History Of Adinkra
Adinkra Symbolism: Tradition has it that Adinkera, a famous
King of Gyaman (now the Ivory Coast) angered the Asantehene,
Bonsu-Panyin, by trying to copy the Golden Stool. Adinkera
was defeated and slain in an ensuing war. It has been suggested
that the art of Adinkera came from Gyaman. It is also significant
that Adinkera means farewell, or good-bye, hence the use
of the special cloth on funeral occasions (eyie), to say
good-bye to the departed.
Adinkera aduru (Adinkera medicine) is the stuff used in
the stamping process. It is prepared by boiling the bark
of Badie together with iron slag. Originally the printing
was done on a cotton piece lying on the ground. Today, raised
platforms with sack coverings act as the printing table.
The designs, cut on pieces of calabash with pieces of wood
attached for handling, are dipped into the Adinkera aduru,
then stamped onto the cloth. Adinkera cloth is not meant
to be washed.
Adinkra is one of the highly valued hand-printed and
hand-embroidered cloths. Its origin is traced to the Asante
people of Ghana and the Gyaman people of Cote' d'lvoire
(Ivory Coast). However, the production and use of Adinkra
have come to be more associated with the Asante people
than any other group of people. Around the 19th Century,
the Asante people developed their unique art of Adinkra
printing. Adinkra cloths were made and used exclusively
by the royalty and spiritual leaders for very important
sacred ceremonies and rituals.
In modern times, however, Adinkra cloths are used for
a wide range of social activities. In addition to its
sacred usage, it is also used to make clothing for such
special occasions as festivals, churchgoing, weddings,
naming ceremonies and initiation rites. Today, designers
use Adinkra symbols in creating a wide range of products
including clothing accessories, interior decoration, packages
and book covers.
Each of the motifs that make up the corpus of Adinkra
symbolism has a name and meaning derived either from a
proverb, a historical event, human attitude, animal behavior,
plant life, forms and shapes of inanimate and man-made
objects. These are graphically rendered in stylized geometric
shapes. Meanings of motifs may be categorized as follows:
Aesthetics, Ethics, Human Relations and Religious concepts.
In its totality, Adinkra symbolism is a visual representation
of social thought relating to the history, philosophy
and religious beliefs of the Akan people of Ghana and
Cote' d'lvoire.
Below are some of the 80 most commonly used symbols, their
names, sources of derivation, their literal translations
and their symbolic meanings. Names and meanings of the
symbols are presented in Twi (the language of the Akan
people), and translated into English. Symbols are grouped
according to the sources of derivation, namely: Creatures.
(Animals, Birds and Insects), Celestial bodies, the human
body, man-made objects, non-figurative shapes and plant
life. Symbols not featured here are on the Adinkra poster
which you can purchase. Ordering info is at the end of
the home page.
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