The Oxford Encyclopedia of African Women's History is the first reference work of its kind: a comprehensive resource that documents the centrality of women--their lives, experiences, accomplishments and perspectives--to the history of Africa. Over 125 entries explore African women's lives across states, regions, and time periods, along with their contributions to fields such as politics, law, science, arts and literature, and popular culture. The volumes also include a handful of biographical articles that place major figures within their specific historical context.

African women, of course, are hardly a homogenous group. As this project reveals, their lifeways, their opportunities and obstacles, differ, sometimes dramatically, by social class, cultural norms, religious background, ethnic heritage, political structures, sexual preferences, and more. Each was born into a time, place, and society that shaped (but did not determine) what it meant to be a "woman" (and of course, a "man"). While some women complied with the dominant gender norms of their day, others forged new ways of being and belonging. But individually and collectively, they were, and continue to be, central creators of and contributors to African history.

The contributors, many of them of African descent, have written entries to engage and inspire a broad audience, including students, policy makers, scholars, and other curious people from around the world. In this way, the Encyclopedia provides a foundation of timely reference material, in conjunction with the online Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History.