Last modified: 31 Jul 2023 11:34
This course explores the relations between Portugal and Western Africa in the early modern period. It focuses on the period from 1415 to 1670 in which Portugal became the first European maritime power to establish contacts with societies in West and West Central Africa. Key themes include maritime navigation, Afro-European trade, and cultural contact. Particular focus will be placed on African responses and indigenous perspectives on European cultural contact.
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | First Term | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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Portugal was on the vanguard of European oceanic navigation and maritime commercial expansion. The by-product of this maritime endeavour was a series of encounters between Europeans and indigenous populations in Africa. The Portuguese were also at the forefront of establishing the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the colonization of the African continent by European powers. This course utilizes translated Portuguese sources to explore cultural contact, trade, and warfare between Portugal and African polities. Our case studies will focus on the kingdoms of Wolof, Benin, Kongo, and Ndongo.
Anyone approaching the pre-colonial history of coastal Western Africa becomes reliant on Portuguese sources. In this course we will read a range of Portuguese travel narratives, Royal chronicles, ecclesiastical records, and a wide range of visual sources. At the same time, we will challenge the Eurocentric nature of our source base by recovering indigenous perspectives through diplomatic correspondence from African rulers to the Portuguese crown and through a range of non-archival sources.
Assessment will include a primary source analysis, a visual source analysis, and an exam.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 60 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 20 | Feedback Weeks | 24 | |
| Feedback |
8 days to complete (online) Feedback will be in the form of email notification of marks with comments. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Analyse | Understand the histories of key pre-colonial kingdoms of Wolof, Benin, Kongo, and Ndongo and contextualise growing power imbalances during the early modern period. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Be able to analyse and critically engage with early Portuguese sources for the history of pre-colonial West Africa. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Be able to identify and analyse African perspectives through close readings of archival and non-textual sources. |
| Factual | Analyse | Understand the chronology of Portuguese contact with African societies in the early modern period. |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 13 | Feedback Weeks | 15 | |
| Feedback |
Feedback will be in the form of email notification of marks with comments; general remarks in class and on MyAberdeen; and via one, individual face-to-face meeting with each student with feedback on the exercise (and more generally). |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Be able to analyse and critically engage with early Portuguese sources for the history of pre-colonial West Africa. |
| Factual | Analyse | Understand the chronology of Portuguese contact with African societies in the early modern period. |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 17 | Feedback Weeks | 19 | |
| Feedback |
Feedback will be in the form of email notification of marks with comments; general remarks on class and on MyAberdeen; and via one, individual face-to-face meeting with each student with feedback on the exercise (and more generally). |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Be able to identify and analyse African perspectives through close readings of archival and non-textual sources. |
| Factual | Analyse | Understand the chronology of Portuguese contact with African societies in the early modern period. |
There are no assessments for this course.
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Analyse | Understand the histories of key pre-colonial kingdoms of Wolof, Benin, Kongo, and Ndongo and contextualise growing power imbalances during the early modern period. |
| Factual | Analyse | Understand the chronology of Portuguese contact with African societies in the early modern period. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Be able to identify and analyse African perspectives through close readings of archival and non-textual sources. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Be able to analyse and critically engage with early Portuguese sources for the history of pre-colonial West Africa. |
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