QUEEN OF APOSTLES PHILOSOPHY CENTRE, JINJA

(PHILOSOPHY DEPARTMENT)

COURSE
MORAL PHILOSOPHY, PH2202

TOPIC
THE AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY.

NAME
KALANZI REAGAN, 1925
SSENDAGIRE MARTIN,1967

LECTURER
FR. JOHN AKAIN KWA

DATE
NOVEMBER,2022
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................................... 1
SECTION ONE:.......................................................................................................................................... 1
UNDERSTANDING OF AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY AND FOUNDATIONS OF
MORALITY ................................................................................................................................................ 1
1.1. UNDERSTANDING OF AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY ........................................... 1
1.2. FOUNDATIONS OF AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY ................................................. 2
1.2.1. TRADITIONAL RELIGION AS FOUNDATION OF MORALITY .................................... 2
1.2.2. INSTITUTION OF FAMILY MORALITY ............................................................................. 3
1.2.3. ANCESTORS AS WATCHDOGS OF MORAL BEHAVIOR ............................................... 3
1.2.4. SHAME-ORIENTED MORALITY. ......................................................................................... 4
SECTION TWO: ........................................................................................................................................ 4
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY .......................................... 4
2.1. COMMUNALISTIC ....................................................................................................................... 5
2.2. ANTHROPOCENTRIC ................................................................................................................. 5
2.3. RELIGIOUS BASED...................................................................................................................... 5
2.4. TABOO AND PROVERBS ............................................................................................................ 6
2.5. PRAGMATIC AND UTILITARIANISM .................................................................................... 6
CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................................... 7
BIBLIOGRAPHY. ...................................................................................................................................... 8

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 INTRODUCTION
African society since time memorial has been embedded with strong moral considerations. This
has kept society to remain rooted in its cultural values, although vices also do exist. This research
will present the African concept of morality in two sections. Section one will give the African
understanding of morality and foundations of African morality which includes the four elements;
religion, family, ancestors and shame oriented. Section two will present the characteristics of
African morality. This will comprise community life, anthropology, taboo, solidarity and sexual
ethics among others. This research will end with a conclusion and a bibliography.

SECTION ONE:
UNDERSTANDING OF AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY AND FOUNDATIONS
OF MORALITY
This section we are to give the various understanding of morality according to different people and
the foundations of which the morality of Africans stand which almost cuts across all cultures in
Africa.

1.1. UNDERSTANDING OF AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY

The study of earlier features of moral understanding is exceptionally important. Knowledge of
morality gives us a clear understanding of nature and origin of the concept of morality. This is
because people who have evolved a culture would be expected to have a distinguishable
epistemological and conceptual knowledge of the basic components of their culture, including
their ethics.1 It is a matter of fact that morality is universal to humanity. This means that morality
is essential to all human begins no matter where they live or no matter what kind they lead.
Morality is what makes a person human. In this case, Wiredu argued that society without strong
moral pillars collapses.2 This being the case, however, many foreigners have an erroneous
understanding of African morality. Some even tend to regard Africans as devoid of morality and
moral consciousness.3 For instance, some asserted that Africans are unable to differentiate between
good and evil; a very unfortunate sweeping statement.4

1
Claude Sumner, Perspectives in African Philosophy, Addis Ababa, University Press, 2002. p.29.
2
Okman Wiredu, ‘Moral Foundation of African Culture’, in Pieter Coetzee and A. P. J. Roux, The African
Philosophy Reader, 2nd ed., Oxfordshire: Routledge, 2003. p.78.
3
Benezet Bujo, Foundations of an African Ethic, trans by Brian McNeil, Nairobi: Paulines Publications Africa,
2003. p.19.
4
Patrick Nel, Morality and Religion in African Thought, Bloemfontein: University of The Free State, 2008. p.36.

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1.2. FOUNDATIONS OF AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY

There are four views among scholars of African morality concerning the foundation of morality.
The first that seems predominant and shared by the majority of elites is that African morality is
founded on the concept of religion. The second is the institution of the human family, thirdly,
reverence for their ancestors regarded as so typical of the indigenous culture that some African
morality are defined as sometimes ancestor worship. And finally, morality is embedded with fear,
shame and sorcery. People follow moral guidelines because of fear of shame or fear to be
bewitched. For example, one fears to steal for fear of punishment that may be sent.5

1.2.1. TRADITIONAL RELIGION AS FOUNDATION OF MORALITY

African religion is an embodiment of moral teachings and guidelines. Mbiti has this to say about
African culture intertwining with religion. African are notoriously religious, and each people have
their own religious system, with a set of beliefs and practices. Religion permeates into all the
department of life so fully that it is not easy or possible always to isolate it. 6 A study of these
religious system is therefore ultimately a study of the people’s culture and morals in all
complexities of both traditional and modern life. Religion is the strongest element in traditional
background, exerts probably the greatest influence upon the thinking and living of the people of
Africa. In agreement with Mbiti, Ezeanya agrees that in Africa life is religion, and religion is life.
This means that religion cannot be divorced from morality.7

African ethical system is rooted on religion since both religion and culture are concerned
with values of human life. In the same way, traditional Africa exalts the fact that what is morally
good brings a good name and dignity and respect to persons and their community. And what is
morally bad is what brings disharmony and scorn to the community. Furthermore, within
traditional African societies there is no differentiation between life, religion and, morality rather,
an intrinsic unity between them. Similarly, the relationship between culture, religion and morality
as lived by the community is one of unity. In this perspective, culture is life; religion is life;

5
Patrick Nel, op. cit., p.36.
6
John Mbiti, African Religions and Philosophy, London: Heinemann Publishers, 1969. p.39.
7
Stephen Ezeanya, “The Contributions of African Traditional Religion to Nation Building.” pp. 1-17 In Open
Journal of Philosophy, vol.5, no.4, 2015.

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morality is life; community is life. That is why from the African tradition understanding, morality
is merged with religion and with culture.8

1.2.2. INSTITUTION OF FAMILY MORALITY

The family is the first teacher that transmits the appropriate behavior patterns, values, attitude and
norms of the society to the child. It is only the family that has the role of “every time teacher” to
the child. In Africa, the family is known for instilling discipline, hard work and good behaviors in
its members most especially children so as to grow into morally upright individuals. Often times
when a youth is good or bad, people always trace it to the family background in terms of
upbringing. In certain cultures, when a child behaves in a good way; the credit goes to the father
and when the behavior is bad; the scorn goes to the mother. Accordingly, one act may be good in
certain circumstances, while it is evil in others, depending on its impact upon the relation of the
parties involved. From this viewpoint, ethical education is the ultimate aim of education in the
traditional society.9 It is unfortunate, that contemporary society is lamenting a moral decline.10
Basically, the African morality is concerned with the goodness of all human being in the family.
Consequently, it is held that whatever happens to the individual is believed to happen also to the
whole family and whatever happens to the whole family happens to the individual. At the same
time, the misdeeds of an individual can bring problems to the immediate family, extended family,
his lineage and the entire community. This is because Africans see human person as inherently
communal being.11

1.2.3. ANCESTORS AS WATCHDOGS OF MORAL BEHAVIOR

Members of African community include the living and the living dead, the ancestors. It is common
knowledge in Africa that elders, ancestors and parents are supposed to be instillers of morals in
the younger generation. And not only instills but also supervises and keeps watch over the young.
Here the role that the ancestors play a critical role in the formation of African morality. The African
sees a manifestation of the past generation with the present generation. Cultural heritage is passed

8
Stephen Ezeanya, op. cit., pp. 1-17.
9
James Kigongo, Ethical Education in The Reform of Secondary Education in Uganda, Kampala: Makerere
University Press, 1991, p.123.
10
Hannah Wangechi Kinoti, “African Morality: Past and Present,” pp 73-86, in Jesse Mugambi and Nasimiyu
Wasike, eds., Moral and Ethical Issues in African Christianity, Nairobi: Initiatives, 1992, p.75.
11
Opoku Kofi Asare, West African Traditional Religion, Jurong: FEP International, 1978, p. 231.

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from the elders to the young. In the African cosmology, life is grounded in the past, but experienced
in the present. Continuity oriented towards the past is apparent in the statement; I do this because
my father did. And they did it because our ancestors did it. In this perspective, morality does not
only concern the individual’s behaviour but the whole of family.12

1.2.4. SHAME-ORIENTED MORALITY.

Witchcraft is a living vice in some parts of the world. It has been practiced for centuries and is still
deeply rooted in people's lives. It is one of the reasons why some people refrain from doing wrong
to others such as stealing. The voluntary confessions and lynching of witches prove that witchcraft
exists in Africa. Personal relationships and a good name are more important to an African person.
If an African realizes that doing something bad is going to ignite the other party to seek revenge
from the witchdoctor or medicine men then he or she will rather not do it. 13 Fear of punishment,
of being killed and of being punished through the power of manipulating nature either by magic,
sorcery or superstition is one of the factors that keep Africans refrained from doing bad acts. These
acts include eloping with one’s wife, stealing from someone’s garden and others. I witnessed the
power of witchcraft during the vanilla season, a man who went to steal vanilla got stuck in the
garden. These virtues of honesty in property rights and faithfulness in marriage some times are
motivated by fear. Fear because of the fact that the offended party will seek revenge from the world
of witches and sorcery. Fear is specific to those perceived as potential to cause harm.14

SECTION TWO:
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE AFRICAN CONCEPT OF MORALITY
This section is to give some common traits in the African morality, this will definitely show that
most African morality are based on humanity as it is communalistic, religious based, taboo and
proverbs as well as utilitarianism.

12
Zabloni Nthamburi, Morality in Public Life, pp. 107-118, in Jesse Mugambi and Nasimiyu Wasike, eds., Moral
and Ethical Issues in African Christianity, Nairobi: Initiatives, 1992, p.110.
13
Ruth Lienhard, “A Good Conscience: Difference Between Honour and Justice Orientation,” pp. 131-141, in
Missiology, Vol.29, No.2, April, 2001, p.136.
14
Ibid., p.139.

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2.1. COMMUNALISTIC

African morality and ethics cannot be conceived outside of the community life. Gyekye regards
communalism not only as its outstanding but as its defining characteristic. Traditional African
society was therefore characterized not by one’s own rights but by duties towards others.15
The communalistic orientation means that an individual’s image will depend rather crucially upon the
extent to which his/her actions benefit others rather than him/herself, not of course, by coincidence,
but by design an individual who remained content with self-regarding success would be viewed as so
circumscribed in outlook as not to merit the title of a real person.16

2.2. ANTHROPOCENTRIC

The African concepts of morality are generally of a human centered at all stages. Morality is rooted in
conceptual and empirical considerations about humanity’s well-being. Everything is done for the
wellbeing of the present human race and the generations to come. This is why the term humanistic is
a connotation proper to the African moral thinking. A human person is essentially the center of the
thick set of concentric circles of obligations and responsibilities matched by rights and privileges
revolving round levels of relationships irradiating from the consanguinity of household kith and kin,
through the ‘blood’ ties of lineage and clan, to the wider circumference of human family hood. The
concept of Ubuntu is placed with much emphasis on life as the highest and intrinsic good in the
community.17

2.3. RELIGIOUS BASED

John Mbiti in his book African Religions and Philosophy of 1969 argued that “African people are
notoriously religious and religion permeates into all the departments of life so much so that it is not
easy or possible to isolate it.”18 As already stated earlier, from the African tradition, morality is
intertwined with religion. This confirms the view of religious foundation of African morality evidence
in the do’s and don’ts. This clearly implies that the moral beliefs and principles of Africans are derived
from their religion and that religion provides the necessary justification for moral values and beliefs.

15
Peter Kollman, “Tribalism and Justice” pp 49-70, in African Christian Studies, Vol.4, No.2, June, 1988, p.59
16
Kwame Gyekye, “person and community in African thought,” pp. 317-336, in Pieter Coetzee and A. P. J. Roux,
eds., Philosophy from Africa, Pretoria: international Thompson publishing, 1998, p.318.
17
Okman Wiredu, op. cit., p.308.
18
John Mbiti, op. cit., p.1.

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Moral concepts, such as good, bad right and wrong, are defined in terms of religious prescriptions or
commands.

2.4. TABOO AND PROVERBS

In every African culture, there exists many proverbs, customs, set forms of behavior, regulations,
rules observances and taboos which constitute the moral code and ethics of a given community.
There are many things held to be morally wrong and a taboo. These are taught in speech under the
fire place, songs and proverbs by elders. For example, restrictions of marrying within the same
clan, eating certain food stuffs and so on. Whoever does them is considered to be a bad or evil
person. Taboos may, however, be religious, social, sexual or a combination of one or two or even
all of these classifications at once.19African morality laid a great emphasis on social conduct. Basic
moral principles and practices in the form of taboos guide people’s action and help them to choose
between right and wrong. For instance, children in African societies are taught basic principles of
morality embedded in taboos in proverbs, riddles or folktales. A system of taboos and sanctions
held in honor of the ancestors, divinities and spirits are used in the African societies to enforce
morality; and so they are agents of morality in traditional African thought.20

2.5. PRAGMATIC AND UTILITARIANISM

Africans hold that keeping moral principles works for them and those social constructs appreciated
in terms of their usefulness. In other words, following moral codes is paying, it is rewarding. For
example, a virgin gets honored at her marriage and so is her family. Sex was not to be indulged in
for pleasure, it is only permissible in marriage. The penalty for a woman that commit adultery is
punitive. This is because African morality is a character-based ethics which maintains that the
quality of the individual's character is the most fundamental in human moral life. African societies
attest that moral beliefs and codes have guided their actions towards harmony and brotherhood for
centuries.21 In traditional African society intimately related to pragmatism is utilitarianism; the
theory of morality that advocates actions that foster happiness and oppose actions that cause harm.

19
Ronald green, “Religion and Morality in The African Traditional Setting,” pp.1-23, In Journal of Religion in
Africa, Vol.14, No.1, 1983, pp 6-8.
20
Ibid.
21
Segun Gbadegesin, “Individuality, Community and The Moral Order,” pp.295-305, in Pieter Coetzee and A. P. J.
Roux, eds., Philosophy from Africa, Pretoria: international Thompson publishing, 1998, p.302.

6
In the African society this theory is directed toward making society better in terms of honesty,
faithfulness and social harmony.22

CONCLUSION
The moral beliefs and principles of the Africans are derived from their religion, family, community
and life experiences. These provides the necessary justification for moral values and beliefs. From
this viewpoint, moral principles are primarily concerned with promoting a good life and the
maintenance of good relationship with others. The concept of African morality can be described
in terms of communalistic; humanistic; religious; tabooed and ancestral. Virtues and taboos found
in African society should be accepted applied to everyday life, so that it strengthens the values and
moral beliefs which form the basis of social life. In general, African morality is determined by the
injunctions of an ancestors, the family and shame oriented. However, the African moral system is
under threat due to globalization, secularism, individualism and western culture.

22
Benezet Bujo, African Christian at The Age of Inculturation, Nairobi: Paulines Publications Africa, 1990, p.50.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY.

Bujo Benezet, African Christian Morality at the Age of Inculturation, Nairobi: Paulines Publications Africa,
1990.
Bujo Benezet, Foundations of an African Ethic, trans by Brian McNeil, Nairobi: Paulines Publications
Africa, 2003.

Claude Sumner, Perspectives in African Philosophy, Addis Ababa, University Press, 2002.
Coetzee, P.H. & Roux, A.P.J., eds., Philosophy from Africa, Pretoria: International Thompson Publishing,
1998, pp. 317-336.

Ezeanya, S. N.,” The Contributions of African Traditional Religion to Nation Building,” pp.1-17, in Open
Journal of Philosophy, Vol.5 No.4, March 2015.

Gyekye Kwame, Tradition and Modernity: Philosophical Reflection on the Africa Experience, New York:
Oxford: University press, 1992.

Kigongo, James, Ethical Education in the Reform of Secondary Education in Uganda, Kampala:
Makerere University Press,1991.

Kollman Peter, “Tribalism and Justice,” in African Christian Studies, Vol.4. No.2, June 1988:49-70.
Lienhard Ruth, “A Good Conscience: Difference between Honour and Justice Orientation,” 131-141, in
Missiology, Vol.29, No.2, April 2001.

Mbiti, S John, African Religions and Philosophy, London: Heinemann Publishers, 1969.
Mugambi, Jesse & Nasimiyu-Wasike, A., eds., Moral and Ethical issues in African Christianity, Nairobi:
Initiatives, 1992.

Nel Patrick, Morality and Religion in African Thought, Bloemfontein: University of The Free State, 2008.
Opoku Kofi Asare, West African Traditional Religion, Jurong: FEP International, 1978.
Ronald M. Green, “Religion and Morality in the African Traditional Setting,” in Journal of Religion in
Africa, Vol. 14, No.1, 1983.