Foundational Concepts of Decolonial and Southern Epistemologies

This book brings together 11 prominent scholars and political activists to discuss and explore issues around postcolonialism, decoloniality, Theories of the South and Epistemologies of the South. These wide-ranging discussions touch upon issues from academic research methods and writing conventions to global struggles for justice. Together the chapters, as well as the interventions from forum participants which are characteristic of this series, paint a complex and dynamic picture of areas of thought and action that are constantly evolving in response to the demands of a world in flux.

The book is a major intervention in current debates about the geopolitics of knowledge, as well as an illustration of the ways in which scholarship in the Global North(s) is indebted to the diverse traditions of scholarship in the Global South(s).

About the Authors

Sinfree Makoni is a Professor in Applied Linguistics and African Studies, Director of African Studies and Interim Director of the Africana Research Centre at Pennsylvania State University, USA. He holds Extraordinary Professorship, Visiting Professor and Researcher positions at several South African institutions: North-West University, Nelson Mandela University, University of the Western Cape and University of Zululand.

Anna Kaiper-Marquez recently began her role as Director of Family Literacy at National Center for Families Learning, USA. Her professional and research interests include English language learning and literacy in international contexts, adult and family language and literacy practices, and language practices and methodologies in the Global South.

Magda Madany-Saa has a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the Pennsylvania State University, USA. Her research interests include decolonial theory and methodology, critical interculturality, language policy and translanguaging. She is a language teacher educator with experience in Poland, Ecuador and the US.

Bassey E. Antia is Professor of Applied Linguistics at the University of the Western Cape, South Africa. His teaching and/or research interests span multilingualism (in higher education), language policy, terminology and decolonial approaches to sociolinguistics. He is co-editor with Sinfree Makoni of Southernizing Sociolinguistics: Colonialism, Racism and Patriarchy in Language in the Global South (Routledge, 2023).