Sankofa

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For Film by Haile Gerima, see Sankofa (disambiguation).

The concept of Sankofa is derived from Adinkra of the Akan people of West Africa. Sankofa is transliterated in the Akan language as "se wo were fi na wosan kofa a yenki." Literally translated it means "it is not taboo to go back and fetch what you forgot". Sankofa is used today across the pan-African world to promote the idea that African people must go back to our roots in order to move forward. Visually and symbolically "Sankofa" is expressed as a mythic bird that flies forward while looking backward with an egg (symbolizing the future) in its mouth.

[edit] Popular Usage

The film by Ethiopian-American filmmaker Haile Gerima Sankofa (1993) popularized the term, since then more recent films such as 500 Years Later have further popularized the symbol as part of the core philosophy of the film.

Janet Jackson also has a Sankofa symbol tattooed on her right wrist.

Hip-Hop artist Talib Kweli also references the term Sankofa on his album "Reflection Eternal".

British filmmaker Isaac Julien cofounded the Sankofa Film and Video Collective, a collective of black British filmmakers.

[edit] Links

• Sankofa.com
• 500 Years Later example of symbol usage in a filmlink title
• Sankofa School