ARTICLES 50. AN ANALYTICAL STUDY OF FANTI KINSHIP by George P. Hagcm This essay examines Fanti kinship In three significant aspects* First, It examines Fantl kinship terminology as a system of classlflcatory categories Inculcated Into the Individual for the purpose of defining the groups with which he might participate In specific fields of social acti- vity. Second, living In a social group, and In a kinship group In parti- cular, is regulated by, or reflects, certain stereotyped attitudes which . do not depend on Individual psychological bent, but constitute a cultural fact In the society. This paper examines this system of attitudes - of avoid- ance and famlliarltycorrespondlngto the terminological system. The paper examines, third, the nature of the changes which occur In the kinship structure as a result of vatlous forms of intermarriage. The problem whether Font? society Is matrllineal or patrilineal, or both, will not be broached here. Fantl terms for classifying social relationships are as follows! K Nona - M M, FM (Nana Basla) FF MF (None •bany!n).'SS, DS, SD, DD. 2. NanaNkansua: - M MM FMM MFF, FFF, SSD, SSS# DSD, DDD. 3. Nana Sum 4. Ena - M M M M, FMMM, MFFF, FFF, SSDS, SSDD, SSSS, SSSD, DSDS, DSDD, DDDS, DDDD. - M (Mother's Sister) full stbs and half slbs on mother's side. * Mr. George P. Hagan is a Research Fellow In Social Anthropology. ARTICLES 5 1. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. Egya Egya n'akyereba Wofa Akontangye - - F FZ - MB - WB Akumaa (Female husband) - HZ Aseo Wofaase Ba Yer Kora WM ZD D - WF, - zs. - s, - w - Co - W Kinship terms are, as modes of classifying social relationships,, categories of thought and action, which every individual has to inter- nalize in the form in which his culture presents them. As the individual grows up within the Fanti culture he becomes aware of the persons he comes into contact with as standing in special relations to himself. He gains this awareness, in part, by observing the application of certain terms to certain individuals and not to others; and, in part, by being required to behave in certain specific ways towards the individuals to whom specific classificatory terms apply. Through a gradual process of education the individual learns to dissociate the terms from persons, and to apply them appropriately as terms for distinguishing types of social relations. In maturity, the individual is able to identify his rights and ARTICLES 52, obligation'. In the society by tcrerence to the relation* which the kinship terms express. Using fhe occasions on which different categories of kin join »n some fields of social activity one might draw up several "registers of words' ~ terms of social categories with reference to which a person defines his rights and obligations In the social circumstances in which he finds himself. of classificatory terms thai the society defines the groups responsible for various things - marriage, installation of chiefs, burial, and the payment of the debts inputted from these, determination of the defensive units of the state, the appropriate registers of terms help thte society to prepare another kind of register. This latter register is fhaf of the proper names of those who fell under the appropriate register of classificatory terms. The former register imposes a definitive group matrix on the individuals who are called up under the register of proper names. It is with these registers In these fields, and fn the • How soon a person acquires knowledge of the registers of In a s^ool House a child will almost social categories Is a matter of individual intelligence and education; and it is partly motivational,. certainly be given the relevant genealogies for asserting claims to the stool; and ony propertied house would almost certainly do the same to keep their lands and heirloom m the proper hands. Claims to property and office ore made ond settled by reference to fhe appropricfe register and the entries of proper names under the register- So that knowledge of one's genealogy and "one's people" —' as Fantfs put It — becomes a socio! imperative. The Anthropologist, of cousse, arrives at this kinship list through a different procesi - ond for a different reason. He begins by observing persofe at work, at plo/, and in fhe serious moods of poS»Kc:», fiMerajs and fight*. H,? -.win concern is to see how fhe people he is studying ars r ih *<,» various engagements, w*th a view ARTICLES 53. to discovering what the relatively permanent pat-ferns of their social Interactions are. Why kinship terminologies and analyses enthrall social anthropologists Is that whichever field they chcose to begin their work In - say, farming or fishing, marriage or funeral, they come up against the same relational categories, 10 the extent- that, after a time, they realize that without proper understanding of how kinship terms are used, what they connote,and who fall under them. It would be Impossible for them to understand the society *hey are studying. Among Fdntis, two major registers of ciasslflcatory termino- logy are discernible (See pages 5 and 6). The manner of their presentation here Is Intended not only to Indicate which clusters of terms appiy In which fields of activity; the vertical sequence in which the terms have been set together is intended to indicate the order of accession to right or office. Thus co-faj-eraf closses belong to the same order of succession. The number of basic descent lines In such o diagram depends merely on how many diffsrenf' kinds of relatives are recognized. It does not correspond lo Hie number of descent groups existing In the society. The role of exogamy compels us to work wffh af least three descent lines, Ego's wife end children would come from one Abusua; and he connot marry any woman from his abusua,, so rhat these two categories have to be recognized in the society. The third category Is that front which Ego!5 father comaii he would not be from Ego's mother's abusuo. reason that we have three descent Ifnei In the other scheme. if Is for a similar The first scheme is Important for defining the composition of Fantl military units. There are wide differences fn the number of Asafo companies in Fantl towns. But whatever the number, on* does not find In any fanti state any military force opart from, or greater than, the whole of which the Asafo military units are part$,** in Cap6 Coast there ore seven Asafo companies, and oil bvfr Akrampa and Brofo-nkoa have separate areos of the town to themselves ARTICLES 54. MILITARY DIVISIONS WIFE'S ASAFO MALE WFFFF ASEO NANA- SUM WFFF ASEO NANA- NKANSUA FEMALE WFFFFZ ASEO NANAr SUM WFFFZ ASEO NANA- NKANSUA WFF ASEO NANA WFFZ ASEO NANA WF ASEO WB AKONTA- NGYE WFZ ASEO W YER WBS BA BANYIN WBD BA BASIA EGO'S ASAFO MALE FEMALE FFFF FFFFZ MOTHER'S ASAFO MALE FEMALE MFFF MFFFZ NANASUM NANASUM NANASUM NANASUM FFF NANA NKANSUA FFFZ NANA NKANSUA MFF NANA NKANSUA MFFZ NANA NKANSUA FF : NANA F EGYA EGO KUN S FFZ NANA FZ •MEGYA N'AK^ERE- AKYERE- Z BA D MF NANA MB WOFA MBS NUA MBSS BA BANYIN BA BASIA BA BANYIN MFZ NANA M ENA MBD NUA MBSD BA BASIA WBSS NANA WBSD NANA SS NANA SD NANA MBSSS NANA MBSSD NANA WBSSS NANA NKANSUA WBSSD NANA NKANSUA SSS NANA NKANSUA SSD NANA NKANSUA MBS555 NANA NKANSUA MBSSSD NANA NKANSUA WBSSSS WBSSSD SSSS SSSD NANA SUM NANA SUM NANA SUM NANA SUM MBSSSSS NANA SUM MBSSSSD NANA SUM SEWAA (AKUAPEM). ARTICLES 55. THE ABUSUA WIFE'S ABUSUA MALE FEMALE EGO'S ABUSUA MALE FEMALE FATHER'S ABUSUA MALE FEMALE WMMMMB ASEO NANA- SUM WMMMB ASEO NANA NKANSUA WMMMM ASEO NANA- MMMMB NANA-SUM MMMM NANA-SUM FMMMB NANA-SUM FMMM NANA-SUM WMMM ASEO NANA NKANSUA MMM3 NANA MMM NANA FMMB NANA FMM NANA NKANSUA NKANSUA NKANSUA NKANSUA FMB NANA F EGYA FZS NUA FZDS FM NANA r~ ~ F Z ~~ MEGYA N'AKYERE- BA FZD NUA FZDD BA BASIA ZD WO FAS E BA BANYIN ZDD NANA FZDDS NANA FZDDD NANA WMMB WMM ASEO NANA ASEO N A NA WMB ASEO WM ASEO BASIA MM3 NAM A MB WO FA MM NANA M ENA EGO KUN Z AKYEREBA WB A K O N T A N- . GYE. S W YER D BA BANYIN BA BASIA DS NANA DDS NANA DD NANA DDD NANA zs WO FAS E ZDS NANA ZDDS NANA NKANSUA NKANSUA NKANSUA ZDDD NANA NKANSUA FZDDDS NANA NKANSUA DDDS N A N A- SUM . . . DDDD N A N A- . .SUM. . . ZDDDS N A N A- SUM ZDDDD N A N A- SUM FZDDDDD N A N A- SUM FZDDDD NANA NKANSUA FZDDDDD N A N A- SUM ARTICLES 56, The first Infantry Division, Bonfcsirfo, Is permanently quartered near the Cape Coast Fort, and the whole area used by this -division Is called Banfsir. The wards which the other territorial forces occupy also bear their names: Ntsin, Nkomr Amanfo and Anaafo, So exclusive were the Asafo's rights over the areas they occupied that, In !909# ?r became necessary for certain Asctfos to sign various agreements. "No.3 company agreed to give free passage through their company quarter without the Imposition of rum-tax, to any Cope Coast Company conveying their dead to cemetery . . .. "No, 2 company agreed to give free passage to the beach to No.3 Company without the imposition of rurti- taxr on the occasion of any member of No,3 Company having dfad, etway from Cape Coast; ordinary notification being gfven".*"1" In all Fanti towns,, the Asafos constitute distinct territorial as well as social units, which made the pattern of residence in Fanti towns strongly virilocal. permanently in a vicinity or neighbourhood group outside his own Asofo. It appears that up till lately it was unlikely for a man to reside In the various Asafo wards men live together in neighbourhood units called Prama. Prama is o large (usually rectangular) compound or area enclosed by a number of houses. Such a compound or opening would be shared by a group of friends who, on account of the feet that fhey fished together, find it necessary to live, play and stay together. Such a residen- tial and social unit is not necessarily a kinship unir. But because sons tend to live with their fathers,, and brothers associate closely with brothers? a Prama assumes the aspect of a cluster of units of k?n defined by the first matrix, women excluded. Each grown-up member of a Prama would have a "oom to himself. Wives do not stay with their husbands at the Prdmado, but make regular visits to bring food to their husbands, and occasionally to sleep overnight. In this social unit Hie oldest mala members act as the source of authority in domestic as we!! as military mutters. In the old days;,, as soon as a young ARTICLES 57. man was old enough to carry arms, his father bought a gun for him, and he fought beside his grandfather, father and older brothers. Earlier still, the young man would have joined his father's fishing crew. Whoever did not belong to a person's Asafo was separated from his residential group and might even oppose him In certain Internal con- flict situations. Such persons might Include ego's mother, mother's brother, mother's father, mother's father's sisters, and so on, who do not, but may, belong to ego's Asafo (as we see In the matrix). Also, a person's wife, wife's brother and father may belong to yet another Asafo. So that for Fantls, the Asafos create the most active fissures In their societies: "they set blood relative against blood relative". The focus of Asafo group activity is the siwdo, which Is a small plot of land over which one finds a totem tree and a hut, housing the Asafo's deity. This plot of land is sacred to the Asafo division. Asafo's military headquarters and the parade ground for their rituals before and after wards. In peace time, the siwdo acts as the focus for social and ritual events, drumming, and dancing. It Is the Every Asafo has Its own set of gods, flags, sets of drums, Asafo songs, clothes and Insignia. There are ranks, within each Asafo, allocated by Inheritance through the father, and by Individual personal achievement. There are drummers, fetish priests, flag bearers and arm bearers. Often in the past, women ( I . e. groups of sisters, father's sisters, father's father's sisters, for example) participated In wars as carriers, nurses and cooks. Women of outstanding courage and wisdom were permitted to hold office and exercise authority side by side with men. The symbol of authority in the Asafo division Is the WHIP (ASAFO ABAE). The whip has direct application to the maintenance of law and order In the rank and file of the Asafo. A holder of a whip has power to lay It on disorderly Individuals and stragglers ro secure discipline proper fo a fighting force. These whips are usually Inherited by sons from their fathers. Because of dangers Involved In holding a whip, ARTICLES m a ny inci vicu-uU - J /- ~u> i t. " a p t u r ed b/ •!.- '->,/•:•{*! •!„ r.,, Inn !•> ;• A' '-v.:oU ™"fc u s u a l ly f ' e o l ' h j iy i< « j ,, r- \\,t i-.» .vl>sf3. ! ».»>' 't • *• •^'h ' - " T1 •> • " o u ' . . : !. 'h' ii* :-• •• " ' o! ip.-ih': o s* \ of c!tn*r>'j n p o i T -* •s'^"»i « •, .ii"-!o*'. H-c^ii^rs t<>->d p o l i f j r i a ns of ianl<. V <•' -•.•:n»;i j p a! > !>, AV.JI'* V / h e ii H g hl inn tiici?'1 •-< r> i r m yf A«-of' • -r«- !< ! I.y o,, .->>,•.:-.?•' n.. <-•. ! n-. , o :vr v i r r j, r a i l ed T u f u b i n. I ' I / I L1? >•; •'•f *. s:«n'f- fo»r»toriol f fi lf c I i' ' >•? -lio *•!inr»v t w d cr his c o m m a n d T F e~ )}1 *>too» '. 'v.'i .• '.» t :r o«'d n c f K * ' i ^ ! " «, . *•'< .. ^/;'i> ii>i>.y )«. a"- f of Hie O r ' s i ii ,:!*,sir- a nd D r n t s ln •*• t i1^ t r o u o i. The A s a fn ! J;,» v. sheir rfiSf-t-.cn- > «-»t.f-!i»,i f ••<" ?''' •, ]-,, 'Y\r. <•• ' ' :i>< : -. ,U\ ' ,„', r .l«»ppsrknf judae on behalf1 >•-! ^f r=- .pt r*>* b e t w e en f he Sentsir '*.•». , !« r ^ t he o n iv \ fo groups In k w , / t. i-'t -.! c v i! ! \vr\ • r,d ,'edges w i t h in r m -. •••! i;;.^ s-y'L > ^' ..i "losHilf>es. Supls • !.•!>.• i": i A •. «••; -tided t h e ir c o l l e c i i ve "••v <" n - c'> •-•• me c o . A : : , . r ! i on of l a v a t o r i e s, w e l l s, ' ' ! ; ' ! » '. ,-• =f* ;!> ,•;.• ir"jHc;t.>•- e vn/di., yr for Hi« s t a t e. "iu>" •-• ^..'' \ ' f ilii'ccfif'rt of ij hociy of c o u n c f l~ |( « /\it».'<•>!-cjif :*.••, crv'!•••• ; V i fo c i so n> r..j -.;. t.- p-ji:<:-- 'A ^ i ef a.id s u b - c i i e fs of me fore*? fo h u nt d o wn h i g h w ay m e n, :f, u, * ' :.*. < < • ' K^ ; -(O'J *n«", s * j t' t o a d* CM>' j iJif«. rv i1 lof» ocr.'pn,*-'*.' ••faro and The',.. -.i\U and ' i l it tc •?(• *osi*' e v\oi * f. . - j s v1' i l .e / " . f ot : i fi'-,'» ' ^ • • • • • * * ', -;f U r" or J e s t r u c f i ve " •- .! *i f- A-,-.'i-. fire n o ' o n r j er m e n d a f o ry f l o o d s. •*• • i<"-i • '.'f.tJ '*•.:•-». r c i i o ^ I z o t l o ns w i th i m p o r t a nt ARTICLES 59. social functions In the annual rites of harvest festivals. The second scheme gives the classlflcafory social categories in terms of which a man defines his rights and obligations against other people in respect of birth and d^eath, marriage and divorce, acquisition and transmission of property. Those who fall into these relational categories constitute what Faults call "Abusua1. But we must distinguish two senses srj which the term 'Abusua' is used. In one sense - the wider sense - of the term, FanHs have sever? principal Abusua units. They are Anona, Nsona, Ntwaafo, Twldart, Aburadze, Kwonna and Acfwifjactze, The table below gives the clans and their cognate groups together with their symbols. These names refer to the most exclusive and all inclusive groups Into which Fantis can be divided. Every Fonfl belongs to one or other of these groups, and there Is no Fcmti who Is a member of two. These Abusua are segmented Into dispersed lineages,, which are further segmented into dispersed sub-Unsages and so on. On first enquiry one gets the impression that the rule of exogamy Is intended to apply to these wider groups, and io prevail throughout, rule can be said to have applied so widely only in the'distant historical past. At the present" time, the t-ule that members of the same Abusua (in this wider application of the term) should not marry has no practical significance. The erogamous unit is really the lineage at Its lowest level of segmentation, in practice, the This smallest lineage is a local descent group associated with a particular town or village, though some members may reside elsewhere. ft is this group which effectively bears the weight of Abusua obligations; and the lineage span would not exceed five generations, Little signi- ficance is attached to a relationship which is traced through any Indivi" dual who is beyond Nanasum* If there happen to be two or more such lineage groups in the same fown or region, which, from the lineage point ARTICLES 60. THE SEVEN PRINCIPAL .8 I AS DESIGNATED ! .N FANTI-AKAN NSONA TOTEM M.V'.KT. Oso na Akunkuran (The Fox and the Whiteringed Raven) WfREMp: i.KW OOUDU 2. AN ON A Ekoo (Parrot) OWIKU AMPOMA 3 NONA 3, < TWIDAN !h'/f (The Le 4, ; ABURAPZ Gyata iUor-) 5. j NTV/AA j Bodom (The Dc-c) ! ABANb"-A KV/ONNA Sku (Th-? bush cow) HA KU 7. I ADWfNADZE A ciusfer of odvon f;aes, Lft wowo ddwiH, mean ing thinkirisj people ARTICLES 6 1. of view, are segments of the same greater Abusua, it is more than likely that their members will intermarry. A typical example is to be found in Apam. Here Anana, Offor Ananafo, Agona and others are recognized as segments of the one major clan Anana, and their members intermarry. What shows they are species of one genus is their common use of the Parrot symbol. But even within a Fdnti lineage of this kind there would be distinguished the "scalp" element, "Tsirhonam". This group would be composed of the uterine kin of not more than one generation's remove: mother, brothers and sisters, mother's brother and sister's sons and daughters. Exogamy applies most rigorously only within this group, incest being until recently punishable by death. It would be true to say that the Fanti Abusua even at this lowest point of segmentation is dispersed at the fringe. The only coresident group of members of the Abusua are usually aged, divorced and widowed members of the Abusua, male and female. In their most productive ages, the young men of the Abusua are with their fathers in their father's house, and the young women are with their husbands. This dispersal makes it virtually impossible for an abusua to participate in any economic venture as a social aggregate. But such a group represents a legal unit for the holding and transmission of land and other property; and it holds rights in persons. To examine the jurat status of the Abusua, I shall treat here Fanti marriage, as it involves exchange of rights in both men and property* Kinship and Marriage: Marriage among Fantis involves the joining not only of the men and woman who enter into marriage but also the minimal Abusua of the man and the minimal Abusua of the woman. The latter become affines as the former become husband and wife. At the basis of the merger there ARTICLE 62. is a mutual exchange of righ're -rind obligations in respect of porsanj. and things. Husband and wife acquire mutual rights In their s«wim! faculties an;: as a result share the responsibility to raise the issues. >•? rhe motrktye. The two abusuo groups (In the narrower sense) act f j "'.."•met; the respective rights of their son and daughter. The husband makes a number of payments to the wife's Abu&uo before he Is given the woman cs w i f e, and these gifts ore If) fact not *•:>.fended fo be spent1. The capital money paid (Tslr HtQ) ought to be reddy for paymeni- to the man on the break-down of the marriage. Since mortiogs involve? the transfer of the women to the house of the ;v>an,, the mono/ acts as security for the woman who w i ll not bo 'svfng ..sre-rg *ie-i* own ksosmsn but In a different household and amof«o ^foncs';.. }-,r,i vVOFiton chenges her socles! and yeogrcphic.ii Iocu5» At times $omo families opv to practice cross-cousin raorriage fo achieve normanout connubial alliances. This form of marriage piv«ss the advantage of greater security fo the women and a wider acope for the enjoyment of the property of the families In alliance. The formal roles of such a marriage ore themselves r>cA clear, >t fs often assumed that Fantis consider both pa'-riloteral and matrilateral forms of cross-cousin marriage as acceptable. Though the actual practice of both cannot b© denied, thero is analytic evidence that a matrilateral cross~cousin fs a less acceptable form of rnarrage. In the diagram below the two forms of cross-cousin marriage have be.-.-n cut together. The diagram shows the number of descent groups ^ j i f k i ^ nt ?md necessary to the two forms of cross~cous!n marriage. The po.hilateral affiance demands two; family mother end father, But there arc o-;iier reasons for considering the peitriiaferal marriage the more proper kind of cross-cousin marriage. the matrllateral brings a third inVo fhe affiance which should include only the families of the ARTi- : MBD c c u? t G C* cqyo f or S-CM inherits K • tn,»- .: , - parerhoi rftspcs^sIaiii'iRS it, respecf or MlVJ . 5'> '•*! Husoard . T * IK cafegoria! couah'on w o u lr ..: 3 ', . -. . lateral csofs-coussn "norcfage on iropos&Sh*5:; • ft dauaHtrr ;!, •• i."ti"r ' c * ••i-.-rrv /•spec?; o1 '•'.c Fohti domestic ecotudmic arrcrpt-tM.. ! rh«ire ore RinH fishing o^d fa~mbsr. - r - ii '.;. ;: I have bce» • fianris, i» is are brt>an??ed, ' d e l r i b a l i z e d' page? to only me fishing comrnunitft'S o: Anct< u-,o C.-fs'* C :i--s*. necessary te guatd cgainsf Hie iend^ruiy !.-% a p o !/ 1* •» .i^J-- uc>;ep/ntion I have m«du fo u^! Fantt comrrsunifies d i f f e r e nt ur, .ire f h^ t-hlnas Iri respecf of v-M<..}> fhf y :«c- c . c f " " , : * c l. W^Pr^vis who; rr.i^hf be imporfanf fur .''•-*•>• , i -! c«:;.- of o bor-f ' c f i ' k, of e x p l o i t a t i on w o u l d, ! suggest, offect the sy^fers' c* d.:;.icsric economic arrangement's. jnJ ri e ir wSar t. irnprrfo-iJ h.» iir R;? •'..% «».-. k s . ' : \ » - 'i^ '! : '> >• i i i c - . c^ • '_•: H,... y ^ a r ii .-f» a- ARTICLES ir- Apcm, among IN» fishing communities, the unit of production and consumpvon is, sfncHy speeding, not defined by kinship. The* means cf produciion ore .;>rpje; boarr nef and labour. Labour is secured thA'<;gh cooperation between kinsmen, A man might1 join up, w*1'" uh r>rothers and their own children or nephews and at times, friends,, ana set up a fishing unsi» The ownership of the boat is vested in Hie purchaser's Abusua,. though wh>1e the owner is alive any person He giveg. rhe boot fo might o« it. A kjnd of Abusa S/SICN*. works among the Fanfrts of this coastal town. The fish caught- h divided ink) three parts. One portion of the- cotch go?s to the boat, one goes to the nef, and the third goes to the ci'fc.'.-^. who shore E< equally among themselves. and r;e!s happens to be a member of the crew he gets h»s share as a member of the crew. Tho portions of «-he catch which go to the boat and net are given fr? the rr.efher of Hie owner of the boot and net - supposedly to the Abusua. If the owner o* t^e boas' Each crew member gives his reward of a fixed price to hfs wife. The wife seHs- it fresh or smokes it and sells If at the local market or to an Intermediary who sells It at other markets. Whatever the returns the wife makes on her husband's portion,, the husband receives the "beach price" of the fish. Often when the woman makes a loss on the fish she borro¥*s mangy to make the gross price for her husband. On the other hand every profit she makes goes to her. It Is with these profits that the woman matmoins 'he household,, She feeds the whole family, husband,, self and children with her profits throughout the year. the woman expects a certain lump sum and a few pieces of cloth for her- self and hi' children at leosf once -a year. In a household of this kind, there is hardly an article of value which belongs fo husband and wife as a unitary couple. From the Husband When a man dies v/ftafevet persona! property he was able to acquire in bis life time goes ?o hh mother, his sisters,, and brother, his sister's ARTICLES 65 sons and nephew. The second matrix indicates who may share in the property. Children have no claim to their father's property. They may stay in their father's house, and they are often permitted to do so. When their presence is no longer desired, the members of the father's abusua create a situation for the children to opt to leave the household on their own accord. It is not correct to say that the Abusua inherits the father's In so far as the children demand certain property and nothing else. fatherly functions, those who inherit the father are bound to continue to fulfil them. A man's heir may offer to marry the widow. his privilege fo do so. Whether the widow accepts to marry the heir or not, it is expected that she and her children will be looked after by the deceased husband's abusua. When the children become sick, the responsibility for their care falls on the father's relatives. The children could claim these services until they are capable of faking care of their affairs as adults. On the other hand, the children cannot marry without the explicit assent of the father's heir. it is When a woman dies, her property goes to her sisters and brothers, children, mother and mother's brothers. The abusua meets to choose the individual fo inherit the status of the dead. The children expect from this substitute the performance of al! the obligations which their mother or grandmother owed to them. They in turn support her as they supported their deceased mother. Children are responsible for the burial of rheir father and mother. In respect of their mother they share the responsibility equally with members of their abusua. In respect of their father, however, they provide, with the support of their abusua, the coffin and clothes for the dead. They Hand over to the abusua of their father these articles together with some drinks and an amount of money, now fixed at seven pounds four shillings (N014.40} in Cape Coast. ARTICLES 66. This gift is often interpreted as a counter prestation. When the children were born, for each child in turn the father had to purchase various article?: of toilet, and clothing - to cover their nakedness, ft- is s^Hcu articles that the children prepare for their father, for his .aui and clothing, before his departure to Nananom. The father's abusua looks upon these articles as the children's thanks-offering for rhe love and care of the fa!her, and their generosity and iavishness is expected to express the depth of gratitude the children owe their father. When we consider interaction between tha two matrices, a number of interesting things emerge. Rights in property — lands, and tools of production, such as boats and nets, are vested in groups If any person transmits these properties defined by the second matrix. outside the range of persons called under this matrix, in the traditional set-up, he acts ultravsres. A person who squanders abusua property ifj this way calls upon himself the ire of the dead snemhers of the abusua. A father, therefore, cannot transmit to his son any property or office he might hold by virtue of his membership of his abusua. A son Is entitled to the usufruct of his father's property, at least, while the father is olive, and this entitlement is confirmed by the son's co- operation with His father in the exploitation of his property. A father might transmit to his son a whip and a gun; but these things are hardly looked upon as property, They are of use as symbols of Asafo authority. A son cannot claim the father's office in the Asafo as of right. The father's office in the Asafo goes to the son only through the choice of the Asafo. A whip may thus stay in a house for gene- rations before it is given to somebody. This is the difference between succession to office and property through the mother's lineage, and succession to office and military regalia through the father. ARTSd. 67. The men and women In a Fanti Asafo uiufjlly : several abusua; and there is hardly an abusua **>' ;.;:, oincidence, has all ifrs members in a singly '\',t;i<> th is, cr- as. •<• pitches orje member of an abusua aga;ns? or>s:H~r< on ir»f-omanf pointed to this as one cause of fiGt"<"«-">i>f, nz between different Asafo fer»-| t-> In Cap? Coast, to avoid the splitting up »••* ••.."•H'.-r-- ;', monnes# a person might change his Asafo to jo'n ''Hot cl !ns brother, for example. One cannot leave his ubu.»ya r \o''-- one. There is also a tacit understanding fhaf men s'wue- ;ry much OK possible, to marry women from their >^wr-> A;»r>rc .• CTJ can do rhis without breaking any laws of oxocfv-sy- II. *!wo .general comments are neeessar*- 'n<*i;n>- ;>V: • >.••. >..-••-;? of the system of Fanti kinship attitudes. Whet- :'••; ";P;V i !•><". he of affection as one germane to sociologicaf $h>.m , ! o"i Srrsuss "Whet is generally coifed a "kinship system;< te^s.'f'v,:1. $-.~o ci.i. different orders of reality. First, there ars fartm »K.u;-;h • *.-H-; various kinds of family relationships are expressed. r*.:J FJ not expressed solely through nomenclature, Th^ :- d;vi>Jc;v of individuals * ho employ these terms feel (a*' 'Ac% ;..••>• f«»(_ case may be'} bound by prescribed behaviour Ir» their tfhr-' one another, such as respect ©r rights or obfigct(<»•*» and affection or hostility. Thus, along wf^h what \r.;- ri ceil the system of terminology (wh»ch strictly sc^ei i«igf cor>?t*h^.-'-. the vocabulary system)fh®re is another system? bot^ rs$yc,»:.hrpctil and social in nature, which we shall call the system of a r f i r u i e s , "" famlflor!fyf »r c,hn$€T,ci married netions '-o ^e ?••• ..- end frank with their respective parfctir&~h= - b' The thc.'ffh; - '.,'•••,:.. fhh ,s that It is in such a spJrft that rhe married *)"'•>'••.•!, ^3". -"Ci'isult and obtain advice oi'. the intimate aspects o? their .r.arjrai life. a condition for fhe successful consummation of marriage acd fhe prolifl- clry of man and wife: you fee! shy of your In-Iow# you cannot beget children with your wife,") In fact, a Fant! ccfage considers this foklng relationship "Efes woasew a nnye wo yere rw-/o': (Lit. "If In practice this freedom between In-iaws results in unnecessary. •n-lcw interference Irs the marltaf affairs of fhe young couple So that v--Sn! cm- might observe in procfite Is a domi'neering attitude -•"':'' H*»r pctr of the in-iaws and a corresponding fntransigenc-i on the pert of ius merried couples. The relationship becomes strained. (iij NANA: In the table1 of classifies^ory terminologies there is one term for the Second, Third and Fourth ascending ond descend;n§ generations: Nona. Nona Is a reflexive or reciprocal term: whoever calls another Nona i's himself Nano to the person he calls None. The suffixes ~ Nkansua and - Sum ore used to specify fhe degree of generational remove. The lower generations are identified with ascending ones In the terms of ciassificatory designation. The individuals in Hie lower generations are given fhe proper names of'those In the higher ones. There Is reciprocal affection and exchange of gifts; and extreme warmth and even licence make fhe re'ciHcn between a person and his Nano She happiest one. Seen against fhe child's relationship with his parents, the relation- ship of 0 child fo his grandparents appeals entirely free of the hectoring and cen«oriouc attitude which Is on imporf-an! ingredient In rhe father-son and rr.orher-daiighter relationships, in rhis contrast, parental attitude Is negative while Hie groiidparcntaf attitude Is positive. This polarization of affections octs as an important vector force in social mobility. A child might escape nom the Daren to I horns to seek refuge In fhe relative warmih of the grandparent's h»-w><~ '^ which he is oiwoys welcome. Within ARTICLES 70. the wider framework of the kinship system,, this acts to foster Inter- action between Individuals In non-contiguous generational categories, and serves to integrate the lives of the nuclear families Into one of an extended, enlarged, molecular family J 1 (III) In and around the nuclear family, the most frequent Interactions are to be found In the following relationships represented in the scheme below.* (a) Husband - Wife (b) Husband's Sister - Wife (c) Husband - Wife's Brother (Kun na Yer) (Akumaa na Yer) (Kun - Akonta) (d) Husband's Sister - Wife's Brother (e) Father - Son (Egya na Ba) (f) Mother - Son (Ena na Ba) (g) Mother's Brother - Sister's Son (Wofa na Wofase) (h) Father's Sister - Brother's Son (Ena (?) No Ba) And there are two other relationships: (I) Father - Father's Sister (Nua) (j) Mother - Mother's Brother {Nua) A -1 ft - C A - D C - 0 A - E B - E D - E C - E A - C 1 - D N \ r-- 1/ •1° n ARTICLES 71. This system will be analysed in two parts. One part will examine the attitudes in the relations of husband, wife, husband's sister and wife's brother. These constitute the statuses in the affinai complex. The second part will examine filiation and the avunculate. (a) By kinright a woman identifies herself with the property and the role of her brother viz e.g. wife calls husband's sister, Akumaa. When a man takes a wife he subsumes under his obligations to his sister, new obligations to a new woman. A man's obligation to his wife might reduce his devotion to the services required of him by his sister. These circumstances cast the wife and sister in the role of competitors to win the favour of the man, Fantis identify this competitiveness and the quarrels in this relationship with the rivalry between two women married to a single mon. They call the latter KORATWE, and the former YINKUN, In both situations, though a man's affections for the two women might be quite warm, the relationship between the two women is hostile. One may formulate this symbolically as A/B, A/C ~ B/C; ! i O where A/B is husband and wife relationship, A/C husband and sister relationship, and B/C wife and husband's sister relationship. A/C is identical with B/D, yet they act in two quite distinct and oppositive ways. The obligation which a brother owes to his sister (which is exactly the same factor which causes conflict between a wife and her husband's sister) creates a definite warmth in the relationship between a man and his sister's husband. A man's Akontangye is his closest friend; no man could ask a woman to marry him without first seeking to ingratiate himself wtth the women's brother. On the occasion of taking a woman for wife, a man makes a imail cash payment to the bride's brothers. This payment is called ARTiCLES 72. SIKAK (KM (Ft) . H is ocfoniosy i-y ircmicu./f* s'h,> importance of vh* bride by pikhuig the price 'o \f».r of affection or attitude [>• ,:iisoi sister and wife's bratV:,-, ?>•?! ^ difficulties hera R-nMs, p-•••;•>• n; as a Cuifuraf classificatorv cat-.- only the attitudes absence of definitive rrm.: '-- The relationship between *•/!* of speaking,, parallel io fha- against members of fh^ tv» •< ; otherf or, ?n fact, remain stranoer? to ecch --,'',»,.-_ t- a f fines, p the 1-U -T: -.Ktlculate .styiJ/.uci ro-'-". rc-iat'oivihio bet'.vetirt husband's !.-! r,,-1 oosr.- any onalyrico/ •jistirguishing this • ' j: M' /' c'f>!-! Wf^- !i*^d undertaken to analyse i r,, j-i-ip fj-'irned soda! categories. This iv c,d otliHi'tc Is nevertheless Interesting. t)('otkfif and hyf^cmd's sister is, in a way t vL-csci •:;-.'.' w.fe. There Is no Akan rule • sisler and wife's brother H-.-'Xi^h In theoretical terms they are close 'b) The orhtr or';cuif.'t- in the ?rtt!iei/son and nMienci m- faHier1'; ;'.!-<:i Jr. ir.fsmssnfc-.i ";vo relation to >v» child h: JH.OU'J ;n peculiar to it" does .', ments cno--s£ ;-*;ir.ul When t i"/-:--'c»n rus'>". »YsU b>vt:p she is believed '"• * -. <'••-..'tH. ;•> - ..'-a styiized forms of attitude ore found e/nroh.cv u*> kit ions. Affection towards h-<< l-etweer. father and son. A mother's ei^'iTTnt; it is sui generis. The attitude n,./ altitude or circumstance outside the Ai> ksn*is speak of I t, maternal senti- in the womb which they call ABADEI. j; 'iames ro rescue her burning child, '-•• •;•!-*' tOfit:na( calculations of her ARTICLES 73. chances of saving the child's life. She is not restrained by fear. She is entirely at the mercy of her ABADEI. It is believed, it is only a woman bereft of ABADEI that can hate or treat her child with indifference. The ABADEI makes it difficult for women to punish their children: the pains they suffer exceed what they inflict on their child. And this is why Fantis insist that sons must be raised by their fathers. Men do not have ABADEI. Egya/Eba; Wofa/Wofase: Fantis look upon paternal and avuncular relations as primarily social facts. Of fatherhood in particular they distinguish between genitor and pater. Though the latter often follows upon the former, the former does not imply the latter. The culture therefore prescribes or recognizes definitive attitudes to these relations; the structural interplay of these attitudes. I here rely on two Fant? myths to show According to Brown, "A Fdnti-Akan tradition of the cognate succession tells us that in the old days, one Sakyi, said to be either a king or a chief, indiscreetly got himself involved in heavy liabilities In those days spendthrifts and others, who could not meet their debts, were either sold in, or out, of the country, or proscribed, in which latter case the individual either committed suicide or was expelled (from) the country. Sakyi desired to give up his children as hostages to free himself from his liabilities, but his wives objected to their children being sold or going into servitude to relieve him from pe- cuniary embarrassment. His sister, seeing his plight, gave up her children, and got him out of trouble. Sakyi thereupon swore that at his death his nephews, and not his children, should succeed to his property and political office. Accordingly, at his death, his sister's children succeeded to his estate, and from that time down to the present, succession has been traced through cognates."13 This first myth does not explain how the rule of succession ARTICLES came .1 ir. f v u s t e n re Kr.-oHcaMj , for, it presupposes or assumes thai* a woman ho: obsc'uie n i hf OV.-,T h.-: t.ffsprfp,?, end can do anytfvnc with them, r«ciud:nr< i-'.-.a! a Hi JT- >.-;o slavery. But this is exacHy the pe«,i-! h '.vision fot h«-j^ nafrillneal succestJcs ccme ii^o bc-Jng. Rather, wtot ii shows is the nature of the obligation?, n^ tl.e system of kinship. if the • orruilv" Sr,.>id !>e attempting to account In the myth a man I,. -wHe to fose or destroy his property and status; v i z. his debt ond iru- c.ossibilify cf slaver)-f prescription or even suicide, His sister OK-.- 'sor •v.-.n in the plci<-e of her brother as pawn so that his property on.-S ••'•n>>s might be secured, • 'substitution of the sister's son for the office o-vi property of fhf mothercs in the prestation A ncpfy-A • M cee^~ tc Hw ofT;-' .=• of i>is maternal unc.c I H» ...y a derives from the *.-L;fip'jffc-*- •<• i!-.<-• nphew to r.-' u e the yn et^ h «t b^ fkj Th:s fight ncle's office. Th? myth also -contr-".K! y aUiKicios <^f '< -nan's sister onr" w i f e, It reveals Hie deep affect?cr ct-d concsn which a sister feels lowards he» brother, ond the yiipo^itt* senttr»ent o^ unconcern end indifference of a wife townrds hat I.M>bona',. o> far JS fhs security of the mon's office and property are concerned. Husbond/r:if.ter relation is positive (I); and Husband/Wife relaffon, nenr*;-tvr. (0). The second my?!, ca^fi'asf's fr.e sen'iments in the relations of a man's son end his iisier's son in hie ",tc tus as father and maternal uncle, in recounting now frtahilinrcfi succession gave way to agnatic succession, the rrodlricrs cf the peopse i.4* r.imina say: £lmino wat %v.<:pec:ed by his suhjocts of having wantonly depleted royal coffers, A conspiracy was h >j<;od by hh people against him, at the head of vvh->/> wo:, his sister and u*ph^>v., to call upon him, to account for ond mrAnca, the muney?- s> sous-iv^ored by him and# In defau!tr to o«!sa«in«te Him. His son '-V'T? hipr«" ied to learn of the conspiracy^ went to !,im cf ds v=d n? night arA '-.jjorised him of what was coming. The old k'i^g <->-sifoc! h> (<'*-.-"• .••hol-h'-ir h" safety but the oid king allayed fhs young man's fears by t i l l i ng him that he was ready to hand the consoirotors every ,iunoe of fhe public money in his possession. ''Early the next morning the conspirators, with the king's sister and nephew, came to him armed and pre-empfonly demanded of himpaymenf of all the money in his possession. He anked them to be cool, for he had not squandered a cent of the public money, He directed them to a certain spot outside the royal residence, where they found the money intact in an earthenware pot. The conspirators were crestfallen and g-eatly ashamed. The old king rebuked them, and wound up with the request that his son, having proved himself faithful and dutiful to htm, should succeed fo his stool and other regal property at his decease. The people promised to respect his wishes, and at his death his son vicceeded him, which change of succession from nephew to son stil! obtains at Elmina. "14 This myth reveals -n sharp contrast between the attitudes In the father - s o n, maternu1 uncle - nephew relations. Whereas the latter is characterized by suspicion and covetous desires,, fhe latter is filled with goodwill and genuine concern. When we fake the two myths together and view rhf»m as stories intended fo focus on and explicate the complex of of fitudes in kinship, one result we obtain is a confirmation of the formula of Levi-strauss: between maternal uncle and nr-ohew is to fhe relation between brother and sister, as the relation b^tv^e-i father and son is to that behveen husband and w i f e. the relation MB/ZS 0 8/Z 1 F/F ARTICLES 76. i- \. The fvii, myths t-heretoie drarraflze the tensions and suspicions Inherent in the -ciT'ily structure when i^o sister's son succeeds to the office orxl p".-£>erty of o . :c ? But further, they also show, as Lev c- :,trauss 'can is r.- .'•:r'-..i,-df ;,>ut <»;« scheme of affection could act as a see-"-, '•••,, efabo;e.f!oii exr,'; to office by nepl\ >v/s. The nep'tew's loss of recogtiitton or- the prcpftf hu«r to the maferna! uncle is a result of the neglect of his d'.ity to aivp himself up to his uncle's debtors. Whr=re mr v!fh him to make the father's ARTICLES wealth, the sister's son h free of the dsscpfinary father -, »t?, f-he- attltude a slsferss son adopts towards o mothers bmt'se-, •?• ; Softer appears warm and cordial while the former wends out -• •• ;xsd; that is F/S = 3 . This makes the quality of f ie reicf'-im befwee- father and son uncertain and fraught witn r s s!< 0( .-'U.i A mother's brother has a secular >ora\ auth-->r»!-y y,^r his instrument sister's son, Th« thieat of disinheritom.'- acts as o potenf of control over fhe sister's son. A fat'-.e"'*; powe\ --A ,?• v.^ son >*• !egitimate# but it has no secuiat so itnoi-. s>mJlo<- i(. -irn *-ny io tb<.it of the mother's brother, !f rests on the bsiief thot ' -: ;.'-I!Q h ;*J creation of the father^, and that the fathfv is c god ~«e 'otter Is incapsulated in a Fanti adage that "tht-, 'Rjther-ao: rests heavily) on the c h i l d" '• c : showed any disrespect !o his father,, rhe "«iovt -J'ICJL-:'. ~~Z from the father might destroy the fortune- o? th. c-r'c "' i- o; a child should cut himself from the bodv ':**3.-'-- »vh;--h s-f -PTf ' ' ill In this section,. ? intend ro discuss how Hie rj " ?- 5y<*-eir. inheritance of properly Interacts w?fh othe- system: ••>* I'l^e-'i.'a d ; hir«"- of property when a Fanfi marries o C-.J, CV^?# Dagou- show that the forms of Inreraction S shofi Lr ff<-c.tirv. •oulr fend practice, to product- in Ghana o r»evv sorint stnj"!;i~e coat^ea » a new distribution of ?•" ARTICLES 78. There are two ways in which the Fantl system of inheritance might interact with a patrilineal system. One would be through the marriage of a Rmti woman to a Dagbani, say. Another would be through the marriage of a Fanti man to a Dagbani woman. The two forms of interaction produce two quite different results.'0 In the one case, as the diagram shows, the offspring has Htle to the father's property on the principle of Dagbani patrilineal descent, and a right to the mother's brother's property on the Fanti principle of'matrilineal inheritance. The offspring would thus enjoy.dual descent by right and can accede to office and property in two lineages simultaneously. MMM 0 FFF Matriline MM 6 FF Patriline M 6 Ego (Double Inheritor) When a Fanti man marries a Dagbani woman, the systems of patriliny and matriliny neutralize themselves. The offspring of such a marriage cannot inherit rights from the father, as the father Is inherited by his sister's son* Nor can the offspring Inherit his mother: tn a patrilineal system no Important office or property is ARTICLES 79, transmitted through a woman. The offspring of a Fdnti man and a woman from any patrilineal society would be a person of no status, completely disinherited on purely structural basis, From a direct exchange of women between the men of matri- Uneal and patri lineal societies in Ghana, there would result a system of social stratification with two categories of people: one would be men of dual inheritance; and the ofher# men and women who have no inheritance. The former would have status and property and the falter would have no status and no property. the men of the mafrilineal societies would create starus~fess and dis- inherited categories of people^ while the men of the patrillneal societies would produce a category of peopie of dual Inheritors. If such an exchange took place,, FZD 0 • MBS Ego Non-inheritor In practical terms, however, the initial stage of such 0 process would present a system of three-tier social stratification. At the top, and most endowed In status and wealth, would be the dual Inheritors. ARTICLES 80. At the bottom, and most deprived, would be the non-inheritors. Between the two layers would be the unillneal descent groups - the pafrfllneal and matrilineal societal groups who would be interacting in the way I have already demonstrated, and with the two other resuitenfr cotegoties - the dual descent' groups and the no-descent groups. The sketches,below are Intended to show the abstract1 forms of the possible interactions within the systems. A (I) I i i 0 Dual Inherftot married to a woman frdm a matrllineal soctgty, TKe™pro3ucni* a dual InherttorTneinnerits from his father (a dual inheritor) by father-rightj and he Inherits from his mother's brother. ARTICLES 81. A (II) 0 M 0 When a woman dual inheritor marries a man from a matrllineal clan, the Issue inherits that half of his inheritance which comes to her through her mother. From the father he inherits nothing. B (I) * When a man of dual inheritance marries a woman from a patrl- lineal society, the issue cannot inherit from the mother, he can only Inherit from the father by father-right. ARTICLES 82. B (ii) 0 When a woman of dual inheritance marries a man from a patriSineal society, the issue will be a dual inheritor: he Inherits from his mother'i brother and also from his father. v ., C (i) 0 M When a woman from a matrillneaS society marries a mart who Is a non-inheritor the issue does not inherit from the father; he can only inherit the mother's brother. ARTICLES 83. C (fi) D (?) 0 F2 m, F =p T 6M When a man from 0 mafrllineal clan marries a woman non- Inheritor,, their Issue Is a non-Inheritor. His father is suc- ceeded by his sister's son, and he cannot inherit anything from rfie mother 6 M When a man from a patrillnea! society marries a woman non-Inheritor their Issue inherits from bis father. ARTICLES 84. D (ii) n (0 E (ii) 1 F When a woman from a patrilineal society marries a man non-inheritor, their issue is a non-inheritor: he cannot inherit the father, and he cannot inherit the mother. T 6 M When a man dual inheritor marries a woman non-inheritor their issue inherits from the father as of patri liny. He inherits nothing from the mother. O M • F When a woman dual inheritor marries a man non-inheritor their issue inherits from the mother's brother. He does not inherit anything from the father. ARTICLES 85, The foregoing marriage models might be classified as fallows (pf m, d and n stand for patrilineaf, matrlllneal, dual descent and non- Inheritance respectively): Those giving rise to Dual Inheritance: Hp Hd Hp Wm Wm Wd Ise to Non-lnheritc Hm Hm Hn „« Wp Wn Wp ise to Unilineal De Hm Hd Hn Hp Hd Hn Wd Wp Wm Wn Wn Wd From this It might be inferred that, ail things being equal, the Inter-systemfc marriages which might result In dual Inheritance and non-!lnea! descent would tend to occur with equal probability. ARTICLES 86 Marriages which might result in unilinea! inheritance would hove? higher probability„ in other words, with increased inter-inba- contacts,. Ghanaian Society would tend to move towards a cki?. structure wiih dominant middle class of uniMneol descent group, "., upper end (owe,- classes of equal strength. Some of the socia! factors stimulating these forms of i n f r- action are the following. : . Greater mobility tending to bring together people from different tribes. The marriages we have here studied are predominantly an urban phenomenon- 2. The creation of interests and aims in lire which ore- extra tribal, nameiy: professional, academic, onrf social interests, 3. Greater individual financial capabilities.. This has rwo separate Implications; first, \* means rhat 5-he individual can satisfy his parents and kinsmen on Hie one hand, and, on the other hand, support h;$ own children by leaving enough property for each side. This removes the fear that families might refect one's children after death. Second? ir does meon that. since tne individual is going to bear his own financial burden, he can make his own choices, including the choice of maritof oartnerSv 4. |t follows from this that children are now general\y accepted as the direct responsibility of their parents,. This is enforced on the father's side by the now general practice of naming the child and wife after the faf'hef, ARTICLES 87. This is further supported by the notion that since the greater part of the man's life is likely to be spent with his wife and children, and whatever success he achieves must be due to their help, it should be just to give them some inheritance. Conclusion In this essay, I have sought to give some understanding of how Fantis use their kinship terms in the determination of social groups for participation in different fields of social action. I have also shown the system of attitudes corresponding to the system of words. But to under- stand kinship as on-going process is also to understand the likely changes it could go through. And short of total refection of the system, no changes would have greater implications for our society than those which might result from "cross-tribal" marriages. The models of these cross-tribal marriages are so general in form that they should be applicable to marriages in any part of Africa . ARTICLES 88. FOOTNOTES Among Fantis (and probably in ail societies organized on kinship basis) knowledge of kinship begins with the learning of kinship terms. This study begins, on this account, by looking at the Fanti kinship terms. in The Linguistic Sciences and Language Teaching, M.A. K . HaTliday, Angus Mclntosh, Peter Strevens, Longmans 1968, p.87, which if has been employed here ~ is explained: the use of 'register' - in the pertinent sense in "The categoiy of 'register' is needed when we want to account for what people do with their language. When we observe language activity in the various contexts In which it takes place, we find differences in the type of language selected as appropriate to different types of situation". On pages 5 and 6, ! present two different arrangements of the kinship terms ! have presented above. The same words acquire different social significance by merely defining the field in which the words are to be used. At least the relations between the different categories (which the kinship terms express)>are altered in relation to the field of social activity. Yet it is not the fields which create the shuffling, "it is not the event or state of affairs being talked about that determines the choice, but the convention that a certain kind of language is appropriate to a certain use". In patrllateral cross-cousin marriage, Ego's wife should come from the father's abusua. L-4 -i - ARTICLES 89, 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. The police organization now constitutes the effective force for peace. The police gave an effective demonstration of this peace~keep!ng role when they Intervened In a series of bloody strifes betwen Asafo companies in the twenties and thirties. In Apam, I was told that the colonial government Imprisoned the Chief for not maintaining effective order in the town. If- was not understood that Chiefs had no force other than the Asafos who were involved In the civil strifes. From A Guide to Cape Coast Company Emblems, 1909, p.12, 13, ~|^TKF7^^^J7 At Apam an Informant indicated that there was a clear dividing line between lands possessed by the two Asafos in town. 1 was able to observe for myself the two modern buildings which the Asafos use as their respective community centres. E.J.P. Brown, O.B.E., Gold Coast and Aslant! Reader, London, 1929, p.199. The notion of regency~Is*^ot~an~A~CarT notion. The protector of an Akai stool is never considered a regent. Adapted from Brown ibid,, p.171. Levl-strauss, Structural Anthropology, London, N.Y. 1963. p.37. "~™ "" ~ According to Levl-Straussr "the system of basic attitudes comprises, at least, four terms". He gives these as "mutuality (=), reciprocity (+), rights (+), and obligations (-)". (ibid., p,49). In this paper we are viewing mutual attitudes as bundles. The designations 1 have given here would refer to their dominant content or feature. That which is dominantiy free Is (1). That which is dominantly hostile is 0; and 1 have chosen the middle term i to ARTICLES 9 0. designate what, in rise words of Devothy Emmet, constitute;, "the ambivalent attitude of love and at the same time.; fear o:nj hate lesser people so often feel towards people of exxep ;or;.-.-S innor powers, such as saints and holy men". Function, Po .-• , or,d Powers, London, MacmiMan, 1958, pp. ^TW7 Levi-Strauss refers to the function of the system of attitude- in helping to achieve "cohesion and equilibrium" in the...kinship, group ( i b i d ., p.37). One might Interpret this to moan tho* people would tend to move from hostile relations to loving ones in situations of tension. It is perhaps not surprising to see thai Fantis fight on their father's sidef in the fathers Asafof against their mother's brothers. in the two matrices on pages 5 and 6, the only categories which are not separated In shuffling categories between Asafo and Abusua are those of brother and sister. The Brothtfr/Ssis?'--' nexus is constant, as compared to Mother/Son or Son/MoH^r's Brother which are severed by Asafo divisions. Brown i b i d ., p.. 195. Brown i b i d ., pp. 195, 196, Levi-Strauss, Structural Anthropology, p.42. Hon. Mr. N ii Amaa Ollenu, The Law of Successlonjn Ghana, Accra, I960, The legal implicarTors~oT7Fese two kinds of cross-tribai marriage are briefly treated by the author (pp. 39-41). The present heatment examines these interactions as an. aspect of social change. i 1 - )2, 13. 14. 15. 16. j 7. We do not here take into consideration the number of actual mo mages of which the couoie are from tribes who recken w th systems of rhe same kind f-•$ . f Fwe against Dagbons.