A White Origin for the Black Spiritual? An Invalid Theory and How It Grew

Abstract

myths. One example is that the slaves had no secular music but sang only hymns; another is that the banjo was unknown to the plantation slave. But the myth that has had the widest influence holds that the black spiritual was wholly derived from earlier white folk hymns. This theory had been widely accepted among the academic community while it was virtually unknown to the public at large. When interest in black studies exploded in the 1960s, the theory became something of an embarrassment, and some reference books avoided the controversy by omitting articles on the subject altogether. The theory continued to live in other reference books and older volumes still on library shelves, however. Somewhat to my surprise, the New Grove includes an article headed Spirituals, Black by Paul Oliver, the British historian of jazz and blues, that respectfully recapitulates the history of the controversy. Although it was published in 1980, this article was probably written in 1972 or earlier, for the most recent item in its bibliography is dated 1972. Mr. Oliver wrote:

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