What's your favourite Adinkra symbol?

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Screenshot of hand-painted Adinkra symbols from charity Mmofra_Ghana. 
I put this question to MisBeee readers after blogging recently about the origins of Adinkra in the post: 'Adinkra - more than just a pretty face'.

Adinkra is a series of ideographic symbols from Ghana and the Ivory Coast depicting age-old proverbs that incorporate aspects of Asante culture, flora and fauna.

These symbols are strongly linked to religion, language, and geometry but in modern times are used widely in and outside Ghana for their aesthetic appeal. The list includes jewellery, pottery, clothing and architecture.

 Below is a snapshot of some of the responses I received, feel free to add your own. All images below come from adinkra.org.

 Kwame from Birmingham
My favourite symbol is Gye Nyame because everything starts with God, and ends with God. God creates, sustains and destroys and generates again. It is self-germinating. The symbol of Gye Nyame looks like a circle when connected and so it is symbolic of the circle of life.

Amartey from west Legon, Ghana
My favourite symbol is Gye Nyame (Except God or only God) because I owe Him plenty. 

 Anthony from south London
I like the Gye Nyame symbol... I feel strongly attached to it.

Kwaku from North Carolina
I definitely think the Gye Nyame symbol is the best. What is interesting about the symbol is that it looks like an ancient symbol from the east. I wonder where the source of the symbol is and how far back it dates.

David from Texas
My favourite of all is the Gye Nyame Adinkra. I saw it several times growing up. I thought it was the only Adinkra available. 
Kwasi from Accra, Ghana


My favourite Adinkra symbol is "Ananse Ntontan"(Spider's web). I simply like this Adinkra symbol because it looks very good and fashionable when designed and printed on an African fabric.

Jen from north London

Mine is Denkyem. The crocodile....symbol of adaptability. The crocodile lives in the water, yet breathes the air, demonstrating ability to adapt to circumstances. I love it because that's how I see myself. In life, no matter what is thrown at me I can adapt. Especially when people would question me wanting to work abroad, in Africa more specifically. They would say how can I survive there it's tough. But I always said I have an adaptable personality. It makes me feel like one can do anything with the right mind-set.

Sophia from south London
One of my favourites is the popular Sankofa - go back and get it . I like it because knowing our past helps us to understand the present and learning from it helps us to move forward.

Charles from Swansea, Wales
I like Adinkrahene because it represents the power of whole.




Ben from Accra

My favourite Adrinkra symbol is Sankofa because it tells me how important my culture is and to always go back for my culture, not to ignore it. 






Naomi from south London
One of my favourite Adinkra symbols is NKYINKYIM. This symbol represents what I believe everyone needs to have to achieve true success - 'initiative, dynamism and versatility'. Anyone who possesses these three qualities has a head start to meeting challenges head on and reaching their goals!

Achomie Dedei from London

I chose the Nsoromma sign unwittingly. I had recently lost my mother and went to Ghana to meet other members of the family for the ceremonial service.
In choosing the sign, it showed me that my mother was still looking after me and that God's light was shining through. 


Kirsty Osei-Bempong MisBeee, London

This is a special symbol for me because it encapsulates all that I have been trying achieve since establishing MisBeee Writes in 2013. There is so much we do not know in life but that can change through learning and sharing that knowledge with others. 
All comments are welcome on this page. If you are having trouble posting on the Google+ page, please share your views via Facebook here or tweet @MisBeee

 Please be aware that you may not reproduce, republish, modify or commercially exploit this content without our prior written consent. 



Artist's impression of Gye Nyame (c) MisBeee







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