Historical Dictionary Of Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso, known as Upper Volta until its independence from France in 1960, and locally called the "land of the upright people," is a medium-sized land-locked country with no less than six neighbors, some of which periodically get into trouble... which makes it reasonably strategic in some ways. While it has not done as poorly as some other African states, its economic has certainly not prospered and many Burkinabe go abroad to earn a living. As for politics, it is another case of stability without democracy, even if there are periodic elections. Still, this is better than not even having stability. This third edition of Historical Dictionary of Burkina Faso covers its history through a chronology, an introductory essay, maps, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 1000 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Burkina Faso.

The change in name from Upper Volta to Burkina Faso has mirrored equally important changes in the country's lifestyle. Yet despite numerous military and civilian governments since 1960, Burkina Faso still faces many of the same challenges it confronted decades ago: malnutrition, drought, lack of natural resources, debt, and the difficulties of industrial development in a region that is often unstable. At the same time, the people of Burkina Faso prove to be hard working and resourceful, and have persevered through many harsh conditions, and continue to improve the standard of living in their nation. The Historical Dictionary of Burkina Faso is the second edition of Daniel McFarland's Historical Dictionary of Upper Volta from 1978. As with the earlier edition, this volume provides information on important persons, places and events, political parties, government organizations, economy, and culture. Most importantly, new entries update information on occurrences in the twenty years that have intervened between the two volumes, providing perspectives on recent social, international, political, and cultural issues. The book also includes a detailed chronology of the history of Upper Volta/Burkina Faso, from precolonial times to the current changes in governmental structure and Burkina Faso's relationship to other countries in the region, many in similar situations. The bibliography in the current edition contains 1300 entries, more than one-third in English, versus the 600 entries found in the 1978 edition, and increases the number of English language sources considerably. With such a substantial revision, scholars and librarians will find the Historical Dictionary of Burkina Faso a major addition to their collection. The expansion in resources and materials of interest, as well as the chronological and governmental updates, make this new edition an unavoidable part of any complete collection.

Historical dictionary of Burkina Faso - includes a chronology of events (700-1976) and a list of ethnic groups. Bibliography pp. 166 to 217 and maps.

Mali is currently the seventh largest country in Africa. It shares borders with Mauritania and Senegal in the west, Algeria in the north, Guinea and Ivory Coast in the south, and Burkina Faso and Niger in the east. After decades of dictatorship, in 1992, a new democratic constitution was adopted and today Mali is one of the most politically and socially stable countries in Africa. While Mali still has a long way to go with their economy_they are considered to be among the 10 poorest countries in the world_they continue to make progress and their increase in cereal and gold production are steps in the right direction. The fourth edition of the Historical Dictionary of Mali, through its chronology, bibliography, introductory essay, and over 500 cross-referenced dictionary entries on important persons, places, events, and institutions and significant political, economic, social, and cultural aspects, provides an important reference on this African country.

Togo’s history from precolonial times to the present is one of a struggle for identity and leadership. A territory relatively untouched by neighboring pre-colonial empires was colonized by both the Germans and the French, and even before independence Togo was shaped by the struggle for political control by prominent families. Since the 1990s, widespread political movements have striven to unseat the ruling Gnassingbé family, in power for more than 50 years, only to be repressed by the military or thwarted at the ballot box. Economically more prosperous compared to many of the other countries in the West African region, Togo has diversified its economy from an early dependence on phosphates, and has navigated trade and foreign relations remarkably well for a country of only 7 million people, with a territory less than a quarter the size of neighboring Ghana. With at least 30 ethnic groups and wide array of languages, religions and cultural traditions, Togo is representative of the rich diversity of contemporary Africa, and a vibrant illustration of the dual quest for development and democracy that characterizes the West African region. The fourth edition of Historical Dictionary of Togo contains a chronology, an introduction, an extensive bibliography, and a dictionary section has over 1,000 cross-referenced dictionary entries on important personalities, politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Togo.

Côte d’Ivoire remains one of the most intriguing countries in sub-Saharan Africa. It appeared well on its way to becoming a model of development under its single political party and charismatic founding father, Félix Houphouët-Boigny, when it fell on hard economic times in the 1980s. Poor management of the socio-economic challenges by Houphouët-Boigny’s successors produced disastrous political consequences, including unprecedented political violence, the first-ever successful military coup, and two civil wars, culminating in former President Laurent Gbagbo being sent to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague to stand trial for war crimes. This third edition of Historical Dictionary of Cote d'Ivoire (The Ivory Coast) contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 700 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the Cote d'Ivoire.

Historical Dictionary of the Central African Republic, Third Edition, fills the gap in the literature about a country for which very little information exists in English, covering events that have taken place since the publication of the last edition in 1992. Substantial new material covers the persons, events, institutions, and parties that have played a significant role in the history of the Central African Republic. A list of acronyms and abbreviations, an extensive chronology, and an introductory essay complement the more than 800 dictionary entries. The bibliography profiles the available literature, and provides numerous journal articles and websites as sources of current events and developments.

**** An update of McFarland's 1984 edition (which was cited in ARBA 1986), this dictionary outlines the course of Ghana history since the probable human habitation at Jiman, on the Oti River, c.10,000 B.C. It covers not only the pre-colonial period, colonization, and the struggle for independence, but more of the post-independence woes and the still tentative upturn, through the beginning of the Fourth Republic in January 1993. It includes numerous entries on the major players and others on crucial events and essential institutions. There is information on the economy, society and culture, key geographical features, and prominent ethnic groups. Includes an extensive chronology and a list of acronyms and abbreviations. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR