The study group 'History, Cultural Traditions and Innovations in Southern Africa' is meant to filfil a double task: on the one hand, it will document source materials on cultural and historical change in Southern Africa, and on the other hand it will provide a forum for the discussion and analysis of such sources. The field which is covered is defined in a broad way: local traditions of historiography, ethnography, material culture and arts are considered.

There is an urgent need to publish oral accounts on these subjects in order not only to record history of precolonial processes and events but also to preserve the biographical remembrances of colonisation and oppression. The main goal is set upon publishing primary sources, i.e. oral traditions and documents written in local languages, official documents and hand-written testimonies so far hidden in private and public archives.

The published material is meant to be of use for a wider public and not just for academic circles.