THE GHANA-TOGO MOUNTAIN LANGUAGES SPOKEN IN GHANA

 The Ghana-Togo Mountain languages are small languages which are somewhat related to each other and they are spoken within the Volta and Oti Regions of Ghana. They have linguistic affinities with each other and some of them believe to be speaking a variant of Ewe or even believe that they are Ewes and such include the people of Logba (Akpanawo), Nyagbo (Batugbu), Tafi (Bagbo) and Avatime (Kedonee). These four language groups spoken in the Volta Region are related a lot to each other and they are the Volta-GTM languages also referred to by some linguists as the Na-GTM languages.

The Logba language is called Ikpana or Akpana by its speakers and the people of Logba are called Akpanawo. Logba is an exodem. An exodem simply means it is not the way the people would refer to themselves. The people of Logba occupy about eight small communities within the Volta Region namely Alakpeti, Tota, Klikpo, Adzakoe, Aya, Adziveme, Ogome and Wuinta.

Nyagbo and Tafi call their language “Gbɔ” so the Nyagbo people are called Batugbu and their language Tutrugbu whereas the people of Tafi speak the “Pegbɔ” language. The people of Avatime also call their language Siyase. Nyagbo, Tafi and Avatime speak closely related languages whereas Logba is distantly related. Oral history further indicates the people of Santrokofi lived with the Tafi-Nyagbo people before migrating to their present settlement. The Nyagbo-Tafi-Avatime people all trace their routes from areas within present day Central and Western Regions.

The Akposso, Bowire, Santrokofi (Sele or Sɛlɛ), Akpafu are inclined as Guans and strongly ascert that they are Guans. They are also members of the Guan Congress of Ghana but then the languages they speak are very different from the Guan languages which are originally from Larteh and Efutu land. They are found in the Oti Region of Ghana. This group of GTM languages are also called Oti-GTM languages. Some linguists also call the Oti-GTM languages as Ka-GTM languages.

The GTM languages are all related to each other however, Nyagbo and Tafi could almost be seen as the same language. Avatime is a bit different from Nyagbo and Tafi with Logba being very unique among the Volta-GTM languages. The people of Santrokofi or Sanko for short also speak the Sele language and they originally migrated from Tafi hence the linguistic affinity with Nyagbo and Tafi clearly exists. Sanko is also related to Akpafu-Lolobi, Bowire and Ikposso.

Gidere spoken by the Adeles is the only GTM language spoken far north of the Oti Region and it is surrounded by Guan languages to the North, East and West and Gur languages to the south thus Gidere is quite divergent from the original GTM substratum. Adeles are more inclined to Guan culture due to the influence of the Guans of Krachi, Atsode, Ntsumburun, Nawuri, Alijo, Anyanga and Gonja.

Furthermore, we shall separate the numerical comparisons for the two families of languages. Pegbo spoken by the people of Tafi have two set of numerical systems: the counting numbers and the moodic numbers. So then we would list out the numbers for the Volta-GTM languages.

“Moodic numbers” as used below for the Pegbor language refers to a way of counting in the Pegbor language that is very unique to Pegbor but then, the simplest way to clarify this system is to assume the “moodic” way of counting in this sense “single, double, triple, quadripple etc.”

 

PEGBO

 

COUNTING

MOODIC

TUTRUGBU

SIYA

IKPANA

Oli

Terekpo

Oli

Ɔlɛ

Ikpɛ

Ꜫpa

Tiaba

Ꜫpa

Ɔva

Inyɔ

Ꜫta

Tiata

Ꜫta

Ɔta

Ita

Ꜫlɛ

Tialɛ

Ꜫlɛ

One

Ina

Tieti

Tieti

Otramɛ

Otsu

Inu

Xolo

Tiexolo

Oxolomi

Oglo

Igolo

Gene

Tiegene

Ogenemi

Ogloele

Glaŋkpɛ

Tiasuɛ

Tiasuɛ

Osuɛmi

Ogɛtɔva

Mlamina

Tiʒita

Tiʒita

Tiʒita

Ogɛtɔle

Kɔkɔadu

Kɛfɔ

Kɛfɔ

Kɛfɔ

Liɔfo

Udu

 

  

IKPOSSO       

TUWULI

SIWU

SELE

GIDERE

Idibo

Fɔwã

Iwɛ

Owĩi

Ake

Ꜫfua

Fenvia

Inyɔ

Ɔnyɔ

Ꜫnyɔ

Ꜫla

Felalɛ

Itɛ

Otiɛ

Asie

Ꜫna

Fena

Ina

Ɔna

Ana

Ꜫtu

Felo

Iru

Ɔnũu

Ton

Ꜫwuru

Fevu

Ikuɔ

Okuɔ

Kuɔro

Ꜫwurude

Fevukɔnɔ

Ikojɛ

Okuɛsi

Kwaranke

Ꜫlɛ

Fɛlɛ

Frafana

Ɔnii

Niɛ

Ꜫlɛde

Fɛwɛle

Kaiwe

Ɔlãsi

Yɛrike

Ijo

Fewua

Yiweo

Lefosi

Fuo

















I am Huniah Tetteh, born 10th October 1995 and a lover of languages and ethnicity studies. I love animals and traveling and ready to do everything to push the study of languages to the world

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