Adanse or Adansi is one of the earliest Akan states, located in the southern part of present-day Ashanti Region, Ghana. Widely regarded in oral tradition as a spiritual and ancestral homeland of many Akan polities, Adansi was an early center of gold production, regional trade, and clan-based governance. Traditionally considered the eldest among the five principal Akan states, it played a foundational role in the formation of later polities such as Denkyira, Akyem, Assin, and the Asante Empire.