A Berlin-focused guide to Black history, living cultural spaces, archives, food, and the community work changing public memory. Street names, museum collections, and performance spaces all shape whose history is visible. These places offer different ways to encounter that work.
Renaming the city: resistance in public space
These changes reflect sustained organizing by Black, African, and decolonial initiatives. Use the current names below for navigation; the earlier names are provided to help readers recognize older maps and records.
| Current name | Earlier name | Where / when | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anton-Wilhelm-Amo-Straße | Mohrenstraße | Mitte · 2025 | Honors the African philosopher Anton Wilhelm Amo. |
| Martha-Ndumbe-Platz | Nettelbeckplatz | Wedding · 2025 | Honors the Black Berliner Martha Ndumbe, who died in Ravensbrück concentration camp. |
| Manga-Bell-Platz | Nachtigalplatz | Wedding · 2022 | Honors Emily and Rudolf Duala Manga Bell and anticolonial resistance in Cameroon. |
| Cornelius-Fredericks-Straße | Lüderitzstraße | Wedding · 2022 | Honors the Nama resistance leader Cornelius Fredericks. |
| Anna-Mungunda-Allee | Part of Petersallee | Wedding · 2024 | Honors the Herero anticolonial activist Anna Mungunda. |
| Maji-Maji-Allee | Part of Petersallee | Wedding · 2024 | Commemorates resistance to German colonial rule in East Africa. |
| May-Ayim-Ufer | Gröbenufer | Kreuzberg · 2010 | Honors poet, educator, and Black feminist activist May Ayim. Visit the memorial stele near Bevernstraße. |
Sources: Berlin-Mitte: colonial street names and renaming · The two former Petersallee sections · Community campaign for Anton-Wilhelm-Amo-Straße · May-Ayim-Ufer memorial
Stolpersteine, graves & remembrance
Mahjub / Bayume Mohamed Husen
Stolperstein · Brunnenstraße 193 · Mitte
This stone remembers Mahjub bin Adam Mohamed, also known as Bayume Mohamed Husen, the actor and former colonial soldier who died in Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Read the biography alongside the stone to connect colonial histories, film, family life, and Nazi persecution.
Martha Ndumbe
Stolperstein · Max-Beer-Straße 24 · Mitte
The memorial at her former address helps place the life behind Martha-Ndumbe-Platz in Berlin’s everyday geography. The official biography documents the overlapping forms of persecution she experienced.
May Ayim’s grave
Alter St.-Matthäus-Kirchhof · Schöneberg
Visit the poet and activist’s resting place on the historic cemetery at Großgörschenstraße. Pair the visit with May-Ayim-Ufer and her archival papers to encounter her life through poetry, public memory, and research. Consult the cemetery’s current visitor information and on-site grave plan.
Black archives, projects, museums & cultural spaces
Each One Teach One (EOTO)
Community library & archive · Wedding
A key starting point for Black German and afrodiasporic writing, history, and community knowledge. Its Sankofa BRD / Sankofa DDR archive preserves material around Black German cultural production and the period of reunification. Check the organization’s current library information before visiting.
AfricAvenir International
Political education · Film · Publishing · Wedding
African perspectives guide its programs on history, racism, decolonization, and cultural exchange. The Berlin office is listed at Kameruner Straße 1; public events can take place at other venues. Read our AfricAvenir profile.
May Ayim papers, Freie Universität Berlin
University archive · Research by arrangement
The university archive preserves material documenting May Ayim’s personal, literary, and scholarly work, alongside important records of Black history. Arrange research access with the archive; this is a research collection rather than a walk-in museum.
SAVVY Contemporary
Art · Library · Archive · Wedding
An art space whose exhibitions, performances, research, library, and documentation center question dominant ways of knowing. Consult current visiting and library arrangements rather than assuming archival access is unrestricted.
Ballhaus Naunynstraße
Theater · Performance · Kreuzberg
A major space for Black, queer, and postmigrant artistic production. Its program includes the Black Berlin Black festival and work engaging decolonial questions. Book for the production dates listed in the current program.
Museum Treptow: zurückgeschaut | looking back
Museum · Johannisthal
The exhibition examines the First German Colonial Exhibition of 1896, colonial racism, and Black resistance. Created with the Dekoloniale project, it offers a critical approach to a history rooted in Treptower Park. Museum location: Sterndamm 102.
FHXB Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg Museum
Museum · Local history · Research
Explore migration and local public memory, including the museum’s collaborations on colonial history. Its collection and library can support further research; past exhibition pages document earlier work and do not guarantee that an exhibition is still on display.
Dekoloniale / Berlin Museum
Research · Mapping · Public memory
The 2020–2024 project linked community organizations, researchers, and museums. Its documentation offers routes into Berlin’s colonial histories and Black resistance. The project record remains useful even where particular events have ended.
Decolonize Berlin
Community advocacy · Renaming & structural change
Follow the coalition’s work on colonial continuities, public commemoration, and the transformation of institutions. Useful for understanding the organizing behind changes visible in the streets.
Black Central Europe
Digital history · Maps & sources
An online research companion to visits, with maps of Black histories and African American performers. Use its historical locations as research starting points; they are not all surviving or publicly accessible venues.
Deutsches Museum für Schwarze Unterhaltung und Black Music
Art & archive project · Check current host venue
This project collects and reinterprets German Black popular culture through music, ephemera, performance, and exhibitions. Its exhibitions travel: consult the current program rather than treating it as a permanent Berlin museum address.
African literature, culture & gathering places
Afrika-Haus Berlin
African culture & political education · Moabit · Bochumer Straße 25
Led by Oumar Diallo and established in 1993, Afrika-Haus hosts discussions, films, book presentations, exhibitions, theater, and music. Its focus includes African history, politics, literature, philosophy, and African–European relations. Check its calendar or contact the team before visiting.
InterKontinental & One More Chapter
Literature · Pan-African food · Friedrichshain · Sonntagstraße 26
Combine a bookshop visit with the neighboring BuchBar’s food, readings, poetry, and book-club gatherings. Chef Sibusiso Mntambo’s menu draws on South African stories and pan-African influences. The official calendar lists individual events and reservation information.
African Book Festival Berlin
African & diasporic literature · Festival & related events
Follow the festival for African and diasporic writers, conversations, readings, and associated literary gatherings in Berlin. This is an event program rather than a permanent walk-in venue: use the organizers’ announcements for the dates and locations of each edition.
Food, music & meeting places
These entries highlight African and afrodiasporic food and cultural exchange. Cuisine alone does not establish an owner’s identity; follow the linked restaurant information for menus, reservations, access, and current hours.
YAAM – Young African Art Market
Music · Food market · Friedrichshain
A sociocultural space at An der Schillingbrücke 3, with African and Caribbean food, music, art, and community activities. Individual stalls and events follow their own schedules.
Bantabaa
West African food · Kreuzberg
At Wrangelstraße 82, Bantabaa connects Senegambian cooking with a history of refugee support and building a shared livelihood. The restaurant’s own story explains its development and the people behind it.
Didi Pa
West African food · Neukölln
At Sonnenallee 31, with a menu featuring Ghanaian and other West African dishes, including jollof, waakye, and plantain dishes.
Bejte Ethiopia
Ethiopian food · Schöneberg
At Zietenstraße 8, with injera-based dishes and an Ethiopian coffee tradition. A possible food stop alongside a Schöneberg visit; confirm current service and accessibility directly.
Afropot
Ghanaian & West African food · Potsdamer Platz
Located at Alte Potsdamer Straße 7 in Manifesto Market. A food stop centered on Ghanaian and wider West African cooking; use the restaurant’s own site for the current menu and location details.
Lalibela Kreuzberg
Ethiopian food & coffee culture · Ohlauer Straße 27
Injera with meat and vegetable dishes, including vegetarian and vegan choices. The restaurant also describes its Ethiopian coffee ceremony and shared-table traditions. Ask directly about the coffee ceremony and dietary requirements when reserving.
All African Restaurant & Grill House
African food · Wedding · Müllerstraße 60
A restaurant and grill house offering African dishes in Wedding. A possible meal stop alongside the neighborhood’s community spaces and anticolonial street names; consult its menu for specific dishes and reservations.
Afro hairdressers, natural-hair care & beauty salons
Hair care and beauty services are part of everyday Black and African diasporic life in Berlin. These listings describe services advertised by the providers. Contact the salon about your hair texture, preferred style, appointment length, language, access needs, and current prices before booking.
Natural Hair Berlin / Crowns Institute
Curly, coily & Afro hair · Appointment-based studio
Natural-hair styling, consultations, and education, with workshops through Crowns Institute. The current service page says appointments take place in a home studio and that shampooing and conditioning are not offered there; read the preparation instructions before booking.
Afro United Salon
Braids · Cornrows · Twists · Haircuts · Wollankstraße 72
The salon lists braids, cornrows, twists, extensions, loc maintenance, washing, and haircuts. Its presentation connects African hairstyling with creativity and culture. Check the service list to choose the right appointment.
Zalia Salon
Textured-hair styling & care · Neukölln-Britz
A salon offering hair styling and care alongside its textured-hair product line. The official website provides an appointment link; confirm the exact salon address and the treatment or style you need when booking.
Ulibia Beauty Empire
Afro & textured hair · Protective styling · By appointment
Founder Grace offers protective styling, natural-hair care, and hair and scalp treatments. Contact the salon for the current appointment location and available services.
Makenene Afroshop & Beauty Salon
Hair & beauty services · Berlin branches
An Afroshop and salon with hair services and beauty supplies. Its contact page lists two Berlin locations; confirm which branch provides the service you need before traveling.
Myzila Cosmetics
Beauty salon & Afro hairstyling · Tempelhof · Tempelhofer Damm 153
The salon lists Afro hairstyling and braiding alongside facial care, lash extensions, manicures, and pedicures. Ask which specialist and appointment are appropriate for your chosen service.
More cultural venues & historical visits
These additional stops place Berlin’s Black and diasporic histories alongside the city’s broader histories of migration, persecution, occupation, and division. They offer context for the community-led spaces and memorials above.
Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW)
Arts · Cultural debate · Tiergarten
A venue for contemporary arts and critical conversations about how people live together across different histories and experiences. Explore the current exhibitions, performances, and discussions before planning a visit.
Deutsches Historisches Museum (DHM)
German history · Exhibitions · Mitte
A useful stop for placing German history in a wider frame. The museum lists “Umstrittene Verwandtschaft. Koloniale und nationalsozialistische Gewalt” from October 16, 2026 to April 11, 2027. Exhibitions are in the Pei Building; the Zeughaus is currently closed. Check the museum’s visitor information for changes.
AlliiertenMuseum
Postwar history · Western Allies · Dahlem
Explore the history of the Western Allies in Berlin, from occupation and the Berlin Airlift to the Cold War. This offers broader context for understanding the postwar military world in which many Black German family histories developed; it is not a dedicated Black German exhibition.
Checkpoint Charlie
Historic border crossing · Friedrichstraße / Zimmerstraße
The former crossing between East and West Berlin is a starting point for thinking about the city’s Cold War divisions. Pair the historic site with the AlliiertenMuseum for a broader account of the occupation and the Western military presence.
DDR Museum
Everyday life in East Germany · Mitte
An interactive introduction to daily life in the German Democratic Republic. Read it alongside Black German testimony and community archives to ask whose experiences are represented in accounts of East German life.
Jüdisches Museum Berlin
Jewish history & culture · Kreuzberg
A place to engage with Jewish histories and contemporary life in Germany. A complementary visit for considering belonging, exclusion, and public remembrance while respecting the distinct histories involved.
Humboldt Forum: memory & dialogue
Cultural venue · Mitte · Past-event reference
The SPÄTI discussion “Remembering Across Borders: Afro/German and Jewish voices” took place on October 16, 2026. Its event page is retained as a reference for dialogue about colonialism and Holocaust remembrance, rather than as an upcoming recommendation. Consult the venue’s current program for future visits.
Beyond Berlin: Sachsenhausen
Sachsenhausen Memorial and Museum
Memorial visit · Oranienburg · Outside Berlin
A separate excursion for remembering Nazi persecution and the people imprisoned and killed at Sachsenhausen. Connect this visit with the Stolperstein for Mahjub / Bayume Mohamed Husen above, who died in the camp. Allow time for the journey and consult the memorial’s guidance for a respectful visit.
For performances and people behind these spaces, explore Artists & Performers. For further community connections, see Organizations & Projects.