The Martin A. Klein Prize in African History recognizes the most distinguished work of scholarship on African history published in English during the previous calendar year. The books must focus primarily on continental Africa (including those islands usually treated as countries of Africa). Eligibility will otherwise be defined quite broadly, to include books on any period of African history and from any disciplinary field that incorporates an historical perspective. In making its selection, the prize committee will pay particular attention to methodological innovation, conceptual originality and literary excellence. Works that reinterpret old themes or develop new theoretical perspectives are welcome.
The current prize amount is $1,000.
The general rules for submission are:
- Anthologies, encyclopedias, and other edited volumes will not be considered.
- Books with a copyright of 2024 are eligible for the 2025 award.
- Nomination submissions may be made by an author or by a publisher. Publishers may submit as many entries as they wish. Authors or publishers may submit the same book for multiple AHA prizes.
- Nominators must complete an online prize submission form for each book submitted. Once you fill out the form you will receive an email with the committee’s contact information.
- One copy of each entry must be sent to each committee member and clearly labeled “Klein Prize Entry.” Print copies preferred unless otherwise indicated. If only e-copy is available, please contact review committee members beforehand to arrange submission format.
Please Note: The competition will open in mid-March. Entries must be received by May 15, 2025, to be eligible for the 2025 competition. Entries will not be returned. Recipients will be announced on the AHA website in October 2025 and recognized during a ceremony at the January 2026 AHA annual meeting in Chicago.
For questions, please contact the Prize Administrator.
Martin A. Klein
The prize is named for Martin A. Klein, who is currently professor emeritus of history at the University of Toronto. Funding for the prize was completed thanks to a substantial donation from the late Dr. Mougo Nyaggah of California State University, Fullerton, and his wife Dr. Lynette Nyaggah. Mougo Nyaggah was Klein’s first graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley. Nyaggah credited the completion of his doctorate to Klein’s mentoring, guidance, enthusiasm, and commitment to the research and teaching of African history. He observed that, “There are many Martins who have or will mentor and inspire many Africanist students in American universities. Those mentors will be honored by this prize for their human and scholarly contribution.”
Past Recipients
Current Recipient
Rachel Jean-Baptiste, Stanford University
Multiracial Identities in Colonial French Africa: Race, Childhood, and Citizenship (Cambridge Univ. Press)
Rachel Jean-Baptiste’s groundbreaking book offers a richly textured exploration of an understudied category of historical actors in colonial French Africa. It examines how race and racial formations were made and reconfigured in the lives of multiracial individuals and groups across a broad spectrum of contested social arenas and geographic spaces. Drawing on a diverse set of archives, this layered and ambitious study offers original insights into identity formation and belonging in African and global history.