This week we’re talking about the Dahomey Amazons, the all-women military force from West Africa who had European colonizers absolutely terrified. We get into how their story has been twisted over time, what they tell us about gender roles, and why African history deserves way more credit than it usually gets. Along the way there are plenty of side tangents, questionable sex jokes, and a few moments that would definitely get us banned from giving guided tours at any respectable museum.

Sources: 

Baëta, C. G. “Review: Olodumare: God in Yoruba Belief by E. Bolaji Idowu.” The Journal of African History, vol. 4, no. 1 (1963), pp. 134–135.

Law, Robin. “The ‘Amazons’ of Dahomey.” Paideuma, vol. 39 (1993), pp. 245–260.

Alpern, Stanley B. “On the Origins of the Amazons of Dahomey.” History in Africa, vol. 25 (1998), pp. 9–25.

Yoder, John C. “Fly and Elephant Parties: Political Polarization in Dahomey, 1840–1870.” The Journal of African History, vol. 18, no. 1 (1977), pp. 65–90.

Forbes, Frederick E. Dahomey and the Dahomans. 2 vols., London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1851.

Burton, Richard F. A Mission to Gelele, King of Dahome. 2 vols., London: Tinsley Brothers, 1864.

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