Renowned Kenyan Author and Activist Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o Dies at 87 

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, the celebrated Kenyan novelist, playwright, and academic whose works shaped modern African literature, has died at the age of 87. 

A towering figure in postcolonial writing, Ngũgĩ’s career spanned six decades, chronicling Kenya’s struggle for independence and its turbulent journey afterward. Though frequently tipped for the Nobel Prize in Literature, the honour eluded him—yet his influence as a champion of African-language storytelling remains unparalleled. 

From Colonial Oppression to Literary Greatness

Born James Thiong’o Ngũgĩ in 1938 in Limuru, Kenya, he grew up under British rule, the son of peasant farmers who sacrificed to send him to a missionary school. His early life was marked by colonial violence—his village was destroyed during the Mau Mau uprising, and his deaf brother, Gitogo, was shot dead by British soldiers. 

After studying at Uganda’s Makerere University, he burst onto the literary scene with his 1964 debut novel, Weep Not, Child—the first major English-language novel by an East African. Works like A Grain of Wheat (1967) and The River Between (1965) cemented his reputation as a leading African writer. 

A Radical Turn: Rejecting Colonial Legacies

In 1977, he abandoned his Christian name, becoming Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, and renounced English as his primary literary language, vowing to write only in Kikuyu, his mother tongue. His final English novel, Petals of Blood, sharply criticised Kenya’s post-independence elite, leading to his arrest. 

Jailed without trial for a year, he penned Devil on the Cross—on toilet paper—while imprisoned. After his release, he fled Kenya in 1982 following an assassination threat, spending 22 years in exile in the UK and US, where he taught at Yale, NYU, and UC Irvine. 

Exile, Return, and Tragedy 

His 2004 homecoming drew thousands of cheering Kenyans, but the celebration turned horrific when armed men broke into his home, assaulting him and raping his wife. He called it a political attack and returned to the US. 

A fierce advocate for African-language literature, he famously clashed with his mentor, Chinua Achebe, over writing in English. His 1986 essays, Decolonising the Mind, remain a seminal critique of colonialism’s cultural legacy. 

Controversies and Legacy

Ngũgĩ’s personal life was not without strife. His son, Mukoma wa Ngũgĩ, accused him of domestic abuse—claims he never publicly addressed. Despite health struggles, including cancer and heart disease, he continued writing and teaching until his death. 

Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie once called him a “guiding light” of African literature. Though the Nobel Prize never came, his impact endures—in his stories, his activism, and his unyielding belief that African voices must speak in African tongues.