User:Oniwe/1890s African rinderpest epizootic/Bibliography

You will be compiling your bibliography and creating an outline of the changes you will make in this sandbox.

Outline of proposed changes

 * Add section on the original ideas of rinderpest and its relation with epidemics in the 19th century
 * Perhaps write about origins of rinderpest in Africa
 * Add sections on the different rinderpest epidemics in parts of Africa (Southern Africa, Tanzania, etc)
 * Add more information on societal effects and collapse
 * Perhaps modern implications

The 1890s rinderpest epidemic is an important part of the history of southern Africa, as well as the early colonial history of Africa. The rinderpest epidemic is important because it provides an early look on the devastating impacts on colonialism on every aspect of the lives of Africans. By simply introducing a disease that killed cattle, it immediately led to societal collapse. We can look at this epidemic in many viewpoints. We can see its social effects, as cattle were not only income and property in parts of Eastern and Southern Africa, but were deeply rooted in the traditional society and hierarchy of these parts of Africa. For example, cattle was a main way bride-price was paid for a family whose child was getting married. Without cows, people often could not even facilitate marriages. This is why a primary source is important, it can help us look at the real time reaction and devastation of the rinderpest epidemic. For my wikipedia project, I would like to add the theories as to the origin of rinderpest in this region, thus primary sources on rinderpest in Europe may be helpful in understanding the extent to which it devastated Europe and the comparison in reactions between Europeans and Africans.

Because the epidemic also had political, economic, and biological impacts in the region, modern analyses of the devastating effects of the epidemic are also important. That is why the many secondary sources were chosen. We can see the impact of the economic and ecosystem in Ballard's work that analyzed the rinderpest epidemic in Natal and Zululand. Political ramifications can also be seen in Phoofolo's work on the impact of rinderpest on revolutions, as people became angry at not only the devastating loss of cattle, but also colonial policies that sought to kill all cattle, even ones that did not appear to be sick. This conflict is important in understanding the history of early colonialism in Africa.