Call for Papers: 7th Biannual CRG African History Conference
The Collaborative Research Group (CRG) African History invites proposals for its 7th Biennial Conference, taking place in Ghent, Belgium, on 18–19 June 2026. Open to historians worldwide, the conference welcomes submissions that explore any aspect of African history, across all periods and specialisations. Both individual paper proposals and round table sessions are encouraged, with a special invitation to early-career scholars and researchers based in Africa. Organisers aim to secure funding to support the latter group.
Round table proposals should include a 300-word thematic summary, a list of 3–5 confirmed participants with affiliations, and 150-word descriptions of each contribution. Individual paper proposals must be no longer than 300 words and should state the author’s affiliation and research focus.The CRG also seeks nominations for the Exciting Lecture in African History, to highlight a scholar with a recent innovative book, concept, or method. Nominations must come from CRG members, and self-nominations are not accepted.
All proposals and nominations must be submitted by 15 October 2025, with decisions communicated by 1 December 2025. Registration information will follow, with a modest fee for Europe- and North America-based participants to help fund attendance from Africa. Click here for more information (pdf).
New AEGIS-Brill Series just published
No. 35 in the AEGIS-Brill series, The Politics of the Past in Zimbabwe, co-edited by Astrid Rasch, Minna Johanna Niemi, and Amanda Hammar, explores the varied ways in which pasts are experienced, remembered, claimed, denied, or contested by differently positioned actors, and how these dynamics shape the politics of the present. Comprising twelve chapters, the volume examines how historical narratives are politically mobilised, silenced, or disputed in Zimbabwe. These themes are explored through literature, visual art, and the media; through acts of exhumation and reburial; in official apologies and the crafting of political myths; as well as within heritage practices and the creation of new national symbols. Click here for more details (web).
The contributors include a range of Zimbabwean and Zimbabweanist scholars including: Jocelyn Alexander, Elleke Boehmer, Shadreck Chirikure, Simbarashe Shadreck Chitima, Lena Englund, Shari Eppel, Petina Gappah, Amanda Hammar, Pedzisai Maedza, Owen Maseko, Mphathisi Ndlovu, Minna Johanna Niemi, Astrid Rasch, Timothy Scarnecchia, Thomas Thondhlana, and Katja Uusihakala.
No. 36 of the AEGIS-Brill series, Trust and Trust-Making in Africa’s Global Connections, co-edited by Mayke Kaag, Alena Thiel, and István Tarrósy, is a thought-provoking contribution to both African Studies and the broader study of trust in society. The volume offers rich ethnographic insights into how trust and trust-making shape Africans’ global encounters. It traces the empirical foundations of trust and distrust, reveals diverse expressions of trust-building, and critically situates these dynamics within today’s global polycrisis. Trust, as examined here, emerges as both a potential catalyst of harm and a powerful vehicle for positive change. Click here for more details (web).