing (2021), and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for History (2020).

Africans or African Europeans are widely believed to be only a recent presence in Europe, a feature of our 'modern' society. But as early as the third century, St Maurice--an Egyptian-- became the leader of a legendary Roman legion. Ever since, there have been richly varied encounters between those defined as 'Africans' and those called 'Europeans', right up to the stories of present-day migrants to European cities. Though at times a privileged group that facilitated exchanges between continents, African Europeans have also had to navigate the hardships of slavery, colonialism and their legacies. Olivette Otele uncovers the long history of Europeans of African descent, tracing an old and diverse African heritage in Europe through the lives of individuals both ordinary and extraordinary. This hidden history explores a number of questions very much alive today. How much have Afro-European identities been shaped by life in Europe, or in Africa? How are African Europeans' stories marked by the economics, politics and culture of the societies they live in? And how have race and gender affected those born in Europe, but always seen as Africans?

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