184 Culture, Identity, and Community: From Slavery to the PresentKromantine, was the name of both a key commercial village
controlled by the Fante Kingdom of Fetu and a major trad-
ing fort established by the Dutch in 1598. Fort Kroman-
tine, located near the modern-day village of Abanze, was
destroyed in 1645 and rebuilt later by the English. It was to
become the fi rst English trading post along the coast of the
Gulf of Guinea. From Fort Kromantine and other coastal
factories like it, the English exported Africans principally
to their Caribbean possessions throughout the 17th and
18th centuries. During the second Anglo-Dutch War, Fort
Kromantine was seized by the Dutch West Indies Company
and renamed Fort New Amsterdam—perhaps in direct re-
sponse to the seizure of its namesake in North America by
British forces.
As a result of the combined Fante, English, and Dutch
trading activities at Kromantine, enslaved Africans ex-
ported from this region of the Gold Coast were lumped
together and referred to incorrectly as “Kromantine” by
European slave traders, factors, and ship captains during
the 17th and 18th centuries. Although this ethnic term has
its ambiguities, “Kromantine” does refer to mostly Akan-
speakers from the Gold Coast who were transported to the
Western Hemisphere.
Th roughout the 18th century, the so-called Coroman-
tees were a feared contingent among the many enslaved Af-
rican groups in the British, Dutch, and Danish Americas.
Involved as principles and leaders in more than 23 revolts
and plots in locales ranging from Antigua to New York City,
Coromantees were stereotyped by British planters and ship
captains as being prone to rebellion, yet fi ercely loyal if one
could gain their respect. Importantly, the creation of Coro-
mantee identity in the Americas was characterized by the
spreading infl uence of Akan-speaking cultural practices,
including the use of Akan day-names, Anansi the Spider
stories, and Obeah—which was likely a fusion of Akan- and
Igbo-speaking spiritual practices.
See also: Atlantic Slave Trade; Slave ResistanceWalter C. RuckerBibliography
Berlin, Ira. “From Creole to African: Atlantic Creoles and
the Origins of African-American Society in Mainland
North America.” Th e William and Mary Quarterly 53
(April 1996):251–88.
Rucker, Walter. Th e River Flows On: Black Resistance, Culture, and
Identity Formation in Early America. Baton Rouge: Louisiana
State University, 2005.eradicating the need for conjurers who practiced divina-
tion or craft ed spells. During the late 19th and 20th centu-
ries several conjurers gained national recognition as clients
sought their services. Some of the more prominent con-
jurers were Doctor Buzzard of Beaufort, South Carolina;
Doctor Jim Jordan of Murfreesboro, North Carolina; Aunt
Caroline Dye of Newport, Arkansas; and the Seven Sisters
of New Orleans. Preservation of cultural identity was also
a mitigating factor in refusal of some blacks to relinquish
their ties with conjure.
In the 21st century, media continues to promote nega-
tive stereotypes of conjure through images of primitive
characters and rituals. Regardless of the demonization and
trivialization of conjure, there has been a renewed interest
in the practice and study of conjuration. In many instances,
the continuation of conjure among African Americans is
still perpetuated by lack of access to adequate health care.
As scholars continue to explore various aspects of conju-
ration relative to African American healing, they are com-
pelled to reconsider and redefi ne conjure beyond the realm
of folklore and superstition in order to critically examine
cultural dimensions of African American experiences.
See also: Africanisms; Pritchard, Gullah Jack; Root Doctors;
Slave Culture; Slave Resistance
Anita L. HarrisBibliography
Anderson, Jeff rey E. Conjure in African American Society. Baton
Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2007.
Bird, Stephanie Rose. Sticks, Stones, Roots & Bones: Hoodoo,
Mojo & Conjuring with Herbs. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn
Publications, 2004.
Chireau, Yvonne P. Black Magic: Religion and the African Ameri-
can Conjuring Tradition. Berkeley: University of California
Press, 2003.
McQuillar, Tayannah Lee. Rootwork: Using the Folk Magic of Black
America for Love, Money, and Success. New York: Simon &
Schuster, 2003.
Mitchim, Stephanie Y. African American Folk Healing. New York:
New York University Press, 2007.
Coromantee
Th e term Coromantee refers to an important English trad-
ing post located on the Gold Coast of West Africa dur-
ing the 17th and 18th centuries. Th e correct appellation,