polylog 55
sommer 2026
Philosophieren in afrikanischen Sprachen
hg. von Anke Graneß und Monika Christine Rohmer
Anke Graneß und Monika Christine Rohmer
Philosophieren in afrikanischen Sprachen. Bedeutung und Herausforderungen. Einleitung
Fasil Merawi
Zwischen Geʿez, Amharisch und Englisch: Politik der Sprache, philosophische Übersetzung und das Polylogische der äthiopischen philosophischen Praxis
The purpose of this article is to explore the linguistic politics of Ethiopian philosophy by concentrating on the role that is played by the Geʿez, Amharic and English languages. Geʿez plays a role of situating philosophical modes of reflection in classical and theological traditions whereas Amharic serves as the vehicle through which philosophy is being popularized in the public domain. English in return constitutes the vehicle through which academic philosophy is being produced and is introduced to an international audience. The examination of the role that is being played by these languages admits to a process that is not only defined by challenges of translation but also conceptual misalignments. To overcome such challenges, there is a need to develop a multilingual and a polylogical approach to Ethiopian philosophy that situates the process of translation as a philosophical exercise that is defined by a process of mediation, critique and creativity.
Monika Christine Rohmer
Ringende Philosoph:innen und philosophierende Ringer:innen: der Begriff mbër in Wolof-Texten
Wrestling can refer both to a physical activity and to grappling with a problem or difficulty. In Wolof texts, the term and concept mbër, meaning champion wrestler, frequently appears. The aim of this essay is to understand the concept mbër in selected texts and to formulate implications for my philosophical approach to Wolof texts and intercultural philosophy.
Chantal Gishoma
Alexis Kagames Philosophie des Widerstandes in Gedichten auf Kinyarwanda
Alexis Kagame occupies a unique place in the intellectual history of Rwanda and of Africa. Recognized as an encyclopaedic transmitter of pre-colonial Rwanda and a distinguished figure in African philosophy, he applied his capacity to two complementary areas, deeply committed to Rwandan thought and the resistance to colonialism. On the one hand, through his academic works La philosophie bantu-rwandaise de l’Être and La Philosophie Bantu comparée, he demonstrates that African societies possess a structured and autonomous mode of thought, thereby offering rigorous intellectual resistance to colonial discourses that denied African peoples any capacity for abstract thought. On the other hand, after having collected Rwandan oral literature, he composes his own poems, drawing strictly on the stylistic structures of the oral tradition. This creative approach valorizes Rwandan culture and renews it from within, according to its own poetic principles, without conforming to Western literary models. It is precisely this second aspect that the present article seeks to highlight: the dimension of resistance of poetry, so far insufficiently explored in Alexis Kagame’s work in Kinyarwanda. This demonstrates that his academic philosophical thought and his poetic creation in Kinyarwanda constitute a coherent philosophical project of resistance and rehabilitation of Rwandan cultural identity.
Kai Kresse, Najeeb A. Nassir, and Kadara Swaleh
Philosophizing in Swahili society, through poetry: a collaborative approach
This contribution was written in three parts, by Kai Kresse, Najeeb A. Nassir, and Kadara Swaleh. Kresse introduces the wider field of Swahili philosophical discourse within different fields of Swahili language, literature, and society, with a view to different kinds of genres of Swahili poetry, which over centuries have continued to be a vivid part of social life. After introducing a few traditional and modern (pre-colonial and postcolonial) ‘classics’ of Swahili philosophical texts, the focus turns to long didactic poetry (especially the utenzi genre) and discusses two samples of different kinds of such philosophical texts by well-known contemporary poets Ahmad Nassir (from Mombasa) and Mahmoud Mau (from Lamu Island), with whom extensive fieldwork interviews were conducted. Najeeb A. Nassir, the son of the former, then provides an account with further rich and revealing insights into his father’s role as a sharp and engaged critic as well as a lucid thinker in Mombasan society. Finally, Kadara Swaleh provides a portrayal and discussion of ‘What does philosophy want?’, a poem by Sheikh Ahmad Msallam (from the Lamu region), that offers a witty, playful, and critical discussion of philosophy as a discipline. The appendix provides the Swahili original and an English translation by Kadara Swaleh.
Peter A. O. Wasamba
Sauti za Kaya: Stimme, Performance und epistemische Souveränität in der mündlichen Literatur der Digo
This article examines Digo oral performance as a living philosophical system where knowledge is enacted through voice, narrative, and ritual. Drawing on fieldwork in Kwale County (Kenya) and narratives collected between 2003 and 2025, it shows how verbal art serves moral education, social regulation, and historical transmission. Central is sauti (voice), understood as a socially validated capacity to express knowledge with communal authority. The kaya forests anchor this voice, grounding epistemology in a spiritual and historical landscape. Analysis of narratives, songs, poems, and proverbs reveals how utu (personhood), heshima (respect), and ushirikiano (cooperation) shape ethical reasoning and communal life. Rather than treating oral traditions as data for external theory, the study positions Digo practice as theory itself. Following Kwasi Wiredu and Walter Mignolo, it highlights conceptual decolonization and epistemic disobedience. Ultimately, Digo oral performance emerges as a coherent, dynamic, self-authorizing philosophical tradition rooted in place, voice, and collective memory.
Barbara Schellhammer, Franz Gmainer-Pranzl
Nachruf für Bernhard Waldenfels (1934–2026)
Helene Büchel
Los caminos del Logos – Die Wege des Logos – Nachruf für Dina Picotti
Sarhan Dhouib, Universität Hildesheim
Murad Wahba (1926-2026) und das Paradox des Säkularismus. Ein Nachruf
Hans Schelkshorn
Eduardo Mendieta (1963–2025) – Ein Nachruf
Fabian Völker
Das Huhn lässt sich nicht zerlegen. Eine interkulturelle Philosophie führt sich selbst ad absurdum