Adinkra are symbols from the Akan people of Ghana that represent concepts or aphorisms. Adinkra are used extensively in fabrics, logos and pottery. They are incorporated into walls and other architectural features. Adinkra symbols appear on some traditional Akan goldweights. The symbols are also carved on stools for domestic and ritual use. Tourism has led to new departures in the use of the symbols on items such as T-shirts and jewellery.
Adinkra symbols have a decorative function but also represent objects that encapsulate evocative messages conveying traditional wisdom, aspects of life, or the environment. There are many symbols with distinct meanings, often linked with proverbs. In the words of philosopher and writer Kwame Anthony Appiah, they were one of the means for "supporting the transmission of a complex and nuanced body of practice and belief".
History
One oral tradition states that Adinkra symbols were originally created by the Bono people of Gyaman."Adinkra Ghanaian Textile is a printed traditional cloth in Ghana". Bellafricana. 30 June 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2021. The Gyaman king, Nana Kwadwo Agyemang Adinkra, originally created or designed these symbols, naming it after himself. The Adinkra symbols were largely used on pottery, stools etc. by the people of Gyaman. Adinkra cloth was worn by the king of Gyaman, and its usage spread from Gyaman to Asante and other Akan kingdoms following its defeat. It is said that the guild designers who designed this cloth for the Kings were forced to teach the Asantes the craft. Gyaman king Nana Kwadwo Agyemang Adinkra's first son, Apau, who was said to be well versed in the Adinkra craft, was forced to teach more about Adinkra cloths. Oral accounts have attested to the fact that Adinkra Apau taught the process to a man named Kwaku Dwaku in a town near Kumasi. Over time, all Akan people, including the Fante, Akuapem and Akyem, made Adinkra symbols a major part of their culture.
This oral tradition of a Gyaman origin for Adinkra, however, has been directly disproven, as the Gyaman-Asante war in which tradition recounts the Asante learning Adinkra symbols from Gyaman started in 1818 and the campaign ended in 1819. Two years before this, in 1817, Thomas Bowdich visited Kumasi and had personally seen and written about Adinkra cloth being produced in the Asante capital. He also brought back from Kumasi a physical example of Adinkra cloth, which is still in the British Museum. The cloth being named Adinkra is explained by an informant from Asokwa who related to Kojo Arthur that King Adinkra's body was found in a pile of dead people and when it was retrieved, his body was found to be covered in Ntiamu Ntoma (stamped cloth). From then on, Ntiamu Ntoma became known as Adinkra cloth. This suggests that the cloth was known before 1818 and became associated with Adinkra after the war. In the Asokwa and Ntonso areas, Adinkra cloth is still referred to as Ntiamu Ntoma.
There are other hypothesis and oral traditions for the origin of Adinkra cloth and its name, such as it originating in Denkyira, though these have not been disproven they all have their respective issues and the exact origin of Adinkra cloth is not something that is clear.
The oldest surviving adinkra cloth was made in 1817. The cloth features 15 stamped symbols, including nsroma (stars), dono ntoasuo (double Dono drums), and diamonds. The patterns were printed using carved calabash stamps and a vegetable-based dye. It has resided in the British Museum since 1818, when it was donated by Thomas E. Bowdich.
The next oldest piece of adinkra textile was sent in 1825 from Elmina Castle to the royal cabinet of curiosities in The Hague, in response to an assignment from Major Friedrich Last, who was appointed temporary Commander of Dutch Gold Coast. He probably had the cloth commissioned for William I of the Netherlands, which would explain why the coat of arms of the Netherlands is in the centre. The other motifs are typical of the older adinkras. It is now on display in the National Museum of Ethnology in Leiden. clickable image on right links to description.
In November 2020, a school board in York, Pennsylvania, United States, banned "a children's colouring book that featured African Adrinkra [sic] symbols found in fabrics, logos and pottery". The decision was subsequently overturned.
Adinkra cloth In Akan (Twi), the term adinkra refers not to symbols but to a particular type of cloth. Adinkra cloths were traditionally only worn by royalty and spiritual leaders for funerals and other very special occasions. In the past, they were hand-printed on undyed, red, dark brown or black hand-woven natural cotton fabric, depending on the occasion and the wearer's role; nowadays they are frequently mass-produced on brighter coloured fabrics.
The present centre of traditional production of adinkra cloth is Ghana, Ntɔnso, 20 km northwest of Kumasi and in Ivory Coast. Dark Adinkra aduro pigment for the stamping is made there, by soaking, pulverizing, and boiling the inner bark and roots of the badie tree (Bridelia ferruginea) in water over a wood fire. Once the dark colour is released, the mixture is strained, and then boiled for several more hours until it thickens. The stamps are carved out of the bottom of a calabash piece. They measure between five and eight centimetres square. They have a handle on the back, and the stamp itself is slightly curved so that the dye can be put on with a rocking motion.
Sample of symbols listed
Recorded sample of 53 adinkra symbols and their meanings.
+ List of symbols and informationNumberSymbol nameLiteral meaningFurther detailsRelated symbols1AbanA two-storied house, a castleThis design was formerly worn by the King of Asante alone.4Adinkira 'heneThe Adinkira king"Chief" of all these Adinkira designs8AgyindawuruThe agyin tree's gongThe juice of a tree of that name is sometimes squeezed into a gong and is said to make the sound pleasing to the spiritsAkamAn edible plant, possibly a yam9AkobenThe war-horn12Akoko nan tia "ba, na nkum 'ba'"A hen treads upon chickens but does not kill them13AkomaA heart, sometimes with a cross in the centre[None listed]No. 1314AKOMA NTOSOThe joined hearts18AyaThe fernThe word also means "I am not afraid of you", "I am independent of you", and the wearer may imply this by wearing it20BI NKA BINo one should bite the other23DAME-DAMEName of a board gameSymbol of intelligence and ingenuity25DonoThe dono drum26Dono ntoasuoThe double dono drums27DuafeThe wooden comb28Dwenini abenThe ram's horns30EpaHandcuffs34FihankraThe circular house35Se die fofoo pe, ne se gyinantwi abo bedieWhat the yellow-flowered fofoo plant wants is that the gyinantwi seeds should turn blackAn Asante saying. One of the cotton cloth designs bears the same name. The fofoo, the botanical name of which is Bidens pilosa, has a small yellow flower, which, when it drops its petals, turns into a black spiky seed. Said of a jealous person. According to Ayensu (1978), the gyinantwi also refers to Bidens pilosa.37Funtunfunefu DenkyemfunefuSiamese crocodilesThey share one stomach yet they fight over food38Gyawu AtikoThe back of Gyawu's headGyawu was a sub-chief of Bantama who at the Odwira ceremony is said to have had his hair shaved in this fashion39Gye Nyame"Except God" or "Only God"Fear none but God41Hye wo nhyeHe who would burn you be not burned44Kojo Biaden47Papani amma yenhu KramoThe (large number of) people who do good prevents us knowing who really are MohammedansAs adherents of Islam are enjoined to do good works in the community, and increasing numbers of non-Muslims are also doing so, we can no longer use that criterion to distinguish those Muslims living amongst us49KuntinkantanBent and spread outNkuntinkantan is used in the sense of "do not boast, do not be arrogant"50ObohemaaQueen of stonesCopied from Europeans adopted by Akans to define Gold Coast's diamond mining, which began in 1919Non listedKwatakye atikoAt the back of Kwatakye's headKwatakye was a war captain of one of the Asante kings; at the Odwira ceremony he is said to have cut his hair after this fashionNon listedMmrafo ani aseThe keloids on a Hausa man55Mmra KradoThe Hausa man's lock56MusuyidieSomething to remove evilA cloth with this design stamped upon it lay beside the sleeping couch of the King of Asante, and every morning when he rose he placed his left foot upon it three times58MpuannumFive tufts (of hair)62NkonsonkonsonLinks of a chain63NkotimsefuopuaCertain attendants on the Queen Mother who dressed their hair in this fashion. Variation of a swastika.64Nkuruma keseDried okras66NkyimkyimThe twisted pattern68NsaaFrom a design of this name found on nsa cloths69NsirewaCowries70Nsoroma / NsorommaA child of the Sky / Child of the HeavensReferring to the saying: Oba Nyankon soroma te Nyame so na onte ne ho so, "Like the star, the child of the Supreme Being, I rest with God and do not depend upon myself." / the pattern was on the King of Asante's pillow71Ma te; MasieI have heard (what you have said); I have hidden itThis extols the virtue of being able to keep a confidenceNon listedNyame, biribi wo soro, ma no me ka me nsaO God, everything which is above, permit my hand to touch itThe pattern was stamped on paper and hung above the lintel of a door in the palace. The King of Asante used to touch lintel, then his forehead, then his breast, repeating these words three times74Nyame duaAn altar to the Sky God76Nyame nwu na ma wuMay Nyame die before I dieNon listedObi nka obieI offend no one without a cause84Ohene niwa(In) the king's little eyesTo be in the king's favour85Ohen' tuoThe king's gun86Kodie mmowerewaThe eagle's talons92Owo Foro AdobeThe symbol of heroic deeds and accomplishing the impossible, but being quiet about it93Pa gyaTo strike fire (with a flint)96SankofaTurn back and fetch it97SankofaTurn back and fetch it98SepowA knife thrust through the cheeks of a manThe man is about to be executed to prevent his invoking of a curse on the king
Notes
Further reading Adome, Dickson; Erik Appau Asante, and Steve Kquofi. Adinkra: An Epitome of Asante Philosophy and History. Bulgin, Matthew. Adinkra Symbols: To Say Good Bye to a Dead Relative or Friend. Kojo Arthur, Dr. George F. (2001). Cloth as Metaphor: (Re)reading the Adinkra Cloth Symbols of the Akan of Ghana, 1st ed. Legon, Ghana: Centre for Indigenous Knowledge Systems. 187 , p. 29 cm. . Korankye, Charles. Adinkra Alphabet: The Adinkra Symbols as Alphabets & Their Hidden Meanings, Fourth Edition. . . Shepard, Lisa. African Accents: Fabrics and Crafts to Decorate Your Home. . Willis, W. Bruce. The Adinkra Dictionary: A Visual Primer on the Language of Adinkra. .
External links
Adinkra Symbols Adinkra Symbols of West Africa Adinkra Symbols at About.com ADINKRA - Cultural Symbols of the Asante people Adinkra Symbols Black Renaissance Man/Adinkra Symbols Adinkra Stamps and their Meanings Akan Cultural Symbols Project Adinkra Symbols Library Project Adinkra in Ntonso-Ashanti, Ghana