Languages of Ghana

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Languages of Ghana
Official English [1] [2]
Regional Government-sponsored languages: [3] Fante, Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi, Ewe, Dagaare, Dagbanli, Adangme, Ga, Gonja, Kasem, Nzema
Immigrant
Foreign French
Signed Ghanaian Sign Language
(American Sign Language)
Adamorobe Sign Language
Nanabin Sign Language
Lingua franca English
A government sign in English in Accra. Ghana Army Southern Command.JPG
A government sign in English in Accra.

Ghana is a multilingual country in which about eighty languages are spoken. [7] Of these, English, which was inherited from the colonial era, is the official language and lingua franca. [8] [9] Of the languages indigenous to Ghana, Akan is the most widely spoken in the south. [10] Dagbani, Dagare, Sisaala, Waale, and Gonja are among the most widely spoken in the northern part of the country.

Contents

Ghana has more than seventy ethnic groups, each with its own distinct language. [11] Languages that belong to the same ethnic group are usually mutually intelligible. The Dagbanli, Nanumba and Mamprusi languages of Northern Region, are almost the same and, are mutually intelligible with the Frafra and Waali languages of the Upper East and Upper West Regions of Ghana. [12] The Mole–Dagbani languages are spoken by more than 20% of the population.

Eleven languages have the status of government-sponsored languages: three Akan dialects (Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and Fante) and two Mole–Dagbani languages (Dagaare and Dagbanli). The others are Ewe, Dangme, Ga, Nzema, Gonja, and Kasem. [3]

In April 2019, the Ghanaian government declared its intention to make French one of Ghana's official languages due to the country being surrounded by Francophone countries (Burkina Faso to a lesser extent, the Ivory Coast and Togo) and the presence of a French speaking minority in the country. [13] [14]

Government-sponsored languages

The number of government-sponsored languages is either eleven or nine, depending on whether or not Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi, and Fante are considered a single language. [3] They are supported by the Bureau of Ghana Languages, which was established in 1951 and publishes materials in the languages; during the periods when Ghanaian languages were used in primary education, these were the languages which were used. All these languages belong to the Niger–Congo language family, though to several different branches.

Akan (Fante, Asante Twi and Akuapem Twi)

A map of Ghana's ethno-linguistic areas. Predominant tribe in the area - (Ghana) LOC 88692692.jpg
A map of Ghana's ethno-linguistic areas.

Akan, part of the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo family, is a dialect continuum, [15] but with regard to official status, only a few out of the many varieties of Akan are recognised: Fante, Asante Twi, Akuapem Twi. Taken as a whole, Akan is the most-widely spoken language in Ghana. [10]

Ewe

Ewe is a Gbe language, part of the Volta–Niger branch of the Niger–Congo family. The Ewe Language is spoken in Ghana, Togo and Benin with a trace of the language in West Nigeria. [16] Out of the many dialects of Ewe spoken in Ghana, the major ones are Anlo, Tongu, Vedome, Gbi, and Krepi.

Dagbani

Dagbani is one of the Gur languages. It is the most spoken language in Northern Ghana. The number of native speakers numbers more than three million, This number will reach six million if dialects such as Nanumba, Mamprusi and Kamara are added. It belongs to the larger Mole–Dagbani ethnic group found in Ghana and makes up about 18.5% of the population. [17] It is spoken by Dagombas in the Northern Region of Ghana.

Dangme

Dangme is one of the Ga–Dangme languages within the Kwa branch. It is spoken in Greater Accra, in south-east Ghana and Togo. [18] Dangme is a West African Kwa language spoken in Ghana, and it has been gaining popularity among Ghana residents.

Dagaare

Dagaare is another of the Gur languages. It is spoken in the Upper West Region of Ghana. It is also spoken in Burkina Faso. [19] Waali, spoken by the Wala people, and the Dagaare language are languages that can be understood by each other's speakers. [20]

Ga

Ga is the other Ga–Dangme language within the Kwa branch. Ga is spoken in south-eastern Ghana, in and around the capital Accra. It is a Niger-Congo language in the Kwa branch, spoken by around 600,000 people in Ghana. [21] [22] Six separate towns comprised the Ga-speaking peoples: Accra, Osu, Labadi, Teshi, Nungua, and Tema. Each town had a central stool of importance in Ga traditions. Accra, among these towns, rose to prominence and now serves as Ghana's capital.

Nzema

Nzema is one of the Bia languages, closely related to Akan. It is spoken by the Nzema people in the Western Region of Ghana. It is also spoken in the Ivory Coast. Nzema, also known as Appolo, is mainly spoken in Ghana's Jomoro district and Ivory Coast's Comoé district. In 2004, it had around 330,000 speakers. [23] [24] The Nzema language utilizes a Latin-based script and comprises a total of twenty-four alphabetic characters.

Kasem

Kasem is a Gurunsi language, in the Gur branch. It is spoken in the Upper Eastern Region of Ghana. It is also spoken in Burkina Faso. By 1998, Kasem had around 250,000 speakers, divided between Ghana (130,000) and Burkina Faso (120,000). It's alternatively known as Kasena, Kasim, Kassem, Kasɩm, or Kassena. [25] [26]

Gonja

Gonja is one of the Guang languages, part of the Tano languages within the Kwa branch along with Akan and Bia. It is spoken in the Northern Region of Ghana and Wa. "Gonja" comes from "Kada Goro-Jaa" in Hausa, signifying "land of Red Cola." Ghana has over 285,000 Gonja people. [27]

Languages spoken in Ghana by number of speakers

This chart reflects data provided by Ethnologue. [28]

RankLanguageSpeakers
1English9,800,002
2 Akan (Fante/Twi)9,100,000
3 Ghanaian Pidgin English 5,000,000
4 Ewe Dialects of Ɛve include Aŋlo, Tɔŋu, Vɛdomɛ,Gbi, Krepi, among others)3,820,000
5 Abron 1,170,000
6 Dagbani (including Mamprusi, and Nanumba dialects)6,160,000
7 Dangme 1,020,000
8 Dagaare 924,000
9 Konkomba 831,000
10 Ga 745,000
11Farefare638,000
12Kusaal535,000
13 Mampruli 414,000
14 Gonja 310,000
15 Sehwi 305,000
16 Nzema 299,000
17French273,795
18 Wasa 273,000
19 Sisaala, Tumulung 219,000
20 Sisaala, Western 219,000
21 Bimoba 176,000
22 Ahanta 175,000
23 Ntcham 169,000
24 Buli 168,000
25 Bisa 166,000
26 Kasem 149,000
27 Tem 134,000
28 Cherepon 132,000
29 Birifor, Southern 125,000
30 Anufo 91,300
31 Wali 84,800
32 Larteh 74,000
33 Siwu 71,900
34 Chumburung 69,000
35 Anyin 66,400
35 Nafaanra 61,000
36 Krache 58,000
37 Lelemi 48,900
38 Deg 42,900
39 Paasaal 36,000
40 Kabre, (language kabre) 35,642
41 Avatime 27,200
42 Kulango, Bondoukou 27,000
43 Sekpele 23,000
44 Delo 18,400
45 Jwira-Pepesa 18,000
46 Gua 17,600
47 Tampulma 16,000
48 Kulango, Bouna 15,500
49 Ligbi 15,000
50 Nawuri 14,000
51 Vagla 13,900
52 Tuwuli 11,400
53 Selee 11,300
54 Adele 11,000
55 Nkonya 11,000
56 Gikyode 10,400
57 Dwang 8,200
58 Akposo 7,500
59 Logba 7,500
60 Nkami 7,000
61 Hanga 6,800
62 Nyangbo 6,400
63 Chakali 6,000
64 Ghanaian Sign Language 6,000
65 Safaliba 5,000
66 Tafi 4,400
67 Fulfulde, Maasina 4,240
68 Adangbe/Dangbe 4,000
69 Konni 3,800
70 Adamorobe Sign Language 3,500
71 Chala 3,000
72 Kamara 3,000
73 Kantosi 2,300
74 Kusuntu 2,100
75 Nchumbulu 1,800
76 Kplang 1,600
77 Dompo 970
78 Animere 700
79 Hausa Unclear
80 Lama 1
81 Nawdm Unclear

Language classification

The language of Ghana belong to the following branches within the Niger–Congo language family:

Older classifications may instead group them as Kwa, Gur, and Mande.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Demographics of Ghana</span>

Demographic features of the population of Ghana include population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, religious affiliations, and other aspects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gur languages</span> Branch of the Niger–Congo languages

The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur or Mabia, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. They are spoken in the Sahelian and savanna regions of West Africa, namely: in most areas of Burkina Faso, and in south-central Mali, northeastern Ivory Coast, the northern halves of Ghana and Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger. A few Gur languages are spoken in Nigeria. Additionally, a single Gur language, Baatonum, is spoken in Benin and in the extreme northwest of Nigeria. Three other single Gur languages, the Tusya, Vyemo and Tiefo languages, are spoken in Burkina Faso. Another unclassified Gur language, Miyobe, is spoken in Benin and Togo. In addition, Kulango, Loma and Lorhon, are spoken in Ghana, Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso. Additionally, a few Mossi speakers are in Senegal, and speakers of the Dagaare language are also found in Cameroon. The Samu languages of Burkina Faso are Gur languages.

The Central Tano or Akan languages are languages of the Niger-Congo family spoken in Ghana and Ivory Coast by the Akan people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kwa languages</span> Proposed language family in Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Togo

The Kwa languages, often specified as New Kwa, are a proposed but as-yet-undemonstrated family of languages spoken in the south-eastern part of Ivory Coast, across southern Ghana, and in central Togo. The Kwa family belongs to the Niger-Congo phylum. The name was introduced in 1895 by Gottlob Krause and derives from the word for 'people' (Kwa) in many of these languages, as illustrated by Akan names. This branch consists of around 50 different languages spoken by about 25 million people. Some of the largest Kwa languages are Ewe, Akan and Baule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ga language</span> Kwa language spoken in Ghana

Ga is a Kwa language spoken in Ghana, in and around the capital Accra, by the Ga people. There are also some speakers in Togo, Benin and Western Nigeria. It has a phonemic distinction between three vowel lengths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asante dialect</span> Dialect of Akan in Ghana

Asante, also known as Ashanti, Ashante, or Asante Twi, is one of the principal dialects of the Akan language. It is one of the three literary dialects of Akan, the others being Akuapem and Fante. There are over 3.8 million speakers of the Asante dialect, mainly concentrated in Ghana and southeastern Cote D'Ivoire, and especially in and around the Ashanti Region of Ghana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culture of Ghana</span>

Ghana is a country of 33.48 million people and many native groups, such as:

The Dangme language, also Adangme, Dangbe or Adaŋgbi, is a Kwa language spoken in south-eastern Ghana by the Dangme people (Dangmeli). They are part of the larger Ga-Dangme ethnic group. Klogbi is a variant, spoken by the Kloli. Kropp Dakubu (1987) is the most thorough grammar of the language.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Akan language</span> Language of Akan lands in Ghana

Akan is the largest language of Ghana, and the principal native language of the Akan people, spoken over much of the southern half of Ghana. About 80% of Ghana's population speak Akan as a first or second language, and about 44% of Ghanaians are native speakers. Akan is also spoken across the border in parts of Côte d'Ivoire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Education, Winneba</span> Public university in Winneba, Ghana

The University of Education, Winneba (UEW) is a university in Winneba, Central Region of Ghana. It was established in 1992 by a government ordinance and with a relationship with the University of Cape Coast. Its main aim is to train teachers for the education system of Ghana. The University of Education, Winneba is charged with the responsibility of teacher education and producing professional educators to spearhead a new national vision of education aimed at redirecting Ghana's efforts along the path of rapid economic and social development. The University of Education, Winneba is expected to play a leading role in Ghana's drive to produce scholars whose knowledge would be fully responsive to the realities and exigencies of contemporary Ghana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adinkra symbols</span> Ghanaian symbols that represent concepts or aphorisms

Adinkra are symbols from Ghana that represent concepts or aphorisms. Adinkra are used extensively in fabrics, logos and pottery. They are incorporated into walls and other architectural features. Adinkra symbols appear on some traditional Akan goldweights. The symbols are also carved on stools for domestic and ritual use. Tourism has led to new departures in the use of symbols in items such as T-shirts and jewellery.

This is a list of rulers and office-holders of Ghana.

Articles related to Ghana include:

Bono, also known as Abron, Brong, and Bono Twi, is a major dialect within the Akan dialect continuum that is spoken by the Bono people. Bono is spoken by approximately 1.2 million people in Ghana, primarily in the Bono Region, Bono East Region, and by over 300,000 in eastern Côte d'Ivoire.

The Bureau of Ghana Languages is an agency of the government of Ghana that promotes Ghanaian languages, including publication of materials in them. It focuses on 11 languages: Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi, Ewe, Mfantse, Ga, Dangme, Nzema, Dagbani, Dagaare, Gonja and Kasem.

Oborɔnyi is the Akan word for foreigner, literally meaning "those who come from over the horizon." It is often colloquially translated into "white person."

Twi is the common name of the literary dialects of the Akan language of Asante and Akuapem, but excluding Fante. It is not a linguistic grouping, as Akuapem is closer to Fante than it is to Asante. Twi generally subsumes the following Akan dialects: Ahafo, Akuapem, Akyem, Asante, Asen, Dankyira and Kwawu, which have about 4.4 million speakers in southern and central Ghana.

Akuapem, also known as Akuapim, Akwapem Twi, and Akwapi, is one of the literary dialects of the Akan language, along with Asante and Fante, with which it is mutually intelligible. There are 626,000 speakers of Akuapem, mainly concentrated in Ghana and southeastern Cote D'Ivoire. It is the historical literary and prestige dialect of Akan, having been chosen as the basis of the Akan translation of the Bible.

Several braille alphabets are used in Ghana. For English, Unified English Braille has been adopted. Four other languages have been written in braille: Akan (Twi), Ga, Ewe, and Dagaare. All three alphabets are based on the basic braille letter values of basic Latin alphabet:

References

  1. "Language and Religion". Ghana Embassy. Archived from the original on 1 March 2017. Retrieved 8 January 2017. English is the official language of Ghana and is universally used in schools in addition to nine other local languages. The most widely spoken local languages are, Ga, Dagomba, Akan and Ewe.
  2. "Ghana – 2010 Population and Housing Census" (PDF). Government of Ghana. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  3. 1 2 3 "The Bureau Of Ghana Languages-BGL". National Commission on Culture. 2006. Archived from the original on 12 November 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  4. "Ghana Institute of Languages". gil.edu.gh. Ghana Institute of Languages. Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 "Immigration into Ghana Since 1990" (PDF). Regional Institute for Population Studies (RIPS), University of Ghana, Legon. 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  6. "Indian Community in Ghana". indiahc-ghana.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2014. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
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  9. Bernd Kortmann Walter de Gruyter, 2004 (2004). A handbook of varieties of English. 1. Phonology, Volume 2. Oxford University Press. ISBN   9783110175325 . Retrieved 11 November 2013.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. 1 2 "Introduction To The Verbal and Multi-Verbal system of Akan" (PDF). ling.hf.ntnu.no. 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
  11. Alhaji Ibrahim Abdulai; John M. Chernoff (1992). "Master Drummers of Dagbon, Volumes 1 and 2". Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  12. R.S.Rattray Journal of the Royal African Society Vol. 30, No. 118 (Jan., 1931), pp. 40-57 (1931). "The Tribes of the Ashanti Hinterland" (1932)". Journal of the Royal African Society. 30 (118). Oxford University Press: 40–57. JSTOR   716938.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  13. "Ghana's president wants to make French a formal language, but it's not a popular plan". 7 April 2019.
  14. "Ghana adopts French as its second official language". 21 March 2019.
  15. "The Online Encyclopaedia of Written Systems Languages". Omniglot. 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  16. "Verba Africana — Ewe background materials — The Ewe language". verbafricana.org. Retrieved 2019-05-18.
  17. Richard Asante & E.Gyimah-Boadi (2004). "Ethnic Structure, Inequality and Governance of the Public Sector in Ghana" (PDF). United Nations Research Institute For Social Development (UNRISD). Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  18. Ndetei, Chris (2019-09-23). "A look at the exciting facts of the Dangme language". Yen.com.gh - Ghana news. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  19. "Dagaare language and alphabet". omniglot.com. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  20. "Upper West Region". www.ghanaweb.com. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  21. "Ga language, alphabet and pronunciation". omniglot.com. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  22. "Ga | Ga People | West African Tribe, Language & Culture | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  23. Ndetei, Chris (2019-09-30). "Fascinating facts about the Nzema community and useful phrases". Yen.com.gh - Ghana news. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
  24. "Nzema language, alphabet and pronunciation". www.omniglot.com. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
  25. "Kasem to English dictionary ". Lughayangu. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
  26. "Kasem language and alphabet". omniglot.com. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
  27. Ndetei, Chris (2020-10-02). "Guan tribe: history, language, food, dance, festivals, facts". Yen.com.gh - Ghana news. Retrieved 2023-08-19.
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