ashantee
|a-shan-tee|
/əˈʃænti/
(Ashanti)
Asante (Ashanti) people / Asante kingdom
Etymology
'ashantee' originates from Akan (Twi), specifically the word 'Asante', the name of the people and polity.
'ashantee' appeared in English usage (especially 18th–19th century British sources) as an anglicized spelling of 'Asante' and later standardized to the modern form 'Ashanti'.
Initially used in English to refer to the people and the Asante polity; over time the referent remained the same while the spelling normalized to 'Ashanti'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
archaic or variant spelling of 'Ashanti': the Akan ethnic group of south-central Ghana and, by extension, the historic Ashanti (Asante) Empire.
The British fought the Ashantee in several 19th-century conflicts.
Synonyms
Noun 2
a member of the Ashanti people (variant spelling).
An ashantee from Kumasi spoke about local customs.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/10/28 01:56