Rethinking universality and particularity in African philosophy

Much of the interest in African philosophy, as a philosophical tradition, has been exhausted in the debate on the nature and status of African philosophy vis-?vis its Western counterpart. The problem of demonstrating that African philosophy exists was central to the focus of African philosophers. The burden of acknowledging the character, nature and methodology of African philosophy also consumed African philosophers. Hence, a number of trends1 were introduced in African philosophy, or what other philosophers prefer to call 'approaches' to African philosophy (Oruka, 2003). Henry Odera Oruka suggests that there are six trends2 in examining philosophy in the African context, and these had been seen by scholars as an interesting contribution during the early period of the debate on the status of African philosophy and its relevancy in the global sphere. The debate on the nature and status of African philosophy came to be known as the great debate (Nwala, 2007: 37). This debate is great because "...of the consummate passion, rigor, extensive interest generated and a vast amount of literature that poured out in the process" (ibid). Unsurprisingly, the debate aroused a wide range of commentators beginning in the 1970s and was closed in the 1990s. The key questions central to this debate include: What is African philosophy? What body of knowledge qualifies as the proper content of the 'Philosophy' in African philosophy?