Mkuki na Nyota

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Mkuki na Nyota
Founded1991;34 years ago (1991)
Founder Walter Bgoya
SuccessorMkuki Bgoya
Country of origin United Republic of Tanzania
Headquarters location24 Samora Avenue, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
DistributionAfrican Books Collective
Publication typesfiction and nonfiction books, children's books
Nonfiction topicsPolitics, economics, gender studies, development studies, children
Official website www.mkukinanyota.com

Mkuki na Nyota Publishers Ltd (MNP) is a Tanzanian book publishing company for independent literary, non-fiction and scholarly publishing. Founded in 1991 by editor and publishing executive Walter Bgoya, Mkuki na Nyota has published an extensive list of books in English as well as in Kiswahili. It is a member of the African Books Collective, representing a group of more than 150 African publishers.

Contents

History

Bgoya founded Mkuki na Nyota in 1991 after his eighteen-year tenure as general manager of the state-owned Tanzania Publishing House (TPH). The new imprint was conceived as an independent platform for scholarly and literary publishing in Tanzania. [1]

From the outset the press published in both English and Kiswahili and positioned itself within regional and global scholarly networks; it is a long-standing member of African Books Collective (ABC), the Oxford-based distribution co-operative owned by African publishers. [2] [3] In the 2020s, the company transitioned from Walter Bgoya, who retired from day-to-day leadership, to his son, editor Mkuki Bgoya. [4] [5]

Publishing profile

Mkuki na Nyota’s extensive list of publications ranges across Tanzanian and African history, politics, and culture, alongside fiction and children’s literature. Notable strands include:

Among its literary publications is the first direct-from-Kerewe English translation by Gabriel Ruhumbika of Aniceti Kitereza’s epic novel Mr. Myombekere and His Wife Bugonoka, Their Son Ntulanalwo and Daughter Bulihwali . This was followed in 2022 by a monograph by Shoonie (a.k.a. Charlotte) Hartwig on Kitereza's life and work. [15] Mkuki na Nyota has also published books in Kiswahili written in other languages, including Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's Le Petit Prince translated from its original French. [16]

In 2022, Mkuki na Nyota published the first translation into an African language of a work by Zanzibari-born British writer Abdulrazak Gurnah. Paradise, one of his earlier novels taking place in historical East Africa, was translated into Kiswahili after Gurnah had been awarded the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature. This award spurred interest in his work among readers in Tanzania, and the publisher has announced the translation of more of his works. [4] [17]

Partnerships

Mkuki na Nyota has published books in conjunction with the Economic and Social Research Foundation (ESRF), Research on Poverty Alleviation (REPOA), [18] Research on Democracy in Tanzania (REDET) and others. [19] Additionally, the company has partnered with non-governmental organisations to promote reading and education in Tanzania, for example, with Newton Tanzania. [20]

Reception

Mkuki na Nyota has been recognized by organizations and writers for sustaining independent scholarly and language-based publishing in East Africa. [21]

In December 2024, literary magazine Brittle Paper named Mkuki na Nyota its Publisher of the Year, citing the company’s “commitment to making space for African-language literature to thrive.” [5] At the 2024 conference of the African Studies Association of the UK (ASAUK), founder Walter Bgoya—together with Mary Jay of ABC—received the Outstanding African Studies Award, recognizing contributions to African publishing and book circulation. [22]

UNESCO’s 2021 sector review on the African book industry called Bgoya a “distinguished veteran in African publishing” and discussed the policy environment in which Mkuki na Nyota operates. [23] :29 Additionally, interviews and features in magazines African Arguments and Africa in Words have described the company’s role in documenting Tanzanian and pan-African intellectual history and in promoting Kiswahili literature. [4] [22]

See also

References

  1. Suriano, Maria (August 2021). "Dreams and constraints of an African publisher: Walter Bgoya, Tanzania Publishing House and Mkuki na Nyota, 1972–2020". Africa. 91 (4): 575–601. doi: 10.1017/S0001972021000486 . ISSN   0001-9720.
  2. "Mkuki na Nyota Publishers, Tanzania". African books collective. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  3. "African Books Collective". African Books Collective. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 Chalamilla, Karen (30 July 2024). "Mkuki Bgoya: "Swahili writers should be mandatory reading in Tanzania, but there's a deep trauma around books"". African Arguments. Retrieved 19 August 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Tanzanian Publisher Mkuki na Nyota Is Championing Kiswahili Literature on the Global Stage". Brittle Paper. 18 December 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  6. "History – Mkuki Na Nyota Publishers" . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  7. "Class Struggles in Tanzania: 50th Anniversary Edition with New Introduction – Mkuki Na Nyota Publishers". 20 May 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  8. "Cheche – Mkuki Na Nyota Publishers" . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  9. Hirji, Karim F, ed. (25 October 2010). Cheche: Reminiscences of a Radical Magazine. Mkuki na Nyota Publishers. doi:10.2307/j.ctvk3gmhb. ISBN   978-9987-08-136-3. JSTOR   j.ctvk3gmhb.
  10. "Literature – Mkuki Na Nyota Publishers" . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  11. "Safal Kiswahili Prize – Mkuki Na Nyota Publishers" . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  12. "$15,000 in Awards: Call for Submissions to the 9th Safal Kiswahili Prize". Brittle Paper. 15 August 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  13. "Development as Rebellion: A Biography of Julius Nyerere (Hard Cover Set) – Mkuki Na Nyota Publishers" . Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  14. "Mkapa: My life, my purpose - The EastAfrican". www.theeastafrican.co.ke. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  15. Hartwig, Shoonie. "Aniceti Kitereza: A Tanzanian Epic". mkukinanyota.com. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  16. "Mwana Mdogo Wa Mfalme - "The Little Prince" in Swahili". www.ambafrance-tz.org. Embassy of France in Tanzania. 9 January 2010. Archived from the original on 23 February 2013. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  17. "Dhulma – Mkuki Na Nyota Publishers" (in Swahili). Retrieved 19 August 2025.
  18. "Policy Research for Development, REPOA". www.repoa.or.tz. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  19. "Profile Mkuki na Nyota Publishers". Africa News. Archived from the original on 4 January 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  20. "The Village Reading Corner". Newton Tanzania. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  21. "Mkuki na Nyota Publishers on JSTOR". www.jstor.org. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  22. 1 2 "Walter Bgoya: Interview and Review of his Keynote Speech, ASAUK 2014". Africa in Words. 17 September 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  23. "The African book industry: trends, challenges & opportunities for growth". unesdoc.unesco.org. UNESCO. 2025.

Further reading