Aminata Sow Fall (born 27 April 1941) is a

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 � ...

ese-born author. While her native language is

Wolof Wolof or Wollof may refer to: * Wolof people, an ethnic group found in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * Wolof language, a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania * The Wolof or Jolof Empire, a medieval West African successor of the Mal ...

, her books are written in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

. She is considered "the first published woman novelist from francophone Black Africa".

Margaret Busby Margaret Yvonne Busby, , Hon. FRSL (born 1944), also known as Nana Akua Ackon, is a Ghanaian-born publisher, editor, writer and broadcaster, resident in the UK. She was Britain's youngest and first black female book publisherJazzmine Breary"Let' ...

, '' Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent'' (1992), London: Vintage, 1993, p. 525.

Life

She was born in

Saint-Louis, Senegal Saint Louis or Saint-Louis ( wo, Ndar), is the capital of Senegal's Saint-Louis Region. Located in the northwest of Senegal, near the mouth of the Senegal River, and 320 km north of Senegal's capital city Dakar, it has a population officially ...

, where she grew up before moving to

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...

to finish her secondary schooling. After this, she did a degree in Modern Languages in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and became a teacher upon returning to Senegal."Aminata Sow Fall"
The University of Western Australia/French, 25 December 1995. She was a member of the Commission for Educational Reform responsible for the introduction of African literature into the French syllabus in Senegal, before becoming director of La Propriété littéraire (The Literary Property) in

(1979–88). She was appointed the first woman president of Senegal's Writer's Association in 1985. In 1990 she founded the publishing house Éditions Khoudia. She played the part of Aunt Oumy in

Djibril Diop Mambéty Djibril Diop Mambéty (January 1945 – July 23, 1998) was a Senegalese film director, actor, orator, composer and poet. Though he made only two feature films and five short films, they received international acclaim for their original and ex ...

's classic 1973 road movie

Touki Bouki ''Touki Bouki'' (, Wolof for ''The Journey of the Hyena'') is a 1973 Senegalese drama film, directed by Djibril Diop Mambéty. It was shown at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival and the 8th Moscow International Film Festival. The film was restored ...

Awards

* 1980 -

Grand prix littéraire d'Afrique noire The Grand prix littéraire d'Afrique noire (one of the major literary prizes of Black Africa for Francophone Literature) is a literary prize presented every year by the ADELF, the Association of French Language Writers for a French original text ...

for '' La Grève des bàttu''. * 1982 - Prix International

Alioune Diop Alioune Diop (10 January 1910 – 2 May 1980) was a Senegalese writer and editor, founder of the intellectual journal ''Présence africaine'', and a central figure in the ''Négritude'' movement.L'Appel des arènes''. * 1997 - honorary doctorate from

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a private liberal arts women's college in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It is the oldest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite historically women's colleges in the Northeastern United States. ...

, South Hadley, Massachusetts.

Writing

Her books include: *'' Le Revenant'', Nouvelles éditions africaines, 1976. . *''La Grève des bàttu'' (1979); Nouvelles éditions africaines, 1980; Serpent à plumes (paperback 2001), **''The Beggars' Strike'', trans.

Dorothy Blair Dorothy Sara Blair, ''nee'' Greene (1913–1998) was an English scholar and translator of Francophone African literature. Life Marjorie Greene was born in Birmingham, England. She studied at Royal Holloway College before training to teach Frenc ...

, Longman (1986), *''L'Appel des arènes'' (The Call of the Arena) (1982); Nouvelles éditions africaines, 1993. . *''Ex-père de la nation: roman'', Paris: L'Harmattan, 1987. . *''Douceurs du bercail'', Nouvelles Editions ivoiriennes, 1998. . *''Le jujubier du patriarche: roman'', Serpent à Plumes, 1998 *''Sur le flanc gauche du Belem''. Arles: Actes Sud, 2002. . *''Un grain de vie et d'espérance''. Paris: Françoise Truffaut Editions, 2002. . * The film ''Battu'' (2000) by director Cheick Oumar Sissoko is based on her novel ''La Grève des bàttu''.

References

, ''Emerging Perspectives on Aminata Sow Fall: The Real and the Imaginary in her Novels'', Africa World Press, 2007. . * Irene Udousoro
"Aminata Sow Fall’s Works: A Compendium of Development-Oriented Issues"
''Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences'', Vol. 4, No. 6, July 2013. pp. 67–71. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sow Fall, Aminata 1941 births Living people People from Saint-Louis, Senegal Senegalese writers in French Senegalese novelists Senegalese women novelists 20th-century women writers 20th-century novelists 21st-century women writers 21st-century novelists

Life

Awards

Writing

References

Further reading