African Americans
Black U.S. population
African Americans are Americans of African descent, particularly those whose ancestors were enslaved people brought to the United States.
The term emerged in the 1980s as a preferred alternative to Black, emphasizing cultural heritage and parallel construction with other hyphenated identities like Italian Americans.
Both terms remain current, with Black now often capitalized.
African American history, African American literature, the African American community.
Some distinguish African Americans from recent African immigrants, though usage varies.
Transatlantic slave trade crossing
- transatlanticSpanning the ocean between continents
- slaveryOwnership of people
- emancipationRelease from legal bondage
- migrationMovement to new territory
Great Migration · displacement · colonialism · creolization · motherland · repatriation · ancestry · dual identity
Improvisational American music genre
- bluesMournful American music genre
- gospelSacred choral tradition
- hip-hopRhythmic spoken-word music
- R&BSoulful pop genre
soul music · funk · ragtime · Motown · bebop · spirituals · rap · neo-soul
Forced separation by group
- integrationCombining into a whole
- Jim CrowRacial separation laws
- NAACPCivil rights advocacy organization
- voting rightsEntitlement to elect officials
sit-ins · boycott · Civil Rights Act · Brown v. Board · Selma · Montgomery · March on Washington · Black Power
African descent identifier
- communityCollective of connected people
- cultureCollective social practices
- ethnicOf a cultural group
- racialConcerning ethnic origin
diversity · pride · solidarity · melanin · representation · self-determination · empowerment · visibility
Place of Christian worship
- gospelSacred choral tradition
- spiritualityConnection to the sacred
- BaptistImmersion-practicing Protestant
- praiseExpression of approval
worship · choir · sermons · testimony · redemption · revival · sanctified · deacon
Family line of descent
- genealogyStudy of family descent
- rootsUnderground nutrient absorbers
- lineageDescent from progenitors
- family treeChart of ancestors
oral history · griot · kente · Kwanzaa · folklore · legacy · kinship · traditions
Civil rights initials
- Rosa ParksCivil rights icon
- Booker T. WashingtonEducator, reformer, ex-slave
- Sojourner TruthAbolitionist and suffragist orator
- Barack ObamaForty-fourth US president
Malcolm X · Harriet Tubman · Frederick Douglass · W.E.B. Du Bois · John Lewis · Thurgood Marshall · Ida B. Wells · Medgar Evers
Middle Passage
Transatlantic slave trade crossing
- transatlanticSpanning the ocean between continents
- slaveryOwnership of people
- emancipationRelease from legal bondage
migration · Great Migration · displacement · colonialism · creolization · motherland · repatriation · ancestry · dual identity · Maroons
jazz
Improvisational American music genre
R&B · soul music · funk · ragtime · Motown · bebop · spirituals · rap · neo-soul · scat
segregation
Forced separation by group
- integrationCombining into a whole
- Jim CrowRacial separation laws
- NAACPCivil rights advocacy organization
voting rights · sit-ins · boycott · Civil Rights Act · Brown v. Board · Selma · Montgomery · March on Washington · Black Power · desegregation
Black
African descent identifier
racial · diversity · pride · solidarity · melanin · representation · self-determination · empowerment · visibility · authenticity
church
Place of Christian worship
- gospelSacred choral tradition
- spiritualityConnection to the sacred
- BaptistImmersion-practicing Protestant
praise · worship · choir · sermons · testimony · redemption · revival · sanctified · deacon · congregation
ancestry
Family line of descent
family tree · oral history · griot · kente · Kwanzaa · folklore · legacy · kinship · traditions · heirlooms
MLK
Civil rights initials
- Rosa ParksCivil rights icon
- Booker T. WashingtonEducator, reformer, ex-slave
- Sojourner TruthAbolitionist and suffragist orator
Malcolm X · Harriet Tubman · Frederick Douglass · W.E.B. Du Bois · John Lewis · Thurgood Marshall · Ida B. Wells · Medgar Evers · Angela Davis · Jesse Jackson
- Florida PeopleCubans, Seminoles, Haitians, Puerto Ricans, snowbirds
- Black Diasporamotherland, Afro-Brazilian, Afro-Cuban, maroons, creole culture
- ethnic communitiesethnic enclave, immigrant community, indigenous community, tribal community, refugee community
- ethnic groupsJews, Arabs, Chinese, Irish, Greeks
- Carolina HistoryCharleston, Lowcountry, Piedmont, Backcountry, colonial era
- Settlement Historypioneers, settlers, homesteaders, frontier, westward expansion
African AmericansEuropean Americans
US citizens of continental descent
White Americans · Caucasians · Anglo-Americans · WASP · white people
African Americansslaveholders
Owners of enslaved people
white supremacists · White Americans · segregationists · plantation owners
African Americansnew arrivals
naturalized citizens · immigrant communities · fresh off the boat · newcomers
African, Americans, Africans, Americanize, Americanized, Americanizing, Americanization, Americas, Afrocentrism