• DOI:10.5325/JAFRIRELI.7.1.0001
• Corpus ID: 159102514

Introduction: Orienting Africana Religious Studies—East African and Indian Ocean Perspectives

@article{Premawardhana2019IntroductionOA,
  title={Introduction: Orienting Africana Religious Studies—East African and Indian Ocean Perspectives},
  author={Devaka Premawardhana},
  journal={Journal of Africana Religions},
  year={2019},
  volume={7},
  pages={1 - 16}
}

• Devaka Premawardhana
• Published 30 January 2019
• History
• Journal of Africana Religions

Abstract:Presuming that such themes as diaspora and migration pertain to Africana peoples of the Indian Ocean world no less than they do to those of the better-known Atlantic, this special issue opens the study of Africana religions to an expanded geographic range and the insights that come with such an expansion. This introductory essay clarifies the special issue's rationale, sketches the relevant historical and geographic contexts, and proposes three analytic frames through which to assess the interventions made by the contributors. The value and variety of those interventions underscore the importance, if not necessity, of taking a truly global approach to Africana religious studies.