Why chiefs, royals of this Ghanaian ethnic group can never wear, use gold

Gold is considered very symbolic in a lot of ethnic groups in Ghana. It is usually donned by royals as a sign of wealth and rich culture.

Especially in the Ashanti Kingdom, the use of gold cannot be overemphasized as virtually everything around the kingdom including what the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II wears, and the golden stool.

In the Anlo Kingdom, for instance, the Paramount King, Togbui Sri II is always seen with gold adornments that accompany his attires. The same can be said among cultures like that of the Akuapems, Akyems, and others.

But in the Ada Traditional Area, gold is prohibited in leadership and royalty.

Ada Chiefs and royals are forbidden to wear gold or use any gold items and there’s an interesting story behind this fact.

The Ada people are said to have been gifted their most priced commodity; salt, by a goddess.

This is said to have happened a long time ago when a hunter in the area called Korley who went hunting, spotted an animal and shot at it. The animal, though wounded, managed to run away and the hunter followed after it till he got to a forest where he met an old woman.

As part of the conversation, the old woman offered a gift to Korley; the Songor Lagoon but added very crucial laws which she warned could never be defied.
Among these laws was the law about gold.

According to existing historical myth, the said old woman told Korley; the hunter that he will become the caretaker of the salt, and the salt which is considered ‘white gold’ can never be replaced by yellow or any other gold either by himself or the generations after him.

Narrating the events as they happened in the past on GhanaWeb’s People & Places, Stool Prince of the Kabiawe Yumu clan in Ada, Ayiku Akuako said;

“There was a hunter called Korley, who was hunting and shot an animal but he didn’t get it entirely so he was following the trail of blood he left behind and then he realized the animal entered a certain forest. So he followed it and as he went, he saw two beautiful ladies standing behind an old woman; all of them wearing white.

“The woman asked ‘who is that’? And he responded, ‘I shot an animal and I was following it’ and then the old woman responded saying; ‘yes, I’m the one you shot’.

“At the time, the hunter was not wearing white, she quickly gave him a white cloth and asked him to go and change. The old lady asked Korle what he wanted and he replied; ‘My people and I only hunt for food’ but she said hunting won’t help them so she took him to a vast area and showed him a land that was pure white. She said; ‘you see this land, I give it to you, it’s salt, use it, any time, any day, it will never dry but there are specific laws, if you are able to abide by them, I will give it to you’

“The laws included; ……never use gold that’s why you will never see the paramount chief of Ada wearing pure gold,” he said.

In place of gold, Ayiku Akuako explained that royals are required to wear white as was instructed by the goddess and the salt represents the salt of the Ada people.

“All the chiefs wear a white bead called; ‘la’,” he said. Adding, “That ‘la’ symbolizes the Songhor lagoon and salt. So all the priests of the four Okor clans wear white to show the significance of the salt.