Africana

[ af-ri-kan-uh, -kah-nuh, -key-nuh ]

/ ˌæf rɪˈkæn ə, -ˈkɑ nə, -ˈkeɪ nə /

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noun (used with a plural verb)

artifacts or artistic or literary works of any of the nations of Africa reflecting geographical, historical, or cultural development.

a collection of materials, as books and documents, on African history or culture.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of Africana

1905–10; Afric(a) or Afric(an) + -ana

Words nearby Africana

afreet, afresh, Afric, Africa, African, Africana, African American, African American English, African American Vernacular English, African bush elephant, African-Canadian

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Africana in a sentence

African teak, let me note, is not teak properly so called, but the timber of the Oldfieldia Africana.
The Desert World|Arthur Mangin
Mr. Duff Macdonald, in Africana, writes: ‘Every man who dies what we call a natural death is really killed by witches.’
Modern Mythology|Andrew Lang
The 'Parra Africana' runs about on the surface, as if walking on water, catching insects.
Missionary Travels and Researches in South Africa|David Livingstone
Another African bird, namely, the 'Buphaga Africana', attends the rhinoceros for a similar purpose.
Missionary Travels and Researches in South Africa|David Livingstone

The Cachexia Africana, like other spanœmic states of the system, may run into Phthisis, or become complicated with it.
Cotton is King and The Pro-Slavery Arguments|Various

British Dictionary definitions for Africana

Africana

/ (ˌæfrɪˈkɑːnə) /

pl n

objects of cultural or historical interest of African origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012