the meeting place for the Fante elders and the head fetish priest when discussing important matters. The first Omanhen (king) of Mankessim was installed here, and later kingmakers would visit the site for consultation. According to the Fante, the spear cannot be removed by mortal hands. The land the Fante reached was initially called Adoakyir by its existing inhabitants, which the Fante called "Etsi-fue-yifo" meaning people with bushy hair. The Fante conquered these people and renamed the settlement Oman-kesemu, meaning large town. The name has evolved into the current name, Mankessim. The Fante settled the land as their first independent kingdom, and buried Obrumakankoma and Odapagya in a sacred grove called Nana-nom-pow. Komfo Amona also planted the limb of a tree he had brought from the Akan homeland in Krako to see if a place was good for settlement. The day after the priest planted the limb, the people found a tree starting to grow. The tree was named Ebisa-dua, or the consulting tree, and its location is today one of the most important shrines in Mankessim. Fante dialect Elmina Culture The Fante engage in farming, fishing and animal husbandry. Fante society is matrilineal. A majority of the Fante adhere to Christianity or their traditional beliefs. A minority profess Sunni Islam. Fante people are very well-known for their cuisine. Food plays an integral part of Fante culture and take pride of place. Their traditional food includes Kenkey, Banku (Etsew) that is eaten with fish including Tilapia and other seafood, fresh pepper and vegetables. Many Fante's from the interior also traditionally eat yam and coco yams (ampesie) and fufu. The Oguaa Fetu Afahye (an annual traditional festival celebrated in Cape Coast) is actually a yam harvest festival that was previously celebrated in the Bono Kingdom and was brought to the coast during the exodus. Fantes through their long association with Europeans developed a unique blend of culinary dishes that are now eaten all over Ghana including corned beef stew, Ghana Jollof, Ghana meat pie, Ice Kenkey, Atadwe milk, abodoo, jollof rice, foam and many others. References Rebecca Shumway. 2011. The Fante and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Rochester: University of Rochester Press. Ethnic groups in Ghana Akan West African people