Different Ideas of Borders and Border Construction in Northern Ghana: Historical and Anthropological Perspectives

Casentini, Giulia

doi:10.1353/ghs.2014.0006

Cited by 1 publication

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References 23 publications

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“…Giulia Casentini argues that the ‘concept of space in sub-Saharan Africa has been shaped in distinct and lasting ways by the international and internal political boundaries that the European colonial powers defined’ (Casentini 2014: 177). Most studies of pan-ethnicity, in which kin-related groups increasingly identify as members of a larger group, suggest that this often occurs in response to incorporation into larger political units (such as colonial states), which results in competition for power and resources.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘International chiefs’: chieftaincy, rituals and the reproduction of transborder Ewe ethnic communities on the Ghana–Togo boundary

Adotey¹

2018

Africa

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The issue of ‘alien’ voters in Ghana's electoral politics since the return to multiparty democracy in 1992 points to tensions between local/ethnic identities in culturally demarcated spaces and national identity/citizenship promoted by states. Focusing on the two Ewe-speaking communities of Nyive and Edzi, this article examines the legacies of partition in the aftermath of World War One, when the British and French split the former German colony of Togo between themselves and established new administrations under international oversight. It argues that relationships have changed, specifically from political hegemony to largely ritual practices, and that, though distinct, the two are co-determining. The salience or legitimacy of political authority is sustained by ritual authority, and chiefly authorities invest in these rituals to maintain political authority. These shared ritual practices are important, as they are mobilized to promote a sense of belonging among Ewe communities that straddle state boundaries. This is evident in the phenomenon of ‘international chiefs’, as expressed in continued allegiances of village chiefs in Ghana to senior/paramount chiefs in Togo.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘International chiefs’: chieftaincy, rituals and the reproduction of transborder Ewe ethnic communities on the Ghana–Togo boundary

Adotey¹

2018

Africa

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Different Ideas of Borders and Border Construction in Northern Ghana: Historical and Anthropological Perspectives

Cited by 1 publication

References 23 publications

‘International chiefs’: chieftaincy, rituals and the reproduction of transborder Ewe ethnic communities on the Ghana–Togo boundary

‘International chiefs’: chieftaincy, rituals and the reproduction of transborder Ewe ethnic communities on the Ghana–Togo boundary

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