An accomplished teacher, feminist and novelist, Mariama Bâ's presence on the literary scene was tragically short-lived - from 1979 to 1981. Bâ was born in Dakar Sénégal in 1929 to an educated and well-to-do Senegalese family. Her father was a career civil servant who became Sénégalese Minister of Health in 1956 while her grandfather was an interpreter in the French occupation regime. Bâ was raised largely by her maternal grandparents following the untimely death of her mother. She attended
Ecole Normal,a school for girls based in Rufisque (a suburb of Dakar) and it was this institution that prepared her for her later career as a school teacher. Originally enrolled on a secretarial course, Bâ's intellect and capacity were spotted early on by the school's principal who began to…
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Citation: Nzegwu, Femi. "Mariama Bâ". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 30 June 2002 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5152, accessed 27 April 2024.]
