Languages ​​of Ghana

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The official language of Ghana is English , a language that is only mother tongue for a tiny minority of Ghanaians. The reason for choosing English as the official language is the extremely large number of different languages ​​and dialects in Ghana. North and South Ghana are linguistically separated because they belong to different language families, the Gur languages in the north and the Kwa languages in the south.

The number of languages ​​in Ghana

Information on the number of languages ​​in Ghana varies from 46 to more than 100, depending on the source.

There are mutliple reasons for this:

  1. For many languages ​​and dialects there are different views as to whether they should be classified as an independent language or as a dialect . For example, Ga , Dangme and Krobo are sometimes counted as independent languages, but sometimes also combined into one language "Ga-Adangme". In addition to linguistic criteria, political factors also play a role here: Ga and Dangme, for example, are recognized written languages ​​(“official literary languages”) in Ghana.
  2. Smallest languages ​​such as Animere , with fewer than 1000 speakers, are not counted.
  3. There is a difference in dealing with the major languages ​​of West Africa, of which a small number of speakers live in Ghana. For example, several million people all over West Africa speak Fulfulde , the language of the Fulbe (also called Fulani or Peul). Only a few thousand of them live in Ghana.
  4. The different names for a certain language are often a problem, as there are proper names, official names and Germanized terms. For example, the northern Ghanaian Frafra is also known as "Farefare", "Gurenne", "Gurune" or "Nankani".

Official literary languages

Nine languages ​​of Ghana are officially promoted and used in primary and secondary schools. Various printed matter appear in these languages:

Common languages ​​of Ghana

In addition to English as the official language, three African languages ​​are used as lingua franca:

  • In southern Ghana, the influence of Akan extends beyond the eight million native speakers, as several million people speak it as a second language.
  • Ewe is common in Eastern Ghana .
  • In Western Ghana, the Mòoré - Dagbani has the function of a lingua franca .
  • Among the Muslims and in northern and central Ghana, Hausa and Fulfulde are often used between the ethnic groups .

List by number of speakers

The following list is sorted in descending order according to the number of speakers of the languages ​​in Ghana.

language Number of speakers was standing Language group
Akan 8,300,000 2003 Kwa language
Ewe 2,250,500 2003 Kwa language
Abron 1,050,000 2003 Kwa language
Farefare 820,000 2003 Gur language
Dagbani 800,000 2004 Gur language
Dangme 1,000,000 2004 Kwa language
Dagaare 700,000 2003 Gur language
Ga 600,000 2003 Kwa language
Konkomba 500,000 2003 Gur language
Kusaal 420,000 2003 Gur language
Wasa 309,000 2003 Kwa language
Nzima 262,000 2004 Kwa language
Anyin 250,000 2003 Kwa language
Sehwi 250,000 2003 Kwa language
Gonja 240,000 2004 Kwa language
Mampruli 220,000 2004 Gur language
Hausa 202,000 2005 Chadian language
Awutu 180,000 2003 Kwa language
Bissa 165,900 2003 Mande language
Buli 150,000 2003 Gur language
Ahanta 142,000 2003 Kwa language
Wali 138,000 2003 Gur language
Kasem 130,000 2004 Gur language
Birifor (language) 125,000 2003 Gur language
Bimoba 120,000 2003 Gur language
Cherepon 111,000 2003 Kwa language
Sisaala, tumult 105,000 2003 Gur languages
Larteh 74,000 2003 Kwa language
Chumburung 69,000 2003 Kwa language
Anufo 66,000 2003 Kwa language
Nafaanra 61,000 2003 Gur language
Gua 60,200 2003 Kwa language
Crap 58,000 2004 Kwa language
Ntcham 57,000 2003 Gur languages
Tem 53,000 2003 Gur language
Lelemi 48,900 2003 Kwa language
Paasaal 36,000 2003 Gur language
Kabiyé 32,000 2005 Gur language
Sisaala, (West) 30,000 2003 Gur language
Nkonya 28,000 2004 Kwa language
Kulango, Bondoukou 27,000 2003 Gur language
Siwu 27,000 2003 Kwa language
Deg 26,400 2003 Gur language
Avatime 24,000 2003 Kwa language
Sekpele 23,400 2003 Kwa language
Jwira-Pepesa 18,000 2003 Kwa language
Tampulma 16,000 2003 Gur language
Kulango, Bouna 15,500 1991 Gur language
Ligbi 15,000 2003 Mande language
Nawuri 14,000 2003 Kwa language
Vagla 13,500 2003 Gur language
Tuwuli 11,400 2003 Kwa language
Selee 11,300 2003 Kwa language
Adele 11,000 2003 Kwa language
Delo 10,900 2003 Gur language
Gikyode 10,400 2003 Kwa language
Dwang 8,200 2003 Kwa language
Akposo 7,500 2003 Kwa language
Logba 7,500 2003 Kwa language
Fulfulde 7,300 2003
Hanga 6,800 2003 Gur language
Zarma 6,500 2003
Nyangbo 6,400 2003 Kwa language
Chakali (language) 6,000 2003 Gur language
Nawdm 5,400 2005 Gur language
Tafi 4,400 2003 Kwa language
Safaliba 4,000 2003 Gur language
Konni 3,800 2003 Gur language
Adamorobe sign language 3,400 2003 Sign language
Chala 3,000 2003 Gur language
Kamara 3,000 2003 Gur language
Kantosi 2,300 2003 Gur language
Adangbe 2,000 2003 Kwa language
Nchumbulu 1,800 2003 Kwa language
Complete 1,600 2003 Kwa language
lama a few hundred / thousand 1996 Gur language
Animere 700 2003 Kwa language
Dompo 60 to 70 1999 Kwa language
Ghanaian Sign Language unknown k. A. Sign language

See also

Web links

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  1. http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/tribes/languages.php ghanaweb