The task of studying the history of the Ewe people is not easy. This write-up does not aim at rewriting Ewe historiography, but rather intends to comment on, reinterpret (when necessary), shed more light on, and give more or alternative meaning and perspective to what has been known (orally and literally) about the Ewe people.
The escape from Notsie has been told orally from generation to generation, so some details may be different depending on where you are, but for everyone, the story teaches us the value of our elders and working together.
According to oral history and accounts from other Ewe scholars and academics, Manoukian, 1952; Mamattah, 1976; Gbolonyo, 2009; Quarcoopome, 1993 and others; when our forefathers arrived at Kedzi, they came across a low-lying sandy area and named it, “Ke-dzi” – “On the sand” (Mie va ɖo ɛkɛ dzi – We’ve arrived on sand).
Upon moving further West, they encountered more sand than ever before in Kedzi. This time around, they were on top of the plentiful sand and exclaimed, “Fifia, mie va ɖo ɛkɛ ƒɛ ta”, “At the moment, we’ve reached the top of the sand” hence “Keta” – “On top/peak of the sand”.
Credit: Mac-Jordan Degadjor / Facebook.
