Kofi is an

Akan Akan may refer to: People and languages *Akan people, an ethnic group in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire *Akan language, a language spoken by the Akan people *Kwa languages, a language group which includes Akan *Central Tano languages, a language group w ...

masculine given name among the

Akan people The Akan () people live primarily in present-day Ghana and Ivory Coast in West Africa. The Akan language (also known as ''Twi/Fante'') are a group of dialects within the Central Tano branch of the Potou–Tano subfamily of the Niger–Congo ...

(such as the Ashanti and Fante) in

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

that is given to a boy born on Friday. Traditionally in Ghana, a child would receive their Akan day name during their

Outdooring In Ghana, an Outdooring ( Ga: ''kpodziemo''; ak, abadinto) is the traditional naming ceremony for infants. Traditionally this ceremony occurs eight days after the child is born where parents bring their newborn "outdoors" for the first time and gi ...

, eight days after birth. According to Akan tradition, people born on particular days exhibit certain characteristics or attributes. Kofi has the appellation "Kyini", "Otuo" and "Ntiful" meaning "wanderer" and "traveller."

Origin and meaning of Kofi

In the Akan culture, gh day names are known to be derived from deities. Kofi originated from Kwaofida and the Lord of life's home deity of the day Friday. Males named Kofi are known to be adventurers and indecisive thus taking time to settle. They are highly motivated and competent.

Male variants of Kofi

Day names in Ghana vary in spelling among the various Akan subgroups. The name is spelt Kofi by the Akuapem, Ashanti and Fante subgroups. Other versions of Kofi are Fiifi and Yoofi.

Female version of Kofi

In the Akan culture and other local cultures in Ghana, day names come in pairs for males and females. The variant of the name used for a female child born on Friday is Efua, Afua, Afia, Effie.

Notable people with the name

Most Ghanaian children have their cultural day names in combination with their English or Christian names. Some notable people with such names are: *

Osei Kofi Tutu I Osei Kofi Tutu I ( – ) was one of the founders of the Ashanti Empire, assisted by Okomfo Anokye. The Asante are an Akan ethnic group of West Africa. Osei Tutu led an alliance of Asante states against the regional hegemon, the Denkyira, comple ...

(reigned c. 1675 / c. 1680 – c. 1717), one of the co-founders of the Empire of Ashanti *

John Kufuor John Kofi Agyekum Kufuor (born 8 December 1938) is a Ghanaian politician who served as the President of Ghana from 7 January 2001 to 7 January 2009. He was also Chairperson of the African Union from 2007 to 2008. Kufuor's career has been sp ...

(born 1938), second President of the Fourth Republic of Ghana (2001–2009) *

Kofi Abrefa Busia Kofi Abrefa Busia (born 11 July 1913 – 28 August 1978) was a Ghanaian political leader and academic who was Prime Minister of Ghana from 1969 to 1972. As a nationalist leader and prime minister, he helped to restore civilian government to the ...

(1913–1978), Prime Minister of Ghana *

Enoch Kofi Adu Enoch Kofi Adu (born 14 September 1990) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Allsvenskan club Mjällby AIF. Club career Early career and Nice Born in Kumasi, Ghana, Adu started his professional career in 200 ...

(born 1990), Ghanaian footballer *

Kofi Adu Kofi Adu (born May 25, 1969),is originally from the Ashanti Region of Ghana but lived in a suburb in Accra Newtown called Asantewaa, also known as Agya Koo, is an actor and comedian from Ghana. He has appeared in over 200 Ghanaian movies includi ...

(born 1969), Ghanaian comedian and actor * Kofi Amichia (born 1994), American football player *

Kofi Amponsah Kofi Amponsah (born 23 April 1978) is a Ghanaian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Club career Amponsah was born in Accra, Ghana. He played domestically for Ghapoha Readers before spending ten years in Greek footbal ...

(born 1978), Ghanaian footballer *

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (; 8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder ...

(1938–2018), United Nations Secretary General *

Kofi Ansah Kofi Ansah (6 July 1951 – 3 May 2014) was a Ghanaian fashion designer. He was considered a pioneer in promoting modern African styles and design on the international stage. He was married to Nicola Ansah and the father of actor Joey Ansah, Ryan ...

(1951–2014), Ghanaian fashion designer *

Kofi Baah Kofi Baah (born 23 January 1998) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Ghanaian Premier league side Liberty Professionals F.C. Career Baah started his career with lower-tier side Charity Stars before joining Liber ...

(born 1998), Ghanaian professional footballer *

Kofi Burbridge Kofi Burbridge (September 22, 1961 – February 15, 2019) was an American keyboardist and flautist of the blues and blues rock group Tedeschi Trucks Band. Burbridge was a classically trained multi-instrumentalist who provided keyboards, organ, ...

(1961-2019), American musician *

Kofi Cockburn Kofi Cockburn ( ; born 1 September 1999) is a Jamaican professional basketball player who currently plays for Niigata Albirex of the Japanese B. League. He played college basketball for the Illinois Fighting Illini. Early life Cockburn was born i ...

(born 1999), Jamaican basketball player *

Kofi Esaw Kofi Esaw is a Togolese politician and diplomat who has served in the government of Togo as Minister of Justice since 2013. He was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2010 and subsequently served as diplomatic adviser to President Faure Gnassi ...

, Togolese politician and diplomat, Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2010 and Minister of Justice since 2013 *

Kofi Jantuah Kofi Jantuah (born 16 June 1974) is a Ghanaian professional boxer that fights at middleweight. He was born in Kumasi, Ghana and now lives in Las Vegas. IBF light middleweight title fight Kofi fought Kassim Ouma for the IBF light middleweight w ...

(born 1974), Ghanaian professional boxer *

Kofi Karikari Kofi Karikari (–)Cameron Duodu"Obituary of Beryl Karikari" ''The Guardian'', 5 March 2007. was the tenth King of the Ashanti Empire, and grandnephew of Kwaku Dua I, whose sudden death in April 1867 sparked internal strife about the succession. ...

(c. 1837–1884), ninth Ashanti king (1867–1874) *

Kofi Kayiga Kofi Kayiga (born December 1943),
JamaicaArts.com. formerly ...

(born 1943), formerly known as Ricardo Wilkins,Jamaican-born artist *

Kofi Asante Ofori-Atta Aaron Eugene Kofi Asante Ofori-Atta, (12 December 1912 – July 1978) was a Ghanaian educator, lawyer and politician who served as the fourth Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana. Early life and education He was born on 12 December 1912 at Kyebi ...

(1912–1978), Ghanaian politician *

Kofi Amoah Prah Kofi Amoah Prah (born 20 December 1974 in Accra, Ghana) is a retired Ghanaian-German long jumper. He won the silver medal at the 1992 European Indoor Championships, finished seventh at the 1998 IAAF World Cup, eleventh at the 1998 European Cham ...

(born 1974) Ghanaian-born retired German long jumper *

Kofi Sarkodie Kofi Kwarteng Frempong Sarkodie (born March 22, 1991) is an American soccer player. Career Youth, College and Amateur After graduating from the IMG Soccer Academy in 2008, Sarkodie attended the University of Akron. Sarkodie started in all ...

(born 1991), American Major League Soccer player * Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah ( Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah) (born 1981), Ghanaian-American professional wrestler with the ring name

Kofi Kingston Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah (born August 14, 1981) is a Ghanaian-born American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Kofi Kingston. He appeared on WWE's NXT brand as one-hal ...

Kofi Siriboe Nana-Kofi Siriboe (born March 2, 1994) is an American actor and model. He is best known for his role as Ralph Angel Bordelon on the television series ''Queen Sugar'' (2016–present). He has also appeared in films such as ''The Longshots'' (2008) ...

(born 1994), American actor and model

References

{{Given name Akan given names Masculine given names

Origin and meaning of Kofi

Male variants of Kofi

Female version of Kofi

Notable people with the name

See also

References