In honor of Black History Month, we compiled a list of amazing Black authors! Check out some of their works!

Lucille Clifton – A wonderful poet who was discovered by Langston Hughes! Clifton was born in NY in 1936 and attended Harvard University. My personal favorite poem is her poem, “sisters” where she writes about her relationship with her sister, Elaine! Clifton died in 2010 but her poetry still lives on!

Langston Hughes – A prominent figure during the Harlem Renaissance who often wrote about Black life! He truly shaped the way Black poets are viewed! If you get the chance, read his essay, “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain.” You won’t be disappointed.

Ralph Ellison – Born in 1914, Ellison grew up loving music. It was thought that he would be a musician and composer, but instead, decided to write. Being the grandson of slaves, Ellison’s works are particularly important. I highly recommend reading his Invisible Man, written in 1952. It is a gripping novel right from the first page!

Alex Haley – Another very important Black author! He wrote his novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family after spending a decade researching his family’s history. The novel was such a success that it was made into a TV miniseries!

James Baldwin – The list isn’t complete without James Baldwin! He wrote many novels and essays that brought to light the unfortunate consequences of the American racial strife. He has been described as “bold and courageous writer who is not afraid to search into the dark corners of our social consciences, and to force out into public view many of the hidden, sordid skeletons of our society” by Therman B. O’Daniel in the College Language Association Journal.

Maya Angelou – Again, another prominent figure that must be on this list! She’s an absolute icon! Read her I know why the Caged Bird Sings. As I was research this book, I found out that it is one of the most challenged books for “its language and portrayals of violence, racism, sexuality, childhood rape and teen pregnancy” (source). To me, this is all the more reason to read it, especially because this novel is autobiographical and describes Angelou’s early life.

This list is far from complete. If you’d like to read more by Black authors, check out this list of great novels compiled by Oprah or this list compiled by Penguin Random House.

In honor of Black History Month, I thought it would be fun to put together a list of English words that are derived from African languages!

Check it out!

• aardvark – Afrikaans word, meaning earth (or ground) pig
• apartheid – Afrikaans policy of separate development/living
• banana – West African, possibly Wolof banana
• banjo – probably Bantu mbanza
• basenji- breed of dog from the Congo
• biltong – from Afrikaans – cured meat (often used in South African English)
• bongo – West African boungu
• braai – from Afrikaans – barbecue (often used in South African English)
• buckra – from Efik and Ibibio mbakara “master”^[1]
• bwana – from swahili
• chachacha possibly from Kimbundu, onomatopoeia for ringing bells or rattles worn around the legs of a female dancers.
• chigger – possibly from Wolof and Yoruba jiga “insect”)
• chimpanzee – from a Bantu language, possibly Tshiluba kivili-chimpenze
• cola – from West African languages (Temne kola, Mandinka kolo)
• coffee – disputed; either from the Ethiopian region/Kingdom of Kaffa, where coffee originated, or Arabic kahwa
• conga – feminized form of Congo through Spanish
• dengue – possibly from Swahili dinga
• djembe from West African languages [2]
• fandango- possibly from the kikongo empire[3]
• Geranuk – Somali: Gerenuk means “giraffe-necked” in the Somali language
• gnu – from Bushman !nu through Hottentot i-ngu and Dutch gnoe
• goober – possibly from Bantu (Kikongo and Kimbundu nguba)
• gumbo – from Bantu (Kimbundu ngombo meaning “okra”)
• indaba – from Xhosa or Zulu languages – ‘meeting’ (often used in South African English)
• jambalaya possibly from tshiluba
• jamboree possibly from swahili “jambo”.
• jazz – from West African languages (Mandinka jasi, Temne yas)
• jive – possibly from Wolof jev
• jumbo – from Swahili (jambo or jumbe or from Kongo nzamba “elephant”)
• juju – Yoruba
• juke, jukebox – possibly from Wolof and Bambara dzug through Gullah
• kalimba
• Kwanzaa – from the Swahili phrase matunda ya kwanza, meaning “first fruits”.
• kwashiorkor – from Ga language, Coastal Ghana meaning “swollen stomach”
• impala – from Zulu im-pala
• lapa – from Sotho languages – enclosure or barbecue area (often used in South African English)
• macaque – from Bantu makaku through Portuguese and French
• mamba – from Zulu or Swahili mamba
• mambo – possibly West African through Haitian Creole
• marimba – from Bantu (Kimbundu and Swahili marimba, malimba)
• marimbula
• merengue (dance) possibly from Fulani mererek i meaning to shake or quiver
• mumbo jumbo – uncertain West African etymology
• mojo – from Fula moco’o “medicine man” through Louisiana Creole French or Gullah
• obeah – from West African (Efik ubio, Twi ebayifo)
• okra – from Igbo ókùrù
• okapi – from a language in the Congo
• safari – from Swahili travel, ultimately from Arabic
• samba from an African language through Brazilian Portuguese [4][5], carnaval website
• sambo – Fula sambo meaning “uncle”
• sangoma – from Zulu – traditional healer (often used in South African English)
• tango – probably from Ibibio tamgu
• tsetse – from a Bantu language (Tswana tsetse, Luhya tsiisi)
• trek – from Afrikaans – move (often used in South African English)
• ubuntu – Bantu languages
• voodoo – from West African languages (Ewe and Fon vodu “spirit”)
• yam – West African (Fula nyami, Twi anyinam)
• zebra – possibly from a language in the Congo
• zombie – Central African (Kikongo zumbi, Kimbundu nzambi)

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