Asantehene

Asantehene is the title of the monarch of the Ashanti people and the paramount ruler of the Ashanti Confederacy in what is today southern Ghana. The office represents both a political and a spiritual leadership role for the Ashanti, and the holder is traditionally the symbol of Ashanti unity. The term derives from Asante, the name of the people, and hene, meaning king.

The office traces to the founding of the Ashanti Empire in the 17th century under Osei Tutu I, with key oversight from the priest Okomfo Anokye. The Golden Stool, or Sika Dwa Kofi, is the sacred symbol of Ashanti sovereignty and identity; according to legend it descended from the heavens and is kept as a national shrine. The stool is not to be handled by others and is presented to the new Asantehene during installation.

Selection is undertaken by the Asanteman Council, a body of senior chiefs and royal lineages. A candidate from eligible royal lines is chosen, ceremonially installed at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi, and receives the Golden Stool to become Asantehene. In modern Ghana, the office is largely ceremonial, but the Asantehene remains a respected cultural figure and an influential voice in national affairs, often engaging in philanthropic, cultural, and mediation roles. The current Asantehene, Otumfuo Nana Osei Tutu II, has reigned since 1999 and presides over the Kumasi-based palace and the broader Ashanti cultural institutions.