The rich untold story and history of the migration journey of the Anlos/Ewes

The story of how the Anlo kingdom was built is one of great moral lessons for all no matter your place of birth or location because history always has something wonderful and exceptional to teach the listeners. Let's delve into unraveling some of the wonderful things about the history and migration experience of the Ewes for you to be informed. To know in detail everything that transpired as the people journeyed from their former locations to their present-day places of habitation, I got into contact with an elderly to tell me the story better. The history...

Origin and ancestral homelands of the Anlos/Ewes

From Ethiopia, the ancestors or forefathers of the Ewes traveled and on that journey, some moved and settled in places they thought there was freedom and relief. The rest continued their journey and settled in a town called Notsie in Togo of Africa. At Notsie, they stayed under the rulership of a very wicked king called king Agorkorli who maltreated the people. Under his leadership or rulership, the people were given all sorts of works to do and as the tasks were given, anyone who fails to complete them is severely beaten and then coerced to do it. During that time, houses were built with clay and so the people were normally tasked to mix clay for the construction of houses. The king was so cruel such that he commanded glass bottles to be broken into pieces and poured in the clay which the people were forced to mix using their feet. In the process, many got cuts under their feet with blood oozes. As the wickedness progressed, the ancestors of the Ewes deliberated on a way possible they could take in order to escape the cruelty of the king. One day the king gave a command but the leaders of the people responded with some wisdom. 

The king commanded a rope to be created with clay and the leaders in response asked the king for samples so they could replicate them but they weren't shown any samples. Despite the agitations of the people, the king paid no attention to the suffering of the folks. Torgbui Tsali and Torgbui Wenya who were the leaders told the women to throw water against the wall after washing since the wall was built from clay. The advice was taken and the women did this for some days and the wall soaked enough water to become weak. The leaders decided and told the people that they would set a day that they would drum, sing and dance and would escape through that means. As the set time reached, they began drumming, singing and dancing that night while Torgbui Tsali used his sword to penetrate a portion of the wall and created an escape hole for the exit of everyone. All the women packed their belongings on their heads and as the singing and dancing activities were going on, they started walking backward out of the house through the escape created in the wall. This strategy of walking backward was what they used to escape on order to confuse anyone who might want to trace them. As the sounds went down, the king's officials or guards decided to check if all was fine because they thought they were singing to enjoy themselves. To their surprise, none of the people was left in the palace. They traced the footsteps but as they did they realized the direction of their feet was rather in towards the palace and this bewildered them. All efforts to search for the people yielded no result. 

As the people journeyed, some departed to various locations and at a point in Togo, due to hunger they decided to farm and beans were planted. Conflict disturbance and worry from wild animals made some parts of the people contemplate moving. Some of the elderly disagreed and said they must wait for the planted beans to grow small for them to eat. The place where this occurred is called Tsevie which means (grow small). The place is up till today called Tsevie. Some waited over there for the beans to grow but others proceeded with the journey and were still parting ways along the way since their number was huge. From Tsevie, the present-day Akan people moved towards the Eastern part of Ghana and the present-day Gas also moved to Accra. The rest of the people were still moving and the Ewe people came to where is now called Keta. This is how the name came about, when they reached there, they said to themselves because the place is full of sand, the environment is very cool and cold and so they would wait there. Hence the name KETA which means (because of the sand).

Some stayed while the others were on the move and came to the present place Anloga. How the name was formed. Over there, Torgbui Wenya and Torgbui Tsali said they were tired and should take some rest there hence the name Anloga. The word they used when translated from the Ewe language is to fold there.  

Anloga is the biggest kinship area of the Ewes and for that matter, any intended traditions of the people always start from there before it moves to the Somey people. Before celebration of the Hogbetsotso festival, everything begins at Anloga before some of the activities are done in the land of Somey. As the journey still continued, some of the people moved to the land of Somey but before they had arrived others were already there who were the people of Klikor. The Somey people asked the Klikor people for a place to stay and they told them the place available was full of Borassus palm trees and only if they could stay there fine. They agreed and then cut down some of the Borassus palms and stayed there. Borasssus palm in Ewe is called sokuti. This is how the name Somey came about which when translated into English means within Borassus palms. 

Cultural heritage of the Ewes

The people practised and continue to hold valuable cultural practices of which some were traditions passed on from the ancestors. All these shaped the entire race of the Ewes. For instance, adultery is abhorred in the land and because the people were traditionalists, they had systems that punish a woman who commits adultery and as soon as she does that and returns to the husband's house, she would run mad until some rituals are performed before the situation is averted. A lot of interesting things that imbibe good morals into the people to ensure the society is free from social vices that destabilize peaceful living. The food of the Ewes and that is the entire region is Akple and everyone knows that it is their cultural food which is actually a very great energy-giving meal for the people as they work hard either on the farm, onboard fishing, the market etc. 

The Hogbetsotso festival is also celebrated by the Ewes to remember how they escaped the cruel treatment of king Agorkorli and it comes off in September every year and this celebration brings on board different people from government officials and generally the public since as they celebrate, they gather resources to development the communities.  The agbadza, borborbor, kpalogoo are the cultural dances of the people.

One other thing the Ewes are known for is their art and craft of weaving kente clothes of different kinds with different designs. It will amaze you that kente weaving has been a business done by the people for decades and still continues to thrive even though at times inflation and other economic challenges affect the price at which the clothes are purchased. Buyers come from Togo, Ivory Coast, Benin, Kumasi and many other far places to buy. The older generation makes sure to teach the youth this skill right from their childhood and as they grow they grow in the skills as well.

Where kente clothes are sold extensively in the Volta Region

One of the major people who extensively weave kente is the people of Agbozume and in that sense, Agbozume market has been a center of commerce in kente cloth and receives customers from afar and near who come to buy. At dawn on Agbozume market days, the sellers start coming and then the buyers and by afternoon sales are made but others display theirs throughout the day as well as on other days apart from the main market days.

Storytelling

Storytelling and proverbs are part of the people because they are means the older people use to advise the young ones, entertain them and also teach important life lessons.