Introduction and Overview of Chapter Contents

Abstract

For a long time, all kinds of myths and prejudices concealed the true history of Africa from the world at large. African societies were looked upon as societies that could have no history. In spite of important work done by such pioneers as Leo Frobenius, Maurice Delafosse and Artura Labriola, as early as the first decade of this century, a great many non-African experts could not rid themselves of certain preconception and argued that the lack of written records made it impossible to engage in any scientific study of such societies.