Once in Ghana,
if someone asks you Wo ho te sen? you answer: Me ho 3y3! (‘I’m fine!’). This is
Twi, the language spoken by the Akans. à en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akan_language. I’m now
studying Twi every Wednesday after work together with 9 other ex-pads and
interns. 52 % of Ghanaians speak Twi - making it the most spoken indigenous language in Ghana. The Akan ethnic group spreads over most
of the southern part of Ghana,
and also the Akyem people – who I am working with - is a part of the Akan ethnic
group.
79 indigenous languages
79 indigenous languages
Although
English is the language used for all governmental purposes, there are 79
different languages in Ghana,
many of them being as different as Greek is to English or even to Chinese, at
least according to the ‘experts'. Various languages belong to the same language group,
but between these language groups the differences can be quite large.
Some Ghanaians I have met claim to speak up to as many as 8 different
indigenous languages - typically acquired as they have moved around the country with their family, in search for jobs, through their occupation as e.g.
drivers, or a combination of these.
For a categorizing list of Ghanaian languages check out this link: http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/tribes/languages.php.
Mepaakiew, bokoo!
Often Ghanaians don’t speak English very well, so knowing a couple of words in a local language can be useful. To get back at the Ghanaians when they call ‘oburini’ (white person) a good way to reply is to say: Obibini (black person) showing that you understand what they're up to! By the way, if you want to dress your tongue to impress, when someone asks you Wo ho te sen?, you can also reply ‘Bokoo’… (you are cool, chilled, taking it easy).
Same thing if you want a taxi driver to slow down, you can say 'Mepaakiew, bokoo', meaning, 'Please, take it easy'. The Ghanaians are very respectful and not to say please to a stranger before asking for something would be considered as rude and as a reason for someone not to do what he was being asked for, although that actually happening would be quite unusual. As a Westerner you are often excused for your lack of awareness of local customs, but being polite and asking people how they are doing can gain you some extra points.
For a categorizing list of Ghanaian languages check out this link: http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/tribes/languages.php.
Mepaakiew, bokoo!
Often Ghanaians don’t speak English very well, so knowing a couple of words in a local language can be useful. To get back at the Ghanaians when they call ‘oburini’ (white person) a good way to reply is to say: Obibini (black person) showing that you understand what they're up to! By the way, if you want to dress your tongue to impress, when someone asks you Wo ho te sen?, you can also reply ‘Bokoo’… (you are cool, chilled, taking it easy).
Same thing if you want a taxi driver to slow down, you can say 'Mepaakiew, bokoo', meaning, 'Please, take it easy'. The Ghanaians are very respectful and not to say please to a stranger before asking for something would be considered as rude and as a reason for someone not to do what he was being asked for, although that actually happening would be quite unusual. As a Westerner you are often excused for your lack of awareness of local customs, but being polite and asking people how they are doing can gain you some extra points.
Hello ulrik,
SvarSletVery informative blog.
I wil be travelling to Ghana on jan 7th 2013, i wil be staying in Accra and travelling upto Takoradi on a business tour. I wil be searching for a place to stay there in accra after i reach. Can you suggest any particular region i should locate for a economic stay and how do i apply for mobile fone card ?