|
Tribe Snapshots Akye |
| Location: |
Southern Côte d'Ivoire |
| Population: |
55,000 |
| Language: |
Akye (Akan cluster of Twi) |
| Neighboring
Peoples: |
Anyi, Asante, Fante |
| Types
of Art: |
Woodcarving includes stools, which are recognized
as "seats" of power, and wooden dolls
(akua ba) that are associated with fertility.
There are also extensive traditions of pottery
and weaving throughout Akan territory. Kente cloth,
woven on behalf of royalty, has come to symbolize
African power throughout the world. |
| History: |
Akye are an Akan peoples living in southern
Côte d'Ivoire. The rise of the early Akan centralized
states can be traced to the 13th century and is
likely related to the opening of trade routes
established to move gold throughout the region.
It was not until the end of the 17th century,
however, that the grand Asante Kingdom emerged
in the central forest region of Ghana, when several
small states united under the Chief of Kumasi
in a move to achieve political freedom from the
Denkyira. The Asante confederacy was dissolved
by the British in 1900 and colonized in 1901.
Although there is no longer a centralized Akan
confederacy, Akan peoples maintain a powerful
political and economic presence. |
| Economy: |
Early Akan economics revolved primarily around
the trade of gold and enslaved peoples to Mande
and Hausa traders within Africa and later to Europeans
along the coast. This trade was dominated by the
Asante who received firearms in return for their
role as middlemen in the slave trade. These were
used to increase their already dominant power.
Local agriculture includes cocoa cultivation for
export, while yams and taro serve as the main
staples. Along the coast, fishing is very important.
The depleted forests provide little opportunity
for hunting. Extensive markets are run primarily
by women who maintain considerable economic power,
while men engage in fishing, hunting and clearing
land. Both sexes participate in agricultural endeavors. |
| Political
Systems: |
Royal membership among Akan is determined through
connection to the land. Anyone who traces descendency
from a founding member of a village or town may
be considered royal. Each family is responsible
for maintaining political and social order within
its confines. In the past, there was a hierarchy
of leadership that extended beyond the family,
first to the village headman, then to a territorial
chief, then to the paramount chief of each division
within the Asante confederacy. The highest level
of power is reserved for the Asanthene, who inherited
his position along matrilineal lines. The Asantahene
still plays an important role in Ghana today,
symbolically linking the past with current Ghanaian
politics. |
| Religion: |
Akan believe in a supreme god who takes on various
names depending upon the particular region of
worship. Akan mythology claims that at one time
the god freely interacted with man, but that after
being continually struck by the pestle of an old
woman pounding fufu, he moved far up into the
sky. There are no priests that serve him directly,
and people believe that they may make direct contact
with him. There are also numerous gods (abosom),
who receive their power from the supreme god and
are most often connected to the natural world.
These include ocean and riverine spirits and various
local deities. Priests serve individual spirits
and act as mediaries between the gods and mankind.
Nearly everyone participates in daily prayer,
which includes the pouring of libations as an
offering to both the ancestors who are buried
in the land and to the spirits who are everywhere.
The earth is seen as a female deity and is directly
connected to fertility and fecundity. |
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