One Leg Here, One Leg There

Chieftaincy, Rituals, and the (Un)Making of Ewe Identities on the Ghana-Togo Borderlands, 19th Century to Present Times

One of the legacies of colonialism is the partition of families, communities, and ethnic groups. This work explores the salience of chieftaincy and rituals in shaping the identities of Ewe-speaking people partitioned by the Ghana-Togo border. The work argues that cultural and symbolic relations are salient in shaping and sustaining a pan-ethnic Ewe identity. This work highlights the temporal and spatial complexity of identities in Africa’s past and present through critical reflection on issues of governance that relate to the co-existence of modern states and cross-border chieftaincies and rituals.

Speaker Bio

Professor Adotey is a historian and Senior Research Fellow in the History and Politics section at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana. He specialises in African borderlands exploring the intersection between borders and ethnic identities, citizenship, and nationalism. He is currently a Fulbright Research Scholar at the African Studies Centre, University of California, Los Angeles to work on his book manuscript, “One Leg Here, One Leg There: Chieftaincy, Rituals, and the Making of Ewe Identities on the Ghana-Togo Borderlands, c. 19th to Present Times”.

Published: Friday, May 17, 2024