Language is an integral part of Ghanaian society. In fact, almost all Ghanaians are bilingual, speaking a mother tongue and English or another official language in the country. Language has shaped the destiny of nations. It has helped unify cultures and bind people together. Language can even be used as weapons to discriminate and subjugate those who speak it. So what are the languages spoken in Ghana?
For many centuries, Akan languages have been dominant in West Africa. The most common dialects include Twi, Dagbani (Dagaare), Konkomba, Mfantse, Nzema, and Asante Twi. Other major dialects include Ewe (Ewé), Hausa and Dagbani (Dagbanli), which are all Niger-Congo languages of the Kwa subgroup that share grammatical similarities with Twi.>>END>>
There are a variety of languages spoken in Ghana. The most common dialects include Twi, Dagbani (Dagaare), Konkomba, Mfantse, Nzema, and Asante Twi. Other major dialects include Ewe (Ewé), Hausa and Dagbani (Dagbanli), which are all Niger-Congo languages of the Kwa subgroup that share grammatical similarities with Twi.
In Ghana, language is an integral part of society. All Ghanaians are bilingual, speaking a mother tongue and either English or another official language in the country. Language has shaped the destiny of nations. It has helped unify cultures and bind people together. Language can even be used as weapons to discriminate and subjugate those who speak it.
Akan languages have been dominant in West Africa for many centuries and are still spoken today. The most common dialects include Twi, Dagbani (Dagaare), Konkomba, Mfantse, Nzema, and Asante Twi. Other major dialects include Ewe (Ewé), Hausa and Dagbani (Dagbanli), which are all Niger-Congo languages of the Kwa subgroup that share grammatical similarities with Twi.
There are also several minority languages spoken throughout Ghana including Ga-Dangme offshoot Gbeyaat ; Ga, Jola's various vernaculars; Sranan Tongo, a creole language based on Dutch that emerged from contact between enslaved Africans and Dutch colonists during the early years of European settlement; English; Arabic; Polish; Portuguese; German; French; Greek; Bulgarian: and other smaller languages such as Kru, Biafada, Adele or Mpongwe.>>END>>
It's possible to see the effects of language usage on the countries that are affected by it. In the case of Ghana, for example, people who speak Akan dialects are more prone to understanding each other than those who speak Hausa or Dagbani. This is simply a result of geography--the closer two languages are to one another geographically, the more likely they will be able to understand each other.
Ghana is a country in West Africa, and it has the distinction of being the first sub-Saharan African nation to gain independence. The country's population is made up of more than 20 ethnic groups that speak different languages. These include Twi, Dagbani (Dagbanli), Ewe (Ewé), Hausa and Dagbani (Dagaare).
There are three major languages spoken in Ghana: Twi, English and Asante Twi.
Twi is one of the Akan dialects that was brought to Ghana by the Akan people. It is spoken primarily in the Greater Accra region and Ashanti region as well as some parts of Eastern Ghana. Twi is known for its simple sentence construction and grammatical features.
English is an official language in Ghana, but it is not spoken by many native Ghanaians. In fact, only about 10% of adults speak English with any degree of fluency.
Asante Twi or Asante Kwa, which means "language of Asante" in English, was used by the Asante Kingdom because they felt that their language would be most powerful if it was used by a kingdom on top of an empire like other empires at the time did with their own languages.>>END>>
Language can be used as a tool of oppression, and thereby ceases to be merely a means of communication. In Ghanaian society, language is an integral part of who you are and where you come from. And for many centuries, Akan languages were dominant in West Africa. The most common dialects include Twi, Dagbani (Dagaare), Konkomba, Mfantse, Nzema, and Asante Twi. Other major dialects include Ewe (Ewé), Hausa and Dagbani (Dagbanli), all of which are Niger-Congo languages, with grammatical similarities to Twi.
In addition to the Akan languages mentioned above, Ashanti has also been historically important in Ghanaian culture. It contains elements from both the Akan and Kwa subgroups of Niger-Congo languages. Yet the Ashanti language is endangered because people are not speaking it enough at home or in public. Other minority languages spoken in Ghana are Ga (the predominant language in Accra), Dangme and Buem.
Language is a powerful tool, and changes in its usage can have drastic impacts on the societies that use it. As Ghana strives to create opportunities for its people, it must also be cognizant of the power of language and the way that its usage can potentially cause oppression. It is important to recognize that language is a potential instrument of oppression and that the effects of language usage on countries can be both positive and negative. Final Thoughts:
Language is a powerful tool, and changes in its usage can have drastic impacts on the societies that use it. As Ghana strives to create opportunities for its people, it must also be cognizant of the power of language and the way that its usage can potentially cause oppression. It is important to recognize that language is a potential instrument of oppression and that the effects of language usage on countries can be both positive and negative.
