James Akpu

Dr

Contact Details


SPD D315C
T:N/A

E:james.akpu@dcu.ie
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Dr James Akpu is an assistant professor in global history in the School of History and Geography at Dublin City University. He works in the fields of African history, Ireland-Africa relations, church-state relations, the missionary movement, maternal and child health, history of philanthropy, technology, gender, women’s sexuality studies, agrarian and environmental history, the history of human-animal relations and British empire history. Born in Kano in Northern Nigeria, James holds a B.A and M.A. (with distinction) in History degrees from the University of Ibadan in Nigeria. He graduated top of his class at both levels. Before his university education, he obtained a national diploma in Library and Information Science from the Federal Polytechnic Offa in Nigeria. A former Irish Research Council Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholar, he completed his PhD at Dublin City University in 2022. He was recently awarded a 2023 Mother Theodore Guerin Research Travel Grant in the Cushwa Center at the University of Notre Dame. Outside of research and teaching, James enjoys watching soccer. He is a huge Real Madrid fan.  

Professional Associations

Association Function From / To
Historical Society of Nigeria Member -
British Agricultural History Society Member -
American Catholic Historical Association Member -

Education

Start date Institution Qualification Subject
01/09/2008 University of Ibadan B.A History History
05/09/2005 Federal Polytechnic Offa National Diploma Library and Information Science
12/11/2018 Dublin City University PhD History History
17/03/2014 University of Ibadan M.A History History

Research Interests

My research interests are African history, Ireland-Africa relations, church-state relations, the missionary movement, maternal and child health, history of philanthropy, technology, gender, women’s sexuality studies, agrarian and environmental history, the history of human-animal relations and British empire history. 

Research Projects

Title Role Description Start date End date
Irish Missionary Enterprise in Nigeria, 1885-1975 PI 01/09/2021 31/08/2022
‘Winning Souls for God’: The Representation of Women Religious in the Nigerian Catholic Herald, 1924-1952 PI 09/02/2023 11/07/2024
N/A PI 01/06/2023 15/09/2023

Teaching Interests

Global History, African History, Britain and Its Empire, Religious History, Gender and Sexuality Studies, African Diaspora, History of Science, Technology and Medicine, Environmental History, Transnationalism

Modules Coordinated

Term Title Subject
Semester One 2023/24 Empires and Globalisation HY347
Semester One 2023/24 Empires in History HY349
Semester Two 2023/24 Historical Sources and Approaches HY345
Semester Two 2023/24 Promoting History HY515
2024 HY349
2024 HY345
2024 HY347