New Books in History Jessica Catherine Reuther, "The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940" (Indiana UP, 2025)
Nov 15, 2025
Dr. Jessica Reuther, an Associate Professor of African and world history at Ball State University, shines a light on girlhood in Dahomey from 1720 to 1940 in her upcoming book. She explores the practice of girl fostering, creating ties of kinship that blend care and economic exploitation. Reuther discusses archival challenges in recovering girls’ voices and their agency, revealing how social norms and colonial pressures reshaped their lives. With insights into historical practices and contemporary implications, her work uncovers the complexity of female experiences in West Africa.
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Social Markers Define Girlhood
- Dahomean girlhood was defined by social markers like responsibility and marriageability rather than strict age.
- Girls transitioned from household tasks to adulthood around signs of maturity and menstruation, roughly 7–14 years.
Market Women Asked To Entrust Her Child
- Jessica Reuther recounts market women repeatedly asking her to "give me your child" while researching in Benin.
- That repeated exchange revealed contemporary valorization of entrustment despite concerns about exploitation.
Transfers Form A Spectrum Not A Binary
- Child transfers in Dahomey formed a spectrum from valued entrustment to outright enslavement rather than a simple binary.
- European records often blurred these statuses, requiring careful reading to recover local meanings.
