Nadia Lovell

Research

Selective list of publications:

BOOKS

1. Cord of Blood: Possession and the Making of Voodoo, 2002. Book. 151 pages. Published by Pluto Press, London and New York. Sole author, peer reviewed publication.

The work presents as a monograph, and focuses on material collected in the field after completion of my Ph.D. thesis and after returning to the field. It presents new ethnographic and analytical material. Pluto is ranked as a “Leading national or international publishers with very wide reach and strong impact by the Norwegian Publication Indicator (NPI), the Danish Bibliometric Research Indicator (BFI), and Finnish Publication Forum (JUFO)”. The book is used in teachings in the fields of gender, religion, ethnography.

1. Locality and Belonging, 1998, reprinted 2003. Book. 2 chapters included: Introduction. Locality in Need of Emplacement  (24 pages) and Chapter 3, Wild Gods, Containing Wombs and Moving Pots: Emplacement and Transience in Watchi Belonging", 25 pages (pp. 53-78). Routledge Publishing, London and New York. Sole author of two chapters, and sole editor of the volume. Peer reviewed publication.

The book explores how belonging is configured in relation to societal ideas of territory, diaspora, or displacement. Whether belonging is necessarily tied to a territorial entity provides the focus for discussions on migrations, political empowerment or disempowerment, among other themes. The volume is the outcome of two workshops I convened and chaired for the EASA conference in 1996. This volume was one of the first to open the field of research on the concept of “belonging”, which has proved one of the most enduring and fruitful theoretical ventures in the past decades. The contributors include: Filip de Boeck, Eduardo Archetti, Kaj Arhem, Elisabeth Edwards, Arlette Ottino, Kjersti Larsen, Anna Bohlin. The foreword was written by Professor David Parkin, University of Oxford. Routledge is ranked as “Very highest level of academic publishers with consistently high global impact by the Norwegian Publication Indicator (NPI), the Danish Bibliometric Research Indicator (BFI), and Finnish Publication Forum (JUFO).” The book is a seminal contribution to the field or spatial studies and belonging, and is used in teachings of anthropological theory, cultural geography, ethnicity. It is widely quoted. 

CHAPTERS IN EDITED VOLUMES

1. The Serendipity of Rebellious Politics: Inclusion and Exclusion in a Togolese Town, 2006. 26 pages (228-254). Sole author, peer reviewed.

The data presented here focus on the different trajectories faced by young adults in the face of political strife and economic hardship. The chapter explores how political engagement, or religious affiliation, can provide answers to situations of hardship and discontent. chapter in an anthology edited by C. Christiansen, M. Utas and E Vigh, Navigating Youth, Generating Adulthood: Social Becoming in an African Context (eds.). Published by the Nordic Africa Institute. The book was the outcome of a conference organized by the Nordic Africa Institute. The NAI’s publications are highly ranked in academia. The article is used in teaching on youth studies, gender, and politics.

1. The Watchi Ewe: Histories and Origins, 2005. 17 pages. Sole author, peer reviewed

Published in the anthology “The Ewe of Togo and Benin, Volume III in the "Handbook of Eweland" series (Accra, Ghana: Woeli Publishing Service. This chapter ties the concept of migration and belonging to the inherent mobility of religious objects and relics. It traces the history of war and conflicts to the movement of various groups across the natural borders of the Volta and Mono rivers. I choose to include it in my application for the readership as it was published in Ghana, as part of the process of decolonizing scholarship, and as a way of promoting publishers and authors in West Africa, while also making the material accessible to local scholars. Woeli publishing is one of the most important publishers in Ghana/West Africa. The chapter is used by historians, anthropologists and political scientists exploring ethnicity and historical migrations.

1. Togo and its Religious Landscape, 2006. 9 pages (pp. 449-457). Sole author, peer reviewed.

Entry on Togo and its religions, in S. Meyer and T. Riggs (eds), Worldmark Encyclopedia of Religious Practices, Gale Group Publishers, N.Y. Gale is a global leader in education, learning, and research resources.

ARTICLES IN JOURNALS

1. Pluralisme Thérapeutique et Stratégies de Santé chez les Evhé du Sud-Est Togo, 1995. 25 pages. Sole author, peer reviewed

Published by the Centre Population & Développement, an interdisciplinary research centre under the aegis of the Université Paris Cité, the Institute for Development, and the Sorbonne. This publication is selected for its multidisciplinary interest, as it focuses on strategies of health from an anthropological perspective that also provides data of interest to health professionals working in Africa. The discussion focuses on the diversity of health choices made by people facing illness, but also on health inequalities and vulnerabilities. 

1. The politics of Teaching and the Myth of Hybridity, 1999. 6 pages. Sole author, peer reviewed

Published by The Royal Anthropological Institute, in Anthropology Today. I was asked by the RAI to write this piece, which highlights the pedagogical challenges faced across disciplines focusing on Africa. I was subsequently contacted by The Times Higher Education Supplement, which published an abbreviated version of this article in their issue of December 10, 1999. This paper is widely read and used in teachings on ethnicity, identity politics, and pedagogy.

1. Hereditary Office and the Tribulations of Power: A View from Togo, 2014. 11 pages. Electronic publication. Sole author.

Published in online blog, edited by Mats Utas, and internally peer reviewed online publication. This is selected as the blog had a widespread readership in several disciplines, with strong interests in the politics and sociology of West Africa. Its pluridisciplinary perspective, and focus on contemporary issues of interest to a wide audience withing and outside academia, makes it relevant to demonstrate scope.

1. Anthropological Study and report on the Workings of the Expanded Immunisation Programme, EU/UNECIA reports, Niger 1998 (61 pages) and Gambia, 1999 (60 pages). Sole author for Niger, joint author with Dr. Mamanding Kuyateh in Gambia.

These two reports are submitted to demonstrate the impact that academic knowledge and methodology can have on development involvement. The EU was specifically looking for a professional (Ph.D.) bilingual anthropologist to work with clinics and health care providers in Niger and Gambia, in order to assess the implementation of immunisation programmes and the distribution and uptake of health services. The two reports were widely distributed by the International Red Cross, the EU and UN offices in the region, and served as guidelines for the West Africa offices after completion of the mission.

1. Ph.D. thesis. Cord of Blood: Initiation, Gender and Social Dynamics among the Ouatchi-Ewe of Southern Togo, 1993. Sole author. Examination through Viva.

School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. The thesis explores gender dynamics within vodun religion in everyday practice, as ritual obligations, and in political context. Examined at the University of London. Professor Richard Fardon was my supervisor.