Professor of Ethnomusicology, Nana Hemaa Prof. Ama Oforiwaa Aduonum, has voiced strong disappointment over the growing misconceptions and diminishing value associated with Dondology, a field rooted in African musical and cultural knowledge.
According to her, the term has been unfairly mischaracterised and stripped of its true worth, largely due to lingering colonial mindsets.
Speaking on Campus Exclusive on Tuesday, July 29, 2025, ahead of her anticipated symposium happening on Thursday, July 31, 2025, with Erica Odum, Prof. Aduonum emphasised the urgent need to reclaim and redefine Dondology and, more broadly, African identity.
“We have allowed the negative connotation without fighting back. This symposium is about resistance. It’s about reclaiming and redefining ourselves,” she asserted.
“As Africans, we’ve always sat around and allowed others to define us. We need to be bold. We need to believe in who we are. Dondology is scholarship… ancestral knowledge imbued with spirit, science, and economic opportunity. Dondology is life.”
Prof. Aduonum also expressed frustration over how Dondology is often dismissed as a refuge for students deemed “less academically gifted,” calling such narratives “deeply harmful.” She criticised the perception as one rooted in colonial residue that continues to devalue indigenous knowledge systems.
“I’ve heard students say they were mocked in JHS and told that if they didn’t perform well academically, they’d end up studying Dondology. That really rubbed me so badly. How dare we diminish such an important epistemological asset? It’s crushing children’s dreams.”
She lamented how colonial legacies have distorted African education and music, allowing foreign content to dominate local spaces, even at the basic school level.
“Why do we care about ‘London Bridge is Falling Down’? We have bridges falling down right here in Ghana. Why aren’t we making songs to raise awareness about our own challenges? We have beautiful songs—’Da no me k)) nwuram, Kahinka, Mek)hu saman’—rich in heritage and wisdom. Why aren’t we teaching those in our schools?”
Prof. Aduonum’s upcoming symposium is set to challenge these narratives and ignite dialogue about restoring value to African knowledge systems, especially through music and culture. Her call is clear: it’s time for Africans to reclaim their identity, redefine their stories, and take pride in their intellectual and cultural heritage.
The symposium is scheduled to take place at the Balme Library Conference Hall, University of Ghana, Legon-Accra, from 10:00 AM to 3:30 PM. The keynote address will be delivered by Professor George J. Sefa Dei, focusing on the theme: “Dondology and the African Cultural Library: Rethinking Issues in African Education and Anti-Colonial Praxis.”
Find the official flyer for Prof. Aduonum’s first annual symposium for Dondology below:
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Story by Kelvin B. Annor-Yeboah | univers.ug.edu.gh
