Encyclopaedia Africana

  • 5 Min Read

Madam Yoko (circa 1849 – August 1906) was a fascinating and impressive woman who eventually became ruler of the Kpaa-Mende state. Famed for her beautiful...

  • 3 Min Read

Alhaji Ahmadu Wurie (August 27, 1898-June 13, 1977) was one of Sierra Leone’s foremost educators in the 20th century. An active politician, he was appointed...

  • 6 Min Read

Ernest Jenner Wright (1892 – December 29, 1955) was one of the most distinguished members of the British Colonial Medical Service, and one of the...

  • 7 Min Read

William Bedford Van Lare (September 7, 1904-September 3, 1969) was a prominent member of the Ghana (formerly Gold Coast) judiciary in the years immediately before...

  • 6 Min Read

Uthman Abu Bakr Diqna “‘Uthman Digna” (c.1840-1926) was one of the ‘Amils (Provincial Governors) of the Mahdist State in the Sudan (1885-1898).   His ancestors were...

  • 7 Min Read

Augustus William Kojo Thompson (1880-February 26, 1950), generally known as Kojo Thompson, was a lawyer, a radical nationalist politician, and a pan-Africanist. An outstanding critic...

  • 5 Min Read

Thomas George Lawson (circa 1814-June 1891) was a chief’s son who became the first official interpreter and messenger operating between the colonial administration and the...

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Tetteh Quarshie (1842-1892) is acknowledged to be the man who made cocoa cultivation a prosperous industry in the Gold Coast (now Ghana), and so laid...

  • 2 Min Read

Sir Charles William Tachie-Menson (1889 – October 17, 1962), who had a distinguished career in public service, was the first African Chairman of the Public...

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Togbi Sri II (1862-1956) was the Awoamefia (paramount chief) of Anlo for nearly 50 years (1907-1956). He distinguished himself as an innovator and as a...

Editor’s Note

This website features a collection of articles largely from previously published volumes of the Encyclopaedia Africana, specifically the Encyclopaedia Africana Dictionary of African Biography, which highlights notable individuals from various regions of Africa. Please note that in these volumes, some names of people, towns, and countries were spelled differently than they are today. We have retained these historical spellings to preserve the integrity of the original publications. In some instances, the current spellings are also provided for easy reference.
Please report errors to: info@encyclopaediaafricana.com / research@encyclopaediaafricana.com

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The Encyclopaedia Africana Project is an AU Flagship Project with the mission to produce and publish peer reviewed articles devoted mainly to Africa and its people.