Say the Word: Sound, Decoloniality and Religious Signification in Nigerian Oral Bible Storytelling
Publication information:
Abstract
This paper is an exploration of the generative spiritual possibilities of sound in oral storytelling, a practice of decolonial and marginal Christianities. My site of interest is middle belt and northern Nigeria, where the practice of oral Bible storytelling in minority, local languages maps a connection between sound, religious signification and enculturation. Through an exploration of oral poetic techniques, the neural development of human linguistic capacity, and the materiality of metaphor and symbol, I develop a framework of ‘sonic significance’, delineating how oral Bible storytelling operates as a means of Black decolonial Christian practice and wrestling with religious signification.
Presenter Biography
Sarah is a poet and theologian with experience researching religion and art in London and involvement in community arts in Nigeria. She is particularly interested in the role of prophetic imagination in Black literature, Christian decolonial theology and archival ethics. She is an MTS candidate at Harvard Divinity School.