A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana

Mariama Marciana Kuusaana

doi:doi:10.11648/j.history.20210901.18

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A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana

Mariama Marciana Kuusaana

Published in History Research (Volume 9, Issue 1)

Received: 1 February 2021 Accepted: 25 March 2021 Published: 1 April 2021

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Abstract

Prejudices bothering on ethnicity is one of the colonial legacies in Africa. The European colonisers have been held responsible for separating groups which were once together, and also, for raising or developing one group above others, and for these actions, have been blamed for some of the ethnic conflicts the continent is grappling with in modern times. Other groups had also been perceived in certain negative terms, and these still linger on, and have become labels on them, the Asante ethnic group in Ghana being a typical example. It can be observed from the political, religious, economic and socio-cultural spheres in the colonial era, that the Asante people were largely depicted more in negative terms vs-a-vis the other ethnic groups in the country. Terms such as warlike, quarrelsome, aggressive, and bloodthirsty, just to mention a few were used to describe them. Were these accurate descriptions of the Asante people, or mere exaggerations? What were some of the underlying reasons for this stand by the Europeans regarding the Asante? These colonial perceptions need to be critically re-examined, re-assessed, and if need be, corrected.

Published in	History Research (Volume 9, Issue 1)
DOI	10.11648/j.history.20210901.18
Page(s)	65-73
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Colonial, Ethnic, Perceptions, Warlike, Commissioner

References

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[2]	Acting Governor to Ramseyer, 22/9/1893 in C. O. 879/39.
[3]	Agyeman- Duah, I., The Asante Monarchy in Exile: Sojour of King Prempeh I and Nana Yaa Asantewaa in Seychelles, Kumasi: Centre for Intellectual Renewal and Ausapp Printing House, 2000.
[4]	Amenumey, D. E. K., GHANA: A Concise History from Pre-Colonial Times to the 20^th Century, Accra: Woeli Publishing Services, 2008.
[5]	Arhin, K., ‘The Missionary Role on the Gold Coast and in Ashanti: Rev. F. A., Ramseyer and the British take-over of Ashanti 1869 -1894’. Pp 7–8. African e – Journals Project. Michigan State University Libraries.
[6]	Baden-Powell, R. S. S. The Downfall of Prenpeh: A Diary of Life with the Native Levy in Ashanti, 1895-6, Second Edition, London: Methuen & Co, 1898.
[7]	Boahen, A., Ajayi Ade F., Tidy Michael, Topics in West African History, New Edition, England: Pearson Education Ltd, 1986.
[8]	Debrunner, H. W., A History of Christianity in Ghana, Accra: Waterville Publishing House, 1967.
[9]	Freeman, T. B., Journal of Various Visits to the Kingdoms of Ashanti, Aku, and Dahomi in Western Africa, with a New Introduction by Harrison M. Wright, third edition, London: Frank Cass and Company Ltd, 1968.
[10]	Fuller, F. C., A Vanished Dynasty: Ashanti (1921), London: John Murray, Albemarle Street, 1921. P 229.
[11]	Ghana Statistical Service, 2000 Population and Housing Census, Accra, 2002.
[12]	Kimble, D., A Political History of Ghana, 1850 -1928, Oxford, CUP, 1963.
[13]	Ivor Wilks, ‘Asante nationhood and colonial administrators, 1896- 1935’, in Carola Lentz and Paul Nugent; - (eds), Ethnicity in Ghana: The Limits of Invention, Great Britain, Macmillan Press Ltd, 2000. P 69.
[14]	Osei Kwadwo, An Outline of Asante History, Part 1, Third Edition, Kumasi: Cita Press Ltd, 2004.
[15]	PRAAD, Kumasi, 113/1908: Loyal Subjects and Tax-Payers to CCA, dated Kumasi, 11th October, 1930.
[16]	PRO, CO 96/706/7351: Newlands to Colonial Secretary. 22nd March 1932: 12.
[17]	Ramseyer to Lord Wolseley, 9/6/1894 in C – 7917.
[18]	Rao, B. V. History of Europe (1450 – 1815), New Delhi: Sterling Publishers Private Ltd, 1991.
[19]	Rattray, R. S., ASHANTI, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1923.
[20]	Sarpong, Peter, K., ODD CUSTOMS, STEREOPTYPES AND PREJUDICES, Accra: Sub-Saharan Publishers, 2012. P 41.
[21]	Tieku, A. K., Tete Wo Bi Kyere: History and Facts about Asante Kingdom and Ghana, Kumasi: Schrodinger’s Publications, 2016.
[22]	Wallace-Johnson, I. T. A., Restoration of the Asante Confederacy, January 31st February 4^th, Accra: Government Printer, 1935. Pp 36-37.
[23]	Ward, W. E. F., A Political History of the Gold Coast, London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1948.
[24]	Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fritz_Ramseyer. Pp 5–6.
[25]	Wilks, I., Forests of Gold. Essays on the Akan and the Kingdom of Asante, USA (Ohio): Ohio University Press.

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Mariama Marciana Kuusaana. (2021). A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana. History Research, 9(1), 65-73. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.history.20210901.18

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Mariama Marciana Kuusaana. A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana. Hist. Res. 2021, 9(1), 65-73. doi: 10.11648/j.history.20210901.18

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Mariama Marciana Kuusaana. A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana. Hist Res. 2021;9(1):65-73. doi: 10.11648/j.history.20210901.18

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@article{10.11648/j.history.20210901.18,
  author = {Mariama Marciana Kuusaana},
  title = {A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana},
  journal = {History Research},
  volume = {9},
  number = {1},
  pages = {65-73},
  doi = {10.11648/j.history.20210901.18},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.history.20210901.18},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.history.20210901.18},
  abstract = {Prejudices bothering on ethnicity is one of the colonial legacies in Africa. The European colonisers have been held responsible for separating groups which were once together, and also, for raising or developing one group above others, and for these actions, have been blamed for some of the ethnic conflicts the continent is grappling with in modern times. Other groups had also been perceived in certain negative terms, and these still linger on, and have become labels on them, the Asante ethnic group in Ghana being a typical example. It can be observed from the political, religious, economic and socio-cultural spheres in the colonial era, that the Asante people were largely depicted more in negative terms vs-a-vis the other ethnic groups in the country. Terms such as warlike, quarrelsome, aggressive, and bloodthirsty, just to mention a few were used to describe them. Were these accurate descriptions of the Asante people, or mere exaggerations? What were some of the underlying reasons for this stand by the Europeans regarding the Asante? These colonial perceptions need to be critically re-examined, re-assessed, and if need be, corrected.},
 year = {2021}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana
AU  - Mariama Marciana Kuusaana
Y1  - 2021/04/01
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.history.20210901.18
DO  - 10.11648/j.history.20210901.18
T2  - History Research
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EP  - 73
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2376-6719
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AB  - Prejudices bothering on ethnicity is one of the colonial legacies in Africa. The European colonisers have been held responsible for separating groups which were once together, and also, for raising or developing one group above others, and for these actions, have been blamed for some of the ethnic conflicts the continent is grappling with in modern times. Other groups had also been perceived in certain negative terms, and these still linger on, and have become labels on them, the Asante ethnic group in Ghana being a typical example. It can be observed from the political, religious, economic and socio-cultural spheres in the colonial era, that the Asante people were largely depicted more in negative terms vs-a-vis the other ethnic groups in the country. Terms such as warlike, quarrelsome, aggressive, and bloodthirsty, just to mention a few were used to describe them. Were these accurate descriptions of the Asante people, or mere exaggerations? What were some of the underlying reasons for this stand by the Europeans regarding the Asante? These colonial perceptions need to be critically re-examined, re-assessed, and if need be, corrected.
VL  - 9
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Author Information

Mariama Marciana Kuusaana

Department of History and Political Studies, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana, West Africa

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APA Style

Mariama Marciana Kuusaana. (2021). A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana. History Research, 9(1), 65-73. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.history.20210901.18

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ACS Style

Mariama Marciana Kuusaana. A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana. Hist. Res. 2021, 9(1), 65-73. doi: 10.11648/j.history.20210901.18

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AMA Style

Mariama Marciana Kuusaana. A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana. Hist Res. 2021;9(1):65-73. doi: 10.11648/j.history.20210901.18

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.history.20210901.18,
  author = {Mariama Marciana Kuusaana},
  title = {A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana},
  journal = {History Research},
  volume = {9},
  number = {1},
  pages = {65-73},
  doi = {10.11648/j.history.20210901.18},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.history.20210901.18},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.history.20210901.18},
  abstract = {Prejudices bothering on ethnicity is one of the colonial legacies in Africa. The European colonisers have been held responsible for separating groups which were once together, and also, for raising or developing one group above others, and for these actions, have been blamed for some of the ethnic conflicts the continent is grappling with in modern times. Other groups had also been perceived in certain negative terms, and these still linger on, and have become labels on them, the Asante ethnic group in Ghana being a typical example. It can be observed from the political, religious, economic and socio-cultural spheres in the colonial era, that the Asante people were largely depicted more in negative terms vs-a-vis the other ethnic groups in the country. Terms such as warlike, quarrelsome, aggressive, and bloodthirsty, just to mention a few were used to describe them. Were these accurate descriptions of the Asante people, or mere exaggerations? What were some of the underlying reasons for this stand by the Europeans regarding the Asante? These colonial perceptions need to be critically re-examined, re-assessed, and if need be, corrected.},
 year = {2021}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - A Re-examination of Colonial Perceptions About the Asante of Ghana
AU  - Mariama Marciana Kuusaana
Y1  - 2021/04/01
PY  - 2021
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.history.20210901.18
DO  - 10.11648/j.history.20210901.18
T2  - History Research
JF  - History Research
JO  - History Research
SP  - 65
EP  - 73
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2376-6719
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.history.20210901.18
AB  - Prejudices bothering on ethnicity is one of the colonial legacies in Africa. The European colonisers have been held responsible for separating groups which were once together, and also, for raising or developing one group above others, and for these actions, have been blamed for some of the ethnic conflicts the continent is grappling with in modern times. Other groups had also been perceived in certain negative terms, and these still linger on, and have become labels on them, the Asante ethnic group in Ghana being a typical example. It can be observed from the political, religious, economic and socio-cultural spheres in the colonial era, that the Asante people were largely depicted more in negative terms vs-a-vis the other ethnic groups in the country. Terms such as warlike, quarrelsome, aggressive, and bloodthirsty, just to mention a few were used to describe them. Were these accurate descriptions of the Asante people, or mere exaggerations? What were some of the underlying reasons for this stand by the Europeans regarding the Asante? These colonial perceptions need to be critically re-examined, re-assessed, and if need be, corrected.
VL  - 9
IS  - 1
ER  -

Copy | Download