Languages of Ghana - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Different sources give different figures for the number of languages of Ghana. This is because of different classifications of varieties as either language

Language

Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...

s or dialect

Dialect

The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...

s. Ethnologue

Ethnologue

Ethnologue: Languages of the World is a web and print publication of SIL International , a Christian linguistic service organization, which studies lesser-known languages, to provide the speakers with Bibles in their native language and support their efforts in language development.The Ethnologue...

lists a total of 79 languages.

As with many ex-colonies in Africa, the official language

Official language

An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...

of Ghana

Ghana

Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...

is the colonial language, English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

. Nine languages have the status of government-sponsored languages: Akan

Akan language

Akan, also known as Twi and Fante, is an Akan language that is the principal native language of Ghana, spoken over much of the southern half of that country, by about 52% of the population, and to a lesser extent across the border in eastern Côte d'Ivoire...

, Dagaare, Dagbani

Dagbani language

Dagbani is a Gur language spoken in Ghana. Its native speakers are primarily of the Dagomba people, but Dagbani is also widely known as a first language in northern Ghana.-Vowels:Dagbani has eleven phonemic vowels: six short and five long vowels:...

, Dangme

Adangme language

Adangme , is a Kwa language spoken in south-eastern Ghana by 800,000 people.Some sources list Adangbe as another name for the same language whereas lists it as a different language in the Kwa family, and it has a separate ISO 639-3 code of 'adq'.-Classification:Adangme is a Kwa language, part of...

, Ewe

Ewe language

Ewe is a Niger–Congo language spoken in Ghana, Togo and Benin by approximately six million people. Ewe is part of a cluster of related languages commonly called Gbe, spoken in southeastern Ghana, Togo, and parts of Benin. Other Gbe languages include Fon, Gen, Phla Phera, and Aja...

, Ga

Ga language

The Ga language is a Kwa language spoken in Ghana, in and around the capital Accra. It has a phonemic distinction between 3 vowel lengths.-Classification:Ga is a Kwa language, part of the Niger–Congo family...

, Gonja

Gonja language

The Gonja language is a Kwa language spoken by an estimated 230,000 people, almost all of whom are of the Gonja ethnic group of northern Ghana. Related to Guang languages in the south of Ghana, it is spoken by about a third of the population in the northern region...

, Kasem

Kasem language

Kasem is a Gur language spoken in the Upper Eastern Region of Ghana and in Burkina Faso.-References:**-External links:**...

, Nzema

Nzema language

Nzema , also known as Appolo, is a Central Tano language spoken by the Nzema people of southwestern Ghana and southeast Côte d'Ivoire. It shares 60% intelligibility with Jwira-Pepesa and is close to Baoule.-References:...

. However, two dialects of Akan, Twi and Fante

Fante language

Fante is one of the three formal languages of the Akan language. It is the major local language spoken in the Central and Western Regions of Ghana as well as in settlements in other regions from mid to southern Ghana. One of such communities is Fante New Town in Kumasi, in the Ashanti Region of...

, although not government-sponsored, are also widely-spoken in Ghana.

Government-sponsored languages

There are nine government-sponsored languages. They are supported by the Bureau of Ghana Languages

Bureau of Ghana Languages

The Bureau of Ghana Languages is an agency of the government of Ghana that focuses on Ghanaian languages, including publication of materials in them.It was founded in 1951, originally as the Vernacular Literature Bureau, and later given its current name...

, which was established in 1951 and publishes materials in them. During the periods when Ghanaian languages were used in primary education, these were the languages which were used.

See also: Regions of Ghana

Regions of Ghana

||Ghana is divided into ten regions :*Ashanti Region *Brong-Ahafo Region *Central Region *Eastern Region *Greater Accra Region *Northern Region *Upper East Region...

for a map of the regions.

Akan

Twi is one of the Akan languages

Akan languages

The Central Tano or Akan languages are languages of the Kwa language family spoken in Ghana and Ivory Coast by the Akan people*Akan language *Bia**North Bia***Anyin***Baoulé***Chakosi ***Sefwi **South Bia***Nzema...

, which are part of the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Kwa languages

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 Côte d'Ivoire, across southern Ghana, and in central Togo...

. It is the most widely spoken language in Ghana. The dialects, especially Twi

Twi

Asante, or Ashanti, is one of three literary dialects of the Akan language of southern Ghana, and the prestige dialect of that language. It is spoken in and around Kumasi, the capital of the former Ashanti Empire and current subnational Asante Kingdom within Ghana.Along with the Akuapem dialect,...

and Fante

Fante language

, are often given the status of separate languages.

Dagaare

Dagaare language

Dagaare is the maternal language of the Dagaaba people in Ghana and Burkina Faso. It has been described as a dialect continuum that also includes Waale and Birifor.Ethnologue divides Dagaare into three languages:...

, and Whale is one of the Oti–Volta languages within the Gur branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Gur languages

The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most...

. It is spoken in the Upper Western Region of Ghana. It is also spoken in Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated...

Dagbani

Dagbani language

is one of the Oti–Volta languages within the Gur branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Gur languages

. It is spoken in the Northern Region of Ghana.

Dangme

Adangme language

is one of the Ga–Dangme languages within the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Kwa languages

. It is spoken in Greater Accra, in south-east Ghana.

Ewe

Ewe language

is a Gbe language

Gbe languages

The Gbe languages form a cluster of about twenty related languages stretching across the area between eastern Ghana and western Nigeria. The total number of speakers of Gbe languages is between four and eight million. The most widely spoken Gbe language is Ewe , followed by Fon...

, part of the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Kwa languages

. It is spoken by approximately 2 million people in the Volta Region of south-east Ghana

Ghana

. It is also spoken in Togo

Togo

Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...

Ga

Ga language

is a Kwa language, part of the Niger–Congo family. It is very closely related to Adangme, and together they form the Ga–Dangme branch within Kwa. Ga is spoken in south-eastern Ghana, in and around the capital Accra.

Gonja

Gonja language

is one of the Potou–Tano languages, part of the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Kwa languages

. It is spoken in the Northern Region of Ghana and Wa.

Kasem

Kasem language

Kasem is a Gur language spoken in the Upper Eastern Region of Ghana and in Burkina Faso.-References:**-External links:**...

is a Gur branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Gur languages

spoken in the Upper Eastern Region of Ghana. It is also spoken in Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso

Nzema

Nzema language

is one of the Potou–Tano languages, part of the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo language family

Kwa languages

. It is spoken by the Nzema

Nzema

The Nzema are an Akan people numbering about 328,700 people of whom 262,000 live in southwestern Ghana and 66,700 live in the southeast of Côte d'Ivoire.In Ghana the Nzema area is divided into two electoral districts of Nzema East District and Nzema West which is also referred to as Jomoro District...

people in the Western Region of Ghana. It is also spoken in the Ivory Coast

Côte d'Ivoire

The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...

Language classification

The languages of Ghana belong to the following subgroups within the Niger–Congo language family

Niger–Congo languages

The Niger–Congo languages constitute one of the world's major language families, and Africa's largest in terms of geographical area, number of speakers, and number of distinct languages. They may constitute the world's largest language family in terms of distinct languages, although this question...

Mande languages
Mande languages
The Mande languages are spoken in several countries in West Africa by the Mandé people and include Mandinka, Soninke, Bambara, Bissa, Dioula, Kagoro, Bozo, Mende, Susu, Yacouba, Vai, and Ligbi...
Gur languages
Gur languages
The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most...

, a subdivision of the Altantic-Congo languages
Senufo languages
Senufo languages
The Senufo or Senufic languages comprise ca. 15 languages spoken by the Senufo in the north of Côte d'Ivoire, the south of Mali and the southwest of Burkina Faso. An isolated language, Nafaanra, is also spoken in the west of Ghana. The Senufo languages are generally considered a branch of the Gur...

(represented by Nafaanra
Nafaanra language
Nafaanra is a Senufo language spoken in northwest Ghana, along the border with Côte d'Ivoire, east of Bondouko. It is spoken by approximately 61,000 people. Its speakers call themselves Nafana; others call them Banda or Mfantera. Like other Senufo languages, Nafaanra is a tonal language...

; note that the Senufo languages were considered a branch of Gur in the past)
Kwa languages
Kwa languages
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 Côte d'Ivoire, across southern Ghana, and in central Togo...

, also a subdivision of Atlantic–Congo

External links

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