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Isabel Hofmeyr

イザベル・ホフマイヤー

Isaberu Hofumeiyā

Aliases: Christine Isabel Hofmeyr

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1953-01-01 （Potchefstroom, Transvaal, Union of South Africa）
Nationality
South Africa
Languages
English
Residence History
South Africa → England (London)

Career

Occupations
Literary studies scholar, Professor of African literature, Professor Emeritus
Active Years
1972-2024
Affiliations
University of the Witwatersrand, University of Durban-Westville, New York University, Wits Institute for Social and Economic Research
Memberships
Member, Academy of Science of South Africa
Nominations
Herskovits Prize shortlist (1995)

Education

Rhodes University
Journalism
Degree: Bachelor of Journalism
Period: 1972-1974
Year of Graduation: 1974
Country: South Africa
University of the Witwatersrand
Faculty of Humanities / English Department
Degree: BA Honours in English
Period: 1976
Year of Graduation: 1976
Country: South Africa
University of the Witwatersrand
Faculty of Humanities / English Department
Degree: Master of Arts in English
Period: 1976-1979
Year of Graduation: 1979
Country: South Africa
Thesis on mining novels 1870-1920
School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
Area Studies (Africa)
Degree: Master of Arts
Period: 1982-1984
Year of Graduation: 1984
Country: United Kingdom
British Council scholarship
University of the Witwatersrand
Faculty of Humanities / African Literature
Degree: PhD
Period: 1984-1991
Year of Graduation: 1991
Country: South Africa
Dissertation on oral storytelling in Transvaal chiefdom

Awards

Richard L. Greaves Prize
2007
Work: The Portable Bunyan: A Transnational History of The Pilgrim’s Progress
Organization: International John Bunyan Society
Result: 受賞
Best Non-Fiction Monograph Award
2023
Work: Dockside Reading: Hydrocolonialism and the Custom House
Organization: National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

We Spend our Years as a Tale that is Told: Oral Historical Narrative in a South African Chiefdom

1993 African literary history

Examines oral storytelling, literacy, and historical narrative in a changing South African chiefdom.

Oral literatureOral historyAfrican literature

Gandhi’s Printing Press: Experiments in Slow Reading

2003 Print culture studies

Studies the production of Gandhi's Indian Opinion newspaper and its relation to satyagraha.

Print cultureGandhiIndia-South Africa

The Portable Bunyan: A Transnational History of The Pilgrim’s Progress

2004 Literary history

Traces the transnational history and impact of John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress in Africa.

TransnationalismReligious literatureAfrica

Dockside Reading: Hydrocolonialism and the Custom House

2022 Colonial studies

Introduces 'hydrocolonialism' and examines how print materials shaped colonial print culture via custom houses.

HydrocolonialismPrint cultureColonialism

Bibliography

  • See major works above, full list on ResearchGate

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Scholarly analyticalHistorically contextualTracing textual circulation
Recurring Motifs
PostcolonialismOral literaturePrint cultureIndian Ocean worldAfrica-India interactions

Legacy

Renowned scholar of African literature, oral traditions, print culture, and Indian Ocean studies; Professor Emeritus at University of the Witwatersrand, originator of 'hydrocolonialism'.

Academic Societies

  • Academy of Science of South Africa

Trivia

  • Her first book was implicated in plagiarism allegations against Antjie Krog's Country of My Skull.
  • Key role in establishing Wits Centre for Indian Studies in Africa.
  • Visiting Distinguished Global Professor at NYU (2013-2021).