AKAN KNOWLEDGE

AKAN CULTURAL SYMBOLS PROJECT

© G. F. Kojo Arthur and Robert Rowe - 1998-2001

       The Akan believe that the search for knowledge is a life-long process. The symbol nea onnim sua a, ohu (he who does not know can become knowledgeable from learning) incorporates this view of learning. Akan regard the elderly as wise and believe that experience comes with age.

This association of knowledge and wisdom with age is incorporated in the
sankofa (go back and retrieve), kyemfere (potsherd), and nyansapo
(wisdom knot) symbols.

The kyemfere (potsherd) symbol depicts this belief that experience and wisdom come with age by posing the question:

Kyemfere se odaa ho akye, na onipa a onwenee no nso nye den? If the
potsherd claims it is old, what about the potter who molded it?

Kyemfere - Potsherd

However, the Akan do not necessarily consider knowledge as the preserve of a particular age group.

The expression: Akyinakyin sen anyinanyin (the well traveled is more experienced than the elderly who has stayed in one place all his/her life) captures this view about knowledge.

In this regard the Akan views the "stay-at-one-place" elderly person as being insular as compared with the traveled person who is said to be cosmopolitan.

The Akan hold the view that knowledge is not necessarily the preserve of the elderly. This view is illustrated by the Ananse story in which Ananse tries to collect all the wisdom and knowledge in the world to hide in a tree so that he alone would be the knowledgeable and wise one.

Nyansa po - Wisdom knot

Ananse puts the knowledge and wisdom he has collected into a pot and hangs the pot around his neck and tries to climb the tree with the pot hanging in front of him, that is, between him and the tree.

After several futile attempts to climb the tree, his son, Ntikuma who is supposed to have lost all his wisdom, draws Ananse's attention to the folly in attempting to climb the tree with the way the pot is hanging.

Ntikuma suggests that his father should tie the pot onto his (father's) back. Ananse then realizes that his son's suggestion makes a lot of sense. Ananse gets frustrated in knowing that there is some wisdom left in his child's head. Ananse then throws down and smashes the pot of wisdom and knowledge.

Konini ne besepa ahahan yetase no obanyasafoo - The difference between the leaves of the red and white cola trees is only discerned by the wise and knowledgeable child.

The Akan's Attitudes towards Knowledge

Dzobo (1992a) distinguishes the following as examples of specific indigenous Akan attitudes to knowledge. One attitude to knowledge is that there is a limit to what any one individual can know, even though there is no limit to what can be known in principle. From this perspective, any one person who claims to know everything is viewed as knowing nothing.

Hence, the symbol kuntankantan (egocentricism) serves to remind one not to be egocentric and boastful of the little knowledge one has as depicted by the following maxim:

Nea oye ne ho se menim menim, nnim hwee -  He who knows all, knows nothing.

Kuntankantan - Egocentricism

Another attitude is that the individual has an active role to play in the acquisition of knowledge.

Even though nyansa is inborn and everyone has the potential to be wise, one has to develop one's mental capacity. That is, whatever one knows is acquired through experience and through a deliberate effort on one's part to know.

Mate masie or Ntesie - I have heard and kept it

Another Akan attitude about knowledge is that knowledge is a liberator. This liberating knowledge is attained through insightful understanding of situations and the relations between things.

An enlightened and insightful individual is free and creative. This view is alluded to by the symbol kyere me kwan no (show me the way).

The Akan believes that knowledge must have practical bearing on the conduct of life. This is portrayed by the aphorism: Nyansa nye sika na woakyekyere asie - Wisdom is not like money which may be kept in a safe; or, one does not collect wisdom in a bag, lock it up in a box and then go to say to a friend, "teach me something."

Sankofa

SAMPLES OF SYMBOLS RELATING TO AKAN VIEWS ABOUT KNOWLEDGE

NEA ONNIM -   THE ONE WHO DOES NOT KNOW

NEA ONNIM -   THE ONE WHO DOES NOT KNOW

Symbol of KNOWLEDGE, LIFE-LONG EDUCATION, and CONTINUED QUEST FOR KNOWLEDGE

From the maxim: Nea onnim sua a, ohu; nea odwen se onim dodo no, se ogyae sua a, ketewa no koraa a onim no firi ne nsa.

Literal translation: He who does not know can become knowledgeable from learning; he who thinks he knows and ceases to continue to learn will stagnate.

To grow is to live, to stagnate is to die. Only as one continues to search for knowledge will one grow wiser. Education is a life-long process.

MATE MASIE - I HAVE HEARD AND KEPT IT

Symbol of WISDOM, PRUDENCE, KNOWLEDGE, and LEARNING

From the aphorism: Nyansa bunu mu ne mate masie. Or, Tete ka aso mu a, na efiri kakyere.

Literal translation: In the depth of wisdom abounds knowledge and thoughtfulness. I consider and keep what I learn. Or, Preservation of a people's culture has its basis in oral tradition.

Knowledge is divine. To have a good ear and to retain everything heard from the master is a mark of excellence in learning.

The symbol reflects the Akan's love of and quest for knowledge, and also respect for the wise person. It originates from the Akan belief that a people without knowledge of their history is like a tree without roots.

The symbolism of Mate Masie (Ntesie) is borne out, for example, during story-telling sessions and ceremonial occasions such as naming ceremony (abadinto) when moral lessons and social values of the community as well as community and family histories are articulated.

KYEMFERE - POTSHERD (BROKEN POT)

Symbol of KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE, SERVICE,
KEEPSAKE, ANTIQUITY, RARITY, and HEIRLOOM

From the proverb: Kyemfere se odaa ho akye, na onipa a onwenee no nso nye den?

Literal translation: The potsherd claims it is old, what about the potter who molded it?

SANKOFA - GO BACK AND RETRIEVE

SANKOFA - GO BACK AND RETRIEVE

Symbol of WISDOM, KNOWLEDGE, and the PEOPLE'S HERITAGE

From the aphorism: Se wo were fi na wosan kofa a, yenkyi.

Literal translation: There is nothing wrong with learning from hindsight.

The word SANKOFA is derived from the words SAN (return), KO (go), FA (look, seek and take). This symbolizes the Akan's quest for knowledge with the implication that the quest is based on critical examination, and intelligent and patient investigation.

The symbol is based on a mythical bird that flies forwards with its head turned backwards. This reflects the Akan belief that the past serves as a guide for planning the future, or the wisdom in learning from the past in building the future.

The Akan believe that there must be movement with times but as the forward march proceeds, the gems must be picked from behind and carried forward on the march.

In the Akan military system, this symbol signified the rearguard, the section on which the survival of the society and the defense of its heritage depended.

Find out more about Akan's views relating to knowledge from the book, Cloth As Metaphor. The adinkra book, Cloth As Metaphor, catalogues over 700 adinkra symbols and and their  variations and discusses various themes encoded in the texts of proverbs, aphorisms and other verbal expressions related to these symbols. To buy a copy of the book, please fill out the mail-order form (html file) or the invoice  (pdf file) and return it with money order or cashier's check for US $27.99. Please add US $4.99 for the first book and US $2.00 for each additional copy for shipping and handling.

10/14/2009