Critique of 'Precolonial Africa' in African Studies

The term 'precolonial' is theoretically vacuous, racist, and misrepresents African history.
It homogenizes African peoples and their history, obscuring complexity and diversity.
The epithet should be expunged from all aspects of African studies.

Exclusive Application: Almost exclusively applied to Africa, implying a peculiar and undifferentiated representation rooted in racist philosophies (e.g., Hegel's 'Africa outside of Time').
Temporal Distortion: Fails to describe effectively a period from the beginning of time to modern European colonialism, granting it mythological status rather than historical fact.
Ignores Prior Colonialisms: Overlooks significant earlier European-inspired colonial presences (Roman, Byzantine/Ottoman) and internal African colonial forms and empires (e.g., Mali, Ọ̀yọ́, Ethiopia).
Disregards African Colonizers: Conceals the history of African polities as colonizers beyond the continent's borders (e.g., Moorish rule in Iberia, Mohammed Ali's Egypt).

Colonialism as Sole Axis: Reduces African history to an 'episode' relative to modern European colonialism, hindering understanding of intrinsic African developments and continuities.
Marginalizes African Intellectualism: Silences rich African intellectual contributions to philosophy, science, and governance, forcing them into a 'traditional' or 'uncontaminated' framework.
Limits Understanding of Complexity: Obscures sophisticated African political formations, constitutional innovations (e.g., Fanti confederacy in the $19^{th}$ century), and diverse social dynamics.
Inadequate Historical Framework: The three-period schema (precolonial, colonial, postcolonial) is unproductive for generating serious, in-depth African history, especially for the long past.

Alternative Periodization: Adopt frameworks that place African history within global 'Ancient, Medieval, Modern' timelines, as exemplified by Ladipo Solanke, without using colonialism as the primary axis.
Focus on Internal Dynamics: Study African societies for their own coherent principles of governance, evolution, and philosophical contributions, acknowledging both endogenous and exogenous influences.
Acknowledge Global Connections: Recognize Africa's uninterrupted participation in the global exchange of ideas, goods, and peoples from ancient times to the present.
Broaden Disciplinary Approaches: Apply diverse disciplines (archaeology, palaeoanthropology, linguistics, etc.) to gain a deeper understanding from material artifacts and long-term historical processes.
Elevate African Thinkers: Integrate individual African thinkers and their contributions into global intellectual history and philosophy, broadening the scope beyond traditional 'Western' canons.