Why do literary translation studies in African contexts matter?

Abstract In spite of the multi- and plurilingualism, the antiquity of the practice on the continent, the role of literary translation in particular moments of social change and the increasing institutionalization of translation studies on the continent, the immense potential of African contexts, especially sub-Saharan and Afrodiasporic contexts, for translation studies remains to be more fully explored and better represented in international debates on translation studies. In this article, I illustrate some examples of this potential to be explored through the Swahili context. I highlight how the study of literary translations in African contexts offers enormous theoretical and methodological potential that can contribute to broadening and enriching the field of translation studies, eventually making it more inclusive and international.