Asante emerged as a confederation of matrilineal chiefdoms at the beginning of the 18
th century, and its defeat of Denkyira in 1701 marked the cohesion of this new polity. The 18
th century
witnessed the territorial expansion of Asante (by the early nineteenth century Asante exceeded the size of present-day Ghana) and the centralization of power in the capital of Kumasi. Asante’s northward expansion in the second quarter of the 18
th century led to the annexation of the eastern part of Gonja and the neighboring state of Dagomba. This northern contact brought Islamic influences into Asante. The northern chiefdoms of the Asante confederation, especially Mampong, were among the first to be exposed to Muslim influence. Asante’s designation of the Muslim trading town of Salaga in eastern Gonja
as the entrepot for north-south trade and the main market for Asante kola nuts, in huge demand in the West African Muslim savannah and sahel lands as a stimulant, underpinned Salaga’s economic and urban growth. Salaga was the most prominent market in precolonial Ghana for kola and slaves. Situated in the woodland-savannah ecotone, Salaga was strategically situated, marking the southern boundary for the use of beasts of burden such as donkeys. South of Salaga one entered the forest region and goods were transported by head porterage using especially slave labor.