Podcast Summary: New Books Network — Yolanda Aixelà-Cabré, "African Women’s Histories in European Narratives: The Afropolitan Krio Fernandino Diaspora (1850–1996)"

Main Theme & Purpose This episode, hosted by Caleb Zakrin, features anthropologist and historian Yolanda Aixelà-Cabré discussing her book, "African Women’s Histories in European Narratives: The Afropolitan Krio Fernandino Diaspora (1850–1996)" (Leuven UP, 2025). The conversation explores the experiences of the Krio Fernandino people—an Afropolitan, multiethnic diaspora originating from freed Africans resettled on the island of Fernando Po (now Bioko, Equatorial Guinea)—emphasizing the unique roles, lives, and historical significance of Fernandino women, especially Amelia Barleycorn Devivore. Through discussions of class, race, gender, colonization, and identity, Aixelà-Cabré provides a nuanced account challenging oversimplified narratives about African diasporas in Europe.

Yolanda Aixelà-Cabré: Background & Approach

• Anthropological and Historical Focus
  • Yolanda describes herself as Catalan, living in Barcelona, working primarily in anthropology but with a strong historical dimension (03:07).
  • Extensive fieldwork across Africa—Egypt, Morocco, Equatorial Guinea, South Africa, Cameroon, Niger—has driven her holistic, African-centered research perspective.

"I do a kind of combination anthropology, but also historical anthropology and oral history. And I spend all my life to studying different societies of Africa." —Yolanda (03:13)

Spanish Colonization in Africa: Distinct Histories

• Spain’s Largely Overlooked African Imprint (04:24–07:54)
  • Most people know of Spain's role in the Americas, but few are aware of its African colonies—Morocco, Western Sahara, and particularly Equatorial Guinea (Spanish Guinea).
  • Spain's colonization patterns blended features from other European empires; while promoting settler populations like the French, their exploitative impact was similar to all colonial regimes.

"Although that Spain would like to say that we were not so bad as the other empires, this is not true. So the effects were very bad as any other European colonization." —Yolanda (07:32)

Introducing the Krio Fernandino People

• Origins and Diaspora Identity (08:14–11:25)
  • Krio Fernandinos descended from Africans liberated from slave ships by the British after the slave trade's abolition.
  • Settled in Fernando Po, they were multiethnic—Sierra Leonean, Nigerian, Cameroonian—and founded the city of Santa Isabel (now Malabo).
  • Often seen as outsiders or even “black colonizers” by native Equatorial Guineans due to their affluence, Protestant faith, and influence, yet their “Afropolitan” identity resists simple categorization.

"...this way to label them as black colonizers was a way to say these people is not like us. They have their own interest and they will do their own life without us or maybe exploiting us, like the European people." —Yolanda (10:36)

Key Families & Figures: The Case of Amelia Barleycorn

• Discovery & Significance (11:40–14:42)
  • Yolanda’s research serendipitously uncovered Amelia Barleycorn—described as aristocratic and wealthy, living between Equatorial Guinea and Barcelona.
  • The Barleycorns, along with other powerful Fernandino families (Jones-Quincent, Balboa, etc.), amassed wealth through plantations and trade, maintaining strong ties with both African and Catalan elites.
  • Their transnational lifestyle—luxurious homes, high social status, newspapers covering their lives—challenges stereotypes of African diasporas in Europe.

"I think it's the best present that I never had in research in my life, because I was reading a colonial journal doing research, and I found three lines regarding somebody that died in Barcelona ... This is not possible, she's aristocratic, so she was rich. She died in Barcelona and she didn't die in Quadrille Guinea. I have to know more." —Yolanda (11:43)

Life Between Santa Isabel and Barcelona

• Transnational Elite Status (17:35–22:09)
  • The Fernandinos, especially the women, lived lavishly, both in Africa and in Barcelona; they wore fine clothes, imported goods, and married in Barcelona’s cathedral.
  • Their presence in Barcelona included leading social lives among the city’s most affluent, their weddings extensively covered by the press.

"All the weddings of the families were in the cathedral of Barcelona. That was restricted only for the most influential people...they also appeared in the newspapers talking about the social life. So they were really, really vis." —Yolanda (21:36)

Relations with Spanish Colonial Authorities

• Navigating Religion and Rights (23:29–26:40)
  • Fernandinos, mostly Protestant, faced pressure from the Spanish Catholic authorities. Amelia Barleycorn notably challenged Spain’s refusal to recognize Protestant marriages.
  • Barleycorn’s legal battles set precedents: she won recognition of Protestant marriages and established a pathway to Spanish nationality for Equatorial Guineans.

"She married as a Protestant. So if we said that we cannot recognize her wedding...the only way they think was, okay, she married as a Protestant. So if we said that we cannot recognize her wedding and her marriage...we can say that she has not the right to have all this money and we can take it for Spain. ... she did a very strong, well, fundamental action against this intention of the Spanish government. And she won." —Yolanda (24:16–25:07)

The Importance of Centering Fernandino Women’s Voices

• Challenging Historical Narratives (26:40–29:46)
  • The book foregrounds the experiences of black women, whose histories in Europe are often erased or marginalized.
  • The story of Amelia Barleycorn and the Fernandino women disrupts the narrative that black presence in Europe was limited to enslavement or marginal status.

"...it's very important to have a president that can break this idea that all the black people in Europe were slaves. This is not true. And we have the case of the Creo Fernandino ... we are talking about thousand people that was living there, that started living in Barcelona..." —Yolanda (28:08)

Decline, Amnesia, and Legacy

• Spanish Colonial Amnesia and the Fernandino Decline (29:46–36:23)
  • Post-independence (1968), the prominence and wealth of the Fernandino elite declined sharply, exacerbated by the centralizing policies from Madrid.
  • By the late 20th century, racist violence emerged amid the erasure of the Fernandino presence from collective memory.
  • Once celebrated in the press, later generations became invisible; their earlier integration erased from public consciousness.

"When this money disappeared, this influence and this relationship also finished. And I think that this racist attack was a very nice metaphor about how was the end of this diaspora in terms of integration in Barcelona and in Spain." —Yolanda (35:12)

The Lives of Fernandino Descendants

• Transition, Pride, and Documentation (36:37–39:35)
  • Descendants often retained middle-class status, some intermarrying with locals, but lost much of their former influence.
  • The pride of Fernandino identity persists, especially within Equatorial Guinea, though overshadowed by contemporary challenges.
  • Publication of the book and ongoing research have helped reaffirm the significance of this community’s historical contributions.

"...with this work, this, this, this allegation, really, I really, I do it. No, I really, these people feel that I retarn it. Everything I learn." —Yolanda (39:23)

Research Experiences and Memory

• Uncovering Family Histories (39:35–42:23)
  • Yolanda described the moving experience of discovering and meeting Amelia Barleycorn's descendants.
  • Despite the loss of family archives (e.g., in a fire), the memory of Amelia survives vividly in her family's imagination.

"Yolanda, no matter, we don't need an image of her. She's in our imagination, she's part of us. No, and she was true. And I say, okay, it's fine. I don't. I can close the book with no photograph of her." —Yolanda quoting Amalia Barlicon, Amelia’s descendant (41:14)

Conclusion & Significance

• A Broader, More Nuanced Understanding
  • Yolanda’s book and research challenge simplistic, Eurocentric, and gendered narratives about African diasporas in Europe.
  • The story of the Krio Fernandinos—elite, cosmopolitan, female-led at times—demonstrates the complexity of African-European histories.

"All this work that you do is very important because the books need to have life, and this life is to talk about them...this work that you do is important to promote this research as others, and to talk about books." —Yolanda (43:05)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:07] Yolanda’s background and approach
• [04:57] Spain’s role in African colonization
• [08:14] Origins and identity of the Krio Fernandinos
• [11:40] The discovery and importance of Amelia Barleycorn
• [17:35] Life between Equatorial Guinea and Barcelona
• [23:29] Amelia Barleycorn’s legal and social activism
• [26:40] Centering black women’s histories in Europe
• [29:46] Decolonization and decline of Fernandino influence
• [36:37] The fate of Fernandino descendants
• [39:35] Researching family histories and living legacies

Memorable Quotes

• "If we compare to the British one, we promoted the colonization by population. So usually, Spanish people were living in Morocco with Moroccans and also...with Equatorials. And this was something that not usually the British Empire, but yes, the French one." —Yolanda (06:27)
• "This is the first African Diaspora documented of 19th century documented in Europe in 19th century and 20th century." —Yolanda (14:41)
• "She's in our imagination, she's part of us." —Amalia Barlicon, Amelia’s descendant (41:14, recounted by Yolanda)

Overall Impression Yolanda Aixelà-Cabré’s interview vividly illustrates how the Krio Fernandino women’s histories disrupt conventional narratives of both African diaspora and European colonialism. Their stories, woven through legal battles, cross-continental lives, and family memory, assert a richer legacy—one marked by agency, complexity, and enduring identity. This episode is a compelling resource for anyone interested in African, European, colonial, or gender history.