Oral history in South Africa: Autoethnography, methodologies and ethics

Volume editor

Sekgothe Mokgoatšana

Synopsis

Colonial and apartheid-era historical narratives in South Africa often disregard oral testimonies, leaving significant gaps in understanding the country’s rich and complex past. This scholarly book explores the methodologies and ethics of oral history to address these omissions and to elevate oral testimonies as vital tools in historical scholarship.

This book brings together ten chapters authored by leading academics and researchers. It critically examines how oral history methodologies can be contextualised within South Africa’s diverse and multifaceted society. Rather than focusing on Eurocentric approaches, it emphasises the need to rethink the ethics and practices of oral history from an Afrocentric perspective.

Through its transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary lens, spanning history, indigenous knowledge studies, museum and archival studies, and folklore, this book advocates for the recognition of interviewees as knowledge holders, fostering meaningful exchanges rather than mere knowledge extraction. The authors emphasise the need to protect and expand oral history archives, ensuring the representation of marginalised voices and redressing past injustices.

This volume, with original research, illuminates the transformative potential of oral history in South Africa, offering new arguments and perspectives. It aims to inspire scholars, researchers, and specialists to rethink conventional practices and to bridge the divide between written and oral histories.

This is essential literature for scholars and practitioners in history, oral history, theology, museum studies, and related fields, as it reimagines the role of oral testimonies in producing inclusive and credible historical narratives.

Chapters

Preface

Sekgothe Mokgoatšana
Chapter 1
The history of the Oral History Association of South Africa: An autoethnographical perspective (2004–2008)

Christina Landman
Chapter 2
The history of the Oral History Association of South Africa as autoethnography (2009–2015)

Christina Landman
Chapter 3
The history of the Oral History Association of South Africa (2016–2022)

Christina Landman
Chapter 4
Conversational: Critical insights of decolonising oral history methodologies

Stewart L Kugara, Sekgothe Mokgoatšana, Pfarelo E Matshidze
Chapter 5
Methodological and ethical quandaries in oral historical research in southern Africa: Experiences from Lesotho and South Africa

Munyaradzi Mushonga, Motlatsi Thabane
Chapter 6
Objectivity and subjectivity: Twin evils in oral history research

Sekgothe Mokgoatšana, Stewart L Kugara
Chapter 7
Ethical considerations in the oral history interviewing and publications processes

Radikobo Ntsimane
Chapter 8
The importance of oral interviews in framing histories of the South African liberation struggle

Chitja Twala
Chapter 9
Interviewing and authoring for Tell Your Mother’s Story

Kogielam K Archary
Chapter 10
Using oral history in advancing feminist discourses and transformation through Charlotte Maxeke

Chitja Twala, John R Phori

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