The women history forgot to teach you.
An archive of African women who fought for equality, rights, and change.
Women Who Changed History
View all
ModernAma Ata Aidoo
Ghanaian author, playwright, and poet who spent over five decades writing some of the most important African literature in the world. Her work put African women at the centre of the story at a time when they were almost always pushed to the edges. She also served as Ghana's Minister of Education.
ContemporaryAmina J. Mohammed
Nigerian diplomat and UN Deputy Secretary-General since 2017. Formerly Nigeria's Minister of Environment. One of the chief architects of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the global framework guiding international development until 2030. The highest-ranking Nigerian in the history of the United Nations.
Pre-ColonialAmina of Zazzau
16th-century warrior queen of Zazzau (modern Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria). Led 34 years of military campaigns, expanded the Hausa kingdom's territory to its largest ever extent, and built the defensive earthwork walls still called 'Amina's walls' today. The most celebrated female military leader in West African history.
ColonialCharlotte Maxeke
First Black South African woman to earn a university degree. Founded the Bantu Women's League and fought pass laws. Called the 'Mother of Black Freedom in South Africa'.
ContemporaryChimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Award-winning Nigerian novelist and feminist icon. Author of Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun, Americanah, and the viral TED talk 'We Should All Be Feminists', which reached hundreds of millions of listeners after Beyoncé sampled it. One of the most influential voices on feminism, race, and African identity in the world today.
Articles & Explainers
The Voice That Crossed the Sea: Charlotte Maxeke and the Long Road Home
Before she was the Mother of Black Freedom in South Africa, she was a girl with a voice that filled concert halls in London. This is how a singer became a scholar, then a force the colonial state could not ignore.
The Secret Maps in Her Hair: How African Braids Carried Messages, Maps, and Freedom
Before there were letters or phones, African women were sending messages through braided patterns in their hair. Some of those patterns even mapped the way to freedom.
The Girl They Tried to Keep Hidden: The Story of Destiny Ayo Vaughan
Shipped from Nigeria to Ireland as a child with the promise of a better life, Destiny was held captive for five years. She was not supposed to survive. She was certainly not supposed to speak. She did both.
The Tignon Laws: When a Headwrap Became Resistance
In 1786, colonial Louisiana tried to control Black women by forcing them to cover their hair. They turned the restriction into one of history's most powerful fashion statements.
To the Mothers Who Gave Us Everything
A Mothering Sunday reflection on the African women who carried movements, raised revolutions, and wrote the truth, all while raising children who would inherit their courage.
Browse by Region
26 countries, 138 women — tap a country to explore.
Explore by Cause
What did they fight for?
Across the Centuries
Key moments in African women's history
On This Day in History
Women born in years that echo today's date
Latest Additions
Profiles from the archive
ContemporaryAdenike Oladosu
Nigerian climate activist and the first African woman to lead a Fridays for Future climate strike. Campaigns tirelessly for the drying Lake Chad basin, a slow-moving environmental disaster affecting 40 million people across four countries. Named one of the most influential climate voices of her generation.
ContemporaryCaster Semenya
South African middle-distance runner who won Olympic gold in the 800m at Rio 2016 and is a two-time World Champion. She has been forced to fight World Athletics testosterone regulations and has become a global symbol of bodily autonomy and the right of women athletes to define themselves.
ModernBlessing Okagbare
Nigerian sprinter and long jumper; Olympic and World Championships medallist. One of Africa's most decorated track and field athletes; advocate for clean sport.