Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the internationally acclaimed Nigerian novelist and essayist, is mourning the loss of one of her toddler twins, her family confirmed on Thursday. The family said 21-month-old Nkanu Nnamdi, whom Adichie had with her husband, Dr Ivara Esege, died on Wednesday following a brief illness.

A statement issued on behalf of the family by Omawumi Ogbe described the household as “devastated by this profound loss.” The statement thanked well-wishers for their condolences and asked for privacy and prayers as the family grieves.

Adichie, 48, is one of the most prominent voices in contemporary literature. Her novels, including Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah, and her widely viewed 2012 TED Talk and essay We Should All Be Feminists, have won international recognition and influenced debates on gender, identity and migration. In 2015 she was named among Time magazine’s 100 most influential people; in 2020 her 2006 novel Half of a Yellow Sun was voted the best book to have won the Women’s Prize for Fiction in its 25-year history.

Born in Nigeria and based in the United States, Adichie has been a leading figure in postcolonial feminist literature, using fiction and public speech to explore issues of gender, immigration and creative freedom. She has spoken candidly in interviews and lectures about the challenges of balancing creativity and family life — including the writer’s block she described during her first pregnancy — and has warned against cultural climates that stifle questioning and curiosity, most recently in a 2022 BBC Reith Lecture on freedom of speech.

Adichie’s family expanded in 2016 with the birth of a daughter, and in 2024 she and her husband welcomed twin boys via surrogate. News of the death prompted messages of condolence from across Nigeria and around the world. President Bola Tinubu offered his sympathies on X, writing, “no grief is as devastating as losing a child,” and expressing empathy with the family during a “difficult time.”

Friends, readers and fellow writers expressed shock and sorrow online, paying tribute to Adichie’s literary contributions and offering support during the family’s period of mourning. The family’s request for privacy was reiterated by several representatives close to the writer.

As details of the brief illness that led to young Nkanu’s death remain private, admirers and colleagues have focused on sending condolences and respecting the family’s need for space. Adichie’s public work — from novels and essays to public lectures — has long engaged with the personal and political; this loss will now be a profoundly private chapter for a writer whose public voice has resonated globally.