Overview

This is a brief introduction to the history of Elmina, its castle, the people, and their traditions. It outlines the town's 500-year relations with Europeans, highlighting the transformations that have developed out of these interactions. Written by one of the top historians of Ghana and a leading scholar of the African diaspora, the book is based on original archival information and orally-derived sources. It is also richly informed by the writer's own personal knowledge as a Nyampa Safohen and citizen of Elmina. Despite the tremendous changes engendered by the European contact, Elmina's historical development demonstrates an amazing degree of cultural continuity and resilience in its political institutions, social organization, economic systems and worldview.

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9789988550967

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Reviews

. . . it illuminates the town's remarkable historical trajectory of growth and advancement to become the first modern metropolis in West Africa, for which it was dubbed Aborekyir Kaakra ('Little Europe'). - Dr. Nana Ato Arthur, Head, Office of the Head of Local Government Service, Accra, Ghana, Former District Chief Executive, KEEA. Professor Adjaye not only shows an astonishing depth of knowledge . . .; he also lends such fresh and rare perspectives to Elmina's history of interactions with Europeans as well as its dynamic culture as only a son of the soil is capable of providing. - Professor Robert Addo-Fening, formerly of the History Department, University of Ghana, Legon. This compelling book on Elmina is a 'must-read' for tourists, basic, secondary and tertiary institutions, as well as individuals interested in the dynamics of social transformation. - Dr. Brigid Maa Sackey, Professor of Anthropology, University of Ghana, Legon.

Author Information

Dr. Joseph K. Adjaye is Emeritus Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Pittsburgh, USA, and Professor of History at the University of Ghana, Legon. He was educated at St. Augustine's College (Cape Coast), the University of Ghana (Legon) and Northwestern University (Evanston, USA). He previously held teaching and administrative positions at St. John's School (Sekondi), Asanteman Secondary School (Kumasi), University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign), the University of Wisconsin (Madison), and the University of Pittsburgh where he was Director of African Studies for over 10 years. Author of six books and dozens of articles and book chapters on African history and the diaspora, Adjaye has given over 400 invited lectures in cities and at campuses throughout the world and is a recipient of numerous prestigious awards including Fulbrights, National Endowment for the Humanities and Hewlett.

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