There have been several attempts to define the modern African Diaspora. Perhaps the most encompassing definition is that by the renowned historian Joseph Harris, who defines the African Diaspora in the following way: “the voluntary and involuntary dispersion of Africans globally throughout history; the emergence of a cultural identity based on origin and social condition; and the psychological and physical return of those in the diaspora to Africa.”
This, then, is a definition that places Africa firmly at the centre of any discussion about the African Diaspora. But.
Is the Diaspora still tightly connected to Africa, as seems to be the case within the institutions of culture, for example art, music, film, and unconnected by slavery, or is the Diaspora today composed of members directly affected by the myriad legacies of slavery and of colonialism, who remain deeply impacted by their ancestry?
Definitions of the African diaspora
The origins of the African diaspora
The significance of the African Diaspora
It is an inescapable fact that wherever you travel throughout the African Diaspora, whether that be Europe or South America, you cannot escape the similarities in food, art, music, community organisations, the affinity for spirituality/religion, speech patterns and even outlook.
