Abigail Mandana Holmes Christensen (1852–1938) was an American collector of folklore.

Biography

Abigail ("Abbie") Christensen was born in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

parents, her family later moved to

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. She investigated the African origin of the folklore recorded in the region, forwarding selections to newspapers and journals, she eventually published several works on African-American tales and dialect. Christensen was, for a short time, a member of the

American Folklore Society The American Folklore Society (AFS) is the US-based professional association for folklorists, with members from the US, Canada, and around the world, which aims to encourage research, aid in disseminating that research, promote the responsible ...

and published in its journal. She sympathised with contemporary movements concerning temperance, protest on inequality, and other socialist causes, but gave special regard to the plight of the peoples from whom she gathered her material. Her major work was ''Afro-American folk lore: told round cabin fires on the Sea Islands of South Carolina'', Christensen intended that profits from this be used to advance African American equality and self-determination, she assisted in the funding of the Port Royal Agricultural School for this purpose. Christensen's paper on African-American spirituals and shouts was read to attendees at the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordi ...

References

1852 births 1938 deaths Collectors of fairy tales American folk-song collectors American folklorists Women folklorists People from Beaufort, South Carolina People from Massachusetts {{US-bio-stub