Professional Documents
Culture Documents
kabaCouture:
Women as Common Good
while men in exile in a time of peace and no war
- the comforts of home away from home.
on modernity and self-invention on the war front -
on the lack of community, identity and ritual.
the role of public women
in port cities and industrial towns
on the Atlantic Gold Coast.
highlighting work
Emmanuel Akyeampong
Sexuality and Prostitution
among the Akan of the Gold Coast
c. 1650-1950
The Past and Present Society
bit.ly.kabaCOUTURE
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero,
and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any food,
whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance,
and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a fixed penalty.
An Accurate Description of African Places -
Olfert Dapper - 1668
A. Van der Eb, the General Director of the Dutch West India Company in
the Gold Coast, actually described public women in Ahanta as 'fetish
women' in his 1851 memorandum on the customs of this region. They were
slaves bought by wealthy men and women and given as gifts to the public.
His description of their initiation emphasizes its religious overtones and
parallels with marriage rites. These slaves, as soon as they reached
marriageable age, were initiated by the priests and priestesses. They were
made available to every man for the payment of a small amount in
gold-dust, except for the men who first slept with them after the initiation.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
1
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
In the 1950s, Ataa Baasi joined the commoners' party, the Convention
People's Party, in the nationalist struggle for independence." Maybe
renewed political recognition for institutions such as hers would come with
an independent African government.
It certainly fit into the social structure of the old Akan state. The
Asantehene entrusted it to the care of a sub-chief. The irony of the situation
lies in the fact that the Baasifuo Community had turned cultural norms that
recognized male sexual needs and denied the existence of similar needs
among females to the service of female accumulation. It was a subtle play
on female dependence in an era when they were probably anything but
dependent. Women had long been aware of the intimate connection
between political patronage and wealth in Akan society.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
2
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
It is significant that in the power vacuum between 1896 and 1935 there is
no record of prostitutes seeking such official recognition. When the British
government restored the Asante confederacy in 1935, an obvious shadow
of its former self, the Asantehene sought to extend his jurisdiction through
symbolic acts meaningful to residents of the Gold Coast.
Even the interior, predominantly rural, state of Sefwi Wiawso - in the wake
of mechanized mining, road construction and cocoa production - was
transformed into a bustling hive of economic and social activity in the 1920s
and 1930s. Incidence of venereal disease increased phenomenally, and
prostitutes were blamed for this development. Penelope Roberts has
summed up the situation: The introduction of cocoa had provoked new
conflicts between spouses leading to 'wife-stealing' and desertion by wives.
The crisis in the rural economy coincided with an upsurge of opportunities
for trade for some women. The association between trade and prostitution
and the spread of venereal disease were seen as results of these conflicts."
Crucial in this gender crisis in Sefwi Wiawso was, again, the struggle to
control female labour through the institution of mar- riage, which had little
material return for wives. The colonial economy generated different types of
economic opportunities for men and women, which fed into the existing
division of labour by sex and the separate property interests of spouses.
Female accumulation strengthened female sexual autonomy, enabling
women to prune the male-dominated institution of marriage. Not
coincidentally, female accumulation, female sexual autonomy, prostitution,
venereal disease and witchcraft were seen to be connected. Successful
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
3
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
female traders were often accused of witchcraft and the epithet 'UAC' came
to embrace not only prostitutes involved in accumulation, but also traders
suspected of witch- craft. The early twentieth century with its rapid
socio-economic change, and the concomitant gender 'crisis', supported the
numerous anti-witchcraft cults that proliferated in the Gold Coast.
The UAC were led by a Cape Coast woman called Akwele and the Leventis
by the Nzima woman, Lamle. Notwithstanding these definite changes in the
nature of urban prostitution in the colonial Gold Coast, there were also
interesting continuities from the pre-colonial era in the spatial location of
prostitutes, the use of ritual and the perceived need for spiritual protection,
and the desire of prostitutes for official affiliation or recognition. From the
descriptions of public women in the pre-colonial Gold Coast, it appears that
they often lived on the outskirts of villages and towns. They occupied
distinct, separate spaces from the local inhabitants of a community.
Prostitutes in the colonial Gold Coast, likewise, lived on the boundaries of
towns. Elderly informants have confirmed this for Sekondi.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
4
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
Mensah's account confirmed that most prostitutes were outsiders, but also
that they were beginning to attract indigenous women through their
independence and their glamourous lifestyle. Even more importantly, in
male-dominated, working-class centres like Sekondi-Takoradi, prostitutes
were considered eligible marriage partners. The absence of social barriers
between 'prostitutes' and 'respectable women' in working-class leisure
activities in Sekondi-Takoradi facilitated the exchange of beliefs and
mannerisms.
Social life in Takoradi in the 1930s and 1940s revolved around spots like
Columbia Hotel, famous for its dances. The 'Liberian Bar', owned by a
Liberian in Takoradi, was another active social spot in the 1930s and
1940s. Krus were excellent drummers and guitar players, and they had a
first-rate brass band in Takoradi, the 'Taboo Brass Band'. As prostitutes
and non- prostitutes patronized these places, mannerisms were
exchanged. The ability to chew gum and make it snap was introduced into
Sekondi-Takoradi by Kru women, but it expanded to become the badge of
female nonchalance. With their social drinking at popular bars and their
fashionable clothing, Kru and Nigerian women became the pace-setters
where female autonomy was concerned. Central to the alluring image of
prostitution in urban Gold Coast was the fact that these women were
accumulating wealth for themselves.
prostitution is a thing outside our creed - good Hausa women who were
living good lives in Northern Nigeria change for the worse on arrival on the
Gold Coast colony in which evil influences are somewhat paramount. He
wisely linked his petition to colonial concerns about health and finances:
Venereal disease is too common among my people and unless a law is
enacted by you or the authorities enforcing the repatriation of all Hausa
women without husbands to their homes, immorality will be on the
ascendant and indubitably defy the praise-worthy endeavours of the Health
Officers.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
6
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
How these economic and legal opportunities in the colonial Gold Coast
intersected with changing notions of sexuality - especially through
prostitution and leisure activities among migrants in towns - to reshape
female expectations in marriage is a promising line of inquiry. The interwar
period was, in particular, an era of active social exchange between urban
and rural areas. The exploitation of female labour was crucial in the
economic transformation that underpinned the rise of the Gold Coast as the
world's leading producer of cocoa by 1918. In their various capacities as
pawns - as wives, daughters and nieces - women provided unpaid
agricultural labour on cocoa farms and served as porters in carrying cocoa
bags from interior farms to coastal merchants." From being exploited,
unpaid labour, women - even in the rural areas where indirect rule had
re-empowered male elders - gradually found openings in the colonial
economy and asserted their autonomy through establishing their own
cocoa and food farms. Rural women increasingly withdrew their labour from
exploitative husbands and uncles. Sexuality, marital obligations and the
concept of family in matrilineal Akan societies, became fiercely contested.
Whether rural-urban contacts and the sexual autonomy of migrant women
in towns, including prostitutes, contributed to the radicalization of rural
women (for example, through their trips to coastal towns as porters) in their
relations with men has not been explored.
In the Obubra Division of the Cross River Basin in Nigeria, young women
from the village of Efut fled 'into prostitution when they were asked to
engage in palm production'. For rural Atu women on the Kenyan coast,
prostitution and marriage existed in a dialectical relationship. The relative
proximity of the town of Mombasa, and a tradition of Atu prostitution in
Mombasa, enabled some women to reject unsatisfactory marital situations.
But this female empowerment had an adverse effect on marriage, for it
made the institution fragile.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
7
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
Emmanuel Akyeampong
Sexuality and Prostitution
among the Akan of the Gold Coast
c. 1650-1950
The Past and Present Society
bit.ly.kabaCOUTURE
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
8
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
A. Van der Eb, the General Director of the Dutch West India Company in
the Gold Coast, actually described public women in Ahanta as 'fetish
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
9
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
women' in his 1851 memorandum on the customs of this region. They were
slaves bought by wealthy men and women and given as gifts to the public.
His description of their initiation emphasizes its religious overtones and
parallels with marriage rites. These slaves, as soon as they reached
marriageable age, were initiated by the priests and priestesses. They were
made available to every man for the payment of a small amount in
gold-dust, except for the men who first slept with them after the initiation.
These men were obliged to pay a larger sum which was used for the
purchase of new girls for the profession. Of this fee, part was given to the
male or female owners. … In a sense, the public woman was the 'wife' of
the bachelors of the community.
These elements indicate strongly that the "whore" was far from
being close to her European analogue of a demi-mondaine. It is true
that she had no free will in choosing her job and her status was
probably very low.
These contradictions and tensions were resolved through the rituals that
surrounded the initiation of public women. The danger of their promiscuity
was spiritually neutralized. A woman's spirit (kra) has great influence on her
sexuality and procreation Indeed, Jones examined the etymology of the
label abrakree or abel(e)cre assigned to public women, and commented on
the possible combination of aba'a, abea (woman) and akyere (a person to
be sacrificed) - in Nzima akyere is akele - making the public women
religious sacrifices.
This helps to explain the need for the religious rituals that surrounded the
institution of public women. Pointing to the obvious ritual significance of -
inter alia - the blood sacrifice, the marking with hyire (white clay), the white
towel, and the initiate's position on a straw mat (in Dapper's account),
Jones concluded: These elements indicate strongly that the "whore" was
far from being close to her European analogue of a demi-mondaine. It is
true that she had no free will in choosing her job and her status was
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
10
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
11
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
An Akan woman who refused to marry rejected the social ordering of the
Akan world, which, obviously, was very male-orientated. In the late 1920s
and 1930s, chiefs of villages in Sefwi Wiawso and Asante rounded up
spinsters, detained them, and insisted that they marry in the shortest
possible time.These contradictions and tensions were resolved through the
rituals that surrounded the initiation of public women. The danger of their
promiscuity was spiritually neutralized. A woman's spirit (kra) has great
influence on her sexuality and procreation Indeed, Jones examined the
etymology of the label abrakree or abel(e)cre assigned to public women,
and commented on the possible combination of aba'a, abea (woman) and
akyere (a person to be sacrificed) - in Nzima akyere is akele - making the
public women religious sacrifices.
This helps to explain the need for the religious rituals that surrounded the
institution of public women. Pointing to the obvious ritual significance of -
inter alia - the blood sacrifice, the marking with hyire (white clay), the white
towel, and the initiate's position on a straw mat (in Dapper's account),
Jones concluded: These elements indicate strongly that the "whore" was
far from being close to her European analogue of a demi-mondaine. It is
true that she had no free will in choosing her job and her status was
probably very low. Nonetheless, the "foolish and ridiculous ceremonies" did
not have the purpose of humiliating her or treating her as an outcast.
Rather they served to integrate her and to give her a recognized position or
new status within the community.
public whore; and she has a dwelling place assigned her near one of her
Masters, or in a separated part of the Village, she being for the remainder
of her life obliged to refuse no man the use of her Body; though he offers
never so small a sum."
Thus, the institution of public women among the south-west Akan served
as an important stabilizing force; however, it also presented two problems:
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
14
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
The proper context for the fulfilment of sexual desires was marriage, and
monogamy and fidelity were stressed for women. While the state of being
single, asigyafo or ahokwafo, applies to both adult men and women, Akan
thought associates this status with men. Men may defer marriage for
financial reasons, but adult women are expected to marry. Indeed, for
women marriage defines adulthood. Unmarried women were referred to
through euphemisms - for example, Nyame ayewa (God's little wife). An
Akan woman who refused to marry rejected the social ordering of the Akan
world, which, obviously, was very male-orientated. In the late 1920s and
1930s, chiefs of villages in Sefwi Wiawso and Asante rounded up spinsters,
detained them, and insisted that they marry in the shortest possible time.
These contradictions and tensions were resolved through the rituals that
surrounded the initiation of public women. The danger of their promiscuity
was spiritually neutralized. A woman's spirit (kra) has great influence on her
sexuality and procreation Indeed, Jones examined the etymology of the
label abrakree or abel(e)cre assigned to public women, and commented on
the possible combination of aba'a, abea (woman) and akyere (a person to
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
15
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
This helps to explain the need for the religious rituals that surrounded the
institution of public women. Pointing to the obvious ritual significance of -
inter alia - the blood sacrifice, the marking with hyire (white clay), the white
towel, and the initiate's position on a straw mat (in Dapper's account),
Jones concluded: These elements indicate strongly that the "whore" was
far from being close to her European analogue of a demi-mondaine. It is
true that she had no free will in choosing her job and her status was
probably very low. Nonetheless, the "foolish and ridiculous ceremonies" did
not have the purpose of humiliating her or treating her as an outcast.
Rather they served to integrate her and to give her a recognized position or
new status within the community.
bit.ly.kabaCOUTURE
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
16
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
The Ga inhabit Accra (the current capital of Ghana) and its environs. The
Adangme live to the north and east of the Ga. The Ewe are located further
east of the Adangme. Unlike the matrilineal Akan, the Ga-Adangme and
Ewe are patrilineal. The Akan also possessed a more elaborate political
culture, and Akanland was the site of active state formation between 1650
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
17
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
An article that explores prostitution and the politics of sex in the Gold Coast
from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries within the broader
framework of gender and power relations presents a picture that contrasts
with those of available studies. It underscores the salient fact that
urbanization and urbanism pre-dated colonial rule in the Gold Coast. The
historical record also points to the occurrence of 'prostitution' in rural,
face-to-face communities in the Gold Coast, thus revealing intriguing links
between sexuality, political and moral economy. These issues are
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
18
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
examined in this article within the broader framework of gender and power
relations. It is striking that early accounts of prostitution in the Gold Coast
emphasize its presence among the south-western Akan of the Gold and
Ivory Coasts. Although the arguments presented here have wider
implications for the southern Gold Coast, the Akan serve as a specific case
study.
Therein lies one important difference between prostitutes and what I refer
to as the 'public women' of the pre-colonial Gold Coast. Public women were
often female slaves acquired by the political elite of Akan villages and
towns, and compelled to provide sexual services for the local bachelors.
Their institutionalized role - indeed, their very existence - sheds important
light on how perceptions of sexuality informed gender relations. Examining
public women alongside prostitutes facilitates a deeper understanding of
the permutations of gender relations within the changing political context of
the pre-colonial and colonial periods. The apparent disappearance of public
women from the late nineteenth century is an important part of the puzzle.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
19
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
Emmanuel Akyeampong
Sexuality and Prostitution
among the Akan of the Gold Coast
c. 1650-1950
The Past and Present Society
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
20
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
bit.ly.kabaCOUTURE
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
21
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
Our main sources on the public women of the pre-colonial era are Olfert
Dapper (1668), Willem Bosman (1702), and Jean Godot (1704). Their
descriptions are set out in detail, as their accounts are crucial to the
analysis of sexuality and political economy. Dapper's comments related to
Axim in the 1660s: Although the Blacks along this coast and in the interior
marry as many wives as they can maintain, it is customary in Atzijn [Axim]
and all the surrounding areas, as far as the Quaqua Coast, for every village
to maintain two or three whores, whom they call Abrakrees. They are
initiated and confirmed for the conduct of this work by their Kabaseros or
headmen in the presence of a large crowd of people, in the following
manner. ...
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in
return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any food, whether it
stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and
nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a fixed penalty.
station and earn much Money. This over, a little Boy, yet immature for love
affairs, makes a feint or representation of lying with her before all the
people both young and old; by which 'tis hinted to her that from this time
forwards, she is obliged to receive all persons indistinguishable who offer
themselves to her, not excepting little boys. Then a little out of the way, a
hut is built for her; in which she is obliged to confine herself for eight or ten
days, and lye with every man who comes thither: After which, she obtains
the Honourable name of Abelcre or Abelecre, signifying a common or
public whore; and she has a dwelling place assigned her near one of her
Masters, or in a separated part of the Village, she being for the remainder
of her life obliged to refuse no man the use of her Body; though he offers
never so small a sum." Bosman added the qualifying information that the
Akan 'countries of Commany [Komenda], Elmina, Fetu, Saboe [Asebu],
Fantyn [Fante?], etc., have none of these whores'. Bosman's account
discusses relations between the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or
elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan
oman (community or polity)." The political and economic significance of
these public women in such communities will be explored later.
The proper context for the fulfilment of sexual desires was marriage, and
monogamy and fidelity were stressed for women. While the state of being
single, asigyafo or ahokwafo, applies to both adult men and women, Akan
thought associates this status with men. Men may defer marriage for
financial reasons, but adult women are expected to marry. Indeed, for
women marriage defines adulthood. Unmarried women were referred to
through euphemisms - for example, Nyame ayewa (God's little wife). An
Akan woman who refused to marry rejected the social ordering of the Akan
world, which, obviously, was very male-orientated.
In the late 1920s and 1930s, chiefs of villages in Sefwi Wiawso and Asante
rounded up spinsters, detained them, and insisted that they marry in the
shortest possible time.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
23
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
These contradictions and tensions were resolved through the rituals that
surrounded the initiation of public women. The danger of their promiscuity
was spiritually neutralized. A woman's spirit (kra) has great influence on her
sexuality and procreation. Indeed, Jones examined the etymology of the
label abrakree or abel(e)cre assigned to public women, and commented on
the possible combination of aba'a, abea (woman) and akyere (a person to
be sacrificed) - in Nzima akyere is akele - making the public women
religious sacrifices.
This helps to explain the need for the religious rituals that surrounded the
institution of public women. Pointing to the obvious ritual significance of -
inter alia - the blood sacrifice, the marking with hyire (white clay), the white
towel, and the initiate's position on a straw mat (in Dapper's account),
Jones concluded: These elements indicate strongly that the "whore" was
far from being close to her European analogue of a demi-mondaine. It is
true that she had no free will in choosing her job and her status was
probably very low. Nonetheless, the "foolish and ridiculous ceremonies" did
not have the purpose of humiliating her or treating her as an outcast.
Rather they served to integrate her and to give her a recognized position or
new status within the community. For that reason she had to be ritually
purified (through the chicken's blood that dripped on her head and body,
through the washing of her body and marking of it with white clay) and
subsequently displayed in public and celebrated. In addition, Jones
perceptively highlighted the parallels between the rites initiating the public
women and puberty rites and the installation of chiefs.
bit.ly.kabaCOUTURE
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
26
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
Thus, the institution of public women among the south-west Akan served
as an important stabilizing force; however, it also presented two problems:
it could devalue marriage as a social institution; and spiritual and social
crises could result from the sanctioned promiscuity of public women due to
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
27
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
the perceived spiritual (and thus volatile) power of sex, menstruation and
procreation.
The proper context for the fulfilment of sexual desires was marriage, and
monogamy and fidelity were stressed for women. While the state of being
single, asigyafo or ahokwafo, applies to both adult men and women, Akan
thought associates this status with men. Men may defer marriage for
financial reasons, but adult women are expected to marry. Indeed, for
women marriage defines adulthood. Unmarried women were referred to
through euphemisms - for example, Nyame ayewa (God's little wife).
An Akan woman who refused to marry rejected the social ordering of the
Akan world, which, obviously, was very male-orientated. In the late 1920s
and 1930s, chiefs of villages in Sefwi Wiawso and Asante rounded up
spinsters, detained them, and insisted that they marry in the shortest
possible time.These contradictions and tensions were resolved through the
rituals that surrounded the initiation of public women. The danger of their
promiscuity was spiritually neutralized. A woman's spirit (kra) has great
influence on her sexuality and procreation Indeed, Jones examined the
etymology of the label abrakree or abel(e)cre assigned to public women,
and commented on the possible combination of aba'a, abea (woman) and
akyere (a person to be sacrificed) - in Nzima akyere is akele - making the
public women religious sacrifices.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
28
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
This helps to explain the need for the religious rituals that surrounded the
institution of public women. Pointing to the obvious ritual significance of -
inter alia - the blood sacrifice, the marking with hyire (white clay), the white
towel, and the initiate's position on a straw mat (in Dapper's account),
Jones concluded: These elements indicate strongly that the "whore" was
far from being close to her European analogue of a demi-mondaine. It is
true that she had no free will in choosing her job and her status was
probably very low. Nonetheless, the "foolish and ridiculous ceremonies" did
not have the purpose of humiliating her or treating her as an outcast.
Rather they served to integrate her and to give her a recognized position or
new status within the community. For that reason she had to be ritually
purified (through the chicken's blood that dripped on her head and body,
through the washing of her body and marking of it with white clay) and sub-
sequently displayed in public and celebrated.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
29
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
Emmanuel Akyeampong
Sexuality and Prostitution
among the Akan of the Gold Coast
c. 1650-1950
The Past and Present Society
bit.ly.kabaCOUTURE
A. Van der Eb, the General Director of the Dutch West India Company in
the Gold Coast, actually described public women in Ahanta as 'fetish
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
30
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
women' in his 1851 memorandum on the customs of this region. They were
slaves bought by wealthy men and women and given as gifts to the public.
His description of their initiation emphasizes its religious overtones and
parallels with marriage rites. These slaves, as soon as they reached
marriageable age, were initiated by the priests and priestesses. They were
made available to every man for the payment of a small amount in
gold-dust, except for the men who first slept with them after the initiation.
These men were obliged to pay a larger sum which was used for the
purchase of new girls for the profession. Of this fee, part was given to the
male or female owners. … In a sense, the public woman was the 'wife' of
the bachelors of the community.
women to compare them with public women. But they were not slaves; they
were insiders with kinship ties who had been forced into prostitution
because they asserted their autonomy.
A less publicized view of female control over their sexuality existed in the
pre-colonial Gold Coast, as asserted by the Twi proverb that opened this
article: obi mfi bea akyi ntu ne tam (no one can pull the loin-cloth off a
woman without her knowledge). As colonialism, the proliferation of towns
and the extension of the market economy changed power relations,
demography and the economy of the Gold Coast, women found more
spaces within the emerging social order to assert their autonomy, to
accumulate wealth on their own, and to define marriage and what they
expected of it. Prostitution was one of several options available to migrant
women in towns. Urban prostitutes in the colonial Gold Coast definitely
differed from the abrakree or abelcre of the south-west Akan, but striking
parallels in their modus operandi suggest that we need to look for
continuities in the cultural norms that underpinned gender rela- tions and
examine the role of the state as a mediator.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
33
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
34
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
In this period, some of the young men who visited Nkontompo would fall in
love, and ask the women to quit the business of prostitution and come to
join them at New Takoradi as wives. I saw this happening myself. It came
to a time that Kru women took over Takoradi. It is unclear how a
neighbourhood in Sekondi acquired the name Nkontompo, but nkontompo
in Twi refers to 'deceit' or 'false- hood', and the sexual conduct of freelance,
single women may have bequeathed the title of 'Nkontompo' to their
residential area. Inhabitants of Sekondi-Takoradi were fascinated with
them: They were mostly Fante women from Cape Coast. They were not
[indi- genous] Ahantas. Only Auntie Lamle was from Dixcove [Nzima].
Auntie Lamle became almost a role model for wayward women. Many
young women became attracted to the business. If you were not properly
trained as a young girl, you could easily join the Nkontompo women. Later,
the Nkontompo women moved to a hotel at Cassava Farm [Takoradi]
called 'Columbia Hotel' in the mid-1940s. Many women hired rooms in that
neighbourhood. Then, the colonial government was very strict on prosti-
tution. If they caught you as a 'harlot woman', they took you to court. If you
couldn't pay the fine, you were even jailed. The prostitutes realized that it
was because they had concentrated in a particular area that the colonial
police easily picked them up. They began to disperse from the Cassava
Farm area to other places. That very 'Columbia' area, women from Ho
[Volta region] came to settle as prostitutes. A Nigerian called Geoffrey also
established a hotel where prostitutes were based. That is how women
ended up in Takoradi.
Mensah's account confirmed that most prostitutes were outsiders, but also
that they were beginning to attract indigenous women through their
independence and their glamourous lifestyle. Even more importantly, in
male-dominated, working-class centres like Sekondi-Takoradi, prostitutes
were considered eligible marriage partners. The absence of social barriers
between 'prostitutes' and 'respectable women' in working-class leisure
activities in Sekondi-Takoradi facilitated the exchange of beliefs and
mannerisms.
… Everything she gains in this way she must hand to the Kabasero, and in return she enjoys the liberty of being allowed to take any
food, whether it stands in someone's house or in the market, for her sustenance, and nobody may prevent her from doing so, upon a
fixed penalty. - An Accurate Description of African Places - O lfert Dapper - 1668
35
… the young men (mancevos) and the chiefs or elders (caboceroes), two important political constituencies in the Akan oman
(community or polity). The political and economic significance of these public women in such communities …
Written in 1997 by Emmanuel Akyeampong - S exuality and Prostitution among the Akan of the Gold Coast c. 1650-1950
Social life in Takoradi in the 1930s and 1940s revolved around spots like
Columbia Hotel, famous for its dances. The 'Liberian Bar', owned by a
Liberian in Takoradi, was another active social spot in the 1930s and
1940s. Krus were excellent drummers and guitar players, and they had a
first-rate brass band in Takoradi, the 'Taboo Brass Band'. As prostitutes
and non- prostitutes patronized these places, mannerisms were
exchanged. The ability to chew gum and make it snap was introduced into
Sekondi-Takoradi by Kru women, but it expanded to become the badge of
female nonchalance. With their social drinking at popular bars and their
fashionable clothing, Kru and Nigerian women became the pace-setters
where female autonomy was concerned. Central to the alluring image of
prostitution in urban Gold Coast was the fact that these women were
accumulating wealth for themselves.
This was not necessarily a futile gesture. French colonial rule in Congo
Brazzaville sanctioned the activities of prostitutes and even established
official brothels during World War II to cater for the sexual needs of
soldiers.
sexual politics was also the key to status and power politics within Asante,
and to the territorial definition of Asante.' The limits of Asante territory were
reflected in the geographical extent to which the Asantehene could demand
money for adultery. Recognizing the spirit of past times in the activities of
the Asantehene, the Baasifuo Community in Kumasi, 'talking the talk',
presented itself for the Asantehene's official approval. It certainly fit into the
social structure of the old Akan state. The Asantehene entrusted it to the
care of a sub-chief. The irony of the situation lies in the fact that the
Baasifuo Community had turned cultural norms that recognized male
sexual needs and denied the existence of similar needs among females to
the service of female accumulation. It was a subtle play on female
dependence in an era when they were probably anything but dependent.
Women had long been aware of the intimate connection between political
patronage and wealth in Akan society.