Daniela Merolla
Daniela Merolla is a Professor in Berber Literature and Art at the INALCO, Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales (Sorbonne Paris-Cité). She taught and did research in African Literatures and Media at Leiden University until 2015. She is the Director of the Research Unit LACNAD (Languaes et Cultures de l'Afrique du Nord et Diaspora), INALCO, Paris.
Investigating intertextuality and multilingualism in African oral and written literatures, she developed the notion of “Amazigh/Berber literary space”. She has worked on the History of African Literary Studies north and south of the Sahara and, in recent years, her research expanded to include cinema and artistic and literary expressions on the Internet. For example, on Amazigh cinema she published: 'Les cinémas berbères. De la méconnaissance aux festivals nationaux' (edited with Kamal Naït Zerad and Amar Ameziane), Karthala, Paris, 2019. Her publications on the Internet include: 'African Verbal Arts Online: Intermediality and 'Technauriture''. In 'Oral Literary Performance in Africa. Beyond Text', edited by Nduka Otiono and Chiji Akọma, London and New York: Routledge. 2021 pp.153-177; 'Cultural heritage, artistic innovation, and activism on Amazigh Berber websites'. Journal of African Cultural Studies, 32:1, 42-59. and Searching for Sharing: Heritage and Multimedia in Africa (edited with Mark Turin), Open Book Publishers, Cambridge U.K. 2017.
On the history of literary disciplines in Africa, her publications encompass: 'Introduction: Colonial Humanities and Criticality' in Forum: The Rise And Decline of “Colonial Humanities” (with Michael Leezenberg, Victoria Sear and Mark Turin), History of Humanities 6 : 1, pp. 199–208, and 'Beyond ‘two Africas’ in African and Berber literary studies. The Face of Africa'. Essays in honour of Ton Dietz, edited by Wouter van Beek, Jos Damen, Dick Foeken, ASCL, Leiden University, the Netherlands, 2017, pp. 215-235.
On oral and written literatures, she published among others 'Amazigh/Berber Literature and ‘Literary Space’. A contested minority situation in (North) African literatures'. In Routledge Handbook of Minority Discourses in African Literature. Tanure Ojaide and Joyce Ashuntantang (dir.). London and New York, 2020, pp. 27-47; 'Afrikaanse Letterkunde. Tradities, genres, auteurs en ontwikkelingen' ('African literatures. Traditions, genres, authors and developments') with Mineke Schipper and Inge Brinkman. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2019; 'De l’art de la narration tamazight (berbère)', Éditions Peeters, Paris, Louvain, 2006 and 'Migrant Cartographies, New Cultural and Literary Spaces in Post-colonial Europe'. Lexington Books, USA (edited with Sandra Ponzanesi), 2005.