Leila Koivunen & Raita Merivirta : Colonial Aspects of Finnish-Namibian Relations, 1870-1990

This edited collection re-examines the long history of Finnish-Namibian relations through the lens of colonialism without colonies as well as anti-colonialism.

The book argues that although Finland never acquired colonies, Namibia was once treated in the areas of culture and knowledge formation in a manner now recognised as colonial.

Namibian people's way of being in the world was transformed when the Finnish Missionary Society started its work in Owambo in 1870 and introduced Christianity and European modes of education, medicine, material culture and social practices. In time, cultural colonialism faded and during the Namibian struggle for independence from South African rule in 1966-1990 Finns took an actively anti-colonial approach.

Written as a collaborative effort of Namibian, Finnish and South African scholars, this book will interest historians and students of cultural and colonial history and colonialism without colonies, as well as general readers interested in Finnish-Namibian relations.

Leila Koivunen is Professor in European and World History at the University of Turku. She is a specialist in the history of intercultural knowledge formation, especially between Africa and Europe. She has studied, for instance, practices of visualising Africa and the history of collecting and exhibiting African artefacts in Europe.

Raita Merivirta, PhD, currently works as university lecturer in English literature at Åbo Akademi University. She holds the title of docent in English philology, especially in postcolonial literary and cultural studies. Merivirta's main research interests include colonial and postcolonial literature and film and the history of Nordic and British colonialism.