ORIGINS OF THE PEOPLES OF GHANA

Introduction
In this session, we are going to discuss the origins of the various ethnic groups of modern Ghana.
I believe that those of you who read History as an Elective Subject at senior high school already
have knowledge about the origins of these groups of people. I even expect those who never studied
History at senior high school but belong to any of these ethnic groups to have some knowledge
and understanding about the origins of their own ethnic groups.

Origin of the Guan

What do you know about the Guan? I believe you may have heard that the Guan are the aboriginal
inhabitants of Ghana. What do we mean when we say a group of people are aboriginal inhabitants
of a place or country? It means that they are the people who have lived in a place or country since
the earliest times.
It is true that the Guan were the first people to enter and settle in Ghana. The traditions of
origins of the various peoples of Ghana maintain that their original ancestors came to meet the
ancestors of the Guan already established in Ghana. For example, the traditions of the Fante and
the people of Agogo in Asante-Akyem record that when their ancestors arrived in their present
territories, the Guan were already occupying those territories. Thus, the Guan are the oldest known
people to live in Ghana. However, Guan traditions of origin show that they are not indigenous to
Ghana. Originally, they lived in present-day Burkina Faso. Later on, as a result of wars with the
Mande, the Guan moved southwards to settle near modern Gonjaland in Northern Ghana. George
Padmore maintains that the Guan entered Ghana as early as C.E. 1200. However, Guan traditions
of origin assert that their ancestors entered the country in about the second half of the thirteenth
century or early fourteenth century.
The Guan immigrants entered Ghana in three groups. The first group remained in
Gonjaland where they organised the strong kingdom of Gonja. The second group of the Guan went
to settle in the Afram Plains and established a powerful empire with its capital at Gyaneboafo. This
empire was ruled in succession by eight emperors called Ataala Firaw. This great kingdom
attracted the attention of the Akan (Adanse) and Ewe who fought several wars with them. As a
result of the frequent attacks, some of the Guan crossed the Volta river towards the coast. They
finally settled in different areas where they founded some minor disunited states like Atwode,
Santrokofi, Lolobi, Anum, Etsii and Boso.
The third group moved southwards towards the Lower Volta. They settled at present-day
Larteh, Adukrom, Awukugua, Apirede, Dawu, Abiriw, Abonse, etc., which form the Kyerepong
or Okere section of modern Akuapem. Some members of the third group moved westwards to
settle along the coast. They included the Efutu, Awutu and Senya states of Winneba, Awutu Bereku
and Senya Bereku. Other Guan people of the third group moved towards the north-east, crossed
the Volta river and settled in areas like Nkonya, Krachi, Yeji, Nchumuru, etc.
It must be noted that as a result of military weakness, some of the Guan later came to be
absorbed and ruled by other ethnic groups, particularly the Akan and Ewe. For example, after the
defeat of Akwamu by the Akyem in 1733, the Kyerepong (Okere) group of the Guan came to
accept Akyem rule and protection. Even the Guan adopted the languages of their Akan and Ewe
neighbours for purposes of communication with outsiders and limited the speaking of Guan only
among themselves. They also adopted the Akan system of chieftaincy.
Origin of the Mole-Dagbani States
Do you know that the name Mole-Dagbani does not refer to only one group of people but rather
to several groups of people who are related to one another and have a common ancestry? If you
studied history at senior high school, then I assume that you aware of this. At any rate, oral
traditions and written accounts suggest that the Mole-Dagbani states of Mamprugu, Dagomba,
Nanumba and the Mossi of Wagadugu, Yatenga and Fada N’Gurma were among the earliest of
the kingdoms to emerge in what is present-day Ghana. These kingdoms are today located in what
we refer to as Northern Ghana. These kingdoms were created by immigrant groups who entered
Ghana in the late fourteenth or early fifteenth century.
The traditions of the origin and migration of the Mole-Dagbani people to their present
home are preserved in the drum music of these people. This history is narrated during their Damba
festival. According to this tradition, the ancestors of the Mole-Dagbani came from an area east of
Lake Chad. At a point, they decided to move away from the area and took a westward direction.
That migration took them to Zamfara in Northern Nigeria. From Zamfara, they moved further
westward into the land of the ruler of Mali. They spent a brief period in the Mali kingdom because
their tradition of origin state that they assisted a king of Mali in his wars of conquest and conducted
several raids in the region of the Niger bend. At this time, their leader was called Tohajie. This
leader – that is, Tohajie – was also known as the Red Hunter because he was light-skinned or fair
in complexion.
Do you know what happened while Tohajie and his followers were in Mali? Many
historians do not tell us much about Tohajie and his people at this time. However, Amenumey
asserts that because Tohajie fought courageously and distinguished himself in the army of the king
of Mali, the king rewarded Tohajie with marriage to one of his daughters. This Malian princess
gave birth to a son called Kpogonumbo. Unfortunately, Tohajie and his wife died while their son
was still a child. Nevertheless, Kpogonumbo grew up to prove that he had inherited the bravery of
his father. As his father had done, Kpogonumbo also served in the Malian army for some time and,
then, travelled to Grumaland where he married the daughter of a Gruma chief. They gave birth to
a son called Bawa or Gbewa. It was Gbewa, Tohajie’s grandson, who grew to become the founder
of the ruling dynasties in north-eastern Ghana and Burkina Faso.
Mamprugu traditions state that Gbewa left Gruma with a large body of followers after a
succession dispute following the death of his maternal grandfather. He first went to Sanga, south
of Fada N’Gurma, and later proceeded to conquer the territories of the Busansi and Kusasi further
south. Later, Gbewa and his followers moved westwards and settled at Pusiga, near Bawku, which
was then a small village in north-eastern Ghana. Under Gbewa, the immigrants waged wars of
expansion against the indigenous people, whom they defeated with ease. One of the factors which
made it possible for the invaders to defeat the indigenous people was that the local people were
not organised under any central authority or government; that is, they did not have a common
leader who could rally them together. In other words, there was no political unity among the
indigenous people as a result of the nature of the structure of their society. Secondly, the indigenous
people were poorly armed. They fought with bows and arrows, while the invaders had relatively
more sophisticated weapons, which included iron swords, spears and cudgels. Thirdly, the invaders
had a mounted wing, that is, the cavalry wing, which struck terror and panic in the local people
because many of them had never seen a horse before, let alone somebody armed and fighting on
horseback. Due to their superior weapons and the ability to fight in a disciplined manner, the
invaders soon extended their conquests to as far as Fada N’Gurma in the north, Gambaga in the
south and Sansane Mango in the east.
 Gbewa succeeded in bringing the conquered people under his authority and founded a
settlement that developed into the Mamprugu state. Gbewa’s office was a secular one, and his
authority derived from the punishment that he could impose on people, rather than from religious
respect. According to Mamprugu traditions, Gbewa reigned for a long time. Buah states that the
fusion of the immigrant invaders and the indigenous people led to a situation whereby the invaders
or new rulers became the political leaders, whereas the indigenous people became the spiritual or
religious heads, known as Tindana, and the custodians of the land.
When Gbewa died, he was succeeded by his eldest son called Zirile. Gbewa’s oldest child,
however, was Yamtori, but she could not succeed the father because she was a woman, and the
Mole-Dagbani people practised the patrilineal system of inheritance. Zirile did not reign for long
before he died.

The Foundation of the Kingdom of Mamprugu

After the death of Zirile, there was succession dispute. Going by convention, the oldest brother of
Zirile called Tohogu should have succeeded Zirile, but two younger brothers, Sitobu and
Mantambu, opposed the succession of Tohogu. The outcome was a civil war, and the war
compelled Tohogu, who was defeated, to flee southwards to a village called Gambaga. Later, he
moved to another village called Mamprugu, which was founded by their father, Gbewa. He stayed
at Mamprugu for some time, but later returned to Gambaga where he founded a kingdom that
eventually came to be known as Mamprugu. The people of the kingdom of Mamprugu adopted the
name Mamprusi and their language is Mampruli. Tohogu, now the king, took the royal title Nayiri.
Tohogu’s immediate successor, Na Zobzia, removed the capital from Mamprugu to Gambaga.
However, another successor transferred the capital to Nalerigu.

The Foundation of the Kingdoms of Dagbon, Nanumba and Mossi

Do you have any idea about what happened after Sitobu and Mantambu had chased Tohogu away?
Sitobu and his followers went further south of Mamprugu to Yendi Dabari, a fairly densely
populated area, and founded the new kingdom of Dagbon. Some historians state that the conquest
of the indigenous people and the imposition of Sitobu’s authority were actually achieved by
Nyagse, Sitobu’s eldest son (Ibid). Nyagse was a great warrior who reigned from C.E. 1476 to
1492. Initially, Nyagse conquered the northern part, but after his father’s death, he extended his
conquests to the west, south and east. It is believd that he conquered and incorporated into the new
state several territories, including Daboya, an important salt-producing centre, and Buipe, a major
commercial centre. Nyagse adopted the policy of killing off the ruling dynasty of the conquered
kingdoms, and of installing members of his own family in place of the local royal lineage. Nyagse
turned Dagbon into a single political unit and assumed the title Ya-Na, meaning Powerful Chief.
Nyagse’s grandson called Zangina continued the conquests started by his predecessors and
annexed Bona in present-day Cote d’Ivoire.
Dagbon became a great kingdom until the reign of Dariziogo, the eleventh known ruler of
the kingdom. At this time, the ascendancy of Dagbon was halted by the rising power of Gonja.
Nevertheless, Dagbon remained an important kingdom. Unfortunately for the kingdom, Dagbon
was reduced to a tributary state of Asante during the reign of Asantehene Opoku War I (1720–
1750). Archaeological finds discovered at the site of the ancient capital of Dagbon give evidence
of the high degree of civilization which the kingdom must have enjoyed at the peak of its power.
The evidence shows that the Dagomba put up buildings some five storeys high. They were also
able to cut out of the rock an underground water storage system which could contain about a
million litres of water.
What about Mantambu? What did he do? He also went further south and founded the
Nanumba kingdom in Bimbila after killing the Tindana of that place. Many years later, the royal
house of Dagbon established its authority over the Wala district and that began the Wala kingdom.
What impression do you get from this fact? It means that the people of Wala also trace their origins
to Gbewa.
With regard to the Mossi kingdoms, it is stated that the son of Yamtori called Widrago,
through marriage, founded a kingdom at Tenkodogo. Later, the great grandsons of Yamtori,
namely Oubri, Rawa and Diaba, founded the Mossi kingdoms of Wagadugu, Yatenga and Fada
N’Gurma respectively.

The Leadership of Mamprugu

From the beginning, all the Mole-Dagbani people or kingdoms regarded Mamprugu as the parent
kingdom and they regarded Gambaga as their spiritual home. It was for this reason that the Nayiri
took precedence over all the other rulers and kings. It has, therefore, been normal for the other
kings to send gifts annually to the Nayiri as a token of their respect for him. It has also been the
practice for the other kings to refer to the Nayiri for his opinion and judgement on issues.

Origin of the Gonja

Sometimes, some people assume that because the Gonja also formed their kingdom and lived in
Northern Ghana, they are part of the Mole-Dagbani people. This is, however, not true. In fact, it is
not difficult to reconstruct the history of Gonja because of the availability of Arabic documents
which were found in good condition in Yendi in 1968. This Arabic document, written in the
nineteenth century and apparently based on oral tradition, provides relevant information about the
history of the Gonja (Buah, 1998:34). In fact, the only kingdom in the savanna zone of Ghana
which had no relation with Bawa or Gbewa and his descendants was Gonja. Gonja traditions of
origin, committed to writing in Arabic possibly as early as the beginning of the eighteenth century,
suggest that the founder of the Gonja kingdom was a man called Wadh Naba or Nabaga. He was
a member of an expedition sent by the Mansa of Mali against Begho in the Bono Region of Ghana.
The expedition was dispatched in the sixteenth century. Do you know why the ruler of Mali sent
an expedition against Begho? The reason was that the Mansa or ruler of Mali was irritated by the
drastic fall in the consignment of gold that reached Mali. What do you think led to the drastic fall
in the consignment of gold that reached Mali? Some historians believe that the Dyula merchants
who sold the gold had found more favourable outlets for their gold through Asante traders to the
European forts and castles on the coast. In any case, the Malian expedition was partly successful
because Begho was captured. However, it was one thing capturing a gold mine and quite a different
story mining for the gold. The Malians could not get the labourers to dig for the gold, and they
themselves did not have the skill to mine the gold themselves.
Nabaga, one of the Malian army commanders, chose not to return to Mali. He led his
cavalry force north, crossed the Black Volta and established his camp at a place called Yagbum, a
little east to that region around C.E. 1554. Subsequently, Yagbum became the capital and base of
Nabaga’s war of conquest against the indigenous people of the area, including the Nanumba and
the Kokomba. Nabaga’s wars of conquest have been extensively and elaborately compiled by a
Muslim scholar called Muhammad bin Mustafa who wrote a book entitled Kitab Ghunja, meaning
the Gonja Chronicle, which was published in the mid-eighteenth century.
 One of the descendants of Nabaga, the fifth Gonja king after Nabaga, Sumaila Ndewura
Jakpa Lanta, who reigned from 1622 to 1667, has been described as the Opoku Ware of Gonja.
The reason is that he was the one who expanded the kingdom by conquering far and wide. In the
east, Gonja extended as far as the Oti river. It was also Ndewura Jakpa Lanta’s wars of expansion
that brought Gonja into conflict with, first, the Nanumba and, then, the Dagomba. At the time of
Jakpa’s death, Gonja was a vast kingdom, stretching for about three hundred and twenty kilometres
from Bole in the west to Basari in the present-day Republic of Togo.
Do you know that because of the contributions Jakpa made towards the development of the
Gonja kingdom, the Gonja people still respect and honour Jakpa even at present? Evidence of this
respect and honour is that to this day, the spot where Jakpa is believed to have died is honoured as
a sacred place. Gonja traditions require that whenever a Gonja citizen wants to mention the name
of the place, he must sit down and take off his cap or headgear. The name of the place has become
the greatest oath of the Gonja. Jakpa’s tomb is also very much revered by the Gonja people.
According to Gonja customs, when a person commits a crime and takes refuge in the tomb, he
must be set free.

Origin of the Ga-Adangbe

The Ga-Adangbe people were believed to have come from a country between two rivers,
somewhere in the Middle East. It is claimed by the Yoruba of Nigeria that the Ga-Adangbe people
lived in Ile Ife, the first Yoruba settlement.
In Ghana, the Ga-Adangbe arrived in small parties around the beginning of the sixteenth
century. They immigrated by either the sea or the land. The Prampram people, however, claim that
before they came to the Accra plains, the Adangbe lived originally at Tetetutu in the area of Togo-
Benin. The Ga were made up of six main groups. They were Ga Mashie (Accra), Nungua, Tema
(Manchean), La (Labadi), Osu and Teshie. The Adangbe group was also divided into smaller units.
They were Ada, Krobo, Shai, Osudoku, Gbugbla, Kpone and Ningo.
The Ga finally settled along the sea coast while the Adangbe lived on the west bank of the
Volta where they set out to dominate the agricultural lands around. Later, the other Ga subdivisions
accepted the leadership of Accra. Some of them, like the La, however, claimed to be senior to the
Accra.
Before the Ga-Adangbe people arrived, the Obutu and Kyerepong, who were Guan
communities, were occupying the land. The Ga-Adangbe later managed to push them out to go
and settle on and around the Akwapim hills. It has also been proved by archaeologists that the area
had, during the first four millennia B.C. been the home of Late Stone Age hunter-gatherers.

Origin of the Ewe

The Ewe people claim to have settled originally at Ketu in Dahomey, now modern Republic of
Benin. As a result of wars which resulted in instability, the Ewe people moved to settle in places
like Tado, Dogbo and Notsie (Nuatja) in modern Republic of Togo. It was from Notsie that the
various Ewe groups dispersed.
The journey from Notsie took place around the early years of the seventeenth century. The
Ewe left Notsie because of the oppressive rule of their Chief Agokoli. On their way from Notsie,
the Ewe were split into three main divisions. The first group was made up of the Anlo, Agave,
Some, Afife, Keta, Feny, Mafi, Tokoe and Tanyibe. All these people first settled at Gofe from
where they separated into their clans and moved further. The Anlo (Awuna) separated into two
groups. One group was led by Togbui Sri, while the other group was led by his uncle Amega
Wenya. Later, the two groups joined forces to found the Anlo state with the capital at Anloga.
The second group of the ewe traveled towards the Ho area. They were the people of Ho,
Abutia, Akorvie, Takla, Adaklu and Sokode. The third Ewe group moved towards the interior to
occupy the forest and hilly areas. It was made up of the people of Krepi (Peki), Gbi, Kpando,
Alavanyo, Leklebi, Ve, Dzolo, Akome, Kpedze, Dodome and Wadze.

Origin of the Akan

The Akan occupy a greater portion of the forest and savannah lands of southern Ghana. They
constitute about half of the present population of the country. The Akan speak the Akan language
which has been divided into two: Fante and Twi. The Fante-speaking peoples live some 80 miles
along the coast, and some 30 miles inland. The main Twi-speaking groups include the Adanse,
Akuapem (Akwapim), Akwamu, Akyem (Akim), Asante, Assin, Denkyira, and Kwawu (Kwahu).
Other Akan-speaking peoples are the Ahanta, Bono (Brong), Nzema (Nzima), Sehwi (Sefwi),
Twifu, and Wassa (Wassaw).
The origins of the Akan pose a difficulty in the history of Ghana. The reason is that there
is no single theory which sufficiently explains exactly where they originated from. A school of
thought, led by J.B. Danquah and Eva Meyerowitz, points out that the Akan first lived in Ethiopia.
From there, they later moved to Egypt and then came to settle in the ancient Ghana empire of the
Western Sudan. This view has, however, been challenged in the light of new historical and
linguistic research. Based on the new evidence, another school of thought, led by historians like
Adu Boahen and Harry Johnston, claims that the Akan lived in Yorubaland in modern Nigeria.
From there, they crossed the Mono and Volta rivers and entered the Afram Plains. The Akan later
travelled northwards but turned again southwards to settle in the Pra-Offin basin. From this region,
each Akan group migrated to settle in its present site.