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Since the late 1900s the study of African Diasporic history
and culture at Penn has been enriched by the scholarship of
professors and students in the field as well as by the presence
of the University museum's extensive African collection. African
Studies as a discipline, however, received heightened attention
and support at Penn with the advent of World War II. The war
caused the United States government to realize the strategic
importance of the nations of Asia and Africa.
To promote the study of non-Western cultures, organizations such as the American Council of Learned Societies provided
financial support to African and Asian study academic programs at universities around the country. The funds Penn received
went to support African Studies. The African languages offered at Penn during this period included Bantu, Fanti, Hausa, Ibo, and
Swahili. In 1942 the University hired African students as language instructors for these courses. One of these students was
Kwame Nkrumah, the great Pan-African leader who became both the prime minister and president of Ghana.
A number of works on Africa and African languages were published
during this period including: Colonial Policies in Africa by
Dr. Hans A. Wieschoff; A Preliminary Study of the Sherbro of
Sierra Leone by H.U. Hall; and the dissertation, A Descriptive
Grammar of Fanti by Dr. William Everett Welmers, which was the
result of his association and study with Nkrumah. Throughout
the ensuing decades the African Studies curriculum slowly evolved
to include courses across disciplines. Today's students of African
Studies owe much to the dedication and work of those scholars
and students who recognized the importance of documenting the
history, literature, and culture of African peoples-scholars
who saw beyond the "strategic" importance of studying
a continent and its inhabitants.
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