Early Missionaries to Ghana

Mosque at Nakori, Ghana. Accessed October 5, 2016. http://easytrackghana.
com/cultural-overview-ghana_tribes-rastas-religions.php#religion

The earliest non-African religion introduced to the region which would become the modern-day Republic of Ghana was Islam, which was introduced to northern Ghana in the fifteenth century. Mande peoples migrated to the region from Ancient Ghana and Nigeria, subjugating the peoples of northern Ghana and founding the earliest kingdoms in Ghana–Mamprusi, Dagomba, Gonja among them (GhanaWeb n.d.). While the rulers of these early kingdoms were not themselves Muslims, “they either brought with them or welcomed Muslims as scribes and medicine men, and Muslims also played a significant role in the trade that linked southern with northern Ghana. As a result of their presence, Islam substantially influenced the north” (GhanaWeb n.d.). The influence of Islam in the northern territories of Ghana is still evident today; the greater part of Ghana’s Muslim population is located in the northern part of the country.

Mosque at Tamale, Ghana. Accessed October 5, 2016. http://easytrackghana.
com/cultural-overview-ghana_tribes-rastas-religions.php#religion

            Christianity was first brought to Ghana in the fifteenth century by Catholic missionaries when the Portuguese began trading with the peoples of what was then known as the Gold Coast. However, the ouster of the Portuguese by the Dutch, who captured Elmina castle in 1637, virtually eliminated the presence of Catholicism on the Gold Coast. When French traders began to vie with the Dutch for control of the Gold Coast trade in the latter part of the seventeenth century, French Catholic missionaries tried to build a church at Komenda; however, raids organized by the Dutch frustrated their attempts. It was not until after the Dutch withdrew, leaving the British to declare the Gold Coast a royal colony in 1874, that Catholic missionaries were able to establish a stable, successful mission presence in the Gold Coast (Catholic Re-entry to the "Mina" Coast in the 18th & 19th Centuries 2016). This was accomplished by the Society for African Missions (SMA), who arrived at Elmina–the spot where the first Catholic missionaries had landed 400 years earlier–in 1880. The mission philosophy of the SMA was based upon education, for, it was believed, “…‘a mission without schools is a mission without a future’” (A Prefecture Apostolic of the Gold Coast for the SMA Fathers 2016). Because Catholicism is inherently syncretic, the new religion was easily compatible with traditional African beliefs, allowing the Catholic faith to spread quickly. The Catholic church continues to be an important advocate for education in Ghana today.

Catholic service in Ghana. Accessed October 5, 2016. http://easytrackghana.
com/cultural-overview-ghana_tribes-rastas-religions.php#religion

            The first Protestant missionary to the Gold Coast was Thomas Thompson, an Anglican minister and former dean of the University of Cambridge, who was sponsored by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG). Thompson opened a school in Cape Coast in 1752; in 1754 he sent Philip Quaque to be educated, with the intention of training him to teach in the school. Philip Quaque became the first non-European Anglican priest and the first African Christian missionary to the Gold Coast, returning to the Gold Coast with his English bride in 1766. Unfortunately, due to various factors both personal and professional, his missionary efforts were largely unsuccessful (Bansa n.d.).

Christian Church in Ghana. Accessed October 5, 2016. http://easytrackghana.
com/cultural-overview-ghana_tribes-rastas-religions.php#religion

            In 1765, the Dutch Guinea Company hired five United Brethren missionaries to teach in schools in Cape Coast. Later, in 1828, the German Basel Mission established a mission in Accra, soon followed by missionaries from the Wesleyan Methodist Church in 1835 (Missions Timeline 2015). Others were to follow. These early Christian missionaries spread the Gospel to such effect that today over 70 percent of the population of Ghana are Christian (GhanaWeb n.d.).

Bibliography

A Prefecture Apostolic of the Gold Coast for the SMA Fathers. 2016. http://www.archcapegh.org/entries/history/a-prefecture-apostolic-of-the-gold-coast-for-the-sma-fathers (accessed October 5, 2016).

Bansa, Grace. Philip Quaque. n.d. http://www.dacb.org/stories/ghana/quaque2_philip.html (accessed October 5, 2016).

Catholic Re-entry to the "Mina" Coast in the 18th & 19th Centuries. 2016. http://www.archcapegh.org/entries/history/catholic-re-entry-to-the-%E2%80%9Cmina%E2%80%9D-coast-in-the-18th-19th-centuries (accessed October 5, 2016).

GhanaWeb. n.d. http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/country_information/ (accessed August 30, 2016).

Missions Timeline. January 29, 2015. https://home.snu.edu/~hculbert/line.htm (accessed October 5, 2016).

History Without Words

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1 African Storyteller, Tales from Africa, accessed October 5, 2016. https://claytonpl.org/events/tales-africa/.

2 “Anansi the Spider,” MrPsMythopedia, accessed October 5, 2016, https://Mrpsmythopedia.wikispaces.com/Anansi.

3 Anansi and Nyame, the sky-god, Anansi Gives People Stories from a Ghanaian Folktale Illustrated by Wiehan de Jager, accessed October 5, 2016, https://slideplayer.com/

slide/9408513/.

4 “Anansi’s Web of Life,” Anansi Stories, accessed October 5, 2016, https://anansistories.com/Three_Spiders.html.

5 Noah MacMillan, Nyame the sky-god creating people, Noah Macmillan Wordpress, accessed October 5, 2016, https://noahmacmillan.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/new-new.jpg.

6 Melissa Guerrette, The People, Melissa Guerrette Blog Spot, accessed October 5, 2016,

http://melissaguerrette.blogspot.com/2014/11/imanis-moon-authorillustrator-interview.html

7 African Storyteller (close-up), Tales from Africa, accessed October 5, 2016, https://claytonpl.org/events/tales-africa/.

Bibliography

Belcher, S. (2005). African Myths of Origin. New York, NY: Penguin Books.

Early European Contacts with Gold Coast Peoples

Elmina slave castle. Accessed September 30, 2016. https://

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmina_Castle.

The area of West Africa which was to become the modern Republic of Ghana was heavily impacted by contact with Europeans. The first Europeans to visit the area were the Portuguese, who found gold in such abundance they named the location El Mina, meaning “the mine” (GhanaWeb n.d.). Later, Dutch traders established trading posts on what was by then known as the Gold Coast; the British supplanted the Dutch, and declared the Gold Coast a colony in 1874.

Prince Henry the Navigator. Accessed September

30, 2016. http://justalittlefurther.com/people-and

-culture/prince-henry-the-navigator/.

Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal, determined to redirect the trans-Saharan gold trade to the West African coast, where it could be subsumed by Portuguese traders, established the world’s first naval academy at Cape St. Vincent and inspired important advances in shipbuilding and navigation. (Reader 1999, 331). Portuguese trading vessels began to extend their influence south along Africa’s west coast. The Portuguese arrived at the Gold Coast in 1472, and began trading for slaves, gold, and ivory with the native inhabitants. They built a castle at El Mina; this was the first European settlement on Africa’s west coast below the Sahara (Reader 1999, 343). For a time, West African maritime trade was monopolized by the Portuguese.

Portuguese slave ships at Elmina. Accessed September 30, 2016.

http://www.soldiers-of-misfortune.com/galleries/slavery-slavetrade

.htm.

In 1637, the Dutch took El Mina from the Portuguese. Dutch traders expanded the Atlantic slave trade, supplying slaves to British and French sugar plantation colonies in the Caribbean. Soon, however, the French and British, envious of the wealth the Dutch were amassing, ousted the Dutch and took over the slave trade (Reader 1999, 382). Others, such as Denmark and Sweden, established trading posts along the Gold Coast, but by the second half of the 1800s only the Dutch and British remained. When The Dutch ceased their involvement in the Atlantic slave trade and vacated their trading posts, the British gained control of the Gold Coast, declaring it a colony in 1874 (GhanaWeb n.d.).

Ashanti figure depicting African

warrior loading European musket.

https://www.pinterest.com/Tribal

ArtT/figures-gold-weights/.

The impacts of contact with Europeans on African peoples was enormous. The wealth acquired by peoples engaged in supplying slaves to the Europeans allowed them to grow in power and influence and subjugate their neighbors. European firearms contributed to the creation of these powerful states. One example of this is the rise of the Ashanti and the establishment of the Ashanti Kingdom; the Ashanti continue to be a major influence on the politics and society of Ghana today. African art of the time changed, and began to depict European vessels, characters, dress, and weapons (The Scramble for Africa 1986).

Ashanti chief with European musket. Accessed

September 30, 2016. https://www.pinterest.com/

pin/254734922645292322/.

The slave trade impacted peoples of the Gold Coast who were not actively engaged in the trade; fear of raids or kidnapping by slavers changed the lives of these peoples. Some groups migrated away from their homelands to escape the slavers; others were forced to change how they lived and worked to avoid being captured and forced into slavery. Finally, as some groups rose to power, others became impoverished as their resources were commandeered by wealthier, more powerful tribes.

Trade with Africa also affected Europeans. Europe developed an intense demand for sugar, driving the demand for sugar and thereby the demand for slaves to work the expanding plantations and meet the demand for sugar. Europeans became fascinated with ivory, using it to fashion everything from knife and cane handles to jewelry and billiard balls (The Scramble for Africa 1986).

Slavers and their captives. Accessed September 30, 2016.http://

ihuanedo.ning.com/forum/topics/yoruba-enslavement-of-African.

These early contacts with Europeans transformed West African culture. European trade and influence resulted in wealth and power for a select few, but for the bulk of the peoples of the Gold Coast, the result was subjugation, impoverishment, and enslavement.  

Bibliography

GhanaWeb. n.d. Accessed September 30, 2016. http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/ country_information/.

Reader, John. Africa: A Biography of the Continent. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1999.

"The Scramble for Africa." Landmark Media, 1986. Accessed September 30, 2016. http://search. alexanderstreet.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/cite/display/default/bibliographic_entity%7Cvideo_work%7C1792557.

Ghana...A Land of Resources

Map of natural resources of Ghana. Prof. Kwame Henaku Addo, 2013. http://www.ghana.gov.gh/images/documents/naturally_resourced.pdf

            The Republic of Ghana is rich in both agricultural and mineral resources. Reader, speaking of the  Ashanti kingdom, whose borders encompassed the area of West Africa comprising modern Ghana, noted, "Asante is the only part of Africa whose inhabitants found both mineral and agricultural resources in abundant quantity" (Reader 1999, 424). According to Professor Kwame Henaku Addo, Ghana's mining industry comprises more than half of the nation's GDP, mineral production accounts for nearly 40 percent of exports, Ghana is considered a world-class producer of gold and cocoa and an emerging petroleum producing nation (Addo 2013).

Ghanian agricultural, ore, and petroleum products. Accessed 

September 22, 2016.  http://caglobalint.com/recruitment 

africa/natural-resources-agriculture-ghana/.

            Agriculture accounts for a large part of Ghana's economy, and approximately 40 percent of the working population is employed in the agricultural industry (GhanaWeb n.d.). Agricultural products include timber, oil palm, rubber, and especially cocoa. Ghana also produces kola nuts, which Reader describes as “…an addictive stimulant whose intensely bitter taste relieved thirst and became a symbol of hospitality throughout … West Africa … By the late twentieth century its influence had embraced the planet, as an ingredient of the world’s most popular soft drink: Coca-Cola” (Reader 1999, 278). 
            

Ghana's greatest natural resource-gold. Accessed September
22, 2016. http://caglobalint.com/recruitmentafrica/natural-
resources-agriculture-ghana/.

            Mineral and ore products include diamonds, iron ore, copper, clay, and salt (Addo 2013). However, Ghana’s most important natural resource is gold, a resource so plentiful that Ghana was formerly known as “The Gold Coast.” It was this abundance of gold, as well as the Atlantic slave trade, which fueled the rise of the Ashanti Empire and incited European imperialism; the Portuguese, Dutch and British sought to control the area, with the British finally succeeding and establishing a colony in 1874.

Ghana possesses rich oil reserves. Accessed September
22, 2016. http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage
/NewsArchive/Ghana-attracts-major-oil-firms-28166

            Recent discoveries of oil and natural gas reserves in the Gulf of Guinea off the coast of Ghana have attracted the attention of world oil consuming nations, including the United States, and promise to make Ghana an important player in the energy sector (Ghana Strikes Oil in Commercial Quantities 2007).

            Ghana is a nation rich in natural resources. Agricultural products such as the kola nut and rich gold resources stimulated maritime trade and attracted European imperialism. Gold was present in such abundance it resulted in the area being christened “The Gold Coast,” an appellation which persisted until the newly named Republic of Ghana declared independence from Britain in 1956. Ghana’s recently discovered oil reserves promise to increase the nation’s wealth and standard of living, and once again establish Ghana’s importance as a nation of trade.

Bibliography

Addo, Kwame Henaku. "Naturally Resourced." Government of Ghana. 2013.             
            Accessed September 22, 2016. http://www.ghana.gov.gh/images/documents/  
            naturally_ resourced.pdf.

"Ghana Strikes Oil in Commercial Quantities." GhanaWeb. June 18, 2007. Accessed September 22, 2016. http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Ghana-strikes-oil-in-commercial-quantities-125783.

GhanaWeb. n.d. Accessed September 22, 2016. http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/ country_information/.

Reader, John. Africa: A Biography of the Continent. New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1999.

Religious Diversity in Ghana

Fig. 1: Mosque in Tamale, Ghana. easytrackghana.com/cultural

-overview-ghana_tribes-rastas-religions.php#ashanti

            The Republic of Ghana is extremely diverse in religious practices as well as ethnicities and cultures. According to a 2010 census, 71.2% of the population are Christian, including 28.3% Pentecostal, 18.4% Protestant, 13.1% Catholic, and 11.4% “other;” 17.6% profess to be Muslim; 5.2% follow Traditional African religions; .8% adhere to other religions, such as Buddhism; and 5.2% claim no religious beliefs (GhanaWeb n.d.).

            There are many origin myths among the various peoples of Ghana. According to Professor J.K. Anquandah, “One fundamental teaching common to all Ghanaian ethnic groups is the belief that there is a Creator God who is the source and fount of all things and beings, the beginning and end of all things, the provider of all things (Religons and Belief Systems 2006). Traditional African religions include ancestor worship and animism–the belief that spirits inhabit natural features such as trees, streams, and mountains.

Fig. 2: Ananse the spider. https://mrpsmythopaedia.wikispaces
.com/Asanti

The Ashanti people, members of the Akan-language peoples and the largest ethnic group in Ghana, tell the story of the demi-god spider Nanni (Ananse), who helped the Creator-God fashion human beings. Belcher recounts the tale: “At the beginning, the spider Nanni assisted God in creating humans. The spider wove stuff, and God used the spider’s weaving to make humans” (Belcher 2005, 104-105). Others of the Akan peoples believe their ancestors emerged from the earth, and claim to know the spot where they surfaced (Belcher 2005, 326).

Some coastal peoples believe they were led from the sea by two giants, Amamfi and Kwegia. A hunter observing them rising from the waves cried out in surprise; at this, those still in the water were transformed into rocks, which still stand among the waves. The people from the sea split into two groups; one, led by the giant Kwegia lived by the sea and became fishermen. The other group, led by Amamfi, left the shore and moved inland, where Amamfi taught them agriculture (Belcher 2005, 327).   

Fig. 3: Catholic Mass in Ghana. easytrackghana.com/cultural-
overview-ghana_tribes-rastas-religions.php#ashanti

            Christianity and Islam, brought to the peoples of Western Africa by Arab and European traders and missionaries, have largely supplanted Traditional African religions, although often being adapted to African methods of story-telling and praise. Christianity has had a significant influence on the practice of Traditional African religions; for example, the Dagomba people believe they are descended from Noah (Belcher 2005, 334). One Ashanti myth describing the rise of the Ashanti people includes an event in which “…one Ashanti went so far as to slash a messenger with his sword and cut off an ear,” echoing John 18:10, in which Peter struck the servant Malchus with his sword, cutting off his ear (Belcher 2005, 329). The Soninke people tell a story which includes a younger son covering himself with lamb’s skin to imitate his brother’s hairy chest in order to fool his blind father into giving him the blessing due his older brother, paralleling the story of Jacob and Esau in Genesis 27:1-29 (Belcher 2005, 386).

            Ghana boasts a diverse population comprised of close to 100 ethnic groups speaking over 25 languages (GhanaWeb n.d.). Religion is another facet of Ghanian culture illustrating the country’s rich diversity.

Bibliography

Esswein, Benjamin. "Presentation: Islamic Dynasties Economic, Social, and Political Development of Africa." Lynchburg, VA: Liberty University, 2014. https://learn.liberty.edu/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_325805_1&content_id=_13670563_1. (accessed September 14, 2016).

GhanaWeb. n.d. http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/country_information/ (accessed August 30, 2016).

"Religons and Belief Systems." National Commission on Culture. 2006. http://www.ghanaculture.gov.gh/index1.php?linkid=291 (accessed September 15, 2016).

Oral History of the Ga People

           

Ga King of Accra Taki II and servants, c. 1891. kwekudee-trip
downmemorylane.blogspot.com/2013/01/ga-people-ghanas-
tribe-that-has.htmi.

The Ga people migrated south from the Niger River valley, settling in what is today southern Ghana. The Ga established six autonomous towns in this region, the most important of which was Accra, later to become capital of Ghana. (The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica n.d., para. 1). Ga identity is inherited through patrilineal descent, and there exists a definite distinction between the roles of men and women among the Ga people; these facts play a large role in determining the interpretation and significance of the story of Naa Dobe Akabi, who is often remembered as a wicked woman-king.

            According to Ga oral tradition, the Ga king Mampong Okai, seeking to reestablish close relations which had previously existed between the Ga and the Obutu peoples, took as his queen the beautiful Akabi, a princess of the Obutu. Odamtten posits the marriage of King Okai to Akabi “may have been the first clear articulation of the Ga ethnic identity policy of Ablekuma aba kumawo (literally, may strangers come and join with us), which extended Ga identity to immigrants living among the Ga people” (Odamtten 2015, 66). This concept of inviting outsiders into Ga society is central to interpreting the story of Akabi, as would be demonstrated by later events.

            The oral history records that King Okai was murdered when Okai and Akabi’s son, Okaikoi, was only a few years old. Akabi’s strong maternal instincts aided her in overcoming the claims of several older sons–whose mothers were Ga and who therefore were considered “pure” Ga–and she became the young prince’s regent. Akabi “took possession of the King’s property and usurped the government” (Odamtten 2015, 68). This placed her in conflict with the traditional, conservative Ga male elders. Akabi’s conflict with the elders resulted in some elderly men being put to death; while the details of these executions are clouded, that elderly men were put to death is not disputed. (Odamtten 2015, 71). Akabi is also said to have commanded the Ga to dig wells with their bare hands; to have ordered the live capture of a lion, resulting in several deaths; and to have insisted the roof of her palace be roofed with clay rather than grass, entailing a great deal more labor (Odamtten 2015, 71-72). Perhaps most telling in the perception of her critics, Akabi symbolically solidified her position as king by acquiring the royal regalia, “in which case Akabi can be said to have acquired masculine power through her possession of the regalia needed for the consecration of the next king” (Odamtten 2015, 76). Furthermore, Akabi’s critics believed that as she was Obutu, she was not eligible to rule the Ga. Akabi’s rule ended when was murdered by being buried alive in one of the wells she had ordered dug.

Ga women in traditional shrine worship attire. kwekudee-trip
downmemorylane.blogspot.com/2013/01/ga-people-ghanas-
tribe-that-has.html.

            The story of Akabi is important to Ga culture, and, by extension, Ghanian history, for several reasons. First, the story records what may be the earliest example of the Ga practice of inviting members of foreign peoples to become members of the Ga. Second, the story of Akabi attained political significance in 2007 when Nii Tackie Tawiah III claimed descent from Akabi to legitimize his claim to the Ga throne when faced by several opposing claimants to the throne (Odamtten 2015, 69). Finally, and perhaps most significantly, as Odamtten asserts, “Akabi’s story could serve to educate the Ga and Ghanaian public—not only about Ga identity but also about the historical evolution of women’s roles and the gendered dimensions of Ga traditions—as they determine their future as an ethnic group in modern Ghana” (Odamtten 2015, 79).

Bibliography

Odamtten, Harry N.K. "Dodi Akabi: A Reexamination of the Oral and Textual Narrative of a "Wicked Female King." Journal of Women's History 27, no. 3 (Fall 2015): 61-85. doi 10.1353/jowh.2015.0034 (accessed September 7, 2016).

The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. The Ga People. n.d. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ga (accessed September 7, 2013).