Kintampo Complex
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The Kintampo complex, also known as the Kintampo culture, Kintampo Neolithic, and Kintampo Tradition, was established by
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n agropastoralists, who may have been Niger-Congo or
Nilo-Saharan The Nilo-Saharan languages are a proposed family of around 210 African languages spoken by somewhere around 70 million speakers, mainly in the upper parts of the Chari and Nile rivers, including historic Nubia, north of where the two tributari ...
speakers and were distinct from the earlier residing Punpun foragers, between 2500 BCE and 1400 BCE. The Kintampo complex was a part of a transitory period in the prehistory of West Africa, from
pastoralism Pastoralism is a form of animal husbandry where domesticated animals (known as "livestock") are released onto large vegetated outdoor lands (pastures) for grazing, historically by nomadic people who moved around with their herds. The anim ...
to
sedentism In anthropology, sedentism (sometimes called sedentariness; compare sedentarism) is the practice of living in one place for a long time. As of , the large majority of people belong to sedentary cultures. In evolutionary anthropology and arch ...
in
West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...
, specifically in the
Bono East region The Bono East region of Ghana is a new region carved out of the Brong Ahafo region. The capital of the new region is Techiman. This creation of this new region was in fulfillment of a promise made by the New Patriotic Party prior to the 2016 ...
of
Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
, eastern
Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...
, and
Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...
. The Kintampo complex also featured art, personal adornment items, polished stone beads, bracelets, and figurines; additionally, stone tools (e.g.,
hand axe A hand axe (or handaxe or Acheulean hand axe) is a Prehistory, prehistoric stone tool with two faces that is the longest-used tool in human history. It is made from stone, usually flint or chert that has been "reduced" and shaped from a larger ...
s) and structures (e.g.,
building A building or edifice is an enclosed Structure#Load-bearing, structure with a roof, walls and window, windows, usually standing permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, a ...
foundations Foundation(s) or The Foundation(s) may refer to: Common uses * Foundation (cosmetics), a skin-coloured makeup cream applied to the face * Foundation (engineering), the element of a structure which connects it to the ground, and transfers loads f ...
) were found, which suggests that Kintampo people had both a
complex society A complex society is characterized by the following modern features: * Organizational society wherein its economy is structured according to specialization and a Division of labour, division of labor. These economic features spawn a bureaucratic c ...
and were skilled with
Later Stone Age The Later Stone Age (LSA) is a period in African prehistory that follows the Middle Stone Age. The Later Stone Age is associated with the advent of modern human behavior in Africa, although definitions of this concept and means of studyi ...
technologies.Anquandah, James (1995) The Kintampo Complex: a case study of early sedentism and food production in sub-Sahelian west Africa, pp. 255–259 in Shaw, Thurstan, Andah, Bassey W and Sinclair, Paul (1995). The Archaeology of Africa: Food, Metals and Towns. London: Routledge.


Origin

Watson (2005) states:
Based on excavation and archaeological data from the
Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
,
Sahel The Sahel region (; ), or Sahelian acacia savanna, is a Biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa. It is the Ecotone, transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north. The Sahel has a ...
and southern
West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...
, this article proposes a migration model as explanation for the distinctive discontinuity signalled by the appearance of the Kintampo Tradition between 3,600 bp-3,200 bp and the origin of food production in the forest/forested zone, similar to the event envisaged by DAVIES (1966, 1980). Distinctions between the pottery of the Kintampo and indigenous Punpun foragers are a critical element of this argument, as fundamental stylistic and, especially, technological differences observed correspond to social and/or ethnic boundaries documented in ethnoarchaeological studies. Combined with evident similarities in Kintampo material culture and economy with contemporaneous groups in the Sahel, and the lack of any convincing evidence for an indigenous syncretic development within the savanna-forest/forest zone, this strongly suggests the Kintampo was an intrusive population. The Punpun and Kintampo Traditions were two distinct socio-economic groups whose co-occupation of central Ghana signals the meeting of two different' worlds', represented by the 'Saharan derived' agro-pastoralists from the Sahel, who brought with them the values/technologies associated with food production (e.g. social differentiation), which eventually dominated a landscape that had been previously occupied solely by 'southern' hunter-gatherers.
Champion et al. (2022) states:
The cultivation of
pearl millet Pearl millet (''Cenchrus americanus'', commonly known as the synonym ''Pennisetum glaucum'') is the most widely grown type of millet. It has been grown in Africa and the Indian subcontinent since prehistoric times. The center of diversity, and ...
diffused from the desiccating West and Central
Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
into the West African savanna zone after 2500 cal bc, in the context of southwards population movements (Ozainne et al. 2014; Neumann 2018; Fuller et al. 2021). Previously published evidence proposed three main branches of pearl millet diffusion, based on archaeobotanical data (Neumann 2018; Champion 2020; Fuller et al. 2021), but also on recent genetic studies (Oumar et al. 2008; Burgarella et al. 2018) and archaeological data (Ozainne et al. 2009, 2014). The two best documented are a western branch from
Tichitt Tichit, or Tichitt (, ), is a village at the foot of the Tagant Plateau in central southern Mauritania that is known for its vernacular architecture and proximity to the Dhar Tichitt archaeological sites. The main agriculture in Tichit is date ...
/
Mauritania Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Maghreb, Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to Mauritania–Western Sahara border, the north and northwest, ...
, after 2000 cal bc (Fuller et al. 2007; MacDonald et al. 2009) and a central branch from Tilemsi/
Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...
, after 2500 cal bc (Manning et al. 2011). Pearl millet cultivation spread quickly throughout the
Niger River The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through Mali, Nige ...
Basin, from the Tilemsi Valley in Mali to northern
Burkina Faso Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Ivory Coast to the southwest. It covers an area of 274,223 km2 (105,87 ...
(Tin-Akof, Oursi West) and to the
rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...
of
Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
. Kintampo B-Sites and 14. Bosumpra Cave">Bosumpra_Cave.html" ;"title=". Kintampo B-Sites and 14. Bosumpra Cave">. Kintampo B-Sites and 14. Bosumpra Cavebetween 2500 and 1000 cal bc (Fig. 8).


Language

Proto-Kintampo
Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
n agropastoralists, who were distinct from Punpun foragers, may have been Niger-Congo or
Nilo-Saharan The Nilo-Saharan languages are a proposed family of around 210 African languages spoken by somewhere around 70 million speakers, mainly in the upper parts of the Chari and Nile rivers, including historic Nubia, north of where the two tributari ...
speakers.


Archaeology


Settlements

The people of Kintampo lived in open-air villages">Natural environment">open-air villages composed of rectangular structures made from wattle and daub">villages.html" ;"title="Natural environment">open-air villages">Natural environment">open-air villages composed of rectangular structures made from wattle and daub construction techniques. Some houses used mud and clay, and many were found to have been supported by wooden poles and some had stone
foundations Foundation(s) or The Foundation(s) may refer to: Common uses * Foundation (cosmetics), a skin-coloured makeup cream applied to the face * Foundation (engineering), the element of a structure which connects it to the ground, and transfers loads f ...
made of granite and laterite. Rock shelters were also used as dwellings, especially to the south, near the Atlantic coast. Many settlements were situated along the White Volta river, which flowed north-to-south through Ghana and into the Atlantic Ocean. Other settlements, such as the rock shelters of southwestern Ghana and southeastern Ivory Coast, were also found near the Atlantic coast. They also kept domesticated dogs and goats and cattle.


Artifacts

Numerous types of tools have been excavated at Kintampo, including polished axes crafted from calc-chlorite
schist Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock generally derived from fine-grained sedimentary rock, like shale. It shows pronounced ''schistosity'' (named for the rock). This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a l ...
, many types and sizes of grinding stones, small, quartz
microlith A microlith is a small Rock (geology), stone tool usually made of flint or chert and typically a centimetre or so in length and half a centimetre wide. They were made by humans from around 60,000 years ago, across Europe, Africa, Asia and Austral ...
projectile points of various shapes and styles, and stone
celts The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...
. A few harpoons have been found, but these are rare. The
knapping Knapping is the shaping of flint, chert, obsidian, or other conchoidal fracturing stone through the process of lithic reduction to manufacture stone tools, strikers for flintlock firearms, or to produce flat-faced stones for building or facing w ...
technique they used is well understood by
lithics Lithic may refer to: *Relating to stone tools ** Lithic analysis, the analysis of stone tools and other chipped stone artifacts ** Lithic core, the part of a stone which has had flakes removed from it ** Lithic flake, the portion of a rock removed ...
experts. The stone core was placed on a hard level surface such as a large rock, log, or trunk, then struck from above, forcing flakes to separate from the material from underneath. This use of a makeshift anvil is typical of bipolar percussion. There is some confusion about the purpose of a number of small stone and ceramic objects that are cigar-shaped and rasp-like. They are thought to be tools for creating pottery, of which bowls and jars seem to be the most common. The jars ranged from 12–44 cm in diameter. The bowls were slightly smaller on average, ranging from 10–30 cm. Many times these pots were decorated with a comb-like or rake pattern. These were likely used not only for the storage of food and water, but also for boiling and crafting sauces. The pottery appears to have been fired in a pit, typical of early ceramic practices. In fact, the pottery of Kintampo have been widely studied, in fact it is possibly the most studied later stone age ceramics in West Africa. Pieces of a substance known as daga has been found along with the stone artifacts. Daga is chunks of ceramics that have been visibly marked by sticks or other pole-like implements. Somewhat common at Kintampo sites, these are understood to represent occupation in dwellings. The Kintampo culture is known for possibly the first occurrences of
figurative art Figurative art, sometimes written as figurativism, describes artwork (particularly paintings and sculptures) that is clearly derived from real object sources and so is, by definition, representational. The term is often in contrast to abstract a ...
and objects of personal decoration in West Africa. Stone arm bands that would have been worn as decoration have been found at several Kintampo sites. At the sites of Boyase hill and Ntersero, clay figurines of animals like dogs, lizards and cows were found, though it is not well understood what their meaning might be. This is all very important to those who study the humanities, as the emergence of art and the depiction of life through art is of great interest to both art historians and archaeologists alike.


Food

The Kintampo site is most often studied by archaeologists who are interested in seeing how people made the change between
foraging Foraging is searching for wild food resources. It affects an animal's fitness because it plays an important role in an animal's ability to survive and reproduce. Foraging theory is a branch of behavioral ecology that studies the foraging behavi ...
and horticulture and agriculture as a way of producing food. Kintampo is seen as an example of neither foraging or
farming Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
, but somewhere in between. As practitioners of sedentism, derived from the word sedentary, the people of Kintampo spent more time in their villages and less time wandering around, hunting and gathering food. They took advantage of plants that were native to the area, and although technically they were not farming, they did influence the evolution of plants, effectively being some of the first to domesticate plants in Africa.
Pearl millet Pearl millet (''Cenchrus americanus'', commonly known as the synonym ''Pennisetum glaucum'') is the most widely grown type of millet. It has been grown in Africa and the Indian subcontinent since prehistoric times. The center of diversity, and ...
is a crop that is well suited to hot climates, and is thought to have been first domesticated in the area. It is speculated that the people of Kintampo may have deliberately adapted it to mature faster, to allow for quicker harvest. Its charred remains have been excavated at Kintampo and was valuable to people living in West Africa because it could be stored after harvest to be used at a later date. There is evidence of trade of foods with other people throughout the region; one item of evidence is that the millet has been found with shell beads that would have been imported from the ocean. Another important staple to the people who settled at Kintampo was the
oil palm ''Elaeis'' () is a genus of palms, called oil palms, containing two species, native to Africa and the Americas. They are used in commercial agriculture in the production of palm oil. Description Mature palms are single-stemmed, and can gro ...
. The oil palm was used at Kintampo starting at least 4000 years ago. A very useful plant in many ways, it serves as a source of drink, food, and construction material. It was allowed to flourish in the region due to its preference for a constant warm climate and high rainfall. As a food, the oil can be extracted from the mesocarp which covers the plant, and the kernel which is also edible by itself. It is an excellent source of vitamin A, which would have helped to support a growing population. It is speculated that ceramic techniques were improved so that the nut of the oil palm could be further cooked. The
cowpea The cowpea (''Vigna unguiculata'') is an annual herbaceous legume from the genus '' Vigna''. Its tolerance for sandy soil and low rainfall have made it an important crop in the semiarid regions across Africa and Asia. It requires very few inpu ...
, incense tree, hackberry, yams, and
sorghum ''Sorghum bicolor'', commonly called sorghum () and also known as great millet, broomcorn, guinea corn, durra, imphee, jowar, or milo, is a species in the Poaceae, grass genus ''Sorghum (genus), Sorghum'' cultivated for its grain. The grain i ...
, are also known to have been grown. Grasses were most likely not harvested as often, as the climate makes it difficult for grasses to grow. Kintampo people also kept livestock;
goats The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the famil ...
,
sheep Sheep (: sheep) or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are a domesticated, ruminant mammal typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to d ...
, and
cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...
remains have been found. Other wild animals such as
monitor lizard Monitor lizards are lizards in the genus ''Varanus,'' the only extant genus in the family Varanidae. They are native to Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and West African Nile monitor, one species is also found in south America as an invasive species. A ...
s,
snail A snail is a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gas ...
s,
guineafowl Guinea fowl () (or guineahen) are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetically, they branched off from the core Galliformes after the C ...
,
vervet monkey The vervet monkey (''Chlorocebus pygerythrus''), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term "vervet" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus '' Chlorocebus''. The five distin ...
,
baboon Baboons are primates comprising the biology, genus ''Papio'', one of the 23 genera of Old World monkeys, in the family Cercopithecidae. There are six species of baboon: the hamadryas baboon, the Guinea baboon, the olive baboon, the yellow ba ...
,
turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...
s and
tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...
s
royal Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or Royalty (disambiguation), royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Ill ...
and
duiker A duiker is a small to medium-sized brown antelope native to sub-Saharan Africa, found in heavily wooded areas. The 22 extant species, including three sometimes considered to be subspecies of the other species, form the subfamily Cephalophinae ...
antelopes, giant pouched and
cane Cane or caning may refer to: *Walking stick, or walking cane, a device used primarily to aid walking * Assistive cane, a walking stick used as a mobility aid for better balance * White cane, a mobility or safety device used by blind or visually i ...
rats were hunted as game.


Sites

Archaeologists have identified studied at least three dozen sites relating to the Kintampo complex in three different types of environments within and near Ghana.


Northern savanna

* Birimi: This site was found in 1987 by Francois Kense. There is evidence of pearl millet having been cultivated. * Chukoto * Daboya: At this site, pieces of charred pearl millet were found. Also found, were structural remains from housing, burnished pottery, beads made from various materials, including
quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The Atom, atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen Tetrahedral molecular geometry, tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tet ...
and shell. * Lake Kpriri * Mole Game Reserve * Ntereso: Found in 1952 by Oliver Davies, outlines of dwellings have been excavated since the early 1960s, and pieces of construction material such as fired clay and wooden support poles have been found. Artifacts typical of a hunting-fishing community such as
harpoon A harpoon is a long, spear-like projectile used in fishing, whaling, sealing, and other hunting to shoot, kill, and capture large fish or marine mammals such as seals, sea cows, and whales. It impales the target and secures it with barb or ...
s and fish hooks were discovered here. Clay figurines shaped like lizards and bovids were also discovered. There is also evidence of
animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, animal fiber, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, management, production, nutrition, selective breeding, and the raising ...
being practiced. * Tamale: Stone rasps were found. * Tolundipe


Central woodland savanna

Nearly all of the archaeological sites that have been detected or excavated in this region are found near the modern day city or town of
Nkoranza Nkoranza (or Nkoransa) is a town located in the mid-north of Ghana. It is the district capital of the Nkoranza District in the Bono East Region. A leading Brong town, the town led the 1892-93 Brong rebellion against the Ashanti. Nkoranza is ...
and
Techiman Techiman (Akan language, Akan: ''Takyiman'') is a city and the capital of the Techiman Municipal District, Techiman Metropolitan District and the Bono East Region of Ghana. The city is located about from Sunyani and about away from Kumasi. I ...
. * Amuowi * Banda * Bonoase: Outlines of huts and stone foundations have been excavated. * Boyase Hill: At this hill, which has a radius of approximately 250 meters, polished stone axes, stone arm rings and projectile points were found. Most curiously, a clay dog figurine was discovered. * Fiakwase * Kintampo: First excavated in 1966, evidence of
animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, animal fiber, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, management, production, nutrition, selective breeding, and the raising ...
is found here, as well as remnants of sheep, cattle, goats, and larger mammals such as
elephant Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...
s and
hippopotamus The hippopotamus (''Hippopotamus amphibius;'' ; : hippopotamuses), often shortened to hippo (: hippos), further qualified as the common hippopotamus, Nile hippopotamus and river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Sahar ...
. * Jema * Mumute: Outlines of dwellings and stone foundations have been excavated. * Nyamogo * Pumpuano * Wenchi


Southern forest

* Boyasi: Outlines of dwellings and stone foundations have been excavated. Large stones of granite with major signs of wear were found at the edge of the village that were used to polish stone tools and decorations. * Buoho * Buruburo * Christian Village: Located near the Atlantic coast near modern-day Accra, clay cylinders have been found at the site which are remnants of ancient dwellings. * Mampongtin * Nkobin * Nkukoa Buoho: This site, located near Boyasi, seems to be a treasure trove of artifacts and
features Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature recognition, could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (machine learning), in statistics: individual measurable properties of the phenome ...
for researchers. Rasps, pottery and stone tools were found in large numbers. * Somanya * Wiwi


Legacy

The rockshelters of Kintampo appear to be abandoned by the second century BCE, and then in the early first millennium CE, iron metallurgy became the dominant technology of the region.Stahl, Ann Brower (1995) Intensification in the west African Late Stone Age: a view from central Ghana, pp. 261–269 in Shaw, Thurstan, Andah, Bassey W and Sinclair, Paul (1995). The Archaeology of Africa: Food, Metals and Towns. London: Routledge. The area was the home to the
Bono people The Bono, also known as the Brong or Abron, are an Akan people of central Ghana and northeastern Ivory Coast. They speak the Bono Twi and form one of the largest matrilineal Akan groups. Historically, the Bono were the first Akan to develop a ...
, who founded the
Bono State Bono State (also known as Bonoman) was the first centralized Akan state, founded by the Bono people in what is now central Ghana. Bonoman is generally considered a cultural, political ancestor and origin to Akan subgroups that migrated southwar ...
in the 11th century. It was a large kingdom that used firearms traded to them by Europeans to effectively conquer neighboring territories. The
Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by the nickname Bono ( ), is an Irish singer-songwriter and activist. He is a founding member, the lead vocalist, and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Bono is known for his impassioned voca ...
enslaved their enemies and prisoners of war from the north and to the Coast, and made a profit by selling them in the
transatlantic slave trade The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...
.Collins, Robert O. and Burns, James M. (2007). A History of Sub-Saharan Africa. New York: Cambridge University Press, pp. 138-141, Merchants from Western
Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
who were mainly into gold trading also contributed to the growth of the Bono State.


See also

*
Kintampo District Kintampo District is a former district that was located in Brong-Ahafo Region (now currently in Bono East Region), Ghana. Originally created as an ordinary district assembly on 10 March 1989. However on 12 November 2003 (effectively 17 February 20 ...
* Kirikongo *
Loropéni Loropéni is a market town in southern Burkina Faso, lying about west of Gaoua. Nearby are the medieval stone ruins of Loropéni, added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2009. These ruins of a fortress, which date back at least a thousand years ...
* Birimi


References

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