History of North Africa Since 1700

Catalog description

The region historically known as the Barbary Coast or North Africa today comprises five states: Mauritania and Western Sahara, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. Bordered by the Mediterranean Sea on the north and the Sahara desert on the south, this region lay at the crossroads of European, African, and Middle Eastern civilizations. The course explores the countries' individual histories and inter-related regional topics such as piracy, Christian captivity narratives, the trans-Saharan slave trade, colonialism, national liberation and decolonization. Students investigate violence, power, identity, foreign domination, and the challenges these pose for the writing of history.