Ethnicity in Ghana: a comparative perspective

Abstract

By comparison with some African countries where ethnicity casts an imposing shadow over public debate it has manifested itself in a variable and episodic manner in Ghana.¹ While the history of twentieth-century Ghana could certainly not be written without reference to ethnicity, nor could it serve as a central organising principle without distorting the totality of the picture. Perhaps because ethnicity has proved so elusive, less attention has been paid to its study than in many countries with a comparable research literature. However, the passage of recent events, most notably the fresh eruption of conflict in the Northern Region in 1994, renders a reconsideration of ethnicity extremely timely. But even in the absence of such dramatic events there would have been a strong case for turning the focus back on a neglected area of enquiry. Given that a number of researchers on Ghana have begun to revisit the study of ethnicity, nationalism and the politics of identity, it seemed appropriate to arrange a forum at which research agendas and perspectives could be discussed. The purpose was both to consider what recent advances in the study of ethnicity have to teach those who work primarily on Ghana, and to consider ways in which the Ghanaian experience might shed light on issues of continental (and possibly wider) concern.² Judging from the lively response to a call for papers, and from the spirited discussions at the Edinburgh symposium itself, the timing of our initiative could not have been better.