In the latest issue of the leading Russian magazine on African studies «Scientists notes of the Institute of Africa RAS» High-quality and in-depth materials devoted to the ideological and philosophical dimensions of the life of the African continent are presentedah

https://africajournal.ru/2026/03/30/issue-1-74-2026 en

Gavristova T.M., Khoholkova N.E.

The authors focus on the interaction of colonial mentality with the problem of identity in the context of postcolonial reality. Special emphasis is placed on the formation and development of intellectual history within the boundaries of Africa and the diaspora, African and African-American. In the field of view of the authors are scientists, writers, artists – those who managed to comprehend the phenomenon of colonial mentality, turning it into a tool to combat stereotypes about Africa and Africans, who realized the importance of transcultural dialogue and return to traditions.

The article is devoted to the colonial mentality – a phenomenon equally inherent and influencing the modern socio-cultural development of both former colonies and former metropolises. Colonial mentality (or «piecemeal») is a specific model of perception, status and behavior and is based on a system of hierarchies and subordinations, which in turn presupposes (co)existence of dominant and subordinate societies and cultures produced by them. Colonial mentality, which determines the format of relations between conditional «wet» and «they»It is an integral element of systemic and obvious manifestation of internalized racism, generating among educated Africans, on the one hand, a purposeful protest, and on the other - intentions of integration (up to assimilation) into white society.

The colonial mentality originated in Europe and eventually spread to other regions. Its bearers and guides over the centuries were slave traders and slave owners, Christian missionaries of European and non-European origin, actively promoting the teachings of Christ, representatives of the colonial administration, military, teachers, travelers - all who, in one way or another, were involved in the implementation of the Church. «civilizational» mission «barbarian»who inhabited the conquered lands, and created «myth» about them.

The introduction to the universal – Western – culture «backward peoples» It spread outside Europe and was carried out in accordance with the installations adopted by the colonizers. In British Africa, through the Anglo-Saxon model of education. In the Portuguese colonies, the Catholic tradition and ideological attitudes of lusotropicalism played a special role, in the French - the policy of cultural assimilation. And while the notions are «barbarism» and «wildness» The local inhabitants proved to be false and based mainly on their obvious otherness, it was they who led to the emergence and fixation of stereotypes, internal and external, perceived in the metropolises and colonies and sometimes persisting to the present day.

Retransmission «mythology» The Africans’ backwardness and inability to intellectual work has been going on for centuries, which has led to the emergence of a stable inferiority complex in their environment, which has given rise to a very diverse range of pathologies.

Thus, colonial mentality can be seen as one of the manifestations of internalized racism, characterized by conscious and unconscious assimilation and subsequent reproduction of negative attitudes about themselves and their own culture and positive beliefs about the dominant culture.

Researcher of Nigerian origin (by ethnicity Igbo), Professor of the Dominican University (Illinois, USA) «Colonial Mentality in Africa» Nkuzi Nnam offered a rather simple but eloquent definition: «The colonial mentality is an unintended attempt by Africans to live and behave as we did in the colonial period, even decades after our independence. It makes us ashamed of our traditions, our culture, and ourselves. We pretend to be what we are not, dressing like foreigners, speaking like foreigners, even moving away from our God to pray like foreigners. The worst of all is that we question our physical and mental state.».

Colonial mentality was spread and modified by the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism. The displacement of millions of Africans to the Americas has created historic diasporas that are even more vulnerable to inferiority complexes. One such community is African-Americans.

The education of Africans markedly expanded opportunities for self-realization and at the same time increased feelings of guilt. On the one hand, it was associated with hypertrophied gratitude for enlightenment and introduction to the

European values, which was largely conducted in the format of cloning: everything was copied - manners of behavior, clothes, hairstyles, turns of speech and so on.

On the other hand, the guilt complex experienced many so-called «black»university degree holders who are aware of «superiority» colonizers who have to prove their «equivalence» They also felt alienated from their own culture.

In the first quarter of the XXI century, the engagement of African authors increased and throughout the world resulted in a huge readership and publishing interest in them. In it, many analysts saw, firstly, a very attractive novelty of stories told by Africans about Africa, and, secondly, an obvious and quite successful attempt to undermine the monopoly on the Eurocentric model of representation of the continent, emphasizing that its history and culture is diverse, diverse and in general. «Africa is not a country».

A huge role in the retransmission of a new – much closer to the real – image of Africa was played by supporters of afropolitanism: writers, publicists, musicians who carried out the work of the African Union. «cyberattack» not only to the educated, but also to the mass audience, who managed to dispel the myths and fears of the Europeans. «continental» and its inhabitants.

Columnality has become a sort of topos. «leafy» new connotations. Often they are medical and psychological terms that signal deviation from the norm: trauma, syndrome, disorder, and so on. The next step after designating the problem was to search for a conventional norm – a stable state, a sense of fullness within the boundaries of one’s own culture – by returning to the roots. Within the framework of scientific research, it was embodied in the trend of indigenization – an appeal to traditional systems of knowledge.

Traditional African practice-oriented knowledge, which is in demand in modern conditions, primarily in the field of agriculture, medicine, veterinary medicine and ecology, and opportunities for their use for the formation of strategies for the sustainable development of African societies, is being searched. Among them are traditional practices of self-regulation of society (institutionalized sanctions and restrictions motivated by religion and belief in the supernatural, institutions of the peoples of the Akan group, asafo), traditional judicial practices (gachacha courts, which worked in 2002-2012 and delivered a significant number of acquittals – 25%), traditional philosophical systems and moral norms (for example, ubuntu).

Postcolonial reality has incorporated features of the colonial and precolonial past, becoming a kind of «invention» Those who have been involved in the transformation of African mentality for centuries. The colonial mentality, in conflict with the attitudes of decolonization and partly with the realities of the post-colonial situation, continued to exist as part of historical and transcultural memory. Its negative and positive manifestations are obvious and no longer serve as an obstacle to the development of the countries and peoples of the continent. In the process of its transformation, the colonial mentality has changed, becoming a kind of tool or means of communication with former and current counterparties.