…Unanimism—the illusion that all men and women in such societies speak with one voice and share the
same opinion about all fundamental issues, …is the real cornerstone of ethnophilosophy.
(Hountondji, African Philosophy: Myth and Reality, 1996: xviii,174)
The aim of this tribute roundtable is to critically discuss the late Prof. Paulin J. Hountondji’s (11 April 1942— 2 February 2024) contribution to African Philosophy. Hountondji’s criticism of ethnophilosophy as “unanimism” —communal worldview—provoked a great debate among African philosophers on the meaning, scope, nature, method, and logic of philosophy in Africa. At the core of his criticism is the quest for universalism and scientism in African philosophy.
In 2023, Prof. Olivier Abraham, the Director of the Centre for Phenomenology in South Africa, and other colleagues published an anthology, Phenomenology in African Context: Contributions and Challenges, that lends a new voice to this debate from an African phenomenological perspective. In discussing Hountondji’s Contribution, we will revisit this great debate and generate new discussions in African philosophy.
Date: 27 March 2024
Time: 5-7 pm (Nigeria Time), 6-8 pm (South Africa Time)
Venue: Zoom
Organizers: Conversational School of Philosophy (CSP), Calabar, Nigeria, and The Centre for
Phenomenology in South Africa (CPSA), University of Fort Hare, South Africa
Convenors: Dr Amara Esther Chimakonam, Dr Miriam Alike and Dr Aribiah David Atoe