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Kente Cloth: Background Information
Cited from Kente Colors by Debbie Chocolate Kente Cloth made by the Ashante people of Ghana and the Ewe of Ghana and Togo was one known as the cloth of kings. Four hundred years ago, at the height of the Ashante kingdom, only royalty wore kente. The word "kente" means "that which will not tear away under any conditions." Today for all people of Ghana, traditional kente cloth is the national costume. It is often worn for ceremonial occasions: for festivals, weddings, and births. In the weaving of kente cloth, cotton or silk kente strips are hand-woven on narrow looms, then cut and sewn together side by side. Among the Ashante and Ewe, the art of weaving kente is passed down from generation to generation. Each pattern is produced by the placement of colors. Each patchwork of colors has a different meaning. "Gold dust," a mostly yellow pattern, symbolizes wealth and royalty. Another pattern, called " a wise old woman," symbolizes old age and wisdom. One pattern, called "that which has never happened before," symbolizes uniqueness. Many of the designs names have historical references and have helped preserve Ashante history. Some of the designs are proverbs and others indicate clan or status. Colors are used symbolically in kente: green symbolizres bountiful harvest; blue represents love; ivory represents joy; and there are many others. Ghanian men drape kente cloth over themselves and women wear kente as skirts, blouses, and matching head wraps. (Cited from http://www.ghana.com/republic)
The term kente has its roots in the word kente in which means a basket. The first kente weavers used raffia fibers to weave cloths that looked like kente in (a basket); and thus were referred to as kenten ntoma; meaning basket cloth. The original Asante name of the cloth was nsaduaso or nwontoma, meaning "a cloth hand-woven on a loom" and is still used today by Asante weavers and elders. (Cited from http://www.support@ncs.com.gh.html)
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