African Folklore: An Encyclopedia - Marshalls University

African Americans 605
to the royal chambers. The official intimacy between the chief and his okyeame is such
that the latter is referred to as nana yere “the chief’s wife.” Indeed, prior to the
installation of the okyeame, he is “wedded” by the chief and given a ring. On the death of
his master, the okyeame may go through the same rites of widowhood as the chief’s
spouse.
Importance in Society
Prior to the emergence of modern nation states in West Africa, royal spokesmen were so
important that their image at home and abroad was of special concern. Among the
Ashanti, akyeame on royal missions had access to a public wardrobe from which they
dressed in a manner befitting royal emissaries. As ambassadors, they needed to carry
symbols of authority and comport themselves as men of dignity. The practice of akyeame
holding staffs of authority still prevails today. Among the Akan, the staff is covered in
gold or silver leaf.
Akyeame perform their duties holding the staff, on which is embossed an appropriate
symbol conveying a cryptic proverbial statement that depicts royal policy. Every chief
has two or more staffs for his okyeame. The higher a chief’s status, the wider his range of
staffs since an important chief deals with a greater variety of situations and has to match
various occasions with appropriate messages. Inherent ambiguities in such icons of
diplomacy are sometimes exploited to make subtle political comments, which, when
deciphered by the intended target, may lead to a diplomatic crisis. To avert such crises,
royal spokesmen strive to steer clear of ambiguity where no malice is intended. They
strive to comply with norms of propriety to ensure that harmony prevails between
occasion and staff symbolism.
Two examples follow. The symbol of two birds with their beaks touching reminds all
that “When two mouths meet, conflict does not arise.” This is used in settling disputes. It
advocates the use of diplomacy, rather than physical confrontation, in solving problems.
Mutual talk dissipates conflict, it says. Another example has two men seated on a long
bench. This means that “The royal stool is not long enough to seat two.” Such a staff is
taken to judicial sittings dealing with disputes over inheritance. It implies that rules of
succession do not permit joint occupancy; heirs succeed one at a time, and there cannot
possibly be two occupants of a stool.
References
Okpewho, Isidore. 1992. African Oral Literature: Backgrounds, Character, and Continuity.
Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Peek, Philip M. 1981. The Power of Words in African Verbal Arts. Journal of American Folklore
94:371, 19–43.
Yankah, Kwesi. 1983. To Praise or Not to Praise the King: The Akan Apae in the Context of
Referential Poetry. Research in African Literatures 14:3, 382–400.
——. 1989. The Proverb in the Context of Akan Rhetoric. A Theory of Proverb Praxis. New York:
Peter Lang.