Kumasi
| Kumasi | |||
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| Coordinates | 6 ° 40 ′ N , 1 ° 37 ′ W | ||
| Basic data | |||
| Country | Ghana | ||
| Ashanti region | |||
| ISO 3166-2 | GH-AH | ||
| height | 250 m | ||
| surface | 254 km² | ||
| Residents | 2,907,000 (2017) | ||
| density | 11,444.9 Ew. / km² | ||
| founding | 1680 | ||
| Website | www.kma.gov.gh (English) | ||
| politics | |||
| governor | Samuel Sarpong | ||
 Street scene in Kumasi
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Kumasi (formerly Coomassie , also Kumase ) is the capital of the Ashanti region in Ghana and since the beginning of 2014 the largest city in the country. Around 2.5 million people live in the region within a radius of around 30 to 35 kilometers from the city. The city is located 27 km northwest of Lake Bosumtwi , the only real inland lake in Ghana. Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) is located on the south-eastern edge of the city, on the road to Accra . Another university is the Kumasi Polytechnic University of Applied Sciences .
geography
Centrally located to the south, it is surrounded by various jungle areas. It is also known as the garden city because of its colorful and diverse flora . Kumasi is a student city and has a university for science and technology , as well as a Protestant college, the Christian Service University College . 84 percent of the people are Christians , 11 percent Muslim . Trade , consumer goods , agriculture and mining are the leading industries in Kumasi, and this is also where the probably largest market in West Africa is located : Kejetia.
The sports enthusiastic residents are proud of their soccer club Kumasi Asante Kotoko . Kotoko means porcupine and is the heraldic animal of the association, but it is actually a metaphor for the resilience that the Asante (Ashanti) population has had to demonstrate several times in history. The team has won several national and continental titles.
history
The city became the capital of the Ashanti Kingdom in the late 17th century by King Osei Tutu . Here, according to legend, he received the golden chair , the symbol of the unity and spirit of the Ashanti, directly from heaven. Later the rulers of Kumasi (the "Kumasihene") were also the rulers of the Ashanti Empire. The Ashanti kings (" Asantehene ") were the richest kings of West Africa, so that their Manhyia palace is one of the greatest sights today. In 1874 the British destroyed parts of the city in the course of their 4th war against the Ashanti , including the then royal palace. Kumasi is considered the shadow capital of Ghana. Above all, the Ashanti population group sees Ghana's focus in Kumasi.
In 1931 the Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter was built as the seat of today's Archdiocese of Kumasi .
The last traditional Ashanti buildings can be found in ten villages northeast of Kumasi. Since 1980 they have been protected by inclusion in the UNESCO list of world cultural heritage .
population
Due to the growth of Ghana's population - especially in the cities - the population of Kumasi has also increased significantly. At the beginning of 2014, it exceeded the population of the capital Accra .
| year | Residents |
|---|---|
| 1970 | 260.286 |
| 1984 | 489,586 |
| 2000 | 1,171,311 |
| 2007 | 1,604,909 |
| 2013 | 2,069,350 |
| 2017 | 2,907,000 |
Town twinning
sons and daughters of the town
- Ignatius Kutu Acheampong (1931–1979), former head of state of Ghana
- Baba Yara (1936-1969), football player
- Kofi Annan (1938–2018), Secretary General of the United Nations, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate
- John Agyekum Kufuor (* 1938), President of Ghana from 2001 to 2009
- Kwame Addo-Kufuor (* 1940), politician and minister of defense
- Kojo Laing (1946-2017), writer
- Emmanuel K. Akyeampong (* 1962), historian and Africanist
- Anthony Yeboah (born 1966), football player
- Isaac Asare (born 1974), football player
- Mallam Yahaya (* 1974), football player
- Mark Edusei (* 1976), football player
- Samuel Osei Kuffour (* 1976), football player
- Ibrahim Tanko (* 1977), football player
- Bashiru Gambo (* 1978), football player
- Isaac Boakye (born 1981), football player
- Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah (* 1981), wrestler
- Kweku Essien (* 1984), football player
- Harrison Afful (* 1986), football player
- Flings Owusu-Agyapong (* 1988), sprinter
- Jerry Prempeh (* 1988), soccer player
- Kofi Danning (* 1991), Australian soccer player
- Janet Amponsah (* 1993), sprinter
- Issac Honey (born 1993), football player
- Ebenezer Ofori (* 1995), football player
- Manfred Osei Kwadwo (* 1995), football player
- Martin Owusu-Antwi (* 1995), sprinter
gallery
Market in Kumasi
Kumasi Railway Station, 2005
Kumasi Stadium, Africa Cup 2008
Climate table
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Average monthly temperatures and rainfall for Kumasi
Source: wetterkontor.de
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Individual evidence
- ^ Population & Housing Census 2010 - District Analytical Report - Kumasi Metropolitan. (PDF) (No longer available online.) Ghana Statistical Service, October 2014, p. 36 , archived from the original on November 18, 2017 ; accessed on January 27, 2018 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c Ghana Statistical Service, 2000 population and housing census: special report on urban localities , Accra 2002
- ↑ World Urbanization Prospects - Population Division - United Nations. Retrieved July 24, 2018 .
- ↑ www.wenzhou.gov.cn: City friendships . Retrieved July 11, 2019.
Web links
- University of Kumasi
- Entry on the UNESCO World Heritage Center website ( English and French ).