Adinkra

The symbols of the Akan, each with its own proverb or thought.

Adinkra are the symbols of the Akan of Ghana and Ivory Coast. Each symbol is a graphic sign expressing a proverb, a value or a thought. There are more than a hundred, and new symbols are still being made. Together they form a visual language of wisdom.

Originally Adinkra symbols were printed on cloth with carved calabash stamps and a dark dye made from tree bark. Those cloths were worn above all at mourning and funerals; the word is sometimes explained as farewell. Today you see the symbols everywhere: on clothing, jewellery, buildings, logos and art, in Ghana and throughout the African diaspora.

Some well-known symbols are Gye Nyame, except God, for the supremacy of God and the most widely used symbol in Ghana. Sankofa, go back and get it, for learning from the past. Dwennimmen, the horns of a ram, for strength with humility. Nyame Nti, by God's grace, for faith. Akoma, the heart, for patience and tolerance. Funtunfunefu, two crocodiles with one stomach, for unity despite difference. And Aya, the fern, for endurance and resourcefulness.

In dream interpretation the Adinkra offer a language for reading a dream. A dream that looks back fits Sankofa. A dream about two people who work against each other but must achieve something together fits Funtunfunefu. A dream about persevering in hard circumstances fits Aya. An Akan reading uses such a symbol or proverb only where it genuinely illuminates the dream.

In Ghana Adinkra cloths are still worn at funerals, often in red, black or dark brown, and in the town of Ntonso, near Kumasi, they are still stamped by hand.

On Dreamkin the Adinkra symbols return in the Akan readings, as a key and not as a fixed interpretation.