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Culture of Ghana

From Justapedia - Reading time: 8 min

Ghana is a country that has native groups.[1]

People[edit | edit source]

Akans[edit | edit source]

Akan kings, once renowned for their splendor and wealth, retained dignitary status after colonization.[2]

Ewé[edit | edit source]

Main article: Ewe people

Coastal Ewe depend on the fishing trade, while inland Ewe are farmers and keep livestock. The local variations in economic activities have led to craft specialization. The Ewe weave kente cloth, sometimes in geometrical patterns and symbolic designs that have been handed down through the ages.[3]

Role and status of women[edit | edit source]

Main article: Women in Ghana

Women in pre-modern society were seen as bearers of children, retailers of fish, and farmers. Traditionally, women's childbearing abilities were perceived as a way for lineage ancestors to be reborn. In pre-colonial times, polygamy was encouraged. In patrilineal societies, dowry received from marrying off daughters was traditionally seen as an acknowledgment to parents for raising their daughters well. In the last couples of decades, the female gender roles have evolved. Ghanaian women now account for 43.1% of the working class in Ghana.[4] Females have climbed to the upper leadership echelons of politics, career, business, and other sectors. Political personalities include Joyce Bamford-Addo (Speaker of the 5th Session of the Parliament),[5] and Georgina Theodora Wood (Chief Justice).[6]

Festival[edit | edit source]

The Akwasidae Festival (alternate, Akwasiadae) is celebrated by the Ashanti people and chiefs in Ashanti,as well as the Ashanti diaspora. The festival is celebrated on a Sunday, once every 6 weeks. The Panafest celebrates roots, and African-Americans with roots from the region, often visit and celebrate their heritage. Ashanti Yam Festival is observed for 5 days starting with a Tuesday, as dictated by the local chief priest. It marks the first harvest of yams. Religiously, the festival is used to thank the gods and the ancestors for the new harvest and to traditionally outdoor the new yam.[7]

Music[edit | edit source]

Main article: Music of Ghana

There are types of music, including ethnic or traditional music.[8]

Customs[edit | edit source]

Funerals and libations are poured.[9] African time is practiced.[10][11] Sexuality is not discussed in Ghana.[12][13] Being Left handed is frowned upon.[14]

Supersitition[edit | edit source]

Main article: Witchcraft in Ghana

Black magic belief is present.[15][16] Churches openly promote the idea that disease and misfortune can be caused by supernatural forces.[17][18] Superstition is so strong women who are accused of witchcraft are banished to Witch camps.[19][20][21][22]

Cuisine[edit | edit source]

Main article: Ghanaian cuisine

The cuisine has traditional dishes from each ethnic group. Dishes consist of a starchy portion, and a sauce or soup, with fish, snails, meat or mushrooms.[23]

See also[edit | edit source]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Culture of Ghana.

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ^ Kwame Arhin: "The Political Systems of Ghana. Background to transformations in traditional authority in the colonial and post-colonial periods." Historical Society of Ghana, 2002. ISBN 9988-8276-0-1
  2. ^ "The Story of Africa- BBC World Service". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  3. ^ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | Ghana: Ewe ethnic group; traditional location; languages spoken; traditions and rituals; the process for selecting leaders; whether leadership titles are hereditary; consequences for refusal of a leadership title and availability of state protection for those who refuse such a title". Refworld. Retrieved 2021-05-17.
  4. ^ Awumbila, Mariama (2006). "Gender equality and poverty in Ghana: implications for poverty reduction strategies". GeoJournal. 67 (2): 149–161. doi:10.1007/s10708-007-9042-7. JSTOR 41148110. S2CID 154300298.
  5. ^ "Ghana Elects First Woman Speaker of Parliament – Feminist Majority Foundation". 9 January 2009. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
  6. ^ AfricaNews (2017-06-10). "Ghana's first female chief justice retires: 10 facts about Georgina Wood". Africanews. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
  7. ^ Kaminski, Joseph S. (2016). "The Yam Festival Celebrated by the Asante People in Kumase in 1817". Music in Art. 41 (1–2): 95–109. ISSN 1522-7464. JSTOR 90012990.
  8. ^ Music of Ghana
  9. ^ Paula Newton. "The long goodbye: Why funerals are big deals in Ghana". CNN. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
  10. ^ "Letter from Africa: The country where everyone is expected to be late". BBC News. 4 March 2019. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
  11. ^ Schinke, Robert; Hanrahan, Stephanie J. (10 July 2017). Cultural Sport Psychology. Human Kinetics. ISBN 9780736071338. Retrieved 10 July 2017 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ Efua, Boafo-Arthur (11 September 2013). "Exploring perspectives about sexuality among Ghanaian youth living in Canada: Understanding the impact of cultural contact". Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 4 March 2017. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  13. ^ "Data". epublications.marquette.edu.
  14. ^ "My left hand: is it not part of my body? - Government of Ghana". www.ghana.gov.gh. Archived from the original on 2018-03-30. Retrieved 31 January 2019.
  15. ^ "Files" (PDF). www.actionaid.org.uk.
  16. ^ Richter, Roxane; Flowers, Thomas; Bongmba, Elias (27 February 2017). Witchcraft as a Social Diagnosis: Traditional Ghanaian Beliefs and Global Health. Lexington Books. ISBN 9781498523196. Retrieved 10 July 2017 – via Google Books.
  17. ^ OPOKU ONYINAH. "AKAN WITCHCRAFT AND THE CONCEPT OF EXORCISM IN THE CHURCH OF PENTECOST" (PDF). Etheses.bham.ac.uk. Retrieved 2017-08-28.
  18. ^ Abdul-Yekin, Kofi Ali (23 March 2017). The Darker Side of Ghana: A Typical Case of the African Cultural Challenge. AuthorHouse. ISBN 9781524636234. Retrieved 4 September 2017 – via Google Books.
  19. ^ Adinkrah, Mensah (1 August 2015). Witchcraft, Witches, and Violence in Ghana. Berghahn Books. ISBN 9781782385615 – via Google Books.
  20. ^ Frimpong, Enoch Darfah. "A world of superstition, frustration and disillusionment". Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  21. ^ "In Africa, accusations of witchcraft still a reality for many women". The Globe and Mail. 25 November 2013. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  22. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-03-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  23. ^ "Inside Ghana's biggest bushmeat market". Mosaic. Retrieved 10 July 2017.

Sources[edit | edit source]

  • Some of the information, where noted, was reproduced from Ghana: a Country Study edited by LaVerle Berry. Text and graphics contained in the online Country Studies are not copyrighted. They are considered to be in the public domain and thus available for free and unrestricted use.

Food[edit | edit source]

Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 | Source: https://justapedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Ghana
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