Almost everyone dreams of success. From childhood, we are taught to aspire, to achieve, and to “make it” in life. Parents encourage their children to succeed, communities celebrate successful people, and society often rewards those it considers accomplished. But an important question remains: What does success really mean—and who should be considered a successful person…
In an age of rapid social change, urbanization, and shifting lifestyles, it is worth asking a simple but important question: What is a family, and why do we still need one? Despite changes in how people live and relate to one another, the family remains the most fundamental institution in every society. Anthropologists who have…
In Ghana today, many parents encourage their children to speak English, sometimes at the expense of local languages. This trend is common not only in Ghana but also among Ghanaian families living abroad. While parents may believe that prioritizing English will make their children academically brighter, this approach often has unintended consequences for cultural identity…
Across Africa, myths and misunderstandings about bedwetting continue to affect children and families. In Ghana, many parents still believe that children who wet their beds at night are lazy or unwilling to wake up to urinate. As a result, some children are physically disciplined. In past decades, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s, children who…
Time to Break Old Beliefs For too long, society has told girls they are weaker, less capable, or meant to play second fiddle to boys. It’s time to shatter that myth. Girls can do it all—excel in school, lead in government, innovate in business, and make decisions that shape nations. Gender does not determine ability;…
Discarding Outdated Beliefs It is time for Africans to discard the outdated belief that boys and girls differ in abilities and potential. For too long, harmful cultural attitudes have suggested that women should play second fiddle to men. But reality proves otherwise: for everything a boy or a man can do, a girl or a…
In Ghana, boys are socialized from an early age into the belief that boys do not cry. Among the Akan, any attempt by a boy to cry is frequently met with the admonition “gyae, barima nsu”—literally, “stop, boys do not cry.” This injunction reflects a broader cultural script that equates emotional restraint with masculinity. From…
Every society has norms, which are rules that guide behavior. One important norm in Ghana concerns the use of the left hand in social interactions. Traditionally in Ghana, using the left hand in social interactions can be problematic. Giving something to someone or receiving something with the left hand is considered rude or insulting. Growing…
Every year, thousands of tourists visit Ghana. According to the 2024 Tourism Report published by the Ghana Tourism Authority, Ghana welcomed 1,288,804 international visitors in 2024. The country continues to promote tourism in order to expand the industry and increase its benefits. This raises an important question: Is tourism beneficial to Ghana? How Tourism Benefits…
Homicide is the killing of one person by another person. The study of homicide is an important part of criminology and is carried out by criminologists, especially those who specialize in homicide or lethal violence. Homicide is not a single, uniform act. There are many different types of homicide, and criminologists use specific terms—often called…
We often hear the word homicide, but many people do not fully understand its meaning or the nature of the crime. In this essay, I discuss what homicide is, the different types of homicide, and why it is considered one of the most serious crimes in society. Homicide is the killing of one person by…
Prostitution is commonly defined as the exchange of sex for money. People who engage in prostitution provide sexual services in return for payment. A related question is whether exchanging sex for material items other than cash should also be considered prostitution. Some people say yes, others say no. That debate, however, can be left for…
People often talk about poverty and poor people. However, two important questions are not always clearly answered: What is poverty? And who are the poor? Poverty simply means deprivation. When a person lacks something that is important for living well, that person is said to be poor. Most of the time, when people talk about poverty,…
Akan Day Names (Kra Din) Different societies have different ways of naming their children. Among the Akan people of Ghana, newborns are given a special name based on the day of the week on which they are born. This name is called a “kra din.” In Twi, the widely spoken Akan language, kra (or okra)…
Written by Mensah Adinkrah, Ph.D. Ritual murder is the killing of a person with the intention of using the victim’s blood, body, or body parts to perform rituals or prepare what is often described as “medicine” for personal gain. It is one of the most heinous crimes anyone can commit. Taking another person’s life in…
