Boy-Wives and Female-Husbands: Studies in African-American Homosexualities

Stephen O. Murray, Will Roscoe

Palgrave Macmillan, Feb 3, 2001 - Social Science - 358 pages

Claims concerning the presence and status of homosexuality in historic African cultures have become central points of contention in debates among contemporary African Americans. Some of those involved in the debate have even asserted that the original languages of Africa contained no words for gay or lesbian, therefore concluding that they did not exist. As the first work of its kind on the subject, Boy-Wives and Female-Husbands answers an urgent need for accurate, well-researched, and balanced work on African sexuality. It offers perspectives from the fields of anthropology and history, along with extensive evidence from ethnographic and literary sources. The essays explore such topics as woman-woman marriages, early reports of Malagasy "berdaches," male homosexuality in contemporary West Africa, alternative gender identities among the Swahili, the regulation of sexuality in colonial Zimbabwe, and the portrayals of homosexuality in modern African literature. Bound to be an invaluable resource for discussions of traditional and contemporary African cultures, Boy-Wives and Female-Husbands is a book whose time has clearly come.

What people are saying

Review: Boy-Wives and Female-Husbands: Studies in African-American Homosexualities

User Review  - Sumayyah - Goodreads

While containing a wealth of information, this book was more of a clinical, anthropological study of homosexual African behavior, as told and researched by (mainly White) people. I was disappointed by the lack of first-person African narratives.

Review: Boy-Wives and Female-Husbands: Studies in African-American Homosexualities

User Review  - Shay Olivarria - Goodreads

loved this book. it's an anthology of sexuality and sexual practices on the African continent. i have heard the argument that Black people didn't know of homosexuality until Europeans arrived, however this book provides many stories and oral histories to contradict that.

About the author

Will Roscoe is most recently the author of Changing Ones: Third and Fourth Genders in Native North America.

Stephen O. Murray's recent book is American Gay. They both live in San Francisco.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Boy-Wives and Female-Husbands: Studies in African-American Homosexualities
• Editors: Stephen O. Murray, Will Roscoe
• Edition: illustrated, reprint, revised
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan, 2001
• ISBN: 0312238290, 9780312238292
• Length: 358 pages
• Subjects: Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural; Social Science / Gay Studies; Social Science / Lesbian Studies