African nationalism is a political movement for Pan-Africanism and for national self-determination.[1] Origins of the idea come from European nationalist schools of thought. Political interest began in the 1870s[2] and political organizations started to form in the 1890s.[1] African Nationalism came to mean the struggle against foreign colonial powers ruling over African territory. In the years after World War II, African nationalism gained strength,[3] resulting in independence for Libya in 1951 and Ghana in 1957. All but six African countries were independent nation-states by 1966. Later after many successful nationalist movements in Africa, "African Nationalism" began to be associated with the Pan-African movement.[4][3]Edward Wilmot Blyden has been described as the founder of African nationalism.[5]Julius Nyerere defined African nationalism as a new kind of nationalism and that it is "meaningless, dangerous, is anachronistic if it is not at the same time pan-Africanism."[6]
Note: Forms of nationalism based primarily on ethnic groups are listed above. This does not imply that all nationalists with a given ethnicity subscribe to that form of ethnic nationalism.