Call for Papers - The Sixth J. A. Atanda Lectures and Conference

[Ezinwanyi Adam]

Dear All,

Please find below details of the Sixth J. A. Atanda Lectures and Conference on the theme: "Yoruba Culture and Society", which will hold at Babcock University, on

June 21 – 23, 2021.  

Call for Papers 

Conveners: Professor Bola Sotunsa, Babcock University 

and 

Toyin Falola, the University of Texas at Austin 

Culture shapes all human civilizations while defining the core of every society. With changes over time and across regions, culture as a whole has an inseparable relationship with the societies in which it lies. To explore just such a connection, the 2021 Atanda Conference intends to examine a culture's role in shaping society. The primary aim of the conference is to reflect on the various facets of Yoruba culture and analyze their interactions with one another and other cultural influences in a global context. To this end, the conference will discuss the dynamic nature of culture, society, and technology. Simultaneously, the conference intends to create an intellectual space for examining how pan-Yoruba culture has developed and evolved. Additionally, the conference seeks to explore the histories of ethnic and sub-ethnic divisions and alliances. Beyond the specific emphasis on the Yoruba, the overarching focus of the conference will also be to engage with the effects of Yoruba culture and society on the world at large.   

The conference is in honor of Professor Joseph Adebowale Atanda, a distinguished historian who was a major participant in developing studies on Yoruba history. Prof. Atanda's scholarship provided a springboard for reshaping and expanding knowledge about the Yoruba and their cultural epistemology.  

Scholars and practitioners are invited to examine diverse aspects of how culture is practiced, including festivals, customs, art, and traditions. The 2021 Atanda conference intends to address core questions of decolonizing society in the contemporary context. For instance, how can the African (Yoruba) culture grow its influence, transmit values, and play decisive roles within current realities? How has the language been used since the nineteenth century to define Yoruba culture, mediate colonial modernity and globalization, and develop post-colonial urban cultures? 

Further, conversations surrounding cultural taboos, hierarchies, and oppressions will be tackled. Themes of gender and sexuality will also be addressed in this conference, mainly regarding their perceptions and change over time. The objective of these dialogues is to pluralize the narratives on Yoruba society, culture, and their various dimensions.  

We invite submissions on the following sub-themes, in addition to other ideas that the participants may have: 

Archival repository of culture  

Technology and the production of cultural works 

Pan-African cultural development  

African modern society  

Cultural Encounters with the West 

Cultural Encounters with the Arab/Islamic World 

The Yoruba and their neighbors 

Changing Social Institutions 

Cultural divisions of ethnicities  

Gender in society  

Cultural taboos  

International Yoruba cultures  

Sexuality and expression across cultures 

Decolonization in Yoruba society  

Cultural hierarchies and oppressions  

Yoruba intellectual traditions 

Role of religion in society  

Technology's role in cultural exchange  

Cultural economic practices  

Art, tradition, and customs  

Festivals and celebrations  

Politics in contemporary Yoruba societies 

Behaviors and psychologies of culture 

Nature, Environment, and Culture 

Mythologies and folklore 

Yoruba cultural icons 

Cultural (r)evolutions, mutations, and hegemony 

Music and popular culture 

Traditional Medicine in the age of pandemics 

Yoruba gods and goddesses 

Yoruba cultures and colonial/national boundaries 

Abstract Submission: 

Contributors are invited to send a short abstract of not more than 250 words on any of the above subject areas as well as a short bio by email to:  

atanda.c...@babcock.edu.ng and 

Olusegun Olopade: bcma...@toyinfalolanetwork.org

Bola Sotunsa: sotu...@babcock.edu.ng

ToyinFalola: toyin...@austin.utexas.edu

Deadlines

Abstract Submission: April 15, 2021 

Acceptance of abstracts: Latest by April 30, 2021

PowerPoint Presentations: June 10, 2021

Paper Submission: August 20, 2021

Contact Us:

Direct all queries to: atanda.c...@babcock.edu.ng

Professor Mobolanle E. Sotunsa : sotu...@babcock.edu.ng + 234 7060947611) 

Professor ToyinFalola: toyin...@austin.utexas.edu

Dr. Ezinwanyi Adam: ad...@babcock.edu.ng, +234 8063533265 (LOC Chair)

Kindly visit the official conference website https://babcock.edu.ng/atandaconference for additional information. 

Kindly note that Conference registration is free. Sponsorship is also available for the first 200 registered participants (with abstracts). The sponsorship covers accommodation (Comfortable Students' Hostels) and feeding, only for the period of the conference. The conference shall hold both onsite and virtual panels, given our present realities. Consequently, onsite participants will be required to observe, maintain strictly all COVID-19 protocols throughout the meetings.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.