Abstract

This article focuses on the impact of the global turn on the field of African History. The first part is an overview of the approach of Western historians towards the history of Africa from the 19th century until the development of the field of African history in the 1960s. The second part analyses the development of the field of African Studies in the framework of the area studies. The article then analyses the relation between African History and World History since the 1990s, and points out how this gradually shifted from opposing positions to a more collaborative approach. Finally, the paper looks at the impact of the global turn on the field since the 2000s, with a special attention to the oceanic turn.