Legend of West African

The Akyé lived in Ivory Coast before going to Ghana, and then returned to the land of their ancestors. They lived there with the wild animals: that's why in our villages of old, we surrounded the sites inhabited by the channels to retain the ferocious animals who were looking for prey during the night.

Villages

One morning, since the Akyé lived with ferocious animals and were threatened, they took their luggage to go to Ghana. There, they went to a village where they confide to the village chief. He took pity on them and agreed to locate them on a part of his land.

They founded their village there, the very first of Attiés named Agnangnan whose first leader was Ashènèhin (choice among the Akié d'Asseudji, which is why we kept this name until now). [...] they were the soldiers of the chief of Ashantis and at the request of this one, they brought back the fallen objects of the sky, in the Denkyra, to the Ashanti chief.

The chief of Ashantis

After the death of this chief, the Ashanti would like to seize precious objects (a gold chair, a cutlass with a gold neck). This is the cause of their struggle that ended in the flight of the Akyé, national of Asseudji with the blade of the cutlass in hand. During the flight, the Akyé were with the Baoulé, the Agni and other peoples. While browsing the texts, unanimity is made on the location of the first sites Attiés neighborhoods of Comoé.

Indeed, the texts from the testimonies, except that of Asseudji, locate the primitive people east of the river Comoé. They say that the Atties come from the Ashanti kingdom or from the Ashene country (see below, page 15). However, Asseudji's witnesses are the exception in stating that "the Akyé lived in Côte d'Ivoire before going to Ghana".

Villages or camps

There is already a task of confusion over the place or country where Attiés was born. In addition, this diversity of affirmation does not stop here. The name of the villages or camps of Attiés is also subject of controversy. In the Atties of the center, the village of this "small" group is named Bandama-Kumasi (see above, page 6); Asseudji names this same village Agnangnan (see above, page 8) while the other testimonies have remained silent.

Although the Attiés do not all say the same thing about the locality and the name of the villages of this people, they all agree that the Attiés have crossed the Comoé at least once, a cutlass (see below, page 14). ) in hand before settling on their lands today.

Our criticism will be based on two problems mentioned above by seeking to verify these statements from historical and geographical works that directly or indirectly address the subject.

criticism

Suppose the Atties were born in present-day Ivory Coast. The reading of some geographical maps of the African continent before the great migrations of the Akans, immediately show the opposite of what we are trying to assert: maps such as that spread (see below, page 13), do not mark a sign that proves that this portion of land in West Africa is inhabited by men. Such justification rejects without any calculation, the words of our witness Asseudji saying that "the Attiés lived in Côte d'Ivoire before going to Ghana".

Archaeological research

Archaeological research in Côte d'Ivoire has helped to fill the void. Indeed, the data of these researches could prove that the current Ivory Coast was inhabited, since Paleolithic and Neolithic, by several people.

And, to this same question, the oral sources come to expose the existence of certain groups who lived on the ivory ground on the eve of the great migrations. Considering these last works, the probability of finding Atti among these peoples is high.

However, research has so far not confirmed a small trace of the Atties: These can be likened to Krobou in the region of Agneby since they are next to them (they could be assimilated to Agoua or Brekegounin).
By accepting this justification, can we say that Attiés were born in Côte d'Ivoire and that they were once known as Krobou or Agoua or even Brekegounin?
Suppose the Atties come from present-day Ghana.

The maps established before the migrations of the Akans come to justify the existence of some kingdoms or tribes.

The Map

From this map (see below, page 13), kingdoms such as Dahomey, capital of Dahomey and Ashanti, capital Kumasi, can be mentioned. These data add credibility to other legends that all agree that the Atties come from the Ashanti Kingdom. Thus belong to the Akan group. However, some early researchers approve the opposite of this origin while thinking of another.

The second problem is the name of their first site in the Ashanti Kingdom [or in the current Ivory Coast]. For this question, three scenarios are presented to us. First, some witnesses have refrained from giving the name of a village to avoid any invented words.

The Ashanti Kingdom

It is for this reason that the former head of the village of Bouapé says that "Attiés and Ashantis are both brothers: they are of the same family (Ashanti kortorkor, Akyé kortorkor, Bané Abakon)" (see above, p.7).

The words of this leader come to put the story in another problem. Considering that the Atties are of the same family as the Ashantis, both share the same roots and the same Ashanti ethnic group. Which for the moment is not justified since Attiés, in the Ashanti kingdom formed another tribe like Baoulés, Abrons ....

Then, the very first name Bandama-Kumasi, also presents flaws. This name brings us to think of the Bandama River of Ivory Coast that does not pass through Ghana; to the capital of the Ashanti Kingdom which was a land strictly belonging to the Ashanti. One can, therefore, consider such a name that is not part of the data of the discipline of truth embodied in history.

The capital of the Ashanti Kingdom

Finally, the second name Agnangnan, may not exist on archaeological documents from research on the kingdom of Ashantis, but can be accepted as a first truth born of a legend or can be a tale or a song very long time.

To write the history of the origins of the Attiés origins is to synthesize the facts judged true after a confrontation between the historical and geographical legendary texts in order to highlight the traces of the first Atties; it is thus to find the kingdom or the tribe of origin while putting in relief the conditions of life of the first Akyé and the origin of the name which they carry.

At the peak of our analysis, we note that the Attiés came from present-day Ghana, precisely from the Ashanti Kingdom. This kingdom was founded, according to the couple CORNEVIN, by the "head of Kumasi, Ossei Toutou, at the very end of the XVIIth century. [...] This remarkable leader succeeds in transforming a number of small forest tribes into a powerful nation, thanks to the institution of the "golden throne" descended from heaven on these knees ".

It is this throne that Attiés would have sought in the Denkyira, according to our witnesses of Asseudji. After the death of this great leader in 1731, the Attiés fought this throne against their cohabitants Ashantis under Opokou Ware; and finally, they had to seize this sacred object that they keep with them today. This badge of power is nothing but a cutlass (see above, p. 9), whose handle is gold. Attiés call it "Bior".