My Igbo and Ashanti Akan Jamaican slave ancestors Part 2

 

If you have seen my first post you know that I dealt with a lot of information both historical and oral traditions and biblical definitions of the Jamaican slaves. I also covered the oral stories of Hebrews in Africa.

For those who want to read the story of what I found when I took the steps back to retrieve my ancestors past. See the link below.

https://blackhistory938.wordpress.com/2017/06/16/my-igbo-slave-ancestor/

In this post I am going to look at who my African relatives were in Africa. I am going to look at the family names and places of residence. I am also going to explore West African history. This post will focus on Africa which has to include the middle east which really is North East Africa. We will  look at the migration from Israel towards the end of this post. Ancestry DNA have also updated their information and I will be using my updated analysis to find out which tribes I am connected to.

 

Below is a list of surnames of DNA matched distant cousins

Nwokocha a Nigerian Igbo Surname. The surname is from The Bight of Biafra. Bordering Nigeria Cameroon Guinea area.

Nwagou which is from The Bight of Biafra Port Harcourt region with people sharing the name as far as Abuja Igbo 

Onu which is also Nigerian.

Olugbala which is a Nigerian Yoruba surname.

Akinwummi which is a Nigerian Yoruba surname. Found in the Lagos region.

Ageypong which is a Ghanaian Ashanti surname.

Lartey a Ghanian Ga surname.

From the above DNA matches my genetic ties are with the Igbo, Yoruba, Ashanti and Ga.

 Below West African tribes and some connections

 

The below is a map of  the different tribes in Nigeria.

The Yoruba are right next to Benin as are the Hausa Fulani.

This could explain why one of my cousins is matching

the Hausa tribe in the North and Saudi Arabia despite

having no North African DNA.

See DNA below Hausa Fulani??

Ethnicity

Regions: Benin/Togo, Cameroon/Congo, Ivory Coast/Ghana, Ireland

Trace Regions: Africa Southeastern Bantu, Senegal, Nigeria, Europe West, Africa South-Central Hunter-Gatherers, Great Britain, Finland/Northwest Russia,

The below is a copy of of feature from my original post. The below DNA is similar to mine.

The below is from an African American 

Tribe matches for the above were Bantu and Yoruba

Bantu Ke= 0.370 Mandenka= 0.444 
Maasai= 0.130 Yoruba= 0.685 
Maasai= 0.159 Yoruba= 0.662 
O-Ethiop= 0.110 Yoruba= 0.718 Irish= 0.172 

Here is my breakdown below which points at Akan Esan and Yoruba Hausa and Igbo tribal ancestry for me

Population
Nilo_Saharan	1.47 Pct
Ubangian_Congo	1.93 Pct
W_Benue_Congo	58.89 Pct
Eastern_HG	2.17 Pct
E_Benue_Congo	25.56 Pct
Omotic	2.47 Pct
Southern_HG	2.39 Pct
Western_Semitic	5.12 Pct

 

 This information above is significant because with my research and my ancestry matches DNA I am able to chart which groups of people we are connected to. The sophisticated DNA tests such as DNA tribes and others are picking up the West African connection to the middle east. The areas that my family are connected to mirror what the bible says. 2000 years ago some of my direct ancestors were in Saudi Arabia.

My raw DNA points to ancient Palestine Jordan and Libya.

The test states this about the analysis,

EthioHelix Africa K10 + Palestinian – Palestinian acts as a proxy for Middle Eastern ancestry in this case. Results are currently most meaningful for persons who are a mix of African and Middle Eastern

Population Nilo-Saharan 7.44 Pct East-Africa1 4.65 Pct Mbuti-Pygmy 2.25 Pct Eastern-Bantu 21.41 Pct Khoi-San 3.12 Pct West-Africa 39.04 Pct Hadza 2.69 Pct Biaka-Pygmy 10.73 Pct Palestinian 5.31 Pct Omotic 3.37 Pct

For more background on this see these posts if you haven’t already The Queen of sheba The history of Judah Ouidah Whydah Judeo

Yoruba people below

So far my DNA matches South Sudan Oromo tribes South Somalia Bantu and Yoruba Igbo/Ibo. My cousin is matching Oromo & Hausa Fulani.

Having uploaded my own raw data to Gedmatch my own ancient DNA results show I match the Esan, Igbo Hausa Fulani and  Yoruba tribe.

See below  my Ancient asian DNA

Using 1 population approximation:
1 Gambian @ 4.575696
2 Esan @ 7.768073
3 Yoruba @ 7.768073
4 Mota @ 12.071078
5 Hadza @ 13.417694
6 Masai @ 25.794815
7 Somali @ 46.685955
8 Moroccan @ 80.260406
9 Saharawi @ 81.614891
10 Algerian @ 83.698547
11 Yemeni @ 89.642319
12 Libyan @ 90.041283
13 Egyptian @ 93.023880
14 GoyetQ116 @ 97.088066
15 BedouinA @ 98.755363
16 Jordanian @ 101.344734
17 Syrian @ 102.231903
18 Palestinian @ 102.558189
19 Steppe_IA @ 104.329994
20 Jew_Libyan @ 104.358345

Admix Results (sorted):

#	Population	Percent
1	Sub_Saharan	93.13
2	West_European_Hunter_Gartherer	2.39
3	Natufian	1.95
4	Ancestral_North_Eurasian	1.76
5	Ancestral_South_Eurasian	0.76

Single Population Sharing:

#	Population (source)	Distance
1	Gambian	4.77
2	Esan	8.16
3	Yoruba	8.16
4	Mota	12.59
5	Hadza	14.06
6	Masai	27.1
7	Somali	49.08
8	Moroccan	84.37
9	Saharawi	85.73
10	Algerian	87.94
11	Yemeni	94.4
12	Libyan	94.75
13	Egyptian	97.91
14	GoyetQ116	101.79
15	BedouinA	103.97
16	Jordanian	106.72
17	Syrian	107.67
18	Palestinian	107.97
19	Steppe_IA	109.71
20	Turkmen	109.76

Mixed Mode Population Sharing:

#		Primary Population (source)			Secondary Population (source)			Distance
1		96%	Gambian	+	4%	Steppe_Eneolithic	@	0.67
2		96%	Gambian	+	4%	Steppe_EMBA	@	0.71
3		93.2%	Yoruba	+	6.8%	Steppe_MLBA	@	0.8
4		93.2%	Esan	+	6.8%	Steppe_MLBA	@	0.8
5		96%	Gambian	+	4%	Steppe_MLBA	@	0.89
6		93.3%	Yoruba	+	6.7%	Ukrainian	@	1.07
7		93.3%	Esan	+	6.7%	Ukrainian	@	1.07
8		95.9%	Gambian	+	4.1%	Steppe_IA	@	1.07
9		93.3%	Esan	+	6.7%	Russian	@	1.11
10		93.3%	Yoruba	+	6.7%	Russian	@	1.11
11		93.4%	Yoruba	+	6.6%	Norwegian	@	1.11
12		93.4%	Esan	+	6.6%	Norwegian	@	1.11
13		96%	Gambian	+	4%	Russian	@	1.12
14		96.1%	Gambian	+	3.9%	Estonian	@	1.13
15		96%	Gambian	+	4%	Finnish	@	1.13
16		96.1%	Gambian	+	3.9%	Lithuanian	@	1.13
17		93.4%	Yoruba	+	6.6%	Hungarian	@	1.14
18		93.4%	Esan	+	6.6%	Hungarian	@	1.14
19		93.4%	Yoruba	+	6.6%	Scottish	@	1.14
20		93.4%	Esan	+	6.6%	Scottish	@	1.14

My first ancestry DNA analysis

Estimate

Benin/Togo

40%

Cameroon, Congo, and Southern Bantu Peoples

22%

Ivory Coast/Ghana

12%

Africa Southeastern Bantu

10%

Nigeria

7%

Iberian Peninsula

2%

Senegal

2%

Mali

2%

England, Wales & Northwestern Europe

1%

Ireland/Scotland/Wales

1%

Europe East

1%

The updated version

Ethnicity Estimate

Benin/Togo49%

Cameroon, Congo, and Southern Bantu Peoples34%

Ivory Coast/Ghana11%

England, Wales & Northwestern Europe5%

Mali1%

DNA land analyses my data like this

West African 90%		Lower Niger Valley 74%
		Senegal River Valley 12%
		Mende/Akan 4.1%
West Eurasian 7.8%	Balkan 5.2%
	Northwest European 2.6%
Ambiguous 2.3%

Lower Niger Valley

Includes: Yoruba and Esan in Nigeria and Yoruba in (Nigeria) Ibadan

Senegal River Valley

Includes: Mandenka in Senegal and Gambian in Western Gambia

Mende/Akan

Includes: Mende Sierra_Leone_MSL and Mende in Sierra Leone

Balkan

Includes: Albanian in Albania; Bulgarian in Bulgaria and Greek in (2 sites) Greece

Northwest European

Includes: Scottish Argyll_Bute_GBR and British in England; Icelandic in Iceland; Norwegian in Norway and Orcadian in Orkney Islands

My Raw DNA

Admix Results (sorted):

#	Population	Percent
1	W_African	82.21
2	Wht_Nile_River	8.08
3	NE_European	3.62
4	S_African	2.6
5	Horn_Of_Africa	2.37
6	Mediterranean	0.62
7	Oceanian	0.27
8	Omo_River	0.25

The tribes that  I am connected to are  spread all over

Africa. The African Kingdoms spread across vast areas

in the past.

Over the years there has been endless migrations and

mixing. However many tribes will only have children

with neighbouring tribes. With DNA analysis you can

track the places that your ancestors have been.

 The Hausa are a diverse but culturally homogeneous people based primarily in the Sahelian and Sudanian Daura area of northern Nigeria and southeastern Niger, with significant numbers also living in parts of Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Chad, Togo, Ghana,^[1]Sudan, Gabon and Senegal.

The below shows an African Ancestry DNA certificate which confirms the below person’s Ancestry is from the Hausa Fulani tribe in Cameroon.

 

I decided to explore the possible Saudi Arabia and Yemen connections a little further.

Kuwaiti native population comprises three distinct genetic subgroups of Persian, “city-dwelling” Saudi Arabian tribe, and nomadic “tent-dwelling” Bedouin ancestry. Bedouin subgroup is characterized by presence of 17% African ancestry; it owes it origin to nomadic tribes of the deserts of Arabian Peninsula and North Africa. 

…

Bedouins are “tent-dwelling” nomads who roamed the deserts of Middle East; they epitomize the best adaptation of human life to desert conditions [7]. In much of the Middle East and North Africa, the term Bedouin is used to descriptively differentiate between those (bedu) whose livelihood is based on raising livestock by mainly natural graze and those (hadar) who have an agricultural or urban base [8]. Bedouins are originally desert-dwelling tribes of the Arabian Peninsula and are particularly descendants of (i) those settled in the southwestern Arabia, in the mountains of Yemen; and (ii) those settled in North-Central Arabia. Bedouins started to spread out to surrounding deserts of Middle East (particularly Arabian and Syrian deserts) and North Africa (particularly Sinai Peninsula of Egypt and the Sahara Desert of North Africa) 

…

The mitochondrial haplogroup (indication of maternal ancestry) of the Bedouin participant is determined as L3d1a1a [L3d], that is predominantly seen in West-Central Africa—among the Fulani [13], Chadians [13], Ethiopians [14], Akan people [15], Mozambique [14], and Yemen [14]. Kivisild et al.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213596014001299#bb0015

 

the above extract clearly states that this particular participant is Bedouin and related to the Akan and Fulani. Further research has shown that there are middle eastern people’s who share Ghanaian and Nigerian ancestry generations back. When the first African nomads migrated they went to the East.

 

Now let’s explore this high ancient asian connection

15	BedouinA	103.97
16	Jordanian	106.72
17	Syrian	107.67
18	Palestinian	107.97
19	Steppe_IA	109.71
20	Turkmen	109.7

The region of Palestine is among the earliest sites of human habitation in the world. Archaeological evidence suggests a hunter-gatherer community living a nomadic existence in the region pre-10,000 BCE. In the Early Bronze Age, permanent settlements were founded and agricultural communities developed. Trade was initiated with other regions in the Near East and, because of its location between the cities of Mesopotamia and those of Arabia and Egypt, Palestine became an important trading hub and attracted the attention of Sargon the Great (2334-2279 BCE)

https://www.ancient.eu/palestine/

A study found that the Palestinians, like Jordanians, Syrians, Iraqis, Turks, and Kurds have what appears to be Female-Mediated gene flow in the form of Maternal DNA Haplogroups from Sub-Saharan Africa. Of the 117 Palestinian individuals tested, 15 carried maternal haplogroups that originated in Sub-Saharan Africa. These results are consistent with female migration from eastern Africa into Near Eastern communities within the last few thousand years. There have been many opportunities for such migrations during this period. However, the most likely explanation for the presence of predominantly female lineages of African origin in these areas is that they may trace back to women brought from Africa as part of the Arab slave trade, assimilated into the areas under Arab rule.^[160]

Yorubaland spans the modern day countries of Nigeria, Togo and Benin,

Geophysically, Yoruba land spreads north from the Gulf of Guinea and west from the Niger River into Benin and Togo; In the northern section, Yorubaland begins in the suburbs just west of Lokoja and continues unbroken up to the Ogou tributary of the Mono River in Togo, a distance of around 610 km. In the south, it begins in an area just west of the Benin river occupied by the Ilaje Yorubas and continues uninterrupted up to Porto Novo, a total distance of about 270 km as the crow flies. West of Porto Novo Gbe speakers begin to predominate.

See the below

Four of the major coastal tribes of Western Africa: the Yoruba, Igbo, Akan and the Gaa-Adangbe are dissimilar at a glance and evidently geographic neighbours, but very closely related, when examined at the genetic level.

According to this landmark study, there was a 99.9 percent within-population variance, the between-population variance was less than 0.1 percent. This means that Yorubas, Igbos, Gaa and Akan are 99.9 percent similar.

  http://venturesafrica.com/black-panther-is-just-what-it-is/

 

The Southern part of Nigeria is Biafra. Biafra borders Cameroon. My DNA shows high Benin/ Togo and Cameroon/Congo

Biafra was once in modern day Cameroon.

noun, plural Ibos (especially collectively) Ibo.

1.

a member of an indigenous black people of southeastern Nigeria, renowned as traders and for their art.

2.

the language of the Ibo, a Kwa language.

Igbo people

The Bight of Benin was the Slave Coast. You can see Dahomey and Benin in the map below with Cameroon as it’s neighbour.

The Ebo connection to Benin is further supported by Onyebuechi Amene who states the following;

“ Ebo is a Benin name. It was the Binis that went to Igala and
formed the Igala Royal families that took the name to Igala.”

“ The Ebo family of Isiskre still retain their ancestral Bini
names.”

Those captives who came to the Americas from Ghana and Benin (Dahomey) were those known as Ebo or the Mina tribes. In fact a Mina tribe remains in the Kwara State of Yorubaland and refer to themselves as Igbo-Mina using the original Igbo spelling of the name.

It was the Portuguese Jewish slave traders who began selling Ebo captives from Benin to Ghana where they were used to work the Gold Mines. These traders coined the Ebo as “ Mina tribes “ meaning those destined for El-Mina, a Portuguese word meaning “ The Mines “. El-Mina became central to the slave trade in Ghana.

The most powerful amongst the Ebo(Mina) to arrive in Ghana were those called Ewe.

https://www.africaresource.com/rasta/sesostris-the-great-the-egyptian-hercules/the-greater-igbo-nation-by-ishaq-d-al-sulaimani/comment-page-2/#comment-76198

Most of the slaves of Bight of Benin that hailed from Benin itself were imported to South Carolina (36%), Virginia (23%), Gulf Coast (28%) and Florida (9,8%). The top three picked up a few thousand slaves of this Straits (Florida only received 698 slaves from Bight of Benin).^{[citation needed]} Many of those slaves were imported to Louisiana and Alabama (where was famous the case of Clotilde slave ship, that exported between 110 and 160 slaves from Dahomey to Mobile in 1859, between them to Cudjo Lewis (ca. 1840 – 1935), considered the last person born on African soil to have been enslaved in the United States when slavery was still lawful),^[2] both belonging to the Gulf Coast. It was in Louisiana where her presence was notable. Indeed, between 1719 and 1731, most of the slaves who came to that place came directly from Benin. They were especially Fon,^[3] but many slaves also were of ethnics such as Nago (Yoruba subgroup, although exported mainly by Spanish,^[4] when the Louisiana was Spanish) -, Ewe, and Gen. Many of the slaves imported to the modern United States since Benin were sold by the King of Dahomey, in Whydah.^{[2] [note 1]} However, not all the slaves sold in day-present Benin were of there: Many were of other places, but were captured by Dahomeyan warriors.^[6] The native slaves from current Benin came from places as Porto-Novo, from where were brought to the port of Ouidah, place in the that was realized the slave shopping. This place brought many slaves

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beninese_Americans

This area is highlighted in my DNA. See my region results of that area below.

Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa personal account of a slave

That part of Africa known by the name of Guinea, to which the trade for slaves is carried on, extends along the coast above 3400 miles, from the Senegal to Angola, and includes a variety of kingdoms. Of these the most considerable is the kingdom of Benin, both as to extent and wealth, the richness and cultivation of the soil, the power of its king, and the number and warlike disposition of the inhabitants. It is situated nearly under the line, and extends along the coast about 170 miles, but runs back into the interior part of Africa to a distance hitherto I believe unexplored by any traveller; and seems only terminated at length by the empire of Abyssinia, near 1500 miles from its beginning.

This kingdom is divided into many provinces or districts: in one of the most remote and fertile of which, called Eboe, I was born in the year 1745 in a charming fruitful vale named Essaka. The distance of this province from the capital of Benin and the sea coast must be very considerable, for I had never heard of white men or Europeans, nor of the sea: and our subjection to the king of Benin was little more than nominal; for every transaction of the government, as far as my slender observation extended, was conducted by the chiefs or elders of the place.

 

The Kingdom of Whydah /ˈhwɪdə, ˈhwɪdˌɔː/ (Yoruba: Xwéda; French: Ouidah) was a kingdom on the coast of West Africa in the boundaries of the modern nation of Benin. Between 1677 and 1681 it was conquered by the Akwamu, one of the Akan people.^[1] It was a major slave trading post. In 1700, it had a coastline of around 16 kilometres (10 mi);^[2] under King Haffon, this was expanded to 64 km (40 mi), and stretching 40 km (25 mi) inland.^[3]

The name Whydah (also spelt Hueda, Whidah, Ouidah, Whidaw, and Juda^[4]) is an anglicised form of Xwéda (pronounced o-wi-dah), from the Yoruba language of Benin. Today the port city of Ouidah bears the kingdom’s name; it is in the far west of the former Popo Kingdom and is where most of the European slave traders lived and worked.

Whidah is also spelt Juda (spoken as Jew-dah/ Yahudah) see the below for historical evidence.

(Scholars state whydah is a bird but I propose another meaning to the name)

Whydah (also spelt Hueda, Whidah, Ouidah, Whidaw, and Juda^[4]

See strongs 3063

3063 [e]

וִֽיהוּדָ֔ה wî-hū-ḏāh,

and Judah

wî·hū·ḏāh = Juda

Englishman’s Concordance

wî·hū·ḏāh — 47 Occurre  nces

Genesis 35:23 
HEB: וְשִׁמְעוֹן֙ וְלֵוִ֣י וִֽיהוּדָ֔ה וְיִשָּׂשכָ֖ר וּזְבוּלֻֽן׃
KJV: and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar,

See strongs 5912

5912 [e]

עָכָ֗ן ‘ā-ḵān,

Achan

ā·ḵān ►

Englishman’s Concordance ‘ā·ḵān — 6 OccurrencesJoshua 7:1  HEB: בַּחֵ֑רֶם וַיִּקַּ֡ח עָכָ֣ן בֶּן־ כַּרְמִי֩ NAS: under the ban, for Achan, the son KJV: in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son INT: to the things took Achan the son of Carmi https://biblehub.com/hebrew/achan_5912.htm

ACHAN a’-kan (`akhan (in 1 Chronicles 2:7 Achar, `akhar, “troubler”): The descendant of Zerah the son of Judah.

(Joshua 7).

Asante and Akan Kingdoms

    Travelling North from Congo you have Guinea Gabon Cameroon Biafra Benin Nigeria Togo Ghana which brings you to the Gold and Slave Coast.

The Ashanti are believed to descend from Abyssinians, who were pushed south by the Egyptian forces.^[4][5]

Abyssinian people (Ge’ez: ሐበሻይት), also known as the Habesha or Abesha, are a population inhabiting the Horn of Africa.

Members’ cultural, linguistic, and in certain cases, ancestral origins trace back to the Kingdom of Dʿmt (usually vocalized Diʿamat) and the Kingdom of Aksum.^[3] Scholars have classified the Amhara and the Tigreans as Abyssinians proper.^[4] The Ge’ez speaking people, minimally affected by Sabaean influence, formed the ethnic and cultural stock for both the pre-Axumite and Axumite states.^[5][6] Ge’ez, which is closely related to Tigrinyaand Tigre, is also believed to be the ancestor of the diverse southern Ethiopian Semitic languages including Amharic.^[7][8] Together, the Amhara and Tigray constitute over 33% of Ethiopia‘s population (c. 27 million Amhara, 6.1 million Tigray).^[9][10]

End

FANTE people above

My paternal line shared African Ethnicity 

 

Match 1 

Regions: Ivory Coast/Ghana, Cameroon/Congo, 

Trace Regions:   Benin/Togo,

 

Match 2

 Ga tribe Accra my family lineage

 

Regions: Ivory Coast/Ghana, Benin/Togo

Trace Regions: Africa Southeastern Bantu, Mali

The updated version of Ancestry for this cousin match

Regions: Ivory Coast/Ghana, Benin/Togo, Mali

 

 

 

 

Immediately above in bold my Ghanian cousins DNA whose surname is an Ashanti Akan surname. From the 2 DNA matches above I can see that in my Father’s family line is Ivory Coast/Ghana & Benin/Togo. 

GHANAIAN DNA sample below

In my DNA matches I have Quartey and Lartey Surnames which are Ghanian Akan Ga Dangme 

See the below brief history

The GaDangmes of Ghana are believed to be related by blood to the Igbos of Nigeria.  However, in his book, GA HOMOWO, Charles Nii Ammah (1982) stated that according to oral tradition, the Ga believe they migrated from Israel.  Ammah suggested that the Ga people are descendants of Cush (Benjamin) from the twelfth tribe of Israel.  He contends that the Ga people were really ‘JEWS’ who migrated from “Egypt” and settled on the land they now occupy.

http://gadangme.weebly.com/ga-dangme-origins.html

King Ayi Kushi: the Revered Spiritual and Political Leader.
Ayi Kushi was a revered political and spiritual ruler who is credited with the formation of the Gá State. His son, Ayitey, is said to have marched with the Gá, Dangmes, Obutus, and Awutus to establish the inland kingdom of Ayawaso. The kingdom of Ayawaso’s capital was Okaikoi. Osudoku, at the time, was the epicentre of Dangme culture. Ayi Kushi is described as an illustrious and astute leader, and law-giver who united the Gá-Dangme into a powerful tribe; and set the precedent for the diplomatic and conquering activities of later Gá kings. To strengthen the Gá state, Ayi Kushi encouraged intermarriage between Gás, Dangmes, Akyems, Awutus, Akwapims and Obutus.

https://www.thegadangme.com/ga-mantsemei-list-and-short-descriptions/

The Ga are descended from immigrants who came down the Niger River and across the Volta during the 17th century. The Ga-speaking peoples were organized into six independent towns (Accra, Osu, Labadi, Teshi, Nungua, and Tema). Each town had a stool, which served as the central object of Ga ritual and war magic. Accra became the most prominent Ga town and is now the capital of Ghana.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ga

Kings of the Ga State

Nii Ayi Kushi (Cush)                                 1510- 1535)                    He led the GaDangmes
to Ayawaso in Ghana.                                                                      Nii Ayite                                                         1535 -1560

Nii Koi Nalai                                                 1560 – 1585

Owura Mampong Okai                               1585- 1610Queen Dode (Dodi) Akaibi                         1610 – 1636          She was said to have reigned with tyranny.

Nii Okaikoi                                                  1635 – 1660

 

The Lartey area and people of Ghana and their history extract from http://www.easternchiefs.org/akuapem/

• The following 17 principal towns form the Akuapem state, 
  1. Berekuso
  2. Atweasing
  3. Aburi
  4. Ahwerase
  5. Asantema (Obosomase)
  6. Tutu
  7. Mampong
  8. Abotakyi
  9. Amanokurom
  10. Mamfe
  11. Akropong
  12. Abiriw
  13. Odawu,
  14. Awukugua
  15. Adukrom
  16. Apirede 
  17. Larteh.

The story of Larteh Akuapem cannot be told in isolation without a little about the Guans, Ga or Accra, Akyem and Akwamu history.

The indigenous inhabitants on the Akuapem Mountains are the Guans which consists of Larteh (comprising Larteh, Mamfe, Abotakyi, Mampong, Obosomase, and Tutu) and the OKERE or Kyerepong (Comprising Abiriw, Dawu, Awukugua, Adukrom, Apirede, Abonse-Asesieso).

Larteh lies on parallel ridge to the east on the Akonnobepow, while the rest of the towns lie in line along the crest of the main ridge on Bewasebepow.

…

Legend has it that the founding fathers of Larteh carried with them flint stone to ignite fire, and for this reason the La who traveled from Boni on the Niger Delta fraternized with the Larteh during their journey along the beach.

The people of Larteh, Kpeshie and La originated from the Les who originally occupied the coast before the arrival of the Gá; The La are closely related to the Larteh, the people of Gbese, the Agotimes and the original inhabitants of Osu. However, the oral traditions of the La suggest that their people were part of the original Gá, and that the town was in fact founded by descendants of a brother of Ayi Kushi; hence in constitutional matters the La Mantse deputises for the Gá Mantse in all issues affecting the Gá polity.

After briefly settling at Ayawaso the La seems to have re-located to Ladoku and from thence to Podoku. The Las, under Adjei Onano and Numo Ngmashie his great chief, appear to have been granted land by the king of Nungua who owned all the land between Nungua and Osu; the grant was against the expressed wishes of Borketey Larweh, the priest of Nungua. After a dispute over water rights and alleged murder of a La princess, the Labadis proposed to have a hand each cut off from Sowa, the high priest and Borketey Larweh. After Borketey Larweh’s hand had been cut off the La reneged on their part of the bargain; as a result, Borketey Larweh is said to have vanished into the sea.

Various traditions indicate that Teshie was founded by Nii Mgmashie, a nephew of the mankralo of Labadi. The town soon attracted other Gá-Dangme peoples, including Aseres, Nunguas, Krobos, Obutus, Pramprams. It therefore grew to become one of the principal Gá-Dangme towns.

Due to their location Tema and Kpone tended to feature less prominently in Gá-Dangme history and politics than their present importance suggests. A considerable early presence of Les in the vicinity of Tema was overlain by immigrant Gá and Dangme peoples. Although Kpone is a Dangme town it appears to be more influenced than other Dangme towns by Gá language and culture. With the re-location of people of Tema New Town on Kpone traditional lands it appears that the future of Tema and Kpone is intertwined.

The main Ga goup known as the Tumgwa We led by Ayi Kushie arrived by sea. When the Guans (Lartehs) on the coast saw them on their canoes on sea they looked like ants. Hence the Lartehs refer to them as Nkran (ants). Nkran was later corrupted by the Danes to Akra then to present day Accra. Nkran in the Ga language is Gaga, thus they also started calling themselves Ga. Due to their sheer numbers, the Lartehs thus relocated to the Hills. The Ga are also part of the main Guan group that started the initial migration from the Nubia Empire.

The Guan speaking people live mostly in Ghana though there are some pockets in Togo, Benin and Cote D’Ivoire. Modern historians more or less agree that since time immemorial the Guans have been the original inhabitants of Ghana, because unlike the Akan who arrived from Bouna in the north west, the Ewe from Notsie in Togo in about 1720, the Ga-Adangbe from certain parts in Nigeria and the Mossie-Dagomba group of state who emigrated from the north-east ,the Guans, on the other hand, migrated from nowhere thus Ghana is the ancestral homeland of the Guans. Another school of thought is that the Guans migrated from Israel through Nubia in East Africa to the west of Africa with their capital at Timbuktu.

Even the pockets of the Guans in Togo (The Anyanga), those In Benin (The Gbede, Wese, Okomfo) and the Baule In Cote D’Ivoire claim migrant origin from Ghana. There are numerous studies, which support Guans claim to their autochonous (i.e. aboriginal) status. There is a factual information provided by Professor Adu Boahene who says; neither the Akan nor the Ga-Adangbe found the coastal district of Ghana unoccupied.

Above the Gbawe Kwatei Head of family, Nii Adam Kwatei Quartey

Quarteys’ all over the world are descendants of the Royal Family of Kpakpatse We clan of the Asεrε group of the Ga speaking people, which is one of the seven quarters (Akutséii) that constituted the Ashiedu Kεtεkε District within the Odododiodioo Constituency of the Ga Mashie Community in Accra. The Asεrε group of people comprises of five different clans which relocated to the coastal settlements of Little Akra (Ga Mashie) after the destruction of Great Akra (Ayawaso) by the Akwamus in the early Sixteen Century.

https://kpakpatseweroyalfamily.wordpress.com/2011/06/18/origin-of-the-ga-people-in-ghana/

Nanny of the Maroons

Nanny was born into the Ashanti tribe about 1686 in what is now Ghana, West Africa.^[4] It is believed that some of her family members were involved in intertribal conflict and her village was captured. Nanny and several relatives were sold as slaves and transported to Jamaica. There she was likely sold to a plantation in Saint Thomas Parish, just outside the Port Royal area. The commodity crop was sugarcane, and the slaves toiled under extremely harsh conditions to cultivate, harvest and process it. Another version of her life tells that she was of royal African blood and came to Jamaica as a free woman. She may have been married to a man named Adou, but had no known children who survived.^[3]

As a child, Nanny was influenced by other slave leaders and maroons. She and her “brothers”, Accompong, Cudjoe and Quao, ran away from their plantation and hid in the Blue Mountains area of northern Saint Thomas Parish.^[4] While in hiding, they split up to organize more Maroon communities across Jamaica: Cudjoe went to Saint James Parish and organized a village, which was later named Cudjoe Town; Accompong settled in Saint Elizabeth Parish, in a community that came to be known as Accompong Town;^[6] and Nanny and Quao founded communities in Portland Parish.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanny_of_the_Maroons

I did not realise that my maroon ancestor was from the same parish in Jamaica as Nanny of the maroons, St Thomas in the East until I re read the information. My maroon ancestor would have surely heard the legacy of Nanny of the Maroons as there were 70 years maximum between them. The stories of some of the Ashanti being in the mountains would have been alive at the time of my ancestor. It is quite possible the Maroons came and released my ancestor and others as this is what they did on many occasions. They released the slaves took them with them, took food and guns and sometimes killed the slave masters and burnt down their buildings before leaving. Nanny’s oral history is that her village was captured during war.  Below we will explore accounts of the Ashanti wars.

Below before we look at the Ashanti I have posted a short clip on the African female warriors.

Below from https://amazingbibletimeline.com/blog/ashanti-empire-trade-slaves-guns/

The Rise of the Ashanti Empire

During the 1670s, groups of Akan people from northern Ghana escaped strife in their homeland and flocked to the fertile region around Kumasi. Two of the most powerful clans that migrated to Kumasi were the Bretuo and the Oyoko. At that time, however, the refugees were forced to submit to the powerful Denkyira nation.To assure the Denkyira of his people’s submission, the Oyoko chief Obiri Yeboa sent his nephew Osei Tutu to live with and serve them.

Osei Tutu served as a shield bearer to Boa Amponsem, the chief of the Denkyira. He later fled to the territory of the Akwamu because of the cruelty of the people he served. He worked for the Akwamu chief and quickly rose to prominence there. He also befriended the priest Okomfo Anokye who soon became his firm ally. His uncle, chief Obiri Yeboa, later died in battle, so Osei Tutu was summoned back to his homeland to rule. He continued the conquests made by his uncle and even subdued other groups of Akan people in the area.

Osei Tutu, with the help of Okomfo Anokye and his Akwamu allies, slowly built the Ashanti kingdom. During the 1690s, Osei Tutu and his people declared their independence from the Denkyira. Full-scale war flared out between the Denkyira and the Ashanti in 1699, but the Ashanti emerged victorious in 1701 in the Battle of Feyiase.  

End

In their struggle against the suzerain state of Denkyera and lesser neighbouring states, the Asante people made little headway until the accession, probably in the 1670s, of Osei Tutu. After a series of campaigns that crushed all opposition, he was installed as Asantehene, or king of the new Asante state, whose capital was named Kumasi. His authority was symbolized by the Golden Stool, on which all subsequent kings were enthroned.

From the beginning of the 18th century, the Asante supplied slaves to British and Dutch traders on the coast; in return they received firearms with which to enforce their territorial expansion. After the death of Osei Tutu in either 1712 or 1717, a period of internal chaos and factional strife was ended with the accession of Opoku Ware (ruled c. 1720–50), under whom Asante reached its fullest extent in the interior of the country. Kings Osei Kwadwo (ruled c. 1764–77), Osei Kwame (1777–1801), and Osei Bonsu (c. 1801–24) established a strong centralized state, with an efficient, merit-based bureaucracy and a fine system of communications.

In 1807 Osei Bonsu occupied southern Fante territory—an enclave around British headquarters at Cape Coast; in the same year, Great Britain outlawed the slave trade. Declining trade relations and disputes over the Fante region caused friction over the following decade and led to warfare in the 1820s. The Asante defeated a British force in 1824 but made peace in 1831 and avoided conflict for the next 30 years.

In 1863, under Kwaku Dua (ruled 1834–67), the Asante again challenged the British by sending forces to occupy the coastal provinces. In 1869 the British took possession of Elmina (over which Asante claimed jurisdiction), and in 1874 an expeditionary force under Sir Garnet Wolseley marched on Kumasi. Though Wolseley managed to occupy the Asante capital for only one day, the Asante were shocked to realize the inferiority of their military and communications systems. The invasion, moreover, sparked numerous secessionary revolts in the northern provinces. The old southern provinces were formally constituted the Gold Coast colony by the British later in 1874. Asante’s king Kofi Karikari was then deposed, and Mensa Bonsu (ruled 1874–83) assumed power. He attempted to adapt the agencies of Asante government to the changed situation. Although he reorganized the army, appointed some Europeans to senior posts, and increased Asante resources, he was prevented from restoring Asante imperial power by the British political agents, who supported the northern secessionist chiefs and the opponents of central government in Kumasi. The empire continued to decline under his successor, Prempeh I (acceded 1888), during whose reign, on January 1, 1902, Asante was formally declared a British crown colony, the former northern provinces being on the same day separately constituted the Protectorate of the Northern Territories of the Gold Coast.

https://www.britannica.com/place/Asante-empire

 

Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie and usually spelled Kumase in Twi)^[3] is a city in Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is near Lake Bosomtwe, in a rain forest region, and is the commercial, industrial and cultural capital ofAsanteman. Kumasi is approximately 500 kilometres (300 mi) north of the Equator and 200 kilometres (100 mi) north of the Gulf of Guinea. Kumasi is alternatively known as “The Garden City” because of its many beautiful species of flowers and plants. It is also called Oseikrom (Osei Tutu’s town). Kumasi is described as Ghana’s second city.^[4]

AsantemanEdit

Kings Way Road in Kumasi, 1925.

The city rose to prominence in 1695 when it became capital of the Ashanti Confederacy due to the activities of its ruler Osei Tutu. The ruler of Kumasi, known as the Asantehene, also served as ruler of the Confederacy. With their 1701 victory over Denkyira the Asante confederacy became the primary state among the Ashantis.^[5]Parts of the city, including the then royal residence, were destroyed by British troops in the Third Anglo-Ashanti War of 1874.

The Kwa people of Africa include the Ga-Dangbe, Ewe, Akwapim, Fanti, Kwahu, and Akim and Ashanti.

This totally matches what I have found through my DNA analysis. This is is why in my posts you see me looking at Ga Ewe Akan Fanti and Ashanti and Ibo DNA and seeing that I match them. We are the KWA Niger Congo Bantu Afro Asiatic family. It is known but not publicised that the Bantu expanded from Cameroon/Congo to populate the South and North of Africa.

 

Between the 10th and 12th centuries AD the ethnic Akan people migrated into the forest belt of Southern Ghana and established several Akan states:

• Ashanti The Ashanti Region is known for its major gold bar and cocoa production. The largest city and regional capital is Kumasi.

• Brong-Ahafo,
• Assin-Denkyira-Fante Confederacy–Mankessim Kingdom (present-day Central region)
• Akyem–Akwamu–Akuapem–Kwahu (present-day Eastern region and Greater Accra), and
• Ahanta–Aowin–Sefwi–Wassa (present-day Western region).

Before the Ashanti Kingdom had contact with Europeans, it had a flourishing trade with other African states due to the Ashanti gold wealth. Trade with European states began after contact with the Portuguese in the 15th century AD.^[6] When the gold mines in the Sahel started to play out, the Ashanti Kingdom rose to prominence as the major player in the gold trade.^[5] At the height of the Ashanti Kingdom, the Ashanti people became wealthy through the trading of gold mined from their territory.^[5]

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

Ewe People also known as Evê can be found in Ghana, Togo, Benin, some parts of Nigeria and Ivory Coast, they are part of the Gbe Speaking People and related to the Fon, Mina and Aja people.  According to Professor Amenumey he claimed they originally came from Ketu in Dahomey See this link for the original post Ewe People of Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Benin and Ivory Coast

The Ewes moved into the area which is now Togo from the Niger river valley between the 12th and 14th centuries. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Portuguese explorers and traders visited the coast. For the next 200 years, the coastal region was a major raiding center for Europeans in search of slaves, earning Togo and the surrounding region the name “The Slave Coast.”

http://www.worldrover.com/history/togo_history.htmlp

The Gbe languages (pronounced [ɡbè])^[2] form a cluster of about twenty related languages stretching across the area between eastern Ghana and western Nigeria. The total number of speakers of Gbe languages is between four and eight million. The most widely spoken Gbe language is Ewe (3 million speakers in Ghana and Togo), followed by Fon (1.7 million, mainly in Benin). The Gbe languages were traditionally placed in the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo languages, but more recently have been classified as Volta–Niger languages. They include five major dialect clusters: Ewe, Fon, Aja, Gen (Mina), and Phla–Pherá.

The Ghanaian diet and staple foods below

I see where Jamaicans get their style of cooking. The above collage could be Jamaican or West Indian.

Coromantee (derived from the name of the Ghanaian coastal town “Kormantse”), also called Coromantins, Coromanti or Kormantine was the English name given to Akan slaves from the Gold Coast or modern-day Ghana. The term Coromantee is now considered archaic as it simply refers to Akan people, and was primarily used in the Caribbean. Coromantins actually came from several Akan ethnic groups – Ashanti, Fanti, Akyem, etc. – presumably taken as war captives. Owing to their militaristic background and common Akan language, Coromantins organized dozens of slave rebellions in Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean. Their fierce, rebellious nature became so notorious among white plantation owners in the 18th century that an Act was proposed to ban the importation of people from the Gold Coast despite their reputation as strong workers. The Akans had the single largest African cultural influence on Jamaica, including Jamaican Maroons whose culture and language was seen as a derivation of Akan.Names of some notable Coromantee leaders such as Cudjoe, Quamin, Cuffy, and Quamina correspond to Akan day names Kojo, Kwame, Kofi, and Kwabena, respectively.

Ghana Rising: Coromantee : The Akan Warriors of the New World….

Read more: http://www.city-data.com/forum/americas/1588182-african-country-does-jamaica-have-lot-5.html#ixzz5PfAuAkmp

Now that I have gained a general understanding of the back ground of these ancestors, I will begin to dig deeper into their tribes. Since doing my DNA test ancestry DNA have further developed their DNA technology. The updates point to me being completely of Akan descent.

 

As we have established the Ewe and Ga tribes are part of the Niger Congo Kwa Akan language group.

On the below map the Akan are again shown to be part of the Niger Congo people’s, Kwa and Volta Congo.

The above puts the Ga subgroup right in the heart of Accra. This map reflects my findings on my Akan ancestors who were almost certainely from western Ghana. Research suggests my DNA is reflective of the Ga Ewe and Ashanti living in and near Accra.

Below is the Ghanaian region identified in my DNA.

Records and DNA analysis indicate that some of my ancestors were from Accra.

See my below results. My ancestors seem to be from this South west region and also further to the East.

Earlier I mentioned having a DNA match with the surname Ageypong which is a Ashanti surname. Some of my ancestors were from the area above, especially Akropong and Larteh.

Now let’s briefly explore the ancient history of the Akans

ancient egyptians and the akana people – ResearchGate

DOC https://www.researchgate.net › links › Ak…

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The descendants of Ancient Egyptians (Akans) and the Assyrians (Assin) are currently living in the African continent. … Those Akan groups and some of the present day smaller tribes, who form minorities in West Africa as a whole, all wandered from the Ancient civilisations in the Mesopotamia and the Ancient world.

Akan people – Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Akan_p…

---

The Akan are a meta-ethnicity predominantly speaking Central Tano languages and residing in the southern regions of the former ... They migrated from the north, they went through Egypt and settled in Nubia (Sudan).

Ghana: 12 million

Ivory Coast: 9 million

End

Now we will look at where North Mesopatamia  and the ancient world was.

The above shows according to Akan history they were from the dark area above.

DNA tribe analysis and oral tradition suggest the migration patterns below 1000-2000 years ago.

The below is a migration pattern for Nigeria and Cameroon descendant using DNA. Accra is right next to the blue marker Lagos. The continent had not yet been divided as it is today.

Other tribes like the Ga took the below pattern

Below is a picture of the area in South Sudan that is identified in my DNA  from my actual results.

In the South of Sudan in the same region live a tribe called the Azande tribe.

The Azande people and Congo people are neighbours and probably have the same ancestors .

Azande people

Congo people

 

DNA analysis of West Africans

For the next part we will look briefly at historical and biblical factors.

“The whole region that includes what the Bible calls the Land of Canaan, Palestine and Israel was an extension of the African mainland before it was artificially divided from the main African continent by the manmade Suez Canal.

Second World War correspondents introduced the new name Middle-East for the portion of the land separated from the African mainland.
Before the Second World War the whole region now called Middle-East was known as North-Eastern Africa.

Ancient wagons in the Bible journeyed from these regions to the mainland of Africa on foot (Gen 46:5-7).
Historians Flavius Josephus, Celus, Plutarch, Tacitus, Eusebius, and Diodorus confirm that the original Hebrew were a group of Ethiopians and Egyptians who were forced to leave Egypt and migrate with their caravans on foot to this Land which Canaan ruled, a Land of Africans in North-Eastern Africa.
This is the Land of Africa where Abraham lived for 10 years and married Hagar the Egyptian (Gen 15: 3).
The borders of this land that Canaan and his African descendants lived in and ruled, according to the Bible (Gen 10: 19), extended “from Sidon as thou comest to Gerar unto Gaza and goest unto Sodom and Gomorrah and Admah and Zoboim, even unto Lasha.”
This is the land that was known as North-Eastern Africa.”

https://www.thepatriot.co.zw/old_posts/african-countries-in-the-bible-let-the-maps-speak/

See possible Ashan above close to Beersheba

Ashan Achan Achar Akan??? Ashanti??

ASHAN PEOPLE

Below evidence of  black people in Arabia.

Below 1813 Arabia

Sixteen Views of Places in the Persian Gulph… Forces… Against the Arabian Pirates No 3. Muskat from the Harbour – Apr 1813 Temple, R Clark, … | Arab dho…

Sixteen Views of Places in the Persian Gulph… Forces… Against the Arabian Pirates No 3. Muskat from the Harbour – Apr 1813 Temple, R Clark, I William Haines, William

Click this link below to watch an afro palestinian confirm the above information. West African “Negros” blacks were in Palestine for thousands of years. Some of those that moved to West Africa were sold into slavery.

https://youtu.be/yHz7CbOxTV8

 

Below is from bible hub

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ASHAN

a’-shan (`ashan): An unknown site in the domain of Judah (Joshua 15:42), possessed by Simeon (Joshua 19:7), and mentioned among the priests’ cities in 1 Chronicles 6:59. (44) = Joshua 21:16(`ayin is a corruption of `ashan). Chorashan (or Borashan), which was probably the site of some reservoir in the Southwest part of Judah (1 Samuel 30:30), is the same as Ashan.

6228. Ashan — a place in Judah and later in Simeon
… 6227, 6228. Ashan. 6229 . a place in Judah and later in Simeon. Transliteration:
Ashan Phonetic Spelling: (aw-shawn’) Short Definition: Ashan. …
/hebrew/6228.htm – 6k

953b. Bor Ashan — “smoking pit,” a place in Judah
Bor Ashan. 953a, 953b. Bor Ashan. 954 . “smoking pit,” a place in Judah.
Transliteration: Bor Ashan Short Definition: Bor-ashan. …
/hebrew/953b.htm – 5k

Strong’s Hebrew

Achar. Achan is probably called Achar, from the trouble he occasioned.

Joshua 7:1-5 But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: …

Achan.
accursed.

Deuteronomy 7:26 Neither shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you …

Achan(troubler), an Israelite of the tribe of Judah, who, when Jericho and all that it contained were accursed and devoted to destruction, secreted a portion of the spoil in his tent. For this sin he was stoned to death with his whole family by the people, in a valley situated between Ai and Jericho, and their remains, together with his property, were burnt. (Joshua 7:19-26) From this event the valley received the name of Achor (i.e. trouble). [ACHOR, VALLEY OF] (B.C. 1450.)

ACHANa’-kan (`akhan (in 1 Chronicles 2:7 Achar, `akhar, “troubler”): The descendant of Zerah the son of Judah who was put to death, in Joshua’s time, for stealing some of the “devoted” spoil of the city of Jericho (Joshua 7). The stem `akhan is not used in Hebrew except in this name. The stem `akhar has sufficient use to define it. It denotes trouble of the most serious kind-Jacob’s trouble when his sons had brought him into blood feud with his Canaanite neighbors, or Jephthah’s trouble when his vow required him to sacrifice his daughter (Genesis 34:30 Judges 11:35).

https://biblehub.com/topical/a/achan.htm

The Ghanian Slave forts below

 

 

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