The Routledge Handbook of Francophone Africa brings together a multidisciplinary team of international experts to reflect on the history, politics, societies, and cultures of French-speaking parts of Africa. Consisting of approximately 35% of Africa’s territory, Francophone Africa is a shifting concept, with its roots in French and Belgian colonial rule. This handbook develops and problematizes the term, with thematic sections covering: * Colonial and post-colonial ties between France and sub-Saharan Africa * Belgium, Belgian colonialism and Africa * The Maghreb * African Francophones in France * Francophone African literature and film * ‘Francophone’ and ‘Anglophone’ Africa * Beyond national boundaries and ‘colonial partners’The chapters demonstrate the evolution of 'Francophone Africa' into a multi-dimensional construct, with both a material and an imagined reality. Materially, it defines a regional territorial space that coexists with other conceptualisations of African space and
