Nana Oti Akenten (ruled from 1630 – 1660) was the
Asantehene
The is the title for the monarch of the historical Ashanti Empire as well as the ceremonial ruler of the Ashanti people today. The Ashanti royal house traces its line to the Oyoko (an ''Abusua'', or "clan") Abohyen Dynasty of Nana Twum and t ...
— the ruler of the
Ashanti — from the Oyoko clan of the
Ashanti Kingdom which occupied parts of what is now
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 ...
. Nana Oti was the brother of Nana Kobia Antwi and their mother was Antwiwaa Nyame. Nana Oti sent his hunter called Bofoo Nyame on a trip and he discovered that the
Agona
Agona is a small town 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 Ghana–Ivo ...
family has already settled in a place called Kwaebrem which was later called
Kwaabre. The hunter found out that the land was fertile and came to inform Nana Oti. When the hunter learned that the area was productive, he went to tell Nana Oti. The settlement was then given the name
Kumasi
Kumasi (historically spelled Comassie or Coomassie, usually spelled Kumase in Twi) is a city in the Ashanti Region, and is among the largest metropolitan areas in Ghana. Kumasi is located in a rain forest region near Lake Bosomtwe, and is the ...
after the monarch, his family, and some of his followers opted to purchase that portion of the land from Agonaba Obaapanyin Adwoa Wiri.. It was under his regime that a series of military operations against other
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 ...
states came into alliance with the Ashanti.
During his reign, there was a trend towards Ashanti military unification.
References
17th-century monarchs in Africa
Ashanti monarchs
1630 births
1660 deaths
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