Argonauts of Western Africa receives Honorable Mention for William A. Douglass Prize in Europeanist Anthropology

The Department of Anthropology at Harvard University is pleased to share that Argonauts of Western Africa: Unauthorized Migration and Kinship by Apostolos Andrikopoulos (current Affiliate and former Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow) has received an honorable mention for the William A. Douglass Prize in Europeanist Anthropology. 

Apostolos Andrikopoulos’s Argonauts of Western Africa: Unauthorized Migration and Kinship Dynamics in a Changing Europe is a novel treatment of a classic anthropological theme, kinship, as it addresses the highly topical phenomenon of African migration to Europe. Moving in an empirically rigorous, multisited ethnography between the Netherlands, West Africa and Greece, Andrikopoulos explores how “kinning” processes among African migrants create ties that facilitate their migratory projects —whether for obtaining documents to authorize their migration or for naturalizing as European citizens— while also attending to potentially adverse, less studied aspects of kinship. The book is a significant contribution to literatures arguing for greater attention to relational and affective dimensions of the state.  The selection committee also appreciated the book’s lively and engaging writing. 

Argonauts of Western Africa: Unauthorized Migration and Kinship was previously awarded The Elliott P. Skinner Book Award.

Andrikopoulos attended the AAA meeting in Tampa for the award ceremonies for both Skinner and Douglass awards (see photos attached).