F. Abiola Irele
Encyclopedia
Francis Abiola Irele is a Nigeria
n academic who has been called the doyen of Africanist literary scholars worldwide. He is currently Provost at the newly-founded Kwara State University
in Ilorin, Nigeria. Before moving back to Nigeria, Irele was Visiting Professor of African and African American Studies and of Romance Languages and Literatures at Harvard University
.
Irele graduated from Ibadan University in 1960. Immediately after graduation, he went to Paris to learn French and completed a Ph.D in French at the University of Paris, Sorbonne in 1966. He held teaching positions at the University of Ghana, University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), and University of Ibadan. In 1989, he moved to Ohio State University
in the U.S. as Professor of African, French and Comparative Literature.
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n academic who has been called the doyen of Africanist literary scholars worldwide. He is currently Provost at the newly-founded Kwara State University
Kwara State University
', also known as KWASU is the 77 University to be registered by the Nigerian Universities Commission . It is the 95th University to be recognized in Nigeria ....
in Ilorin, Nigeria. Before moving back to Nigeria, Irele was Visiting Professor of African and African American Studies and of Romance Languages and Literatures at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
Irele graduated from Ibadan University in 1960. Immediately after graduation, he went to Paris to learn French and completed a Ph.D in French at the University of Paris, Sorbonne in 1966. He held teaching positions at the University of Ghana, University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), and University of Ibadan. In 1989, he moved to Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
in the U.S. as Professor of African, French and Comparative Literature.
Publications
Irele's writing includes:- The African Imagination: Literature in Africa and the Black Diaspora, Oxford University Press (paperback 2001) ISBN 0195086198
- The African Experience in Literature and Ideology, Indiana Univ Press (reprint 1990), ISBN 0253331242
- He is joint editor with Simon Gikandi of The Cambridge History of African and Caribbean Literature, Cambridge University Press (2004), ISBN 0-521-59434-0
Further reading
- F. Abiola Irele, What is Africa to me?: Africa in the Black Diaspora Imagination (Distinguished Lecture at Ohio State University, Oct 30, 2002) accessed at Feb 14, 2007 - includes video
- Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah, Literature, Culture and Thought in Africa: A conversation with Abiola Irele, in West Africa Review, Issue 7 (2005) accessed at Feb 14, 2007
- Wumi Raji, Churchill College Celebrates Abiola Irele (report of 70th birthday celebration, Nov 2006) accessed at Feb 14, 2007