Portal:Nigeria/Selected biography/27

[Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (/ˌtʃɪməˈmɑːndə əŋˈɡoʊzi əˈdiːtʃi.eɪ/ ; born 15 September 1977) is a Nigerian writer and public speaker who is regarded as a central figure in postcolonial feminist literature. She is the author of the award-winning novels Purple Hibiscus (2003), Half of a Yellow Sun (2006) and Americanah (2013). Her other works include the book essays We Should All Be Feminists (2014); Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions (2017); a memoir tribute to her father, Notes on Grief (2021); and a children's book, Mama's Sleeping Scarf (2023).

Born in Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria, Adichie's childhood was influenced by the aftermath of the colonial rule, and the Nigerian Civil War which took the lives of both of her grandfathers, and was the setting for her first novel and the subject of her second. She was educated at the University of Nigeria, and moved to the United States at nineteen to complete her education at Drexel University. By 2008 she would study in three universities; Eastern Connecticut State University, Johns Hopkins University, and Yale University. She first published the poetry collection Decisions in 1997, which was followed by a play, For Love of Biafra, in 1998, and would later publish three further novels, and four books. Adichie has cited African writers Chinua Achebe and Buchi Emecheta as inspirations.

Adichie grew up bilingual, and writes in English and Igbo language, describing it as a means to reach a broad audience, and retain both as her own. She has also supported LGBT rights in Africa, and in response to the 2021 controversial accusation about her sexuality, Adichie penned "It Is Obscene: A True Reflection in Three Parts". Published on her website in June of same year, it criticised the use of social media to air out grievances. Adichie is a Catholic and is married to Ivara Esege since 2009.