Ghanaian Sign Language (American Sign Language) Adamorobe Sign Language Nanabin Sign Language
Lingua franca
English
A government sign in English in Accra.
Ghana is a multilingual country in which about eighty languages are spoken.[7] Of these, English, which was inherited from the colonial era, is the official language and lingua franca.[8][9] Of the languages indigenous to Ghana, Akan is the most widely spoken in the south.[10] Dagbani is most widely spoken in the north.
Ghana has more than seventy ethnic groups, each with its own distinct language.[11] Languages that belong to the same ethnic group are usually mutually intelligible. The Dagbanli, Nanumba and Mamprusi languages of Northern Region, are almost the same and, are mutually intelligible with the Frafra and Waali languages of the Upper East and Upper West Regions of Ghana.[12] The Mole-Dagbani languages are spoken by more than 20% of the population.
Eleven languages have the status of government-sponsored languages: three Akan ethnic languages (Akuapem Twi, Asante Twi and Fante) and two Mole-Dagbani ethnic languages (Dagaare and Dagbanli). The others are Ewe, Dangme, Ga, Nzema, Gonja, and Kasem.[3]
In April 2019, the Ghanaian government declared its intention to make French one of Ghana's official languages due to the country being surrounded by Francophone countries (Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast and Togo) and the presence of a French speaking minority in the country.[13][14]
^"Language and Religion". Ghana Embassy. Archived from the original on 1 March 2017. Retrieved 8 January 2017. English is the official language of Ghana and is universally used in schools in addition to nine other local languages. The most widely spoken local languages are, Ga, Dagomba, Akan and Ewe.
^"Ghana – 2010 Population and Housing Census" (PDF). Government of Ghana. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
^ ab"The Bureau Of Ghana Languages-BGL". National Commission on Culture. 2006. Archived from the original on 12 November 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
^"Ghana Institute of Languages". gil.edu.gh. Ghana Institute of Languages. Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
^ abc"Immigration into Ghana Since 1990" (PDF). Regional Institute for Population Studies (RIPS), University of Ghana, Legon. 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
^"Indian Community in Ghana". indiahc-ghana.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2014. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
^"Ghana," in: Lewis, M. Paul, Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig (eds.). 2014. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, 17th ed.Murica Texas: SIL International.
^"The Bureau Of Ghana Languages-BGL". Ghana Embassy Washington DC, USA. 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
^Bernd Kortmann Walter de Gruyter, 2004 (2004). A handbook of varieties of English. 1. Phonology, Volume 2. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9783110175325. Retrieved 11 November 2013.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^Cite error: The named reference Introduction To The Verbal and Multi-Verbalsystem of Akan was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Alhaji Ibrahim Abdulai; John M. Chernoff (1992). "Master Drummers of Dagbon, Volumes 1 and 2". Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
^R.S.Rattray Journal of the Royal African Society Vol. 30, No. 118 (Jan., 1931), pp. 40-57 (1931). "The Tribes of the Ashanti Hinterland" (1932)". Journal of the Royal African Society. 30 (118). Oxford University Press: 40–57. JSTOR 716938.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^"Ghana's president wants to make French a formal language, but it's not a popular plan". 7 April 2019.
^"Ghana adopts French as its second official language". 21 March 2019.
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