Axim is a

coast The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...

al town and the capital of Nzema East Municipal district, a district in Western Region of South

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–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

.Nzema East Municipal District
/ref> Axim lies 64 kilometers west of the port city of Sekondi-Takoradi in the Western Region, west of Cape Three Points. Axim has a 2013 settlement population of 27,719 people.

History

This area was occupied by the Nzema people. The Portuguese arrived by the early 16th century as traders. They built a prominent seaside fort, Fort Santo Antonio, in 1515. They exported some Africans as slaves to Europe and the Americas. Between 1642 and 1872, the fort was expanded and altered by the Dutch, who "ruled" during that period. The fort, now property of Ghana, is open to the public. Off-shore are some picturesque

island An island or isle is a piece of subcontinental land completely surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or a lake island may be ...

s, including one with a lighthouse.

Axim structure

The town of Axim is divided into two parts: Upper Axim and Lower Axim. Fort Santo Antonio lies roughly on the division between the two parts, but closest to the centre of Upper Axim, the original European settlement. Here, several large mansions of lumber-trading magnates and other businessmen remain from the late 19th century and period of the British empire. Axim is governed by a political District Executive of the Nzema East Municipality.

Economy

The economy is based mainly on Axim's fishing fleet, but the area also has three tourist beach resorts as well as

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or ...

and

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, a ...

plantations. The scenic and fertile

terrain Terrain or relief (also topographical relief) involves the vertical and horizontal dimensions of land surface. The term bathymetry is used to describe underwater relief, while hypsometry studies terrain relative to sea level. The Latin w ...

features many

palm tree The Arecaceae is a family of perennial flowering plants in the monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly known as palms. Those having a tree-like form are called palm tre ...

s. Local artisanal miners pan for

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...

in streams inland from Axim. Axim has a transport station, two major

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Becau ...

branches, and some

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descri ...

banks including the Ahantaman Rural Bank, Nzema Maanle Rural Bank, Lower Pra Rural Bank.

Culture

Every August, the major

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival co ...

s of Kundum takes place, coinciding with the best

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques ...

-catch of the year; people come to Axim for the festivities and to fish and trade.

Tourism

There is a wonderful beach in Axim. The very place around the beach, perched on a hillside, is an exuberant nature has no equal in Ghana. The waves of the beach are strong and suitable for surfers. Fort Saint Anthony

Notable locals

*January Conny, known by many names, of which the best-known is John Canoe, was an Akan warrior and chief of the

Ahanta The Ahanta/Ayinda are Akan People who live to the north and east of the Nzema. The Ahanta land has been historically known as one of the richest areas on the coast of what is now Ghana. The Ahanta land spans from Beposo to Ankobra in what is no ...

people, an ally of Brandenburg-Prussia against the British and the Dutch, in the Brandenburger Gold Coast colony (1683–1720) in Axim. His true name has been lost to history, although the name ''Kenu'' is an authentic Akan name. *

Anton Wilhelm Amo Anton Wilhelm Amo or Anthony William Amo (c. 1703 – c. 1759) was an African philosopher originally from what is now Ghana. Amo was a professor at the universities of Halle and Jena in Germany after studying there. He was brought to Germany b ...

(1703–1756), the first black African to receive a philosophical education in Europe and to publish philosophical works there and in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

. He published "The Rights of Moors" (among other works) and taught philosophy at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The un ...

References

External links

{{Authority control Populated places in the Western Region (Ghana) History of Ghana Dutch Gold Coast Portuguese Gold Coast