philosophy, and sworn unity with all minor kings
of the region. To test the solidarity of the nation,
Asante went to war against the Denkyera in
1699.Thewarlastedfor2years,withtheAsante
army having to beat back the Denkyera army
from the gates of Kumasi, the capital city.
However, the Asante army had the special power
of Anokye who, with his mighty voice, began to
shout incantations toward the Denkyera army.
Soon many of their generals defected to the
Asante side and the war, which had been going
badly for the Asante army, quickly turned in
Asante’s favor. From that time forward, Anokye
was considered one of the greatest of all priests.
It is claimed that he died in Akwapim in 1717.
Okomfo Anokye profoundly impacted the
Asante Nation in its origin. He has a record of
great deeds and miraculous cures that places him
at the top of Asante’s history. It is said that,
among other things, he climbed palm trees with
hissandalsonandcarvedagameofOwareoutof
astoneslabwithhisbarefingers.Thesandalsand
the slab of stone are on display in Awukugua.
Indeed, the exploits of Okomfo Anokye include
the redirecting of rivers, the restructuring of
Asante institutions, fetching water in a basket
without spilling a drop, and the commanding of
the Golden Stool, Sika Dwa Kofi, to land on the
knees of his friend Osei Tutu I, thus making him
the first king. Everything that Anokye did seemed
to attest to his power over nature. He even lived
in a house without a roof, but he was never wet
because the rain did not fall inside of his house.
Almost every conceivable action that one could
attribute to a priest or a magician could be
claimed by Anokye.
LatertheAsantewrotesongsinhisname,andhe
washonoredinpraisepoetry.Hisfameandreputa-
tiongrewimmenselyafterhisdeath,andtheAsante
rememberhiswarningthatiftheGoldenStoolwere
ever to be destroyed or captured by the enemies of
theAsante,thenationwoulddescendintochaos.
The Seventy-seven Laws decreed by Anokye
covered birth, childrearing, puberty rites, sexual
relations, installation of chiefs, legislative coun-
cils, death, burial, ancestors, and taboos. Every-
thing spoken and established by Okomfo Anokye
became law in Asante.
Molefi Kete AsanteSee alsoAkanFurther Readings
Asante, M. K. (2007).The History of Africa. London:
Routledge.
Asante, M. K., & Abarry, A. (Eds.). (1996).African
Intellectual Heritage. Philadelphia: Temple University
Press.OLODUMARE
Ask the Yoruba “Who is God?” and they will
answer by saying, “He is Olorun” or
“Olodumare” or both together. According to
Idowu,Olodumareis the traditional name of the
Supreme Being andOlorun, although commonly
used in popular language, appears to have gained
its predominating currency in consequence of
ChristianandMusliminfluenceonYorubalifeand
thought. As among some other African people, the
concept of Olodumare is discernible from the
names,myths,sayings,andattributesofGod.Etymology
The riddle of the word remains in doubt. Its eso-
teric character, however, suggests it is of ancient
origin. Idowu explains thatOlodumareis a com-
pound word derived from two words:oduand
mare,andtheprefixolresultsfromthewordOni,
which means “owner of,” “Lord of,” or “one
whodealsin.”ThecomingtogetherofOni,which
ends with a voweli, andOdu, which begins with
another voweloresults in the elision of the vowel
i,therebychangingontool;hence,wehaveolodu
instead ofoni-odu.Odumay mean a main head-
ing or chapter, a scepter, or authority. When it is
usedasanadjective,itmeanslarge,extensive,and
full. Thus, when the Yoruba say “odu re kun”—
one’s odu is full—it means one has blessings
in abundance. With the prefixol,Olodumeans
the owner ofodu, that is, one who possesses the
scepter of authority or one who encompasses the
fullnessofexcellence.Thesesuggestthatthebeing
described is superlative and perfect in greatness,
size, quality, and worth.488 Olodumare