Abstract: Digital history has become a new trend of international historical studies since the mid-late 20th century,and during the same period,the field of African history has also started its own digital turn.The digitization of African history has preserved some precious primary sources digitally,has developed new digital approaches of historical research,and has opened the field to the public to a certain extent.As the model field of African history,the digitization of trans-Atlantic slave trade represents the gradual enrichment of online sources,the continuous progress of information technology,and the unprecedented level of openness.More importantly,it has pointed out a potential direction for the development of the broader digital history via its groundbreaking achievements such as interconnected databases,searching across projects,and the establishment of digital peer-review system.Meanwhile,the digitization of African history differs sharply from its European and North American counterparts in one key aspect:the threat of digital “imperialism” and its relevant sensitive moral issues due to the Africa's colonial past and the gap between the Africa and the developed nations.

Key words: African history, digital turn, digital history, trans-Atlantic slave trade, digital imperialism