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| location map of the Ewe people |
THE
EWE CULTURE
The Ewe people are an
ethnic group located in Togo formally French Togoland and Volta Region formally
British Togoland; both formally Togoland or Eweland, and southern Benin. They
speak the Ewe language and are related to other speakers of Gbe languages, such
as, the Fon, Gen, Phla Phera, and the Aja people of Togo and Benin.
The people are ruled by
chiefs who have an assigned role in the community. Traditionally, chiefs are
not to see the face of a corpse. They may take part in the funeral, however,
once the corpse is buried or inside the coffin. They are not to have any
contact with the corpse. Chiefs sit on a black stool. A white stool is reserved
for 'honorary' chiefs. These are auspicious individuals who have been made a
'chief' as recognition for their contribution to a village. Certain rituals
cannot be performed by an honorary chief, and must be attended by the true
chief. The pouring of libations is an important ritual within Ewe society.
Generally, only chiefs can pour libations, but sometimes, at a durbar, a
linguist performs the role. Libations are poured three times, in honor of
ancestors, life, and the libation's offerer himself.
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| A drum |
In architectural works and craft, the Ewe people
were shown how to weave 'Kente' cloth. In the Akan wars against the Ewe; Ewe
people were captured and some remaining Ewe survivors were enslaved by Akans
and made to be weavers. Ke means 'to open' in Ewe and te means 'to press'; the
Ewe hold that the word Kete thus describes the weaving motion of the feewww.hypertextile.nett. The
hand-woven Kente cloth is not just any kind of fabric that we use to cover
ourselves. Kente weaving is a genuine form of popular art, rich in traditions
and also in new inventions. Most men are also into the crafting of drums. Hand-weaving is effectively one of the vital organs
of the Ewe culture.
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| a kente cloth |
In the cultural fabric
of the Ewe the loom is intimately linked to music and dance. These three arts
are traditionally learnt and practiced by everyone. And so, Hand-in-hand
Weaving opens with a Textile Performance by the weavers of the village of
Klikor, along with their families and children. They bring along their best
cloths and instruments, both textile and musical. To the accompaniment of a
sacred weaving song, they weave and dance before their traditional kings,
before the diplomatic representatives and a delegation from the Italian
government.www.kganu.net
As part of culture, the
Ewe people use a system of giving the first name of a child as the day of the
week that the child was born. This arises from a belief that the real name of a
child can only be determined after the child has shown its character. However,
as a child is a person, not an object, the child must be referred to by some
name in the interim, so a name is provided based on the day of birth. A final
name is given at a naming ceremony, seven days after the date of birth.
Ewe religion is
organized around a creator/creatures deity, Mawu and Lisa. Mawu and Lisa
(Goddess and God) to the Ewe is the Supreme Being and is remote from daily
affairs. In addition the Ewe believes in many secondary gods (trowo) that are worshiped in unique ways. They also believe in spirit ancestors and divination
is practiced. Se is a word for law, order and harmony; Se is the maker and
keeper of human souls; in an abstract sense, Se is destiny. Ewe people are also
Voodooists.
