War of the Golden Stool

As I have observed in Rwanda, assuming that non-patrilineal kinship systems encourage gender equality is simplistic. An array of sociological factors regulate ndividuals’ position in a given community and lineage is only one. However because of the link between inheritance and genealogy, it is safe to infer that the position of women in patrilineal and matrilineal societies are bound to somewhat differ. Moreover, I remain convinced that holding women as exclusive holders of group membership has ramifications beyond kinship determination. As to say that if it is more enviable to live as a woman in those communities, only an immersive experience can tell. I plan to evaluate the impact of matrilineality on four communities across three continents. I will investigate the repartition of powers through a gendered lens among the Ashantis, Minangkabaus, Bribris and in Umoja. My observations will focus on identifying gender specific activities and their social value in the eyes of all members. For example, the general Western derision for men exhibiting stereotypically feminine traits can be contrasted with the relative acceptance of women doing the opposite, which highlights the historical denigration of the feminine and valorization of the masculine. This approach will enable me to limit the interference of my own preconceptions. Nevertheless, despite my caution, it will be difficult to pinpoint direct source(s) of social hierarchies, or lack thereof. Thus, I will ensure to draw…

Williams, Copper Sun Copper Sun by Sharon Draper is an emotional story. The story is about Amari, a teenage African girl who is kidnapped by slave traders. Amari was put into slavery and forced to work on a rice plantation, but she fought her way out. She was taken from her village and sold to the highest bidder. The only thing Amari hopes for is survival. Amari experiences many different emotions during her journey. The two most powerful emotions are fear and sadness. One day,…

I will investigate the distribution of power through a gendered lens among the Bribris of Costa-Rica, the Ashantis of Ghana and the Minangkabaus of Indonesia. I will immerse myself into each community to assess the ramifications of matrilineality in the social, political, economic and spiritual spheres. Through dialogues with adults and adolescents of all genders, I will identify gender-specific tasks and evaluate their social value. I will emphasize my exploration on domestic life, i.e.…

He defeated the Denkyira kingdom and unified the separate Akan states. So this rose to be a powerful empire with a strong centralized government. It was believed that the Golden Stool, which is a strong representation of the Ashanti power, was given to Tutu from the heavens. The Golden Stool is a curved seat 46 cm high with a platform 61 cm wide and 30 cm deep. The kingdom protected their precious stool at all costs. They fought many wars to keep it safe, and when someone tries to strip it of…

Asantehene (also the Kumasihene) was the head, with the kings of the states of the Union forming the “confederacy” or Union Council. Lastly, a key objective for forming the Asante Union had always been to overthrow the Denkyira. In order to achieve this goal, Osei Tutu spent a lot of time shaping his army. He placed strong emphasis on the military organization of the Asante Union. He supposedly borrowed money from the Akwamu to help make the army more efficient. With the Asante Union firmly…

interested in. Osei Tutu was the king of the Asante kingdom, which was a pre-colonial West African state that emerged in the 17th century. Today it is called Ghana. Asante Kingdom wasn’t very good at first until King Tutu came along and made some trades for weapons and other things to help make the Asante kingdom great. Osei TuTu’s main objectives for building the kingdom and making it better was to overthrow the Denkyira. In the early days Osei TuTu went through military training to make him…

The adinkra symbol gained rise after the Asante-Gyaman war in the 1880’s. The Asantes believed the people of Gyaman had made a replica of the golden stool so there was a war. At the end of the war, the Asantes defeated the people of Gyaman, held some people from Gyaman captive and they also seized the replica of the golden stool they made. The Gyaman chief at the time of the war was called Kofi Adinkra. After the war, the crafts men brought the cloth to Kumasi specifically Ntonso. The Asante…

Once she had secured her son as Asantehene, with dexterity, she reconciled with her many enemies in Kumase, Mampin, Kokofu and Nustu. Allman again reveals that Nana Yaa Akyaa made reconciling the nation her number one priority, as she was then the command behind her sixteen year old son. She requested that all her opposition to Prempeh I meet in Kumase. She gave in to all three of their demands; the return of captured wives, the release of land that belonged to them and general amnesty be…

The Ashanti Empire (also known as the Asante Empire) is remembered as one of the most powerful African monarchies of all time which ruled over the majority of what is known as modern day Ghana and the Golden Coast from the late 17th to the early 20th century (Stock 9). The Ashanti gained the reputation of a resilient sovereignty as a result of their revolutionary beginnings conquering the mighty Denkyira Kingdom and their historical intransigence against British colonization attempts (McCaskie…

one of the many small city states in the area. He was taken into Denkyira and made into a slave for a long time before escaping, but while he was, he learned a lot about their military strategies and all kinds of war tactics this was one of his biggest advantages in the coming future. After he escaped he then realized how big of a threat they were so after getting the help of a very famous priest of the time named Okomo…