LESSON FOR TODAY- CEREMONIAL ROYAL PARAPHERNALIA II- LINGUISTS' STAFF

Welcome to Today's lesson.
A close review of some of the videos in the previous lesson reveals that the Akan Royal Entourage is organized into many units or group of court attendants, supporters, families, elders, praise singers and the voice of the King/Chief or the Queen known as Akyeame ( The Linquist) or the Today's spokesperson.

Akyeame are specially groomed individuals selected for hands-on training for many years apprenticing masters till they are officially nominated and approved by the Royal family at the right time after the passing of the incumbent. Since most Chiefs/King don't speak direct to the people ( community) during festivals, court meetings or any special events, the Okyeame becomes the voice of the King/Queen.

The Office insignia is the Staff, each of which designed to convey a message, give an advice or show the status or identity of the King/Queen of the community using it. In most Ghanaian ethnic groups they use animal characteristics and nature in their proverbs, this make the designers design staff that depicts the wisdom of animal symbolism.

Here are selected Impressions:

GROUP OF AKYEAME WITH DIFFERENT DESIGNS OF STAFF

Comments

LESSON FOR TODAY : THE CEREMONIAL CLOTHES OF THE AKAN

Traditional Clothing of Akan People Akan people of Ghana wear outfits of many different styles and materials. Their clothing choices depends on their status and local resources. Early fabrics were derived from wool and tree bark. Cotton became widespread around the 10th century, grown on northern savannas and traded along forested coasts. As the power of the Gold Coast grew with trade, materials like silk became more plentiful among the upper classes. Men who worked as farmers, fishermen, and laborers tended to wear tunics with trousers, or fugu . Upper class men wrapped themselves in large cloths called ntoma . These restricted their movement, asserting their status as men who did not need to work. Women wore skirts, or lappas , wrapped around their waist, leaving the top bare. Christian missionaries encouraged the use of a blouse. A second lappa covers the upper body of married women, leaving the right shoulder bare. Akan women may wear pan...

LESSON 2- THE GHANAIAN STOOL

Ghanaian stool Featured snippet from the web The traditional Ghanaian stool (or asesedwa in the Asante Twi language) is a carved wooden stool common in sub-Saharan West Africa, and especially common in Ghana . ... The stool is used as a symbol of chieftaincy (particularly male) in special and private occasions, and is seen as a symbol of royalty, custom and tradition. There are as many special stools as there are chiefs and elders in all Akan communities in Ghana. The stools, used by the chiefs and queenmothers have special symbols that represent the family, the village or the community. Every stool has a proverbial meaning a sort of metaphor that recounts a particular history of the family, the occupant or the community. There are many other stools even for children but the royal ceremonial ones are special. They have different colors, designs and symbols depending on who owns it and what it represents. B...

LESSON FOR TODAY- ROYAL CEREMONIAL MUSIC AND DANCE -ASAFO WARRIOR COMPANIES

Asafo are traditional warrior groups in Akan culture. The word derives from sa , meaning war , and fo , meaning people . The traditional role of the asafo companies was defence of the King and the state. As the result of contact with European colonial powers on the Gold Coast (present-day Ghana), the Fante , who inhabit the coastal region, developed an especially complex version of the concept in terms of its social and political organization based on martial principles, and with elaborate traditions of visual art, including flag banners with figurative scenes. For the purpose of this lesson, we will focus on the Fante Asafo companies based at Cape Coast and other communities in the Central region. Each asafo company has designated uniform colors that have been historically established identifies these in Cape Coast as: No. 1. Bentsir – red No. 2. Anafo – blue and white No. 3...

FOLKLIFE APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM-GHANAIAN ROYAL ARTS AND FOLK EXPRESSIONS

Search This Blog