Kwame is an
Akan Akan may refer to:
People and languages
*Akan people, an ethnic group in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire
*Akan language
Akan () is a Central Tano languages, Central Tano language and the principal native language of the Akan people of Ghana, spoken ...
masculine given name among the
Akan people
The Akan () people live primarily in present-day Ghana and Ivory Coast in West Africa. The Akan language (also known as ''Twi/Fante'') are a group of dialects within the Central Tano branch of the Potou–Tano subfamily of the Niger–Congo ...
(such as the
Ashanti and
Fante) in
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...
which is given to a boy born on Saturday. Traditionally in Ghana, a child would receive their Akan
day name during their
Outdooring
In Ghana, an Outdooring ( Ga: ''kpodziemo''; ak, abadinto) is the traditional naming ceremony for infants. Traditionally this ceremony occurs eight days after the child is born where parents bring their newborn "outdoors" for the first time and gi ...
, eight days after birth.
According to Akan tradition, people born on particular days exhibit certain characteristics or attributes.
Kwame has the appellation "Atoapoma" or "Oteanankannuro" meaning "combat ready."
The day naming tradition in Ghana extends to folk characters such as
Anansi
Anansi ( ; literally translates to ''spider'') is an Akan folktale character and the Akan God of Stories, Wisdom, Knowledge, and possibly creation. The form of a spider is the most common depiction of Anansi. He is also, sometimes considered t ...
and deities. Traditional Akan religion states that God created himself on Saturday and is therefore also named "Kwame".
Origin and meaning of Kwame
In the Akan culture, day names are derived from deities.
Kwame originated from Koyame and the Akan day name God.
The name Kwame means extremes in fortune, health and spirituality; versatile, idealistic and intuitive.
Males named Kwame are reputed to be talented and good problem solvers.
Male variants of Kwame
Variant spellings include Kwamé, Kouamé, Kwami, Kwamena, and Kwamina, according to the various Akan subgroups.
It is spelt Kwame by the Akuapem and Ashanti subgroups, while the Fante subgroup spell it as Kwamena or Kwamina.
Female version of Kwame
In the Akan culture and other local cultures in Ghana, day names come in pairs for males and females.
The variant of the name used for a female child born on Saturday is
Ama
Ama or AMA may refer to:
Ama Languages
* Ama language (New Guinea)
* Ama language (Sudan)
People
* Ama (Ama Kōhei), former ring name for sumo wrestler Harumafuji Kōhei
* Mary Ama, a New Zealand artist
* Shola Ama, a British singer
* Ām ...
.
Notable people with the name
The most well-known bearer of the name was
Kwame Nkrumah
Kwame Nkrumah (born 21 September 190927 April 1972) was a Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary. He was the first Prime Minister and President of Ghana, having led the Gold Coast to independence from Britain in 1957. ...
, President of Ghana and a founder of Pan-Africanism - mainly due to whom the name spread also to non-Ghanaians.
People with this name include:
*
Kwamé (American rapper)
Kwamé Holland (born 28 March 1973) is an American rapper and record producer from Queens, New York. Starting as a rapper in the late 1980s, he later saw success as a producer.
Biography
In 1989, aged 16, Kwamé released his debut album, '' Kwa ...
*
Kwame (Australian rapper)
Rich Kwame Amevor (born 6 September 1997) is an Australian rapper and record producer. He has released four EPs: ''Lesson Learned'' in 2017, ''Endless Conversations'' in 2018, ''Please, Get Home Safe'' in 2020 and ''Thatboykwame'' in 2022.
Ear ...
*
Kwame Alexander
Kwame Alexander (born August 21, 1968) is an American writer of poetry and children's fiction. His verse novel ''The Crossover'' won the 2015 Newbery Medal and was selected as an Honor book for the Coretta Scott King Award.
Personal life and edu ...
, American author
*
Kwame Anthony Appiah
Kwame Akroma-Ampim Kusi Anthony Appiah ( ; born 8 May 1954) is a philosopher, cultural theorist, and novelist whose interests include political and moral theory, the philosophy of language and mind, and African intellectual history. Appiah ...
, a Ghanaian-British philosopher of semantics and racism
*
Kwame Awuah
Kwame Awuah (born December 2, 1995) is a Canadian professional soccer player.
Club career Early career
Awuah played for the Club Uruguary Toronto, Woodbridge Strikers, the Ontario provincial program and the Dante Alighieri varsity boys soccer ...
(born 1995), Canadian soccer player
*
Kwame Brown
Kwame Hasani Brown (born March 10, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who spent 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Selected by the Washington Wizards in the 2001 NBA draft, Brown was the first No. ...
, American former basketball player
*
Kwame R. Brown
Kwame R. Brown (born October 13, 1970) is an American politician in Washington, D.C., who was an at-large member of the council from 2005 to 2011 and chairman of the Council of the District of Columbia from 2011 until his resignation in June 20 ...
(born 1970), American politician
*
Kwame Dawes
Kwame Senu Neville Dawes (born 28 July 1962) is a Ghanaian poet, actor, editor, critic, musician, and former Louis Frye Scudder Professor of Liberal Arts at the University of South Carolina. He is now Professor of English at the University of N ...
, Ghanaian poet currently living in America, managing editor of the
Prairie Schooner
''Prairie Schooner'' is a literary magazine published quarterly at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln with the cooperation of UNL's English Department and the University of Nebraska Press. It is based in Lincoln, Nebraska and was first publish ...
literary journal
*
Kwame Harris
Kwame Harris (born March 15, 1982) is a Jamaican-born former American football player who was an offensive tackle for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Stanford Cardinal, when he won the Morr ...
(born 1982), former American football player
*
Kwame Holman Kwame Holman is an American producer and correspondent associated with the ''PBS NewsHour'', as a producer and reporter for WTOC in Georgia, and, who also has held positions with several national organizations, including the American Civil Liberties ...
, American producer, correspondent, and congressional correspondent
*
Kwame Kenyatta
Kwame Kenyatta (March 15, 1956 – May 22, 2019) was an American politician.
Kenyatta was an African-American who lived in Detroit, Michigan. He served on the Wayne County Commission and the Detroit Board of Education. Kenyatta also served on the ...
, an American politician
*
Kwame Kilpatrick
Kwame Malik Kilpatrick (born June 8, 1970) is an American former politician who served as the 72nd mayor of Detroit from 2002 to 2008. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously represented the 9th district in the Michigan House of Represen ...
, former mayor of Detroit, Michigan
*
Kwame Nkrumah
Kwame Nkrumah (born 21 September 190927 April 1972) was a Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary. He was the first Prime Minister and President of Ghana, having led the Gold Coast to independence from Britain in 1957. ...
(originally Francis Nwia Kofi Ngonloma), a Ghanaian politician (and for a time Life President) and one of the founders of Pan-Africanism
*
Kwame Raoul
Kwame Raoul (, born September 30, 1964) is an American lawyer and politician who has been the 42nd Attorney General of Illinois since 2019. He is a member of the Democratic Party.
Raoul represented the 13th district in the Illinois Senate from ...
, Illinois Attorney General
*
Kwame Somburu (Paul Boutelle), an American socialist political activist
*
Kwame Tucker
Kwame Leval Tucker (born 28 September 1976) is a Bermudian former cricketer, who played with the Bermudian cricket team in their first One Day International
A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played betw ...
, a Bermudian cricketer
* Kwame Ture (
Stokely Carmichael
Kwame Ture (; born Stokely Standiford Churchill Carmichael; June 29, 1941November 15, 1998) was a prominent organizer in the civil rights movement in the United States and the global pan-African movement. Born in Trinidad, he grew up in the Unit ...
), a Trinidadian-American black activist and leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and the Black Panther Party
*
Kwame Vaughn
Kwame Donte Vaughn (born May 31, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for BC Astana of the Kazakhstan Basketball Championship and the VTB United League. He is a 1.91 m (6'3") tall point guard-shooting guard. He finished his college ...
(born 1990), American basketball player for
Maccabi Haifa
Maccabi Haifa ( he, מכבי חיפה) is one of the biggest sports clubs in Israel and a part of the Maccabi association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Haifa which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as Footbal ...
in the
Israeli Basketball National League
Liga Leumit ( he, ליגה לאומית, lit. ''National League'') is the second tier level league of basketball competition in Israel. It is the league level that is below the first tier Israeli Premier League.
League system
The league contai ...
*
Kwamena Bartels
Peter Kwamena Essilfie Bartels (born 27 October 1947) is a Ghanaian politician and former government minister of the New Patriotic Party.
Biography
After graduating from Mfantsipim School in 1968, Bartels was admitted to the University of Ghana, ...
, a Ghanaian politician and former government minister of the
New Patriotic Party
, logo =
, colorcode = #132f7a
, founder =
, founded = 28 July 1992
, dissolved =
, leader = Nana Akufo-Addo
, chairman = Stephen Ayensu Ntim
Stephen Ntim elected NPP National Chairman on fifth attempt http://www.gna.org.gh/1.2152672 ...
*
Kwamena Ahwoi
Kwamena Ahwoi (born 13 October 1951) is a Ghanaian academic and politician, who served as Minister for Local Government and Rural Development from 1990 to 2001 in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government, during the reign of Jerry Raw ...
, a Ghanaian politician who served as Minister for Local Government and Rural Development from 1990 to 2001 and Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1997
*
Kwamina Ropapa Mensah, a Ghanaian
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays for
Nashville SC
Nashville Soccer Club is a Major League Soccer team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The team began play in the league in 2020 as a continuation of the USL club of the same name and plays its home matches at Geodis Park. It is principally owned ...
in the
USL Championship
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
*
Osei Kwame Panyin
Osei Kwame Panyin was the ruler of the Ashanti Empire from 1777 to 1801, holding the title of Asantehene. His reign was marred by uprisings, which would eventually lead to his suicide in 1803 to prevent an Ashanti civil war.
Early life
Osei Kwame ...
, eighteenth-century leader of the Ashanti Confederacy, in what is southern and central Ghana today
*
Paul Kwame
Nathaniel Paul Kwame (born 15 October 1997) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as defender for Liberty Professionals.
Career
Kwame started his career with Liberty Professionals. In May 2018, he was promoted from the youth team to ...
, Ghanaian footballer
References
Fictional character
*
Kwame (Captain Planet)
''Captain Planet and the Planeteers'' is an American animated environmentalist superhero television series created by Barbara Pyle and Ted Turner and developed by Pyle, Nicholas Boxer, Thom Beers, Andy Heyward, Robby London, Bob Forward and ...
, a fictional character in the animated television series ''Captain Planet and the Planeteers''
* Kwame, a fictional character in British television series
I May Destroy You
''I May Destroy You'' is a British black comedy-drama television limited series created, written, co-directed, and executive produced by Michaela Coel for BBC One and HBO. The series is set in London with a predominantly Black British cast. C ...
.
{{given name
Given names
Ashanti given names
Akan given names
Masculine given names