Queen Nanny – Who is the Ghanaian woman whose head is on a bank note of Jamaica?

Queen Nanny of Jamaica was captured and sold into slavery from Ghana

By Emmanuel Akyereko

The setting is far away in East Asia, in the city of Tokyo – capital of arguably the most prosperous country in the region – Japan. A handful of immigrants from Ghana – a 38 million-populated country located in West Africa have conceived an idea.

The grand scheme of this idea is an attempt to connect with parts of their missing roots which have been far away disconnected in the Caribbeans. In particular interest is to reconnect their roots with their brothers and sisters from Jamaica.

Long before that, many Jamaicans have traced their roots to the West African country of Ghana. Popular among these Jamaicans including top reggae musicians Bob Marley, his wife Rita Marley – who still lives in Ghana, Joseph Hill, popularly known as Culture, and several others. Reggae music has become the strongest cultural identity of Jamaica.

According to maroon legend and oral history, reggae music was originated by a woman named Queen Nanny – a woman whose face is on Jamaican bank note. So who is Queen Nanny?

Queen Nanny is an early 18th century freedom fighter and leader of the Maroons in Jamaica, who led a community of previously-enslaved escapees who were mainly from West Africa. Nanny herself was born in Ghana in 1686 and was captured and sold into slavery. This brave woman led the Windward Maroons to stage a Guerrilla War that lasted many years against British Authorities. Her resilience and strong leadership led to the triumph of the Maroons leading to a peace treaty that ensured the freedom of the Maroons who were formerly enslaved people.

The treaty stopped the hostilities, provided state-sanctioned freedom for the Maroons, and granted 500 acres (202 ha) of land to Nanny and her followers. The village built through that land grant still stands, and is called Moore Town or the “New” Nanny Town. Modern members of Moore Town celebrate 20 April 1740 as a holiday, known informally in places today as “4/20” or “four-twenty”.

In the year 1975, the government of prime minister Michael Manley declared Nanny of the Maroons as a Jamaican National Hero. Nanny is the only woman and the only Maroon in the national pantheon. Since 1994 she has been featured in the $500 Jamaican dollar note.

Through this amazing woman and her bravery, Jamaicans and Ghanaians in Japan have rediscovered their roots and have launched a program to come together to honour this amazing woman and discover more about their ancestry and roots.

On Friday, February 28, 2025, at the Akasaka Civic Center in Minato City in Tokyo, the Ghana Embassy in Japan in collaboration of Bayside Entertainment Limited and a Jamaican musical group will host a musical program captioned Celebrating Our Common Heritage.

The event will be held to mark the 68th Independence Day in Ghana which falls on March 6, 2025.

A very good number of the Jamaican population trace their roots to Ghana and still have communities in the Caribbean Island nation who still practice Ghanaian culture.

Queen Nanny, the woman who is credited for originating Reggae Music, traces her roots to the West African nation and will be celebrated during the event.

Dela Botri, Yao, and Mackaruffin and the Mackaroots Band are the musicians who are billed to perform at the event.