African Literature Association
Independent non-profit professional society
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The African Literature Association (ALA) is an independent non-profit professional society that was founded in the United States in 1974, with the aim of promoting literary and cultural studies related to, and about, Africa and its diasporic populations.[1] It is open to scholars, teachers and writers from every country.[2] According to its mission statement: "The ALA as an organization affirms the primacy of the African peoples in shaping the future of African literature and actively supports the African peoples in their struggle for liberation."[3]
| Abbreviation | ALA |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1974 |
| Type | Independent non-profit professional society |
| Purpose | To promote literary and cultural studies related to, and about, Africa and its diasporic populations |
| Website | africanlit |
In 2024, Professor Gichingiri Ndigirigi was named as president of the ALA.[4]
Background
The ALA's inaugural conference was held at the University of Texas at Austin in 1975, when Dennis Brutus was elected the first chair of the organization.[5] The ALA holds annual conferences on a variety of themes, marking its 50th anniversary with the 2025 conference on "Ecologies of Transition: Spaces and Mobilities in African Literature and Cultures", hosted by the University of Nairobi's Department of Literature.[6]
Journal of the African Literature Association (JALA)
In 2006, the organization launched its Journal of the African Literature Association (JALA).[7] The journal is published by Taylor & Francis.[8][9]