Ten (10) Facts About Kumasi

10 Facts About Kumasi

  1. 1. Kumasi is the second biggest city in Ghana and it’s the Ashanti Regional capital.
  2. 2. The name Kumasi is derived from the Twi language, meaning ‘under the Kum tree’. Around the end of the 17th century, the Asante Kingdom chief fetish Priest Anokye Komfuo planted three kum trees at different places: one at Kwaaman, ruled by the Nananom Ayokofuo; a second one at Apemso-Bankofo, ruled by Nananom Aduanafuo; and a third at a village near Fomena and Amoafo called Oboani, which was ruled by Nananom Ɛkoɔnafuo. Komfuo wanted to see which of these would become a great city for the kingdom, as he was directed by the oracles. The kum tree at Kwaaman flourished so vigorously that the King and his people often sat underneath, and so Kwaaman became Kum-ase, meaning ‘under kum’.
  3. 3. Kumasi was established by the King Osei Tutu I with guidance from the priest Okomfo Anokye at the end of the 17th century.

  4. 4. Parts of the city, including the Royal Palace, known as Manhyia, were destroyed by British troops in the Third Anglo-Ashanti War of 1874.
  5. 5. The city holds an important place in the history of the Ashanti people, as legend claims that it was here Okomfo Anokye received the golden stool, an embodiment of the soul of the Ashanti nation.

  6. 6. Prior to the British colonisation, Kumasi was the capital of one of the greatest civilizations of Africa – the Ashanti Empire.
  7. 7. Kumasi is also widely known as “The Garden City” of West Africa due to its beautiful species of flowers and plants.
  8. 8. Queen Elizabeth II of England gave Kumasi the name Garden City of Africa when she visited the area in the 1960s because of the varied plant life in the area.
  9. 9. Kumasi is located in the south-central part of Ghana, about 250 km from Accra.
  10. 10. The Kumasi Fort and Military Museum are one of few military museums in the whole of Africa. It was built in 1820 by the Asantehene Osei Tutu Kwamina.

Source: Ghana The Black Star Of Africa

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