During my Ghana tour in writing the book, KNOW GHANA BETTER , I had encounters with several different languages and I thought it wise to share with you all since it may be very necessary. But mind you, this article is copyright protected so please, do not extract this information for selfish gains without seeking permission from the author of the book KNOW GHANA BETTER and the administrator of these Youtube channels, Huniah-Yourhighness Tv and DISCOVER GUANS WITH HUNIAH . Now, the total list of languages could be debatable for the fact that there are dialects within languages and some dialects could be seperate languages on their own. Thus, in this writeup, I only present the raw facts as I have found them and it is up to the reader to make his/her own judgements. THE LIST OF ALL LANGUAGES SPOKEN IN GHANA Greater-Accra Region 1. Ga 2. Dangme (dialects: Klogbi (Krobo), Gbugblã (Prampram), Ada gbi) Cental Region 3. Fante (dialects: Gomoa, Agona, T'di Fante, ...
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NOUNS IN THE GA LANGUAGE (GBƐIWIEMƆI YƐ GA MLI )
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NOUNS IN THE GA LANGUAGE (GBƐIWIEMƆI YƐ GA MLI )
In Latin, "noun" simply means "a name." They refer to names of people, animals, places or things. They can be concrete or abstract. These things can be anything from living creatures and places to actions, qualities, states of existence, and even ideas. So, whether you're talking about the Independence Arc, the Bank of Ghana building or the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, then you're talking about nouns.
Think of nouns as language name tags—they label and identify stuff. In the Ga language, we have groupings of nouns. A noun is called Gbɛiwiemɔ in the Ga language. There are several types of them and we look at the types in the article below
Kwamaŋgbɛi (Common Nouns): These are everyday words that we use or things we see. They refer to general things, like “dog - gbei,” “city- maŋ” "spoon-awale," "okpɔlɔ- table" or “book - wolo.”
Kɔsuaŋgbɛi (Proper Nouns): These are more specific and refer to the names of people, countries, languages, places or even countries. eg. Gã, Ashaŋte, Nii, Naa, Kojo, Ajua, Kwashi, Tɛtɛ, Tɛte, Akra, Kumasi, La, Osu, Gaana, Ablotsi, Daŋme etc.
Gbɛiwiemɔ ni ataa he (Concrete Nouns): These are physical entities that occupy space and can be touched and felt and even interact. Picture a juicy apple (aplo), a cozy blanket, or a bumpy road(lɔle gbɛ).
Kɔɔyɔŋgbɛi/Gbɛisisa (Abstract Nouns): These are a bit more elusive. They refer to intangible stuff or how one feels. eg. incude “peace-toiŋjɔlɛ," “happiness-miishɛɛ,” "fear- gbeyeshemɔ" or “freedom-hejɔlɛ”
Gbɛiwiemɔ ni akaneɔ (Countable Nouns): These can be counted individually. For instance, you can have one cat (alɔŋte kome), two cats (alɔŋtei enyɔ) or a hundred cats (alɔŋtei oha).
Gbɛiwiemɔ ni akaneee (Uncountable Nouns): These don’t play well with numbers. They refer to things you can’t easily quantify, like “water -nu” “wisdom - nilee” or “music - lala”
Feemɔwiemɔ gbɛi (Verbal Nouns/Gerunds): These are like word chameleons—they’re formed from verbs but act like nouns. For example, “swimming -faawumɔ/ŋshɔwumɔ” (from the verb “to swim”) or “singing- lalalamɔ” (from “to sing”).
Mlitsogbɛi (Gender-Specific Nouns): Some nouns have gender baked into them. Like Nuu (man), yoo (woman), yoomo (old lady), wɔnuu (a priest), wɔyoo (a priestess), binuu (son), biyoo (daughter).
Gbɛikushao (Collective Nouns): These represent groups of things. Like weku - a family.
During my Ghana tour in writing the book, KNOW GHANA BETTER , I had encounters with several different languages and I thought it wise to share with you all since it may be very necessary. But mind you, this article is copyright protected so please, do not extract this information for selfish gains without seeking permission from the author of the book KNOW GHANA BETTER and the administrator of these Youtube channels, Huniah-Yourhighness Tv and DISCOVER GUANS WITH HUNIAH . Now, the total list of languages could be debatable for the fact that there are dialects within languages and some dialects could be seperate languages on their own. Thus, in this writeup, I only present the raw facts as I have found them and it is up to the reader to make his/her own judgements. THE LIST OF ALL LANGUAGES SPOKEN IN GHANA Greater-Accra Region 1. Ga 2. Dangme (dialects: Klogbi (Krobo), Gbugblã (Prampram), Ada gbi) Cental Region 3. Fante (dialects: Gomoa, Agona, T'di Fante, ...
ALIGNMENTS OF THE GA-DANGME DEITIES AS KPELE OR KLAMA Among the Ga and the Dangme people, they have numerous deites. They are either aligned as Kpele deities or Klama deities which are the aboriginal deities. The Kpele deities speak Ga whiles Klama deities speak the Dangme language. Let’s start with the people of Nungua and climb up to all GaDangme towns LIST OF GA AND DANGME DEITIES NUNGUA TYPE OF DEITY OTHER NAMES Nuumo Gborbu Kpele Nuumo Jorbu Nuumo Totorley Okuajiman Kpele Nuumo Tele Kpele Kpele drum Naa Obieley Kpele and Mey Naa Ashieley Kpele Tinkun Kpele Naa Ohimia Kpele Naa Busuafi Kpele Obosom Afi Naa Ayɛmuɛde Kpele ...
The Ga Language: The Heartbeat of Accra By Huniah Tetteh When you walk through the streets of Accra, you’ll hear the sounds of many tongues. But one language in particular carries the soul of the city and that is the Gã language. It’s more than just a language. It’s a living piece of history, a symbol of identity, and a rich cultural legacy passed down through generations. In this post, we explore the fascinating world of the Ga language — where it comes from, who speaks it, and why it still matters today. --- Ga is one of the major indigenous languages of Ghana, spoken mainly by the Ga people who live in and around Accra. It’s part of the Kwa branch of the Niger-Congo language family — one of the largest language families in Africa. While Ga is closely related to Dangme, the two are not mutually intelligible. Together, they form the Ga–Dangme group, a linguistic reflection of the Ga-Dangme people’s shared heritage. --- 🗺️ Where Is Ga Spoken? Ga is spoken primarily in: Jamestown Osu L...
INTRODUCTION TO THE GA-DANGME HISTORY ( stilll under writing by Huniah Tetteh. All rights reserved) GET THE TEMPORARY PDF HERE The Ga-Dangme people have inhabited the coast of Ghana for over eight (8) centuries. They speak the Ga and the Dangme languages respectively. Ga and Dangme are closely related languages which have diverged over time due to influences from neighbouring Guan, Akan and Ewe languages; not to forget the grand influence of English, Dutch and Portuguese on these two beautiful languages. Kpele is the main religion of the Ga-Dangme people. There is the annual celebration of Kpele which is called Kpelejoo in Ga and Kpele domi in Dangme and they mean the same thing. During Kpelejoo or Kpele domi, spirits are called upon to descend so as to celebrate the end of the year with mankind. This would definitely come as a shock to you so, we would now take our time to explain vividly, the concept of Kpele and its significance to the Ga-...
THE EFUTUS ( Article directly sourced from the book KNOW GHANA BETTER written by Huniah Tetteh ) The Efutu ancestors lived with the Ga people when the others had left for the mountains. With time, their dialect was fading away as they became bilingual Ga and Efutu speakers and most of them alternated for the Ga language. The Ga people were confused about the type of language they were speaking. It seemed to be a mixture of languages. Also they had mixed up with the Ga people hence the name “Efutu” which means “mixed-up” in the Ga language. The Efutu learnt fishing and after some years of living with the Ga-Dangmes, they decided to leave to a desolate land where they can salvage their language which had broken down into dialects. The only surviving speakers were few so they had to divide themselves into groups. They elected a land they had previously settled on during their migration as Shuoyis to Ayawaso. So they set off to the previous place where they had temporally settled when ...
Discovering the Sefwi Language: A Vibrant Voice of Western Ghana The Sefwi language also spelt Sehwi is one of Ghana’s fascinating and culturally rich languages spoken primarily in the Western-North Region in Ghana. It is the heart of communication, identity, and heritage for the Sefwi people, an Akan ethnic subgroup whose roots weave deep into the Guans of Ghana as well. Sefwi is part of the Central Tano branch of the Kwa languages. Guan and Akan languages together make up the Central Tano languages. Sefwi is a daughter language of the Old Anyin language with greater Twi influence since Sefwis are originally Twi speakers who were influenced overtime to speak an Anyin dialect. Brosa, a dialect of the Anyin language shares about 90% lexical similarities with Sefwi as compared to southern Anyin or Anyin proper. Sefwi is widely spoken in its areas together with the Twi language. The language thrives in marketplaces, homes, festivals, and social gatherings, preserving local identity ...
Guans are scattered all over Ghana even to sub-Saharan West Africa. They are not scattered in the sense that they are completely dispersed but then, their settlements is in an amazing pattern that is Western Ghana, Southern Ghana, Northern Ghana, Eastern Ghana. They were initially in clans but we cannot at the moment group them into clans again due to gross linguistic changes that have affected most Guan languages. They have assimilated lots of vocabularies from surrounding languages depending on where they are and this have changed their languages and even accents depending on their current settlement. We can group them into 4 language groups and they are : v The Ga-Akan related Guans (Southern Guans) v Akan-related Guans (Western Guans) v Ewe-Akan related Guans (Oti Guans) v Northern Guans Let us learn about the 4 groups. These groupings have a lot to do with their original clan systems. Ga-Akan related Guans : These Guans surround...
AWESOME! ba bi϶!
ReplyDeleteHi Ms. Tetteh, I am interested in what you do. I am a Ga language advocate. Will like to connect with you. Thanks
ReplyDeleteI'm on youtube and Tiktok as Huniah. You can please connect from there. This blog is an extension of my youtube channel not an independent one
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