Etymology
Kente cloth has its origin with the Akan people. It is a royal and sacred cloth worn only in times of extreme importance and was the cloth of kings. Over time, the use of kente became more widespread. However, its importance has remained and it is held in high esteem in the Akan family and the entire Akanland.
In Ghana, kente is made by the indigenes Akan people (including the Asante, Bono, Fante, Nzema and a dozen of other Akan sub-groups). Kente is also produced by Akan groups in Cote d'Ivoire, such as the Baoule and Anyin, which trace their ancestry back to Ghana before the rise of the Empire of Ashanti. Lastly, Kente is worn by other groups in Central Africa and the African diaspora who have been influenced by Akans. It is the best known of all African textiles. Kente comes from the word kenten in Akan language, which means basket. The Akan peoples refer to kente as nwentoma or woven cloth.
The icon of African cultural heritage around the world, Akan Kente is identified by its dazzling, multicolored patterns of bright colors, geometric shapes, and bold designs. Akan Kente characterized by weft designs woven into every available block of plain weave is called adweneasa. The Asante peoples of Akanland choose kente cloths as much for their names as their colors and patterns. Although the cloths are identified primarily by the patterns found in the lengthwise (warp) threads, there is often little correlation between appearance and name. Names are derived from several sources, including proverbs, Akan historical events, Akan important chiefs, Akan queen mothers, and plants.
The Akan sub-group Ndyuka and other Maroon peoples of Suriname in South America are the descendants of people who were brought from the Akan Gold Coast region in Africa as slaves after the mid-1600s and who escaped to live in the forests of the interior, eventually obtaining the right of self-government from the colonial powers. The Pangi cloth made by the Maroons is a cotton fabric with multi-colored vertical and horizontal stripes, similar to the Akan Kente cloth.
Read more about this topic: Kente Cloth
Famous quotes containing the word etymology:
“The universal principle of etymology in all languages: words are carried over from bodies and from the properties of bodies to express the things of the mind and spirit. The order of ideas must follow the order of things.”
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“Semantically, taste is rich and confusing, its etymology as odd and interesting as that of “style.” But while style—deriving from the stylus or pointed rod which Roman scribes used to make marks on wax tablets—suggests activity, taste is more passive.... Etymologically, the word we use derives from the Old French, meaning touch or feel, a sense that is preserved in the current Italian word for a keyboard, tastiera.”
—Stephen Bayley, British historian, art critic. “Taste: The Story of an Idea,” Taste: The Secret Meaning of Things, Random House (1991)