Akwasidae Festival

The royal assembly

During the celebration in Kumasi, the Asantehene, or King of Ashanti, appears before his subjects and local chiefs in the courtyard of Manhyia Palace. The king travels in a palanquin adorned with gold jewellery before presiding over a public assembly known as a durbar. Citizens arrive in great numbers to greet their monarch directly and shake his hand. On this occasion, the Golden Stool, the sacred throne of the Ashanti nation, is brought out and displayed on the palace grounds. A large procession surrounds the courtyard, featuring traditional horn blowers, drummers, and folk dancers who perform before the king.

Rites and offerings

Akwasidae centres on remembering personal forebears and community ancestors, known as Nsamanfo, alongside lesser Akan deities called Abosom. A dedicated spiritual assembly, termed Akom, brings together singing, dancing, and rhythmic percussion. To honour these spirits, celebrants prepare sacred dishes, most notably eto, a meal of mashed African yam served with hard-boiled eggs. The king also makes a solemn visit to the Bantama Mausoleum. There, he pays formal respects to the physical remains and the carved stools of former rulers, acknowledging the lineage and spiritual guidance of those who came before.

The calendar cycle

The festival belongs to the Adae cycle, which divides the Akan year into nine distinct periods lasting between 40 and 42 days each. Within each cycle, two Adae celebrations take place: Awukudae on a Wednesday, and Akwasidae on the final Sunday. A preparatory ritual day, called Fofie, occurs ten days prior on a Friday. Akwasidae helps communities track the changing seasons and schedule agricultural work. The final Akwasidae of the yearly cycle coincides with the Adae Kese festival, an ancient observance devoted to cleansing the Golden Stool and presenting charity and food gifts to people in need.

How Akwasidae Festival is kept

The observance begins with ritual preparations, including the Fofie Friday held ten days earlier. On Sunday, Ashanti people hold an Akom gathering with percussion, chanting, and dances honouring ancestors and deities, offering plates of mashed yam with boiled eggs. In Kumasi, the king travels by palanquin to the Manhyia Palace courtyard to hold a public durbar. Subordinate chiefs and local citizens gather around the displayed Golden Stool to exchange greetings with the monarch, enjoy parades of horn blowers and dancers, and join the king as he pays homage at the ancestral mausoleum.

When and where

Akwasidae takes place every six weeks on a Sunday, repeating nine times throughout the Akan year. The exact spacing falls every 40 to 42 days, marking the end of each cycle in the traditional Ashanti calendar.

The festival is celebrated across the Ashanti Region of Ghana, with its primary royal ceremonies held at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi. Ashanti diaspora communities around the world also observe the day.

What Akwasidae Festival means

The tradition serves as a vital bridge between the living, their forebears, and the divine. By honouring ancestral stools and displaying the Golden Stool, the community reaffirms political unity, lineage continuity, and respect for departed leaders. It also aligns communal life with the agricultural calendar, invoking blessings for farming, protection, and social welfare across the kingdom.

On the table

• Eto (mashed yam with boiled eggs)

Questions people ask about Akwasidae Festival

See also

Damba festivalA Ghanaian celebration of royal authority, ancestral memory, music and danceHomowoA harvest festival of the Ga people in Ghana to remember surviving famineFetu AfahyeA harvest festival of cleansing, boat races and royal durbars in Cape Coast, GhanaOdwira FestivalAn annual harvest and purification festival celebrated by the Akuapem in Ghana

Good reading and sources

• Akwasidae Festival on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-04.