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词条 Queen mothers (Africa)
释义

  1. History

  2. Description and duties

      Akan tradition    Bini tradition   Burundian tradition  Dahomeyan tradition  Kongo tradition    Krobo tradition    Pabir tradition   Serer tradition  Swazi tradition  Tswana tradition  Yoruba tradition 

  3. Today

  4. See also

  5. References

  6. External links

Queen mothers (also Queenmothers) are leaders and women of power in Africa. There is no "one size fits all" description of a queen mother.[1] Generally, queen mothers play an important role in local government and "wield social power and influence."[1] The amount of power they currently hold has been diminished since pre-colonial times.[3]

Queen mothers are an important part of the Akan tradition which is based on matrilineal descent.[2] They are found in such groupings as the Ashanti Kingdom, which is part of the Akan ethnic group.[3] In areas of Ghana where the Akan culture is prominent, each town has a chief and a queen mother who rule alongside the modern political system.[6]

Queen mothers have also been recorded in the tradition of the Pabir in northern Nigeria,[4] as part of the Benin culture in Nigeria's south,[5] and in the Krobo area.[3] The Yoruba people of Nigeria, Benin and Togo also have a number of women that make use of the honorific "titled mother of the king".

In other parts of Africa, such as in Uganda, the term queen mother is also used to describe either the mothers of reigning monarchs or women who hold power in their own right.[6]

At the start of the 21st century, queen mothers are seeing a resurgence in power and influence in Africa.[11] A great many of them are members of the African Queens and Women Cultural Leaders Network,

a voluntary organization.

History

During the pre-colonial period, Africa was "organized around the authority of chiefs, kings and queen mothers."{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}

Queen mothers were once important political figures who commanded respect prior to the colonial era.[11] In some instances, they were even considered to be autonomous rulers.[7] Amongst certain tribes, there were traditionally male and female "counterparts" in all aspects of the political hierarchy.[4]

Queen mothers had all jurisdiction over women, and also oversaw any issue that involved both men and women together, such as rape, adultery and marital conflict.[4]

Colonists from Europe, due to their own sexism, negotiated only with titled men in the areas that they operated in. As a result, the power of the titled women diminished over time.[11] In addition, queen mothers in Africa were not recognized as important and were often referred to in historical documents as "sisters" of the men in power by missionaries and colonists.[3]

Queen mothers, along with other women on the continent under colonial rule, lost "social, religious, constitutional, and political privileges and rights."[8]

Post-colonial governments "continued with policies that undermined women's traditional authority."[3] Women's absence in politics and, particularly, traditional institutions has created an unequal distribution of power and resulted in women's "concerns and rights not being adequately addressed."[9]

In 1957, Ghana's independence leaders did not include queen mothers in their affairs, choosing instead to only work with the male chiefs.[11]

In 1988, the Ashanti Queen Mother Association was formed. It now has around forty-four women leaders from the Ashanti region as members. The group attends to issues relating to women.[10]

The 1992 Constitution of Ghana included Article 277 which defines chieftaincy.[11] Article 277 defines a chief as a person who has been properly nominated from the correct lineage and "enstooled, enskinned or installed as a Chief or a Queen Mother in accordance with the relevant customary law and usage."[12] In the summer of 2010, the National House of Chiefs in Ghana announced the inclusion of 20 queen mothers.[13] Queen mothers are appointed to the house for four-year terms.

In 2006, the United Nations Children's Fund started working with queen mothers to help support welfare efforts for women and children in different parts of West Africa {{citation needed|date=September 2016}}.

More recently, areas such as the Upper West Region of Ghana, where the tradition of having queen mothers has not been practiced, have been encouraged to "reinstall" queen mothers by advocates of women's empowerment. More women have been installed as queen mothers in the northern part of Ghana, an occurrence which has raised the status of women in the area.[9]

In 2014, the Ghanaian Chieftaincy Minister, Henry Seidu Danaa, declared that queen mothers' participation in the House of Chiefs was constitutional.[14]

Description and duties

The title of queen mother is an English compound word used to collectively describe women in traditional African leadership roles.[4] The Akan peoples use the term ohemmaa, which means "female ruler".[4] In the Ga tradition, they are called manye or "community mother". In the Pabir tradition, they are known as maigira, a word that means "female monarch."[4] In the Benin tradition, queen mothers are known as iyobas.[15] In the traditions of Yorubaland, a woman who is ritually invested with the title is known as an iya oba or "titled mother of the king".

The office of the queen mother is also known as the "stool".[4] In Ghana, queen mothers are selected from the royal family of each town and village.[11] It is the head of the royal family and the elders who choose both the chief and the queen mother, a pair that might be related to one another.[2] The royal families are made up of the first settlers of an area.[16]

Akan tradition

{{See also|Akan Chieftaincy}}

In the Akan tradition, queen mothers rule alongside the chief or the king in their area.[5] Queen mothers are considered the spiritual head of their community and the keeper of genealogical knowledge.[6] They have veto power of the king or chief and may appoint their own ministers.[5] Queen mothers also select candidates for the next chief if the chief's "stool" is vacant.[17] Queen mothers preside over courts which hear cases about disputes brought to the court by women.[18] In their courtrooms, queen mothers and their court officials "wield power over disputants."[18] When necessary, queen mothers can "assume full control of central authority."[4] In some instances, they have "acted as war leaders."[19]

Bini tradition

The Kingdom of Benin did not have queen mothers until after the end of the fifteenth century when there was a conflict for the throne.[20] During the conflict, women gained power and the first of their number, Queen Idia, became a queen mother.[20] Queen mothers in the Benin tradition are, like those in Western monarchies, the literal mothers of the kings.[21] Benin queen mothers had a great deal of power and were venerated as the protectors of the kings.[15]

Burundian tradition

In the defunct Kingdom of Burundi, a queen mother was known as a Mugabekazi. This titleholder served as a powerful figure during the reign of either her son or - as was the case with Queen Ririkumutima - her stepson.

Dahomeyan tradition

Amongst the Fon people of Dahomey, the Kpojito serves as the queen mother. She holds a position of influence within the kingdom's great council, and also oversees both a significant portion of Dahomey's day-to-day administration and the famous Dahomey Amazons military unit.

Kongo tradition

In the old Kingdom of Kongo, a queen mother was known as a Mwene Nzimba Mpungu. She was usually the reigning king's paternal aunt, and was expected to lead the four women that were ex officio members of the Ne Mbanda Mbanda, the kingdom's crown council.

Krobo tradition

Among the Krobo, there is the "paramount queen mother" and several "lesser" queen mothers ruling under her.[17] Krobo queen mothers have less power than the queen mothers of the Akan tradition do.[17] It is speculated the tradition of the queen mother may have been adopted from the Akan.[22]

The Krobo select queen mothers through a secret election by the elders.[17] After her selection, she is notified of her new role by having white clay smeared on her arm.[17] A ritual installation is performed where she is taught, advised, given a new name and then presented to the chief.[17] Krobo queen mothers are seen as "mothers" of their community and while there is an emphasis on women's affairs for the queen mother, she helps both men and women.[22]

Pabir tradition

Pabir queen mothers are expected to become celibate.[4] The Pabir queen mother's role is ceremonial, and her "true power lies in her ability to foment opposition against the king."[22]

Serer tradition

{{See also|Lingeer}}

In the Serer kingdoms of Senegambia, a queen mother was referred to as a Lingeer. She was typically the mother or sister of the reigning king, or Lamane, and ruled her own territory in his kingdom. As with the Akans, dynastic succession was vested in her progeny instead of the lamane's.

Swazi tradition

{{See also|Ndlovukati}}

Amongst the Swazi people of Southern Africa, the queen mother is known as the Ndlovukati. Joining her son the king, or Ingwenyama of Eswatini, she rules the kingdom of Eswatini in what is essentially a diarchy. Although most of the day-to-day functions of administration are performed by the ingwenyama, the ndlovukati is spiritually prominent due to her officiating during the annual Reed Dance rite.

Tswana tradition

Amongst the Tswana people, the queen mother is referred to as the Mohumagadi Mma Kgosi. She serves as an advisor to her son the chief, and is generally held in high esteem by the members of the tribe that he rules.

Yoruba tradition

{{See also|Erelu Kuti}}

Women of varying ages and ancestries are installed as the "titled mothers of the kings" of the Yoruba. They also have a variety of different functions.

In the kingdom of Lagos, for example, the Erelu Kuti is ranked third in the order of precedence. She serves as regent when the "stool" of the king, or Oba of Lagos, is vacant. As part of the coronation ceremonies for a new oba, she also publicly blesses the candidate prior to his installation. For these reasons, she is regarded as the queen mother of the realm.

Elsewhere, in Egbaland, the Moshade is another example. A titled courtier in the service of the king, or Alake of Egbaland, she is the functionary charged with the responsibility of crowning him. Following this, she also conducts the installations of all of his subordinate chiefs. Due to this, she too claims queen mother as part of her ceremonial style.

In addition to these and other women in Yorubaland that hold the title "iya oba", there is also a class of women that are known as oba obirin or "king of the women". Usually holders of the principal title iyalode, these figures oversee women's affairs in the various kingdoms and represent their gender in the privy councils of the kings.

Today

Queen mothers today continue to adapt to the changing world and the position has "remained vital."[17] They participate in business[23] and recognize the contributions of midwives.[24]

Queen mothers have helped support breast cancer awareness in Ghana.[25] In order to raise awareness of their role in Africa, four queen mothers from Ghana toured the United States.[13]

Some queen mothers have said that their authority is not as respected as much as the authority of the male chiefs.[19] While many queen mothers and other women in traditional roles have faced obstacles for creating lasting change for women, they continue to organize in order to be represented "in formal political processes."[26] They pursue educational opportunities, like the legal literacy training at libraries in Ghana[27] or workshops.[28][29][30]

In Ghana, queen mothers have started the Manya Krobo Queen Mothers Association (MKQMA) in order to help children who have been orphaned because of HIV and AIDS.[31][32] The group was started by Nana Okleyo.[22] Studies of the association's work in the Manya Krobo District found that it was a good model of how to address the issue of orphans in West Africa, though it did have some limitations.[33] There are approximately 370 queen mothers involved in MKQMA.[17] In addition, the MKQMA, under the leadership of Manye Esther, has developed HIV/AIDS prevention programs and helped support more than 400 orphans.[17]

See also

  • Idia
  • Ruth, Lady Khama
  • Yaa Asantewaa

References

1. ^{{Cite web|url = http://www.unicef.org/wcaro/english/4501_7734.html|title = Queen Mothers - Advocates for Change|date = |accessdate = 3 January 2016|website = West and Central Africa|publisher = UNICEF|last = |first = }}
2. ^1 {{Cite web|url = http://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6a6b418.html|title = Ghana: Information on the "Queen Mother" Tradition among the Kwahu People of Ghana|date = 18 October 1999|accessdate = 3 January 2016|website = Refworld|publisher = United States Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services|last = Resource Information Center}}
3. ^{{Cite journal|title = Asante Queen Mothers|journal = Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences|date = 1997-06-01|issn = 1749-6632|pages = 41–71|volume = 810|issue = 1|doi = 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1997.tb48124.x|language = en|first = Beverly J.|last = Stoeltje}}
4. ^1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 {{Cite journal|jstor = 2784870|title = The Queenmother, Matriarchy, and the Question of Female Political Authority in Precolonial West African Monarchy|last = Farrar|first = Tarikhu|date = 1997|journal = Journal of Black Studies|pmid = |subscription = yes|volume = 27|issue = 5|pages = 579–597 |doi=10.1177/002193479702700501}}
5. ^1 2 {{Cite web|url = http://academics.smcvt.edu/africanart2/kathleen/Power.htm|title = The Power of a Queen Mother|date = |accessdate = 3 January 2016|website = Queen Mothers|publisher = Saint Michael's College|last = |first = }}
6. ^{{Cite news|url = http://allafrica.com/stories/201512070710.html|title = Uganda: Tracing Uganda's History Through Stories of Motherhood|last = Rwakabukoza|first = Rebecca|date = 3 December 2015|work = All Africa|access-date = 4 January 2016|via = }}
7. ^{{Cite book|title = The Making of an African King: Patrilineal and Matrilineal Struggle among the Effutu of Ghana|last = Ephirim-Donkor|first = Anthony|publisher = University Press of America, Inc.|year = 2015|isbn = 9780761865049|location = |pages = 237|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=SXWHCgAAQBAJ&lpg=PA237&dq=%22akan%20queen%20mother%22&pg=PA237#v=onepage&q=%22akan%20queen%20mother%22&f=false}}
8. ^{{Cite book|title = Beyond Borders: Thinking Critically About Global Issues|last = Rothenberg|first = Paula S.|publisher = Worth Publishers|year = 2006|isbn = 9780716773894|location = |pages = 117–118|url = https://books.google.com/?id=ZOzEf4zgq_YC&lpg=PA107&dq=%22queen%20mother%22%20ghana&pg=PA117#v=onepage&q=queen%20mother&f=false}}
9. ^1 {{Cite news|url = http://www.ghananewsagency.org/features/northern-traditional-councils-role-of-queen-mothers-31994|title = Northern Traditional Councils - Role of Queen Mothers|last = |first = |date = 5 August 2011|work = Ghana News Agency|access-date = 3 January 2016|via = }}
10. ^{{Cite book|title = Religion and Chieftaincy in Ghana: An Explanation of the Persistence of a Traditional Political Institution in West Africa|last = Muller|first = Louise|publisher = LIT Verlag|year = 2013|isbn = 9783643903600|location = |pages = 228|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=T890Drkv9AoC&lpg=PA270&dq=%22ashanti%20queen%20mother%22&pg=PA270#v=onepage&q=%22ashanti%20queen%20mother%22&f=false}}
11. ^{{Cite web|url = http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/The-Devolution-of-the-Ghanaian-Parliament-178192|title = The Devolution of the Ghanaian Parliament|date = 11 March 2010|accessdate = 3 January 2016|website = Ghana Web|publisher = |last = Fordjour|first = Asante}}
12. ^{{Cite journal|url = http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=110745907&site=ehost-live|title = Queen Mothers: The Unseen Hands in Chieftaincy Conflicts Among the Akan in Ghana: Myth or Reality?|last = Owusu-Mensah|first = I|date = September 2015|journal = Journal of Pan African Studies|doi = |pmid = |access-date = 3 January 2016|last2 = Asante|first2 = W.|last3 = Osew|first3 = W.K.|issue = 6|volume = 8|pages = 1–16|subscription = yes|via = EBSCO}}
13. ^1 {{Cite news|url = http://atlantadailyworld.com/2012/11/29/african-queen-mothers-visit-atlanta/|title = African Queen Mothers Visit Atlanta|last = 29 November 2012|first = |date = |work = Atlanta Daily World|access-date = 4 January 2016|via = }}
14. ^{{Cite news|url = http://myjoyonline.com/news/2014/January-2nd/inclusion-of-queen-mothers-in-house-of-chiefs-is-constitutional-dr-danaa.php|title = Inclusion of Queen-mothers in House of Chiefs is Constitutional - Dr. Danaa|last = |first = |date = 1 February 2014|work = My Joy Online|access-date = 4 January 2016|via = }}
15. ^1 {{Cite web|url = http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/pwmn_3/hd_pwmn_3.htm|title = Idia: The First Queen Mother of Benin|date = |accessdate = 4 January 2016|website = Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History|publisher = The Metropolitan Museum of Art|last = Bortolot|first = Alexander Ives}}
16. ^1 2 3 4 5 {{Cite web|title = Meet the Queen Mothers: 10,000 amazing women taking back power in Africa|url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/meet-the-queen-mothers-10000-amazing-women-taking-back-power-in/|website = The Telegraph|accessdate = 20 December 2015|last = Mistiaen|first = Veronique|date = 3 December 2015}}
17. ^1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 {{Cite journal|url = http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/africa_today/v055/55.3.steegstra.html|title = Krobo Queen Mothers: Gender, Power, and Contemporary Female Traditional Authority in Ghana|last = Steegstra|first = Marijke|date = 2009|journal = Africa Today|doi = 10.2979/aft.2009.55.3.104|pmid = |access-date = 3 January 2016|via = Project Muse|subscription = yes|pages = 105–123|volume = 55|issue = 3}}
18. ^1 2 3 {{Cite journal|jstor = 4187478|title = Women's Voices in Akan Juridical Discourse|last = Obeng|first = Samuel|date = 2002|journal = Africa Today|doi = 10.1353/at.2002.0008|pmid = |last2 = Stoeltje|first2 = Beverly J.|issue = 1|volume = 49|pages = 21–41|subscription = yes}}
19. ^1 {{Cite web|url = http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1128719892|title = Asante Traditional Leadership and the Process of Educational Change|date = 2005|accessdate = 4 January 2016|website = OhioLINK|publisher = Ohio.gov|last = Owusu-Kwarteng|first = Nana K. W. B.}}
20. ^1 {{Cite web|url = http://academics.smcvt.edu/africanart/Arianne/Idia.htm|title = Idia: A Benin Legend|date = |accessdate = 4 January 2016|website = West African Art and Culture|publisher = St. Michael's College|last = Bedard|first = Arianne}}
21. ^{{Cite web|url = http://academics.smcvt.edu/africanart/Arianne/Queen%20mothers.htm|title = Queen Mothers of Benin|date = |accessdate = 4 January 2016|website = West African Art and Culture|publisher = St. Michael's College|last = Bedard|first = Arianne}}
22. ^1 2 3 {{Cite journal|title = Queen mothers, NGOs, and orphans: Transformations in traditional women's political organization in an era of HIV and orphanhood in Manya Klo, Ghana|journal = Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift - Norwegian Journal of Geography|date = 2014-01-01|issn = 0029-1951|pages = 10–21|volume = 68|issue = 1|doi = 10.1080/00291951.2013.871331|first = Bright B.|last = Drah}}
23. ^{{Cite news|url = http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/business/MASLOC-extends-credit-facility-to-queenmothers-market-women-389908|title = MASLOC Extends Credit Facility to Queenmothers, Market Women|last = |first = |date = 26 October 2015|work = Ghana Web|access-date = 3 January 2016|via = }}
24. ^{{Cite news|url = http://www.gbcghana.com/1.8466226|title = Queenmothers Foundation Launches Package to Recognise Dedicated Midwives|last = |first = |date = 30 November 2015|work = GBC Ghana|access-date = 3 January 2016|via = }}
25. ^{{Cite news|url = http://news.peacefmonline.com/pages/social/201512/264737.php|title = Ghana to Become Regional Hub for Breast Cancer Educ.|last = |first = |date = 23 December 2015|work = Peace FM|access-date = 4 January 2016|via = }}
26. ^{{Cite journal|url = https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-212411684.html|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180113093039/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-212411684.html|dead-url = yes|archive-date = 13 January 2018|title = Kathleen M. Fallon, Democracy and the Rise of Women's Movements in Sub-Saharan Africa|last = Kaye|first = Julie|date = 22 June 2009|journal = Canadian Journal of Sociology|doi = |pmid = |access-date = 4 January 2016|subscription = yes|via = HighBeam Research}}
27. ^{{Cite journal|url = https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-20945613.html|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160314132920/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-20945613.html|dead-url = yes|archive-date = 14 March 2016|title = A Library Fellow in Equatorial West Africa|last = Elliot|first = Carol|date = 1 July 1998|journal = Information Outlook|doi = |pmid = |access-date = 4 January 2016|subscription = yes|via = HighBeam Research}}
28. ^{{Cite news|url = http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/regional/Upper-East-Queen-Mothers-to-fight-Child-Marriages-399367|title = Upper East Queen Mothers to fight Child Marriages|last = |first = |date = 8 December 2015|work = Ghana Web|access-date = 4 January 2016|via = }}
29. ^{{Cite news|url = https://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2015/03/01/queen-mothers-attend-workshop-on-land-tenure-issues/|title = Queen Mothers Attend Workshop on Land Tenure Issues|last = |first = |date = 1 March 2015|work = Ghana Business News|access-date = 4 January 2016|via = }}
30. ^{{Cite news|url = http://www.ghana.gov.gh/index.php/media-center/news/2082-chiefs-queen-mothers-and-supporting-staff-of-traditional-councils-receive-training|title = Chiefs, Queen Mothers and Supporting Staff of Traditional Councils Receive Training|last = |first = |date = |work = Government of Ghana|access-date = 4 January 2016|via = }}
31. ^{{Cite web|url = http://www.uua.org/international/action/children/queen-mothers|title = Queen Mothers: Every Child is Our Child|date = October 2014|accessdate = 3 January 2016|website = Unitarian Universalist Association|publisher = |last = |first = }}
32. ^{{Cite book|title = Final Report for the Implementing AIDS Prevention and Care (IMPACT) Project in Ghana|last = Family Health International|publisher = USAID|year = 2004|isbn = |location = |pages = 29|url = http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/pdacg394.pdf|type = Report}}
33. ^{{Cite journal|title = Queens as Mothers: the role of the traditional safety net of care and support for HIV/AIDS orphans and vulnerable children in Ghana|journal = GeoJournal|date = 2008-04-18|issn = 0343-2521|pages = 93–106|volume = 71|issue = 2–3|doi = 10.1007/s10708-008-9145-9|language = en|first = Ragnhild|last = Lund|first2 = Samuel|last2 = Agyei-Mensah}}

External links

  • Rain Queens of Africa
  • [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlQHpO5Yxyk Video of Female Rulers in Kente at Ashanti Juaben, Ghana, Africa] (video)
{{Authority control}}{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}}

5 : African royalty|African women in politics|Queen mothers|Ghanaian culture|Women rulers in Africa
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