Guide to the John N. Paden papers C0194 John N. Paden papers

Guide to the John N. Paden papers C0194

John N. Paden papers


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George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center

Fenwick Library, MS2FL
4400 University Dr.
Fairfax, Virginia 22030
Business Number: 703-993-2220
Fax Number: 703-993-8911
speccoll@gmu.edu
URL: https://scrc.gmu.edu

Jordan Patty and Blyth McManus

Repository
George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections Research Center
Identification
C0194
Title
John N. Paden papers 1938 - 2010
Quantity
66 Linear Feet, 133 boxes
Creator
Paden, John N.
Language
English .
Abstract
The collection includes periodicals, pamphlets, reports, conference proceedings, photographs, maps, printed ephemera, and manuscripts related to Sub-Saharan Africa, with particular emphasis on Nigeria, but embracing political and social history, biography, economics, sociology, languages, culture, and religions of the entire region. The role of Islam in the region is an important component. Documents are primarily in English but occasionally in German, French, Arabic, or Hausa.

Administrative Information

Use Restrictions

The copyright and related rights status of this collection have not been evaluated (See http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/)

Access Restrictions

There are no access restrictions.

Preferred Citation

John N. Paden papers, C0194, Special Collections Research Center, George Mason University Libraries.

Acquisition Information

Donated by John N. Paden in 2011. Multiple subsequent donations have followed.

Processing Information

Processed by Blyth McManus in 2014. EAD markup completed by Blyth McManus in 2014. Finding aid updated by Amanda Menjivar in March 2023.

This collection has additional unprocessed accessions 2018.009, 2018.028, 2018.036, 2018.043, 2019.037, 2022.034-C, 2023.014-C, 2023.027-C, and therefore this finding aid may not be fully up to date. Please contact SCRC for more information.

Biographical Information

Dr. John N. Paden is a Clarence Robinson Professor of International Studies at George Mason University. He received his BA in philosophy from Occidental College, his MA in philosophy, politics, and economics from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, and his PhD in politics from Harvard University.

A professor at Mason for 25 years, Dr. Paden currently teaches comparative government, international development, and conflict resolution. He is a co-founder of the GMU graduate program in International Commerce and Policy (ICP). He is also co-founder and co-director of the GMU Center for Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (CAPEC), under the Office of the Provost. He has been involved in scholarly exchanges between the US and China for the past 25 years, and has served as Director of the SPP/ICP summer graduate program in China, focusing on socio-economic changes and cross-cultural trade strategies. He also participated in the SPP/ICP summer trade programs in Oxford and Geneva. He helped develop undergraduate minors at GMU in Asia Pacific Studies, Islamic Studies, and Afro-American and African Studies. He has served as Director of African Studies at Northwestern University, Professor of Public Administration at Ahmadu Bello University (Zaria, Nigeria), and Dean, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, at Bayero University (Kano, Nigeria).

Since 2002, Dr. Paden has served on a senior level task force at the Brookings Institution on "US policy toward the Islamic world." Dr. Paden's work includes an extensive list of publications, including highly acclaimed textbooks about Africa. His most recent book, Post-election Conflict Management in Nigeria: The Challenge of National Unity, was published in 2012 by the George Mason University School of Conflict Analysis and Resolution.

Scope and Content

The collection includes periodicals, pamphlets, reports, conference proceedings, photographs, maps, printed ephemera, and manuscripts related to Sub-Saharan Africa, with particular emphasis on Nigeria, but embracing political and social history, biography, economics, sociology, languages, culture, and religions of the entire region. The role of Islam in the region is an important component.

Series 1, Correspondence: Includes correspondence relating to book reviews, various publications, research projects, conferences, travel arrangements, publishing matters related to Dr. Paden's works, and letters of recommendation for students. Organized alphabetically by subject and then chronologically.

Series 2, Research: Published papers and documents, conference papers, and related materials. Research for Dr. Paden's dissertation is included and often separated by him into chapters and appendices, which include illustrations, maps, and tables. Major topics represented are politics, development, and economics; Hausa language and Hausa language education; Islam in Africa; African studies; Arabic literature; research for his book Black Africa; and broad information on Northern Nigeria. Materials are organized by subject and then chronologically. Materials from his former wife Ann are included and marked as such when known. Her research contains extensive information on family, childbirth, children, home health care and medicine, food, and issues specific to women. Series also includes index cards containing original research, most from the 1960s - 1970s. Materials are organized by type, subject, and then chronologically.

Series 3, Publications: Includes books, journals, newspapers, catalogs from publishing houses, and various ephemera. Contents relate mainly to Nigeria, but also included are items relating to other African nations as well as to the US and UK. Collection includes more than twenty different newspapers which were published in Nigeria, but primarily written in English. Major publications are the New Nigerian, Nigerian Citizen, and This Day. Newspapers range from the 1960s-2010. Magazines both political and popular are included. The series also contains travel-related publications from the 1970s, including airline schedules, tourist information, and many site-specific or event-specific brochures, some of which are interesting historical documents in their own right. The majority of travel brochures come from California, Chicago and Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, and Texas, but some are from other regions of the US and overseas. Organized by subject and then chronologically.

Series 4: Maps. Includes maps of various African nations, primarily Nigeria. Organized by region and then chronologically. A greater quantity of maps may be found in Series 6, Oversize.

Series 5: Audio/Visual. Reel to reel audio tapes, audio cassette tapes, photographs, negatives. Audio recordings include radio interviews and other audio information relating to Nigeria in the 1960s. Photographs are primarily research-related images, the majority from Dr. Paden's trip to Africa in the 1960s, and include group portraits, images of Nigerian life, events, and royalty, and some personal family photographs dating from the 1930s. Slides are variously labeled by former wife Ann Paden as political rallies; crowd scenes; Hausa; Fulani; activities; Sallah; Malams; "Audo and the Padens;" images of Kano City, Morocco, Spain, and England; general landscape; friends; and the house in Nigeria which Dr. Paden and his former wife occupied. Not all of the subjects listed appear to be in the extant slide collection. Materials are organized by medium, then by subject, and then chronologically.

Series 6: Oversized. Maps, posters, a small amount of printed matter, one large photograph, and one large charcoal sketch. Includes maps up to wall size of Nigeria, other nations, and world regions. In addition to basic maps showing cities, states, and regions, series also includes maps illustrating demography, transportation, topography, concentration of religious groups, location of tribal areas, and other specialized information. Includes posters relating to politics, cultural ideals, and university education. A few posters reflect popular culture of the 1970s. Materials range from the 1950s-2000s. Materials are organized by medium, then by subject, and then chronologically.

Series 7: Regalia. Includes a percussion instrument called a "yomkwo," or Nigerian raft zither, of the style made by the Birom (Berom) people of the Jos plateau. A yomkwo is a flat instrument made of reeds and grasses with a rattle attached to the back. Also included are eight Qur'an (Koran) boards, made of wood and other natural materials, in the style of the Hausa peoples. Six have Arabic writing on them. One is undecorated. Used for memorization of the Koran, often in conjunction with the drinking ink tradition. Materials are unidentified wood and ink. Paddle-shaped, about 8"-12"L x 6"-8"W. All regalia is undated.

Arrangement

Series Series 1: Correspondence, 1971-1998 (Boxes 1-4) Series 2: Research, 1950s-2010 (Boxes 4-85) Series 3: Publications, 1959-2010 (Boxes 85-104, 111-129) Series 4: Maps, 1949-1980s (Box 104) Series 5: Audio/Visual, 1938-1985 (Boxes 105-109, 133) Series 6: Oversize, 1949-1997 (110, 130, Map Case) Series 7: Realia, undated (Boxes 131-132)

Related Material

The Special Collections Research Center also holds the papers of many other George Mason University professors, as well as materials pertaining to International Relations, including the John W. Burton papers, the Henry O. Lampe papers, and the Maxwell Harway papers. Other collections containing photographs or slides of Nigeria include the Kjell Sandved nature collection, the Oliver F. Atkins photograph collection, and the Edith McChesney Ker papers.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Significant Persons Associated With the Collection

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Significant Places Associated With the Collection

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Container List

Series 1: Correspondence
1960-2005
(3.5 boxes)
Scope and Contents note

Includes various types of correspondence relating to book reviews, publications, research projects, travel arrangements, letters of recommendation, and some few personal matters. Organized alphabetically by subject and then chronologically.

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Series 2: Research
1950s-2007
(81 boxes)
Scope and Contents note

Published papers and documents, conference papers, and related materials. Research for Dr. Paden's dissertation is included and often separated by him into chapters and appendices, which include illustrations and tables. Major topics represented are politics, development, and economics; Hausa language and Hausa language education; Islam in Africa; African studies; Arabic literature; research for his book Black Africa; and broad information on Northern Nigeria. Materials are organized by type, subject, and then chronologically.

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Series 3: Publications
1959-2010
(37.5 boxes)
Scope and Contents note

Includes books, journals, newspapers, catalogs from publishing houses, and various ephemera. Contents relate mainly to Nigeria, but also included are items relating to other African nations as well as to the US and UK. Collection includes more than twenty different newspapers which were published in Nigeria, but primarily written in English. Organized by subject and then chronologically.

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Series 4: Maps
1959-2010
(.5 boxes)
Scope and Contents note

Includes maps of various African nations, primarily Nigeria. Organized by region and then chronologically.

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Series 5: Audio/Visual
1964-1985
(6 boxes)
Scope and Contents note

Reel to reel audio tapes, audio cassette tapes, photographs, negatives. Materials are organized by medium, then by subject, and then chronologically.

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Series 6: Oversize
1949-1997
(2 boxes, 3 drawers in map case)
Scope and Contents note

Maps, posters, a small amount of printed matter, one large photograph, and one large charcoal sketch. Includes maps up to wall size of Nigeria, other nations, and world regions. Materials range from the 1950s-2000s. Materials are organized by medium, then by subject, and then chronologically.

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Series 7: Regalia
undated
(2 boxes)
Scope and Contents note

Includes a percussion instrument called a "yomkwo," or Nigerian raft zither. Also included are eight Qur'an (Koran) boards. Six have Arabic writing on them. One is undecorated. All regalia are undated.

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