KENTA FABRIC

KENTA FABRIC

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Kente cloth the traditional garment worn by the Akans and the kingdom of Ashanti. Kente known as NWONTOM in Akan, is a type of silk and cotton fabric made of interwoven cloth strips and is native to the Akan ethnic group of south Ghana. The Ewe people especially those from Agortime kpetope of Ghana also claim that kente which they also refer to as Agbamovor has always been their traditional cloth. According to their history, weaving was the skill they came with when they migrated through Nigeria to their present location in Ghana. Kente can be seen in use for traditional West African celebrations such as weddings and festivals Kente is an Ashantee ceremonial cloth hand woven on a horizontal treadle loom strips measuring about 4 inches wide are sewn together into larger pieces of cloth.

    Cloth come in various colors, sizes and design and are worn during very important social and religious occasions. In a total cultural content one of the most sumptuously colored textiles used for clothing is Ghanaian Kente cloth made by Ashanti and ewe weaves.

Characteristics of kente

 Ashante Kente has geometric shapes woven in bright colors along the entire length of the strips while ewe Kente often display a tweed effect by plying together different colored threads in many of the wraps ewe Kente may also incorporate pictorial symbols.

Detail of hand woven Ashante

[Ashante ] ceremonial cloth

Featuring red and yellow

(Primary colors) green

(Secondary colors, complementary to red), black and white (neutral colors) and the darkest tone available. 

Kente cloth was black and white but dyes developed from different plants and a range of colors evolved. Blue was obtained from indigo plant, red from dried cam wood, brown from India Tamarid and green from boiled spinach leaves. Kente is characterized by sharply defined shapes created by the techniques of loom weaves. It is easier to weave geometric than organic shapes so rectangles, diamonds, zig-zag and squares are predominant.

History of kente

Kente cloth is deeply intertwined with the history of the Ashanti nation. The Ashnati Empire which was located in what is today Ghana, first emerged in West Africa during the seventeenth century. The Ashanti are member of the Akan people who speaks the Akans or Ashanti dialect. Akans also refer to kente as NWENTOMA, which means woven cloth according to Ashanti legends, two farmers kruu Amoaya and Watah kraban, from the village of bonwire.

Kente cloth is made from thin strip about four an thick woven together or narrow looms typically by men. The strips are interlaced to form a fabric which is worn by wrapped around the shoulder and waist like a toga. The garments are known as Kente which was originally made from white cotton with some indigos patterning, Kente cloth evolved when silk arrived with Portuguese traders in the seventieth century. Fabric sample were pulled apart for the silken thread, which was then woven into the kente cloth. Later, when skeins of silk became available more sophisticated pattern were created.

Historical documentation indicates textiles production among the Akans and Ewe peoples began as early as 100 BC Kente cloth were as we know it today with its rich blood colors emerged among the Ashanti during the seventieth century AD as chief of Akenten ( from whose name Kente derives basket).

Symbols of each colors of kente cloth

• Gold – status \serenity
• Yellow – fertility
• Green – renewal
• Blue – pure spirit
• Red – passion
• Black – union
• White – purity
• Silver – joy 
• Pink and purple – ferminity
• Grey – healing and caring

Significant of Kente cloth

The kente cloth is said to have been develop in the 17th century and stems from ancient Akans weaving techniques dating as far back as the 11^th century AD. The beautifully woven cloth even thought is associated with the culture of Ivory Coast, history reveals originated from Ghana.

Kente designs are not for fashion but have stories with proverbial meaning giving each cloth its own distinction. Many Africa American wear it show their awareness or support of “Black pride”.

The use of Kente and its social significance

Ghana fame as the first country in sub Saharan Africa to gain independence reflects on its traditional Kente cloth worn on every occasion including ceremonies.

According to tradition Kente cloth is reserved for special occasions, it is not meant to be used for common place or daily activities of an ordinary wear. It can also be used for rites invitations, graduations, marriage ceremony, soul washing, burials and ancestral remembrance ceremony.

Today, the emphasis on symbolic remains although the materials of the cloth and its uses have evolved rather than being made solely from silk, Kente is now made mostly of cotton as well as rayon making it affordable for a much wider reach of the population.

Kente cloth is now used to make clothes for all sorts of people not only royalty and not along the Ashanti. The Ashanti the ancient history of the Ashanti kingdom to the pan African spread of tradition during the Trans – Atlantic slave trade, to modern day interpretation and use of cultural heritage, the kente cloth is both symbolic and representative of the history of the Ashanti people. Through tracing the origins evolution and spread of this unique cultural heritage we are better able to understand a people and their history.