The role of mathematics and scientific thought in Africa: A Renaissance perspective

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article examines the centrality of mathematics and scientific thought in the sociocultural, human and intellectual development of a sampling of African societies. Evidence is presented which refutes the theory that Africans had no ‘intelligible sense of numeracy’ before contact with the West, and demonstrates that the propagation of this myth was part of the larger colonial project to marginalise and ‘other-ise’ African knowledge systems. Tracing Africa's early contributions to mathematics and scientific thought forces a shift from the standard Western-based approach to pedagogy in this field. It renders a subject that is perceived and presented as alien to African culture, more accessible to African learners. And ultimately, acknowledging the long history of mathematics and scientific thought in Africa is a step in foregrounding African epistemologies in knowledge production, human and social development and towards the realisation of the African Renaissance.