Strong reasoning skills are an important aspect to cultivate in life, as they directly impact decision making on a daily basis. By examining the different ways the world views logic and order, new methods and techniques can be employed to help expand on this skill further in the future. Philosophical Perceptions on Logic and Order is a pivotal scholarly resource that discusses the evolution of logical reasoning and future applications for these types of processes. Highlighting relevant topics including logic patterns, deductive logic, and inductive logic, this publication is an ideal reference source for academicians, students, and researchers that would like to expand their understanding of how society currently employs the use of logical reasoning techniques.

This book provides a case for the de-stigmatisation of ethnophilosophy by demonstrating its continuing relevance in contemporary African philosophy. The book brings together established and brilliant young scholars who defend ethnophilosophy as a unique source of African philosophy with the capacity to colour African philosophical scholarship, thereby distinguishing African philosophy from other philosophical traditions of the world and setting the stage for philosophical dialogue in the 21st century characterised by multiculturalism and globalisation. The volume addresses the future of African philosophy by closely linking the past of this tradition with the exciting projects of the contemporary system builders whose works emerge from the ethnophilosophical while transcending it. The book is aimed at African philosophy experts, scholars of intercultural philosophy, African studies scholars and graduate students of African and intercultural philosophy.

“Logic and African Philosophy: Seminal Essays on African Systems of Thought” aims to put African intellectual history in perspective, with focus on the subjects of racism, logic, language, and psychology. The volume seeks to fill in the gaps left by the exclusion of African thinkers that are frequent in the curricula of African schools concerning history, sociology, philosophy, and cultural studies. The book is divided into four parts that are preceded by an introduction to link up the essays and emphasise their sociological implications. Part one is comprised of essays that opened the controversy of whether logic can be found in traditional African cultures as well as other matters like the nature of the mind and behaviour of African peoples. The essays in part two are centred on the following question: are the laws of thought present in African languages and cultures? Part three brings together essays that sparkle the debate on whether there can be such a thing as African logic, which stems from the discussions in part two. Part four is concerned on the theme of system-building in logic; contributions are written by members of the budding African philosophy movement called the “Conversational School of Philosophy” based at the University of Calabar, and the main objective of their papers is to formulate systems of African logic.

This Handbook provides in one volume rich, comprehensive and rigorous coverage of specific subject areas and thematic concerns in the ever-evolving academic discipline of African philosophy. This Handbook is unique in its focus on central and emerging areas within African philosophy such as Afro-communitarian philosophy, ethics, epistemology, social and political philosophy, existentialism, philosophy of religion, gender philosophy, philosophy of education, phenomenology, transhumanism, African philosophy futures, and philosophy of the non-human. The thirty-two chapters in this Handbook explore the rich textual and non-textual forms of philosophical knowledge in Africa and adequately represent the broad and diverse scope of African philosophy, showing the richness and depth of the philosophical tradition. This reference work is indispensable to students and researchers in African philosophy, comparative philosophy and world philosophies.

In a major challenge to African philosophy, this book demonstrates the importance of the universalisation question for every committed African philosopher. Rooted in Africa’s colonial legacy, the universalisation question challenges the African thinker to show how authentically African philosophical concepts and phenomena can be universally applicable in a globalising world. In this highly original book, the author inserts the philosophy of consolationism into African philosophical discourse, constructing a unique philosophical system that is at once African and universally relevant. The book engages major African and Western philosophers of diverse ideological leanings in a compelling dialogue that announces the future of world philosophy as one of interculturality, in which a common philosophical horizon is forged out of the cultural diversities of the world for the edification of humanity in a continually changing world. This book will be an important read for researchers in the fields of African Studies, intercultural philosophy, philosophy of mind, and existentialism.

This book is an original, systematic, and radical attempt at decolonizing critical theory. Drawing on linguistic concepts from 16 languages from Asia, Africa, the Arab world, and South America, the essays in the volume explore the entailments of words while discussing their conceptual implications for the humanities and the social sciences everywhere. The essays engage in the work of thinking through words to generate a conceptual vocabulary that will allow for a global conversation on social theory which will be necessarily multilingual. With essays by scholars, across generations, and from a variety of disciplines – history, anthropology, and philosophy to literature and political theory – this book will be essential reading for scholars, researchers, and students of critical theory and the social sciences.

Healing Insanity: A Study of Igbo Medicine in Contemporary Nigeria is an original and in-depth study on endogenous medical system in an African society. It is craftily written and provides solid insight, through case studies and theory, into how insanity affects patients and the society. Particularly, it explores various collective representations and strategies regarding insanity and healing as it examines the healing institutions, healers, and ritual cults. The central question is, given the patterns of healing, how do the Igbo shape the incidence and symptoms of insanity, define its aetiology, and provide healers with culture-specific resources and skills to address this illness? The focus became increasingly centred on bodily semantics and endogenous knowledge systems and practices. Dr. Patrick Iroegbus work is a very valuable and rare study and has appeared at a desirable time. It is, for an African society, a comprehensive study of the many ways Igbo people, in their practical, routinelike attitudes and body-centred experiences, as well as in their more reflective aetiologic knowledge and healing institutions, relate to the phenomenon of insanity, or ara, in the cultural parlance. As the first of its kind, reminiscent of, and assured by, the various remarks of Igbo scholars and leaders at various meetings and discourses, the task this work has set out to accomplish is a very brave one. The authors account of his fieldwork experiences and adopted techniques illustrates his initiation, revealing him as a genuine ethnographer who is a friend of people and at ease with his field. With both the far-seeing and inspiring analysis of Igbo medicine, life, and culture accounted for in the work, the book stands out for ethnographers, teachers, students, leaders, policymakers, and the general public. This is a book that deserves to be read as it shapes the critical path toward understanding ways of healing insanity in a culture-specific context, crosscutting perspectives for a relationship between indigenous healing and the biomedical sphere. Prof. Ren Devisch (Africa Research Centre, University of Leuven) This book is written with a clear purpose for everyone to readto understand and heal insanityand indeed provides a thick piece of cultural philosophy and vernacular of Igbo medicine in hopes of putting cultural wisdom in pursuit of integral health care development. Prof. Pantaleon Iroegbu (Professor of Philosophy, Major-Seminary, Ekpoma, January 2006) To read this book, as I did, is to get the benefit of Dr. Patrick Iroegbus ethnographic insight for an archetypical African healing system in Igboland. It offers a fascinating theory of symbolic release that speaks of African symbolic action and knowledge system. Dr. Paul Komba, Esq. (University of Cambridge)

This is the first comprehensive exploration of African ethics covering everything from normative ethics and applied ethics, to meta-ethics and methodology, as well as the history of its evolution. African Ethics provides an in-depth exploration of Ubuntu ethics which is defined as a set of values based on concepts such as reciprocity, mutual respect, and working towards the common good. Ubuntu ethics also strongly emphasize the place of human dignity. The book engages with both theory and practice and how these ethical ideas impact upon the actual lived experience of Africans. It also includes important political considerations such as the impact of imperialism, colonialism, and capitalism on African ethics as well as the negative impact of apartheid and the renaissance made possible by the 'The Truth and Reconciliation Commission' whose work was premised heavily on African ethical ideas. This book is not just a wide-ranging and incisive introduction but also a reformulation of key concepts and current debates in African ethics. Crucially, African Ethics is an inclusive text, one that speaks from an African perspective and contributes to the decolonizing of contemporary ethics.

Crossing continents and running across centuries, Key Concepts in World Philosophies brings together the 45 core ideas associated with major Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Islamic, African, Ancient Greek, Indigenous and modern European philosophers. The universal theme of self-cultivation and transformation connects each concept. Each one seeks to change our understanding the world or the life we are living. From Chinese xin and karma in Buddhist traditions to okwu in African philosophy, equity in Islamic thought and the good life in Aztec philosophy, an international team of philosophers cover a diverse set of ideas and theories originating from thinkers such as Confucius, Buddha, Dogen, Nezahualcoyotl, Nietzsche and Zhuangzi. Organised around the major themes of knowledge, metaphysics and aesthetics, each short chapter provides an introductory overview supported by a glossary. This is a one-of-a-kind toolkit that allows you to read philosophical texts from all over the world and learn how their ideas can be applied to your own life.

Global interest in African studies has been rapidly growing as researchers realize the importance of understanding the impact African communities can have on the economy, development, education, and more. As the use, acceptance, and popularity of African knowledge increases, it is crucial to explore how this community-based knowledge provides deeper insights, understanding, and influence on such things as decision making and problem solving. African Studies: Breakthroughs in Research and Practice examines the politics, culture, language, history, socio-economic development, methodologies, and contemporary experiences of African peoples from around the world. Highlighting a range of topics such as indigenous knowledge, developing countries, and public administration, this publication is an ideal reference source for sociologists, policymakers, anthropologists, government officials, economists, instructors, researchers, academicians, and graduate-level students in a variety of fields.