Nii Amon Kotei was a Ghanaian sculptor, painter, musician, surveyor, and graphic artist who died on October 17, 2011. Kotei is best remembered and celebrated as the designer of Ghana's coat of arms. He is also among the most important historical figures in Ghana. He was a leading artist in Ghana.

Kotei received a scholarship to Achimota School before going on to study art at the London School of Printing and Graphic Art from 1949 to 1952. During WWII, he was a member of the Royal West African Frontier Force and worked in the Army's Cartographic Division, drawing maps and plans for soldiers on the front lines.

On March 4, 1957, he was responsible for the creation of Ghana's National Coat of Arms. The British colonial government commissioned Kotei to replace the older badge, which depicted an elephant and a palm tree, two symbols used throughout British West African colonies. The Coat of Arms was sent to the Queen's College of Heraldry for approval after his initial design was approved by the government .

The Ghanaian coat of arms, which appears on all official government letterheads, consists of a shield divided into four quarters by a green St. George's Cross rimmed with gold.

Kotei passed away on October 17, 2011. Following his death, the Ghanaian parliament recognized his contributions to Ghanaian art and heraldry. He was awarded the State Honour of Grand Medal, Civil Division, Coat of Arms Design, which was presented to him on Friday, 7 March 1997, by then-president Jerry Rawlings.

Okomfo Anokye (1655 - 1717 or 1719) was the Ashanti Empire's first priest (Okomfo). Anokye is well-known for his role in the empire's expansion. He is regarded as one of the most important historical figures in Ghana.

Anokye was his adviser and chief priest when Osei Kofi Tutu I succeeded to the throne of the Kumaseman State between c.1680 and c.1695 (exact year unknown; although he was definitely Kumasehene by 1695) to the leadership of the small group of Akan forest states around the city of Kumasi, which were already grouped in a loose military alliance. Tutu and Anokye, who must be considered together, continued their predecessors' expansionist policy, defeating two powerful enemies, the Akan Doma to the northwest and the Denkyera empire to the south.

According to Ashanti historians, the Asante people are descended from the peoples of the ancient Ghana Empire (hence the current name Kwame Nkrumah gave the country), which is said to supplant their martial valour. During the 17th century, the Ashanti conquered large parts of Ghana by overthrowing their powerful overlords, the Denkyira. Okomfo Anokye was essentially a powerful cleric who served to rally the people behind his friend, the king's, cause. Anokye is also said to have planted a dagger in the heart of the Ashanti region, which the Europeans have been unable to remove with any type of technology for over 500 years. Ashanti was one of the few West African countries to achieve battle victories over the British.

To break free from the Denkyira yoke, a powerful unity that transcended the particularism of the Ashanti segments was required, and Anokye used not only the political influence of his priesthood but also the spiritual ties it fostered to transform the loose Ashanti alliance into a "national" union in 1695.

Anokye and Tutu established Ashanti state rituals and customs to counteract the influence of local traditions. They chose Kumasi as the Ashanti capital. They then established a state council of the chiefs of the previously admitted states to the union and suppressed all competing origin traditions. Finally, the Ashanti army was reorganized.

The war with Denkyira (1699-1701) started badly, but when the Denkyira army arrived at Kumasi's gates, Anokye's incantations allegedly caused defections among their generals. The Denkyira hegemony was broken when the Ashanti captured the Dutch deed of rent for Elmina Castle. This gave the empire's traders access to the African coast and immersed them in the commerce and politics of the coastal slave trade.

Following the death of Osei Tutu in 1717, Anokye is said to have returned to Akuapim and died between 1717 and 1719 in the Kumase town of Kyirapatre (aged between 62 and 64). The true cause of his death is unknown, but it is said that he was about to bring the key to death, so no one should cry; if anyone is heard crying, he will never return. After a few days, he was still missing, and the women cried, and he never returned.

Tetteh Quarshie (1842 - 25 December 1892) was a pre-independence Ghanaian agriculturalist who was directly responsible for the introduction of cocoa crops to Ghana, which are now one of the country's major export crops. In order to introduce the crop, Quarshie traveled to the island of Fernando Po in 1870 and returned to Ghana in 1876.

Tetteh Quarshie set sail for the Spanish colony of Fernando Po (now Bioko in Equatorial Guinea). He returned to Ghana with several cocoa beans about six years later.

Tetteh Quarshie successfully planted the seeds in Mampong in 1879. When cocoa pods were distributed to them, friends and relatives also planted cocoa. Other farmers quickly followed suit. Only at this point did the Basel Missionaries enter the picture, bringing large quantities of the crop into the country. Cocoa beans or cuttings were shipped from Ghana's Gold Coast to countries such as Nigeria and Sierra Leone. Ghana began exporting cocoa in 1891, and the official export began in 1893. (two bags exported). Ghana once supplied nearly half of global output. Ghana was the world's largest exporter between 1910 and 1980. Because of the bushfires, this position was relinquished. Ghana's cocoa, on the other hand, is still of the highest quality, and the country earns hundreds of millions of dollars each year from the export of the beans and processed materials.

Tetteh Quarshie died on December 25, 1892. On February 25, 1925, the Gold Coast government was petitioned for a grant to help Tetteh Quarshie's relatives. Dr. J. E. K. Aggrey, the then-Ghanaian Vice-Principal of Achimota College, vigorously pursued the appeal. Sir Gordon Guggisberg, a friend of his, established the Tetteh Quarshie Memorial Scholarship at Achimota College. Following another petition in 1927, the government gave a sum of 250 pounds, despite Nana Sir Ofori Atta's request in the Legislative Council for 2,500 pounds, which was supported by Kojo Thompson.

Among the most important historical figures in Ghana, Baffuor Osei Akoto (1904-2002) was a Ghanaian agriculturalist, traditional ruler, and politician. He was the Asantehene's linguist and lived in Kumasi's Manhyia Palace.

Baffour Osei Akoto was the founder and leader of the National Liberation Movement, a Ghanaian political party founded in 1954. The NLM was founded by disgruntled Ashanti members of the Convention People's Party, who were joined by Kofi Abrefa Busia, to oppose the process of centralization while preserving the role of traditional leaders. The party gained some support in the Gold Coast legislative election, 1956, and became the third largest party in the Assembly with 12 seats, trailing the Convention People's Party and the Northern People's Party.

Kofi Owusu Sekyere and Nana Akosua Apea were his parents. He was a mechanic with the transportation division of F&A Swanzy Company in the Gold Coast before being appointed as the Asantehene's chief Linguist.

In 1954, he organized disaffected Ashanti members of the Convention People's Party to form the National Liberation Movement, a new political party. After a series of mergers with other political parties, the party was renamed the United Party. Another name change occurred in the early 1990s, and the party became known as the New Patriotic Party, Ghana's current ruling party.

He spoke out against Dr. Kwame Nkrumah's one-party state system. As a result, he was arrested and imprisoned for seven years.

Yaa Asantewaa I (October 17, 1840 - October 17, 1921) was the Warrior Queen Mother of Ejisu in the Ashanti Empire, which is now part of modern-day Ghana. She was appointed by her brother Nana Akwasi Afrane Opese, the Edwesuhene, or ruler, of Edwesu. She led the Ashanti War of the Golden Stool, also known as the Yaa Asantewaa War of Independence, against the British Empire in 1900.

Among the most important historical figures in Ghana, Nana Yaa Asantewaa was well aware of the consequences of British colonial rule. Ghanaians today regard her as a queen mother who used her political and social clout to help defend her kingdom. The role she played in persuading Ashanti men to fight the British appears to be a function of her matriarchal status. Nana Yaa Asantewaa's appeal to the women of the Asante Empire is based on Akan women's political obligations and their respective roles in legislative and judicial processes. The Akan people's male stool hierarchy was supplemented by female counterparts. The village council, known as the ôdekuro, was made up of elders who were the heads of the matrilineages (mpanyimfo). The women, known as aberewa or ôbaa panyin, were in charge of women's affairs and were known as the mpanyinfo. An ôbaa panyin was the responsible party for the affairs of the village women and served on the village council for each ôdekuro .

The ôhene, the head of a division, and the Amanhene, the head of the autonomous political community, each had a female counterpart known as the ôhemaa: a female ruler who sat on their councils. The ôhemaa and ôhene shared the same mogya, or bloodline or localized matrilineage. Since her male counterpart was ex-officio of the Asanthene, the occupant of the female stool in Kumasi state, the Asantehemaa, the united Asante, was a member of the Kôtôkô Council, the Executive Committee or Cabinet of the Asanteman Nhyiamu, General Assembly of Asante rulers. Female stool occupants took part not only in judicial and legislative processes, but also in the making and unmaking of war, as well as in land distribution.

Yaa Asantewaa is a well-known figure in Asante history and Ghanaian history in general for her role in opposing British colonialism. The Yaa Asantewaa Girls' Secondary School was established in Kumasi in 1960 with funds from the Ghana Education Trust to emphasize the importance of encouraging more female leaders in Ghanaian society.

In the year 2000, Ghana held a week-long centennial celebration to honor Yaa Asantewaa's achievements. On 3 August 2000, a museum dedicated to her was dedicated in Kwaso, Ejisu-Juaben District, as part of these celebrations. Unfortunately, a fire on July 23, 2004 destroyed several historical items, including her sandals and battle dress (batakarikese), as seen in the photograph above. The current Queen-mother of Ejisu is Yaa Asantewaa II, and a second Yaa Asantewaa festival was held in Ejisu from August 1-5, 2006.