Akwasidae

Today I went to the Akwasidae festival in Adumasa. Akwasidae is an Akan festival that takes place every forty days (celebrated on the Sunday) where all the sub-chiefs of a state meet with the Chief to discuss the previous 40 days, find solutions to problems, and plan for the upcoming 40 days. Every different Akan state has their own Akwasidae at a different time. The one we went to was the Akwasidae of Akwamu state, headed by Nana Ansah Kwao IV.

Throughout the day, I made a lot of observations, my main observation being different  protocols that had to be observed for our visit to the palace for Akwasidae. Firstly, we were strongly encouraged to wear African print clothing. I am unsure if this was necessarily a protocol or customary; however, everyone there was dressed in some traditional clothing. Secondly, on the way to the palace, we stopped to get two bottles of Schnapps to present to the Chief. It is a taboo to go before the Chief empty handed; however, it is interesting how the tradition of bringing liquor to the palace requires a European alcohol. At first, I thought that this was just an arbitrary choice made by who bought the drinks; however, in the palace, I realized that this particular drink was also brought by other visitors and only empty bottles Schnapps was found at the altar. This makes me wonder what was used before the Europeans arrived (although I suppose palm wine was used). I also wonder who decided to make schnapps the official drink of offering and why. Was this the drink of choice for a long time or has the drink of choice changed with different ruling Chiefs and their preferences.

Another protocol that I find interesting is that the Chief speaks through a linguist and does not speak publically. I have been told that the linguist goes through years of training and his purpose is to maintain the prestige of the Chief. For example, if a mistake is made in a speech, the linguist would be blamed instead of the Chief himself. Along with the protocol of the Chief having a linguist, the way one speaks in the palace and among Chiefs is special. It is encouraged for one to be flowery in one’s language and to speak in an indirect manner such as through parables. This is not something that I was necessarily able to pick up as I am not very fluent in Twi but it was later told to me and was evident in Papa Attah’s mannerisms. Lastly, as a group of guests, it is necessary to have a spokesperson, usually the oldest in the group. In our case, it was Papa Attah. He was the only one that interacted with the linguist and other Chiefs during our official visit. There was one thing that I did not understand. A man introduced himself to us as the wife of the Chief. I am unsure as to why because the Chief is married to Gifty Anti and this person is a man. Was he there because Gifty Anti was not or is this an actual position. There were many more observations that I made; however, these were the most notable or had questions about. Overall, this was a very interesting event and a good first-hand way to learn a bit more about traditional cultures in Ghana.