I grew up hearing stories of Ananse, so it did not occur to me that he might be a stranger to many.

I told an Ananse story to some children of friends a few days ago. They had never heard of him. They wanted more stories and I was thrilled to give them what they wanted.

I could not have asked for a better audience. They laughed and yelled and asked many questions. More than anything, they wanted to know more about Ananse.

They just loved that he could do anything and many times, get away with it because he was so clever. They loved it even more when he got his just punishment!

So, before I post another Ananse interview, I think an introduction to this character is in order.

Who is Ananse?

Ananse is the main trickster character of Akan folklore. Akans are a group of many clans that live in Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, West Africa. The Asante are the most famous Akan group. Because of the success of the Asante Kingdom and trade with other groups, variants of Ananse stories can be heard all over West and Central Africa. The slave trade spread those stories to the Carribean, America and Europe.

In Twi, the main Akan language, Ananse simply means spider. His other name, Kweku, means Wednesday-born.

Ananse is very clever. He never plots to take over the world though. He’s just too lazy for that. He would rather eat.

He is very sociable when he chooses and very good at persuading people to do things for him. Even though he does not always choose to follow the rules, he knows them all. He also knows more stories and wise sayings than anyone else.

He’s not so good at playing the dondo (a talking drum) but he’s fantastic on the seprewa (a bridge harp).

In the folk tales, Kweku Ananse is sometimes a spider, sometimes a man. Sometimes he’s a man with spider abilities or a man who turns into a spider when he’s in trouble. Sometimes he’s a spider who acts like a man. Some stories say that he was a man who slowly became a spider.

Ananse is everybody and nobody. He’s good, he’s bad, he’s foolish, he’s wise, he’s mean, he’s a hero, etc. He can talk to anybody or anything including people, animals and spirits. He takes special delight in creating chaos and challenging Nyankupong, the Supreme God.

Confused yet? That is the point.

One thing to keep in mind though – it does not matter how he’s acting or what his form is, Ananse is always the Trickster.