Friends, families, mentees felicitate Toyin Falola at 70

Friends, mentees and families have gathered to celebrate renowned historian, Professor Toyin Falola, for his 70th birthday on Sunday.

The event is a virtual one put together to facilitate the revered historian who has significantly contributed to enriching the lives of many people in several ways.

According to organisers, the event will feature tributes by eminent Nigerians, including former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Dosumu Awolowo, Richard Joseph, Bisi Fayemi, and Michael Vickers, among others.

Unveiling the profile of the revered Historian, the organisers wrote, “Toyin Omoyeni Falola was born in Ibadan in 1953, a historian and professor of African Studies. He earned his BA and PhD (1981) in history at the University of Ife, Ile-Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in Nigeria. He is a Professor of History at the University of Texas at Austin, where he has taught since 1991.

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“Among young researchers, Mr Falola is widely regarded as an outstanding mentor committed to nurturing young scholars by facilitating their professional viability and growth. 

“He has received several awards for his teaching commitment to African studies, including the 2010 Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award, the Jean Holloway Award for Teaching Excellence, and the Texas Exes Teaching Award.

“Falola is an editor for many book series and serves on the editorial boards of more than twenty journals. He is a Fellow of the Historical Society of Nigeria and of the Nigerian Academy of Letters.

“In 2011, He received the prestigious African Studies Association Distinguished Africanist Award “to recognise and honour individuals who have contributed a lifetime of outstanding scholarship in African Studies combined with service to the Africanist community.

“A professor in several universities, Mr Falola is a Fellow of the Historical Society of Nigeria and has served as the president of the African Studies Association. He is also the Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities at the University of Texas at Austin.

“His research interest is African History since the 19th century, while his geographic areas of interest include Africa, Latin America and the United States. His thematic fields include Atlantic history, diaspora and migration, empire and globalization, intellectual history, international relations, religion and culture,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, the celebration is billed to take place on January 1 at 3 pm Nigerian Time (6am PT/8 am CST/9 am EST) and his admirers have been invited to join the event by connecting to the Zoom platform with meeting ID (998 646 0936) and passcode ([email protected]).

They can also join via the YouTube link.