Like many other countries in this region, there is a long and violent history of colonialism and slave trade. Because of that the Bahamas have a strong African influence, despite being thousands of miles apart from one another.

Much of the rich African history that existed in early Bahamian society was passed on orally. The predominant written word of early Bahamian literature is from colonial settlers from Europe who had both the freedom and means to read and write. Unsurprisingly, most of this writing focused on travel, exploration, the high seas, and the like.

It wasn’t until the 20th century that the Bahamas gained its independence. Since then the Bahamas have experienced a renaissance of literature where true Bahamians were able to begin to explore their own national idenity, the influence of their own indigenous heritage mixed with that of African tradition that makes up the modern Bahamian. 

During this time, E. Clement Bethel became an influential figure in Bahamian history. Although Bethel was predominantly a composer, he also wrote poetry and plays. Bethel was classically trained as a Pianist in London, but focused his career on helping tell the Bahamian story.

Modern Bahamian literature explores themes of cultural heritage, the impact of colonialism, modern society as globalism continues to change the landscape for even remote countries, and much more.

While the Bahamas, with less than half a million citizens, will likely never be a literary powerhouse, there have been several impactful works emerging from the country in both pre and post independence eras.