Legal Pluralism Through the Prism of State Institutions in the West African Region (Based on Materials from a Scientific Expedition to West Africa)
Abstract
Abstract. The article analyzes the essence, role and evolution of legal pluralism in the countries of the African legal system. The relevance of the topic is due to the need to analyze the phenomenon of legal pluralism and its role for the development of multicultural societies in the West African region. The starting point of the study was the results of the author's dissertation work, the planetary nature of domestic violence and at the same time the lack of scientific research on the African legal system, which, although it is unique to human civilization, still remains an understudied area in domestic legal thought. Thus, the main goal of the study is an attempt to make a certain contribution to domestic legal science regarding the specified region. As a result, it was established that the dominant feature of the African legal system is legal and intercultural diversity, the coexistence and functioning of traditional, modern state positive law (droit moderne), religious norms and norms of international law implemented in national legislation. This is manifested in the multiplicity of normative universes, which determine the complexity and ambivalence of the human psyche. Thus, the internal dialectical contradiction of legal pluralism reflects the complexity and at the same time multidimensionality of law as a social construct. Prospects for further research are seen in the clarification of family and marriage formats in the conditions of legal pluralism. The practical significance of the results obtained lies in the fact that the statements set out in the work enrich domestic legal thought and can be used in: scientific research activities for further scientific developments on this and related topics; in normative application practice – during the adoption of individual legal acts; in the educational process – for the preparation of materials for the following academic disciplines: «Theory of State and Law», «Comparative Law», «rivate International Law», «Philosophy of Law». The research was carried out as part of a scientific expedition in West Africa (January–March 2026). The author is open to productive scientific discussions that will contribute to expanding the cognitive field of modern legal systems and will make a certain contribution to the development of domestic scientific thought and practice.
Keywords: state; law; traditions; customs; social contract; social norm; legalpluralism.
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