The role of the Afro-Brazilian community in protecting cultural heritage and intercultural education in Lagos, Nigeria
The role of the Afro-Brazilian community in protecting cultural heritage and intercultural education in Lagos, Nigeria

Summary/Abstract: This article is an attempt to analyze the modern cultural meanings of the Afro-Brazilian community in Lagos, Nigeria, with a particular emphasis on the categories of cultural heritage and intercultural education. Following the abolition of slavery in the nineteenth century, descendants of slaves and returnees from Brazil migrated to Nigeria, West Africa. Most returnees, highly skilled and representing social elites, settled in the central-western area of Lagos Island known as Popo-Aguda. My goal is to identify the architectural and aesthetic manifestations, as well as the activities of the community members and two cultural institutions, such as the Brazilian Descendants Association and the Afro-Brazilian Cultural Centre. Their members desire to actively build their cultural legacy, express identity through festivals or celebrations, and establish a platform for mutual education and integration within Lagos' multi-ethnic, multi-national, and multi-religious agglomeration. Cultural associations aim to form integrated discourse by inspiring aesthetic bonds, unifying communities, and preserving cultural continuity and heritage in Nigeria. Hence, the central research problem addressed in this study is the exploration of how Afro-Brazilian descendants in Lagos express and sustain their cultural heritage amid the contemporary, multicultural landscape and how they contribute to educating society on the role of history, origin and cultural memory.

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