The Akan Diaspora in the Americas

The Akan Diaspora in the Americas

In his groundbreaking study of the Akan diaspora, Kwasi Konadu demonstrates how this cultural group originating in West Africa both engaged in and went beyond the familiar diasporic themes of maroonage, resistance, and freedom. Between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries, the Akan never formed a majority among other Africans in the Americas. But their leadership skills in war and political organization, efficacy in medicinal plant use and spiritual practice, and culture archived in the musical traditions, language, and patterns of African diasporic life far outweighed their sheer numbers. Konadu argues that a composite Akan culture calibrated between the Gold Coast and forest fringe made the contributions of the Akan diaspora possible. The book examines the Akan experience in Guyana, Jamaica, Antigua, Barbados, former Danish and Dutch colonies, and North America, and how those early experiences foreground the modern engagement and movement of diasporic Africans and Akan people between Ghana and North America. Locating the Akan variable in the African diasporic equation allows scholars and students of the Americas to better understand how the diasporic quilt came to be and is still evolving.

Country	USA
Author	Kwasi Konadu
Binding	Paperback
Brand	Brand: Oxford University Press
EAN	9780199922857
Edition	Reprint
Feature	Used Book in Good Condition
ISBN	0199922853
IsEligibleForTradeIn	1
Label	Oxford University Press
Manufacturer	Oxford University Press
NumberOfItems	1
NumberOfPages	322
PublicationDate	2012-04-27
Publisher	Oxford University Press
ReleaseDate	2012-04-27
Studio	Oxford University Press

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