African Philosophy

The Google search engine indicates a strong African presence in the world of philosophy. Indeed, while there is no category for white philosophy in cyberspace, statistics from February of 2004 indicate 3,050,000 hits for black philosophy, 1,620,000 hits for African philosophy, and 1,220,000 hits for African American philosophy. African philosophy received many more hits than Indian philosophy (1,340,000), Japanese philosophy (1,320,000), Jewish philosophy (1,300,000), Arab philosophy (367,000), Islamic philosophy (644,000), and Spanish philosophy (6,180). African philosophy comes closest in number [Page 46]of hits received to Chinese philosophy (1,650,000) and Greek philosophy (1,770,000). Although the presence of African philosophy in cyberspace comes after that of major European traditions, the presence of black philosophy surpasses that of British philosophy (2,090,000) and German philosophy (2,610,000) and is equal to the presence of French philosophy (3,050,000). The presence of American philosophy, with 5,130,000 hits, reigns supreme in cyberspace.

Although merely indicative, this presence of philosophical literature in cyberspace points in its own limited way to the presence and influence of African philosophy in today's world. Nowadays, African philosophy is part of the regular curriculum in philosophy departments in Africa and around the world. And yet, just three decades ago, the very notion of the existence of African philosophy was controversial, and many in philosophy departments believed that the rational enterprise of philosophy was incompatible with African cultures, if not antithetical to the structure of the African mind itself. Furthermore, in some corners of the world community, some philosophers remain skeptical and suspicious of African rationality, despite the presence of numerous books, journals, and associations of African philosophy. Considerations of African history, especially of the slave trade and colonialism, have since 1945 put the following questions at the center of the debate about African philosophy: What is African philosophy? Who qualifies as an African philosopher? What makes specific African thought philosophical? What makes a philosophy African? However, the history of African philosophy and its object of study are broader and deeper than this preoccupation with relatively recent African history suggests.

The notion of African philosophy refers simply to the African love for wisdom, that relentless passion of the African mind to know and to know the truth about human existence and the world. African philosophy is indeed a careful examination of life and of living beings. As such, it involves a rational meditation on love, suffering, mortality, and immortality. It is a reflection on ways of living a good life and a constant questioning of the credibility of institutions created for the purpose of achieving such a good life. It proceeds by way of a methodic, systematic analysis of knowledge and known phenomena, a study of the fundamental questions of human existence, articulated in an explicit, critical, autocritical, and systematic discourse that is sometimes symbolic and proverbial but very often discursive.

What is meant by African philosophy, then, is the specific African way of understanding and explaining the world and the drama of the human condition. It is the systematic effort of the African mind to understand the world as a meaningful cosmos and to understand the place and role of human beings and other creatures in the universe. It is thus a rigorous pursuit of truth and a rational search for the meaning of human existence. African philosophy is at once an activity of the mind, a way of expression, and a way of life based on genuine knowledge and wisdom. Indeed, it is a way of thinking, speaking, being, and living wisely. Such an enterprise entails the use of critical thinking not to achieve skepticism and cynicism but to enhance human flourishing. Since time immemorial, Africa has praised wisdom over age and titles and maintained that the unexamined life is not worth living. Thus the Baluba, like many other African people, established a clear distinction between kunena (“to speak eloquently and wisely”) and kunenakanya (“to speak incoherently and unwisely”) and between kulanga (“to think well”) and kulangakanya (“to think with confusion or to have evil thought”). In fact, the person with a lack of knowledge and unwise conduct was regarded in traditional Africa as kivila, kidingidingi, that is, an “empty well” or a worthless being. Thus according to African philosophy, the goal of life is to become humane by pursuing wisdom.

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