An African Story of Kompa Nanzi

An African Story of Kompa Nanzi(Rev. Peter E. Adotey Addo) An African Story of Kompa Nanzi: Ananse and How he Reached Curacao

A Folk Tale From Ghana Of How Ananse the Spider arrived on the Island of Curacao In the Dutch Antilles and the Caribbean islands.

Once Upon a Time For Kompa Nanzi: An Afican Folk Tale
By Rev P. E. Adotey Addo


Have you ever wondered how Ananse the Spider, Kompa Nanzi, got to the island of Curacao? This is the real story and only the very old people know about it. They know about the story because it has been transmitted from Father to Son and family to family by word of mouth for generations. The transmission started even before written records were kept. This is called the oral tradition.

Once upon a time a long time ago Kompa Nanzi was not his name. In the native villages of West Africa Kompa Nanzi was known as Kweku Ananse. Kweku his first name means he was born on a Saturday according to the story passed down to us from our ancestors.

Many many years ago according to our ancestors the people lived very happily and loved themselves and their life. They tilled the soil, grew food, and raised chickens, goats and cattle. They also fished for food in the lakes, the rivers, and the sea. The land was fertile and produced enough food for them and also to sell to other villages. They were a very happy people. Then one day, as the story goes, out of the ocean came some strange ships. The ships were bigger than their small canoes. They had never seen such big ships before. The strangest thing however were the men dressed in strange clothes who came out of the ships. These men had white skins, blue eyes, and red hair. They were nice and friendly at first. Then one day they began to force some of our ancestors to get on the ships. Those who were forced on the ships were never seen again. The ancestors say that Ananse the spider was watching all of this from the corners of the huts and Ananse followed the villagers as they were transported across the sea to strange lands.

On the ships Ananse the spider noticed that the people did not have enough food and water. Ananse, it is said, always found food and water on the ship and made sure that the people had food and water. This was natural for Ananse the Spider. He had always been very resourceful. After several weeks the ship arrived and when the villagers looked at the new land it looked like their village in West Africa. It was warm and they could see the same coconut, mango, orange trees, and other familiar plants. They also were surprised to see that there were other people from other villages in West Africa. Many of them spoke languages that were different from their language. Although they missed their villages and West Africa, after a while they decided that they had no other choice but to make a new life for themselves and to adjust to the new land.

They built homes with the help of Ananse. They survived and made a life for themselves. As the years passed they forgot their languages, but they did not forget their customs and their culture. The elders among them made sure about that. They always told their children about Kweku Ananse. However, they soon began to refer to him as Kompa Nanzi, the survivor and the one who kept them alive. And as the story goes they made a home for themselves, and as far as Ananse he has always been a survivor. He not only survived but he married Yaa Asantewa and had many children. In fact the old folks say that Ananse today still produces many children just in case some get lost or are taken away. Just look in the corners of your homes, barns, and store rooms and you will see Kompa Nanzi and his many children. Some went to settle on the Island of Cuba and Brazil and the island of Jamaica where even today their story is told with different names.



Dedicated to My Friend Herman Pieters, the Best story Teller on the Island of Curacao, and to the youth of the Island of Curacao and the generations yet to be born. Copyright 2008 by Rev P E Adotey Addo