David Damtar

Dr. David Damtar is a Turpin Junior Research Fellow in History at Oriel College, University of Oxford. He is also affiliated with St Cross College. His research centers on the historical interactions between extractive industries and local communities in sub-Saharan Africa, with a regional focus on Asante, Ghana, during the late colonial and early post-colonial periods.

His research interests include:

• Economic & Social History
• Environmental History
• Gender History
• Global & Imperial History
• Extractive Industries and Community Relations

His work adopts a holistic, interdisciplinary approach, examining how socio-political actors contested and negotiated resource wealth distribution, incorporating dimensions of migration, belonging, politics, gender, class, and ethnicity. He emphasizes the cultural and social significance of mineral wealth beyond its economic value.

Dr. Damtar is currently completing a monograph titled Asante Gold, Late Colonial Capital and Ghana’s Political Transition, under contract with Boydell and Brewer/James Currey Publishers. His article Of ‘Akankyemaa’ and Beyond: Gender and Mining Income Disruptions in Late Colonial Asante is forthcoming in the Journal of African History. His research output reflects a strong trend in African socio-cultural and environmental history, with increasing attention to gendered experiences in extractive economies.

He is planning a long-term comparative project on extractive industries and community relations across Africa, aiming to deepen understanding through national and regional case comparisons.

Dr. Damtar advises on academic discussions related to African extractivism and is building collaborative networks. While no formal students or grants are listed, his fellowship supports independent research. He is an active scholar contributing to debates on imperial retreat, resource governance, and historical memory in Africa.

He is affiliated with the following institutions:

• Oriel College, University of Oxford
• St Cross College, University of Oxford
• Faculty of History, University of Oxford