Returning to our Spiritual Roots

African Hindus in Ghana Negotiating Religious Space and Identity

Bibliographic Data

ID3933449
AuthorsAbamfo Ofori Atiemo (0000-0002-8725-2328, Department for the Study of Religions, University of Ghana Accra Ghana, corresponding author)
Year2017
Volume47
Issue3-4
Pages405-437
Publication date2017-07-18
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Religion in Africa (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-4200 • E-ISSN: 1570-0666
PublisherWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1163/15700666-12340120
OpenAlexW2886394334
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited16

This paper examines the phenomenon of the 'African Hindu' in the context of the discussions on 'transnational Hinduism'. I also report on how these African Hindus resort to a reinterpretation of the history of their Ghanaian indigenous (traditional) religion and culture in their attempt to find religious space in the almost-choked religious environment of Ghana, and also how they attempt to negotiate their new religious identity in relation to their identity as Africans (Ghanaians). I conclude with a prognosis of the form that Hinduism is likely to assume in the near future on Ghanaian soil as its African converts try to live their faith in the context of their local culture

Aesthetics · Context (archaeology · Faith · Hinduism · Identity (music · Indigenous · Negotiation · Reinterpretation · Religious identity · Social science · Sociology · Theology · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Caribbean history, culture, and politics · Gender Studies · History · Philosophy · Religion, Society, and Development · Religious studies