LAGOS, Nigeria(VOICE OF NAIJA)-The legendary Kenyan writer and fierce advocate for African languages, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, has died at 87.
Over a six-decade career, he became a towering figure in modern African literature, resisting colonialism, censorship, and exile through the sharp point of his pen.
Born James Thiong’o Ngũgĩ in colonial Kenya in 1938, he grew up in Limuru among a large family of agricultural workers. His childhood was marked by the brutal Mau Mau uprising; his brother Gitogo, who was deaf, was fatally shot by a British soldier, and much of his village was destroyed. These events would profoundly shape his writing.
His 1964 debut, “Weep Not, Child”, was the first major English-language novel by an East African author and was met with critical acclaim. He followed with “The River Between” and “A Grain of Wheat”, quickly establishing himself as one of Africa’s literary greats.
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In 1977, Ngũgĩ renounced English, adopted the name Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, and committed to writing exclusively in his native Kikuyu. That same year, his novel “Petals of Blood”—a scathing critique of Kenya’s post-independence elite, led to his arrest and year-long detention without trial.
While imprisoned, he famously wrote “Devil on the Cross” on toilet paper, his first novel in Kikuyu.
Exiled in 1982 after learning of an alleged assassination plot, Ngũgĩ spent 22 years abroad, teaching at institutions like Yale and UC Irvine.
When he finally returned to Kenya, he was welcomed as a national hero, but the homecoming turned tragic when he and his wife were violently attacked in what he called a “political” assault. He soon returned to the U.S., where he continued his academic and literary work.
Though tipped for the Nobel Prize many times, Ngũgĩ never received the honor. Yet his legacy endures through his prolific body of work, his unflinching political stance, and his trailblazing insistence that African stories be told in African languages.
He was married twice and had nine children, four of whom are also published authors. In his later years, Ngũgĩ faced serious health challenges, including cancer and heart surgery that he survived.
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o leaves behind a legacy that transcends literature, a fearless voice for decolonization, language justice, and the enduring power of storytelling.
