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Figurative palanquin; drawing by Ataa Oko from Ghana. Among Christians, the use of custom coffins is relatively recent and began in the Greater Accra Region around 1950. They were formerly used only by Ga chiefs and priests, but since around 1960, figurative coffins have become an integral part of the local funeral culture. [4]
He was a long time considered to be the inventor in the early 1950s of design coffins or fantasy coffins, [1] called Abebuu adekai ("boxes with proverbs") by the Ga people, the dominant ethnic group of the region of Accra. Though, an anthropologist recently published a different story of the origin of the coffins.
Ataa Oko (c. 1919 –2012), sculptor, builder of figurative palanquins, and figurative fantasy coffins; Theodosia Okoh (1922–2015), teacher and designer of Ghana's national flag; Albert Opoku (1915–2002), printmaker, painter, choreographer, and dancer; Zohra Opoku (born 1976), German-born Ghanaian textile artist and photographer
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Paa Joe with a sandal coffin in collaboration with Regula Tschumi for the Kunstmuseum Berne 2006. Paa Joe was born in 1947 at Akwapim in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Joe began his career with a twelve-year apprenticeship as a coffin artist in the workshop of Kane Kwei (1924–1992) in Teshie. [8] In 1976, Joe started his own business in Nungua.
Ataa Oko and his third wife in front of his boat coffin, c. 1960. p. 137, "The buried treasures of the Ga", 2008 Pompidou coffin by Kudjoe Affutu, 2010. Photo by Regula Tschumi. The use of these fantasy coffins is explained by the religious beliefs of the Ga people regarding their afterlife.
Most day names among the Mole-Dagombas are usually given to girls, and few are given to both sexes. Most Ghanaians have at least one name from this system, even if they also have an Arabic or western name. Notable figures with day names include Ghana's first president Kwame Nkrumah and former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan.
These "day names" have further meanings concerning the soul and character of the person. Middle names have considerably more variety and can refer to their birth order, twin status, or an ancestor's middle name. This naming tradition is shared throughout West Africa and the African diaspora.