Indigenous Hermeneutics in the Work of Prof. Jacob K. Olupona and Beyond

Indigenous hermeneutics—the practice of interpreting indigenous traditions through frameworks developed by those societies themselves—has emerged as arguably the dominant framework of the field of African Religions. First developed by Professor Jacob Olupona, it has been immensely productive in freeing the study of African-derived religion from colonial biases and concerns but has curiously grown rapidly without formal publications or public engagement with the theory. Instead, scholars have adopted it through engaging directly with Prof. Olupona’s work and sharing it with each other individually. This roundtable introduces the history and theory of indigenous hermeneutics to the academic public and reflects on its place in the field of African Religions and beyond. The participants include scholars at various career stages offering different perspectives on indigenous hermeneutics with Professor Olupona himself serving as the respondent and time reserved for others who employ indigenous hermeneutics to share their thoughts and experiences as well.