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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:The Last Will and Testament of Kofi Staha: A Note on Accumulation and Inheritance in Colonial Asante
Author:McCaskie, Thomas C.ISNI
Year:1999
Periodical:Ghana Studies
Volume:2
Pages:171-181
Language:English
Geographic term:Ghana
Subjects:Ashanti polity
customary law
family law
biographies (form)
Law, Human Rights and Violence
History and Exploration
Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups)
colonialism
Abstract:Kofi (John 'Papa') Sraha of Kumase and Abrepo (Ghana) was a famous businessman. He died in 1936 as one of the wealthiest commoners in all Asante. Throughout his life he was a leader of those who claimed the right to dispose of personally accumulated wealth. He was probably the first Asante to draw up a notarized last will and testament, to appoint legal executors to implement it, and to have the courts enforce its disposition. The present article explores Kofi Sraha's last will focusing on patterns of accumulation and inheritance in colonial Asante. The article is not based on the will, itself, which has not come to light yet, but on other sources, such as the minutes of the Ashanti Farmers Association 1934-1936 and Kumase Court Records. Notes, ref.
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