Developing a Twi (Asante) Dictionary from Akan Interlinear Glossed Texts
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A Study of Ghanaian Kindergarten Teachers' Use of Bilingual and Translanguaging Practices Joyce Esi Bronteng University of South Florida, [email protected]
University of South Florida Scholar Commons Graduate Theses and Dissertations Graduate School June 2018 A Study of Ghanaian Kindergarten Teachers' Use of Bilingual and Translanguaging Practices Joyce Esi Bronteng University of South Florida, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd Part of the Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons, and the Pre- Elementary, Early Childhood, Kindergarten Teacher Education Commons Scholar Commons Citation Bronteng, Joyce Esi, "A Study of Ghanaian Kindergarten Teachers' Use of Bilingual and Translanguaging Practices" (2018). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/7668 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. A Study of Ghanaian Kindergarten Teachers’ Use of Bilingual and Translanguaging Practices by Joyce Esi Bronteng A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Early Childhood Education Department of Teaching and Learning College of Education University of South Florida Major Professor: Ilene Berson, Ph.D. Michael Berson, Ph.D. Sophia Han, Ph.D. Lisa Lopez, Ph.D. Date of Approval: April 25, 2018 Keywords: Bilingual Education, Classroom Displays, Iconic Signs, Mother Tongue-Based Bilingual Medium of Instruction, Paralanguage, Symbolic Sign, Translanguaging Copyright © 2018, Joyce Esi Bronteng DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to the following: My late grandparents Papa Ekow Gyan and Maame Bɔlɔ Twema (a.k.a. -
Prosody and Intonation in Non-Bantu Niger-Congo Languages: an Annotated Bibliography
Electronic Journal of Africana Bibliography Volume 11 Prosody and Intonation in Non- Bantu Niger-Congo Languages: An Annotated Article 1 Bibliography 2009 Prosody and Intonation in Non-Bantu Niger-Congo Languages: An Annotated Bibliography Christopher R. Green Indiana University Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.uiowa.edu/ejab Part of the African History Commons, and the African Languages and Societies Commons Recommended Citation Green, Christopher R. (2009) "Prosody and Intonation in Non-Bantu Niger-Congo Languages: An Annotated Bibliography," Electronic Journal of Africana Bibliography: Vol. 11 , Article 1. https://doi.org/10.17077/1092-9576.1010 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Iowa Research Online. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Journal of Africana Bibliography by an authorized administrator of Iowa Research Online. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Volume 11 (2009) Prosody and Intonation in Non-Bantu Niger-Congo Languages: An Annotated Bibliography Christopher R. Green, Indiana University Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Introduction 2 Atlantic – Ijoid 4 Volta – Congo North 6 Kwa 15 Kru 19 Dogon 20 Benue – Congo Cross River 21 Defoid 23 Edoid 25 Igboid 27 Jukunoid 28 Mande 28 Reference Materials 33 Author Index 40 Prosody and Intonation in Non-Bantu Niger-Congo Languages Introduction Most linguists are well aware of the fact that data pertaining to languages spoken in Africa are often less readily available than information on languages spoken in Europe and some parts of Asia. This simple fact is one of the first and largest challenges facing Africanist linguists in their pursuit of preliminary data and references on which to base their research. -
Some Endangered Languages of Ghana
American Journal of Linguistics 2012, 1(2): 10-18 DOI: 10.5923/j.linguistics.20120102.01 Some Endangered Languages of Ghana Jonas N. Akpanglo-Narte y1,*, Rebecca A. Akpanglo-Narte y2 1Office of the Vice-President (Academic), Regent University College of Science & Technology, Accra, Ghana 2Department of Applied Linguistics, University of Education, Winneba, Ghana Abstract The phenomenon of language endangerment and, ultimately, language loss is considered in regard to indigenous Ghanaian languages. It is established that two languages, namely, Ghanaian English (GhE) and Akan, especially the Twi dialect, and to a small degree, Ewe, are slowly killing off the smaller Ghanaian languages. For instance, in 1970 almost all Winneba natives spoke Efutu (Ewutu) as their first language. By 2010, 40 years later, only approximately 50% of children born to the Winneba natives speak Efutu as a first language. About 30% of these children speak no Efutu at all. Interestingly, medium-sized languages such as Ga, Dangme and Nzema are also slowly losing grounds to the three languages cited. Meanwhile there are some dozen Ghanaian languages that have less than 1000 estimated speakers each but which have held their own for a century. It is concluded that the closer a language community is to the major urban centers, the more likely it is to be endangered. It is further concluded that the language policy of the Ghana Government is contributing to the loss of Ghanaian languages. Ke ywo rds Endangered, Languages, Language Loss, Ghana, Ghanaian, Ga, Dangme, GaDangme the world’s top 10, namely, Standard Chinese, English, 1. Introduction Spanish, Bengali, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, Arabic, Japanese, and German. -
THE LINGUISTIC SITUATION in GHANA Yvonne Agbetsoamedo University of Ghana, Legon [email protected]\[email protected]
THE LINGUISTIC SITUATION IN GHANA Yvonne Agbetsoamedo University of Ghana, Legon [email protected]\[email protected] Language distribution Groups Region(s) Language(s) Akan Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Agona, Akuapem Twi, Akyem, Eastern and Central Asante Twi, Brong, Fante, Kwahu and Wasa regions Mabia Northern Region, Upper Dagbane, Dagaare , Gurenne , Kusaal, East, Upper West Region Mampruli, Buli , Waale, Talni , Birifor), Nanuni, Nabit , Konni, and Hanga-Kamara Gbe Volta region Ewe (dominant), Fon, Aja and Mina Ga- Adangme Greater Accra and Eastern Ga and Dangbe (Ada, Shai and Krobo) regions Language distribution Groups Region(s) Language(s) Gurma North-eastern border with Konkomba, Moba and Bassari Togo Guang Distributed around areas in the Gonja, Gichode, Nchumburu, Krachi, Northern, Brong-Ahafo, Volta, Nawuri, Central and Eastern regions Nkonya, Cherepong, Awutu and Effutu Nzema Northern Region bordering Nzema, Sehwi, Anyi (Aowin), Ahanta and Togo while the rest are in the Anufo (Chakosi) Western region Grusi Upper-East, Upper-West and Kasem, Isaaleng, Chakali, Tampulma, Northern Vagla and Mo Language distribution Groups Region(s) Language(s) Buem northern part of the Volta Adele, Lelemi, Bowiri, Sekpele, Siwu, region, concentrating around Selee, Logba and Avatime the town of Jasikan Nafaanra the western end of the Brong- Nkuraeng, Nafaanra and Ntrubo-Chala Ahafo region, bordering Cote d'Ivoire. Other African Northern Nigeria and Niger other West African languages spoken Languages and Zongo areas in Ghana in Ghana such as the Chadic language, Hausa, and some Mande languages (Ligbi and Bisa) The Ghanaian Educational System Kindergarten Primary school Junior High School Senior High School University (Undergraduate) Language policy in education Bilingual education in Ghana commenced with the inception of formal education in Ghana which began with the castle schools and was later continued by the Christian missionaries. -
Iconicity in the Adamorobe Sign Language and the Akuapem Twi (Ideophones)
We speak with our hands and voices: Iconicity in the Adamorobe Sign Language and the Akuapem Twi (ideophones) Mary Edward Thesis for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Linguistics Department of Linguistic, Literary and Aesthetic Studies University of Bergen, Norway Spring Semester, 2015 UNIVERSITETET I BERGEN 0 Universitetet i Bergen Institutt for lingvistiske, litterære og estetiske studier LING350 Masteroppgave i lingvistikk Vårsemester 2015 We speak with our hands and voices: Iconicity in the Adamorobe Sign Language and the Akuapem Twi (ideophones) Mary Edward i Abstract This research drew on the linguistic concept of iconicity and with a period of three months, five deaf signers of the Adamorobe community and some unspecified Akuapem Twi (Akan) speakers were studied and interviewed. The Adamorobe Sign Language examples categorised for retrieval are size and shape, time expression, verbal directionality and emotive and cognitive function. The ideophones of Akuapem Twi examples given in this thesis, based on the implicational hierarchy are sound, touch, movement, smell, vision and size and shape. This thesis showed out that iconicity is highly exhibited in the Adamorobe Sign Language and the ideophones of Akuapem Twi. There are levels of iconicity demonstrated in each. The research used an iconic scale of 1-5 to check the levels of iconicity; 5-4 representing the highest iconicity and 1 representing the lowest iconicity. This scale was personally developed to aid in categorising the levels of iconicity and it was identified that some of the iconic element are higher in iconicity while others are low. The AdaSL and the ideophones of Akuapem Twi have Highly Iconic Structures that have strong iconic resemblance of the form. -
Shadow Colony: Refugees and the Pursuit of the Liberian
© COPYRIGHT by Micah M. Trapp 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED SHADOW COLONY: REFUGEES AND THE PURSUIT OF THE LIBERIAN- AMERICAN DREAM BY Micah M. Trapp ABSTRACT This dissertation is about the people living at the Buduburam Liberian refugee camp in Ghana and how they navigate their position within a social hierarchy that is negotiated on a global terrain. The lives of refugees living in Ghana are constituted through vast and complex social relations that span across the camp, Ghana, West Africa and nations further afield such as the United States, Canada and Australia. The conditions under which these relations have developed and continue to unfold are mediated by structural forces of nation-state policies, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the international governing body for refugees, and the global political economy. Situated within the broader politics of protracted refugee situations and the question of why people stay in long-term camps, this research is a case study of one refugee camp and how its people access resources, build livelihoods and struggle with power. In particular, this dissertation uses concepts of the Liberian-American dream and the shadow colony to explore the historic and contemporary terms and circumstances ii through which Liberian refugees experience and evaluate migratory prospects and restrictions. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The production of this dissertation has been an outcome of many places and people. In Washington, DC my committee members, Dolores Koenig, Geoffry Burkhart, and David Vine have provided patient support and provocative feedback throughout the entire process. Thank you for asking the right questions and reading so many pages. -
Emmanuel Nicholas Abakah. Hypotheses on the Diachronic
1 Hypotheses on the Diachronic Development of the Akan Language Group Emmanuel Nicholas Abakah, Department of Akan-Nzema, University of Education, Winneba [email protected] Cell: +233 244 732 172 Abstract Historical linguists have already established the constituent varieties of the Akan language group as well as their relationships with other languages. What remains to be done is to reconstruct the Proto- Akan forms and this is what this paper sets out to accomplish. One remarkable observation about language is that languages change through time. This is not to obscure the fact that it is at least conceivable that language could remain unchanged over time, as is the case with some other human institutions e.g. various taboos in some cultures or the value of smile as a nonverbal signal. Be that as it may, the mutually comprehensible varieties of the codes that constitute the Akan language group have evidently undergone some changes over the course of time. However, they lack adequate written material that can take us far back into the history of the Akan language to enable any diachronic or historical linguist to determine hypotheses on their development. Besides, if empirical data from the sister Kwa languages or from the other daughters of the Niger-Congo parent language were readily available, then the reconstruction of the Proto-Akan forms would be quite straightforward. But, unfortunately, these are also hard to come by, at least, for the moment. Nevertheless, to reconstruct a *proto-language, historical linguists have set up a number of methods, which include the comparative method, internal reconstruction, language universals and linguistic typology among others. -
The Teaching and Learning of the English Language in Ghana: Problems and Implications
Imperial Journal of Interdisciplinary Research (IJIR) Vol-2, Issue-5, 2016 ISSN: 2454-1362, http://www.onlinejournal.in The Teaching and Learning of the English Language in Ghana: Problems and Implications Asangba Reginald Taluah Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, University of Education, Winneba, College of Agriculture Education P. O. Box 40, Ashanti Mampong Abstract : The teaching and learning of the English has grown to serve as the national and official language in Ghana and Anglophone countries in language of the country. The assertion that Ghana has Africa for that matter has been a subject of a wide variety of languages and dialects for that unflinching debate in quite recent times. Many matter is no news. Throughout the African continent, opinions point to the assertion that the teaching and many languages abound; thus crediting Africa as the learning of the English language is centered on continent with the most languages in the world reading comprehension, summary, grammar, spelling [Naden, 1998]. Adika [2012] summarizes the growth and writing skills and other such related areas to the of the English language from its early stages in the disregard of oral communication skills. Many 16th century to the present time and examines the researchers have found the neglect of oral debates that follow in relation to its use in the communication skills in the school curriculum as the educational sectors. major problem in the leaning of the English language. A survey of trends in the teaching and In the quite recent past, many debates have learning of the English language however reveals arisen on the need for African countries to adopt an that the contention is much on the teaching of the indigenous language as their official as well as their English language as compared to its learning as national language. -
Ghana and Accra: a Multilingual Setting
PDF hosted at the Radboud Repository of the Radboud University Nijmegen The following full text is a publisher's version. For additional information about this publication click this link. http://hdl.handle.net/2066/190131 Please be advised that this information was generated on 2021-09-26 and may be subject to change. LANGUAGE CONTACT AND CHANGE IN LINGUISTICALLY HETEROGENEOUS URBAN COMMUNITIES THE CASE OF AKAN IN ACCRA Published by LOT phone: +31 30 253 6111 Trans 10 3512 JK Utrecht e-mail: [email protected] The Netherlands http://www.lo tschool.nl Cover illustration by NOAHBS ART GALLERY ISBN: 978-94-6093-278-6 NUR 616 Copyright © 2018: Solace Ago Yankson. All rights reserved. LANGUAGE CONTACT AND CHANGE IN LINGUISTICALLY HETEROGENEOUS URBAN COMMUNITIES The case of Akan in Accra Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen op gezag van de rector magnificus prof. dr. J.H.J.M. van Krieken, volgens besluit van het college van decanen in het openbaar te verdedigen op maandag 26 maart 2018 om 10.30 uur precies door Solace Ago Yankson geboren op 2 april 1976 te Agona Swedru, Ghana Promotor: Prof. dr. P.C. Muysken Copromotor: Dr. M.C. van den Berg (Universiteit Utrecht) Manuscriptcommissie: Prof. dr. R.W.N.M. van Hout Dr. F.K. Ameka (Universiteit Leiden) Prof. dr. P.E. Kerswill (York University, Verenigd Koninkrijk) This research was supported by the Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP/NUFFIC) under project number 23000276 LANGUAGE CONTACT AND CHANGE IN LINGUISTICALLY HETEROGENEOUS URBAN COMMUNITIES The case of Akan in Accra Doctoral Thesis to obtain the degree of doctor from Radboud University Nijmegen on the authority of the Rector Magnificus prof. -
On Language and Development in Africa: the Case of Ghana* ADAMS B
Nordic Journal of African Studies 5(2): 31-51 (1996) On Language and Development in Africa: The Case of Ghana* ADAMS B. BODOMO Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway ABSTRACT In their search for solutions to the development problems of Africa, students of African development have often ignored linguistic and other socio-cultural resources (Prah 1993). When linguistic issues are addressed at all, the fact that there is a multiplicity of languages in African countries is often seen as a hindrance to the development of the continent. This paper focuses on the relationship between language and development and offers a specific proposal for addressing issues of language policy and planning in Africa. Taking the language situation in Ghana as a case study, a model of development communication and education termed localized trilingualism is proposed; a model, it is believed, will enable Africa to harness its multilingual resources for accelerated and sustainable socio-cultural, economic and technological development in the 21st century. INTRODUCTION The theme of this paper is better highlighted by the story of some young agricultural extension officers and their experiences on one of their first field trips. These young African experts graduated from one of the universities in Africa and were ready to impart new farming technologies to rural farmers in various areas of their country. On the very first day of their jobs they came to terms with one issue which had apparently been neglected in the course of their training: language, that most important tool of communication. In spite of all the academic theorizing about sharing new technologies with the indigenous people, apparently nobody ever thought that these scholars were going to start working with people, the majority of whom did not communicate in their language of education, in the language in which all the wonderful theories of agricultural extension were propounded. -
Braj B. Kachru (Ed.) the Other• Tongue: English Across Cultures, Pergamon, 1983
https://doi.org/10.25159/0256-5986/5336 It is odd that the author, who can be so witty, can also be so humourless. To me, and probably to many other simple souls on my intellectual level, 'granny-power' as a headline term for militant old ladies is harmless and mildly amusing. But not to Mr Spiegl. Perhaps it is the Teuton in him. JAMES McCLURG Braj B. Kachru (ed.) The Other• Tongue: English across Cultures, Pergamon, 1983. 358pp. Paperback. In his Introduction, the editor of this collection of essays claims that 'this is the first attempt to integrate and address provocative issues relevant to a deeper understanding of the forms and functions of English.' The statement is questionable. None theless, the book is a useful reminder of the language problems we have been living with in South Africa since the 19th century. Much of the terminology in these essays is heavily linguistic. For instance, Jack C. Richards surveys the code-switch of indigenization in the lect shifting of English in Singapore English. Nativization results in a continuum of verbal mechanisms that can be employed for the same communicative/functional effect among Singaporeans. A morpheme addition sees the introduction of a final sentence-particle la, which probably is of Hokkien origin, into constructs such as the following: That depend on you la, if you want to take off one day, or your office give you, that up to you la. (p. 163) Peter Strevens discusses lectal choice, where such choice is made between acrolect, mesolect, and basilect, as resulting in a global fiction of English and pleads for a unitary fiction of the idolect in order to isolate INTER and INTRA types of IFE usage in a more localized form. -
Jet the Translation of Kristos As Kristo in the Dangme Mother Tongue
THE TRANSLATION OF KRISTOS AS KRISTO IN THE DANGME MOTHER TONGUE TRANSLATION OF THE NEW TESTAMENT VISITED Kuwornu-Adjaottor Jonathan E. T Abstract The writer contends that Greek word Kristos should be translated and spelt Klisto in the Dangme New Testament because the Dangme orthography has no “r;” the nearest in sound is “l.” Comparing the way New Testament is generally taught with the methodology used at three institutions in Ghana, and the results the usage of such a methodology, it is being recommended that New Testament Greek in Ghana/Africa should be taught with the Greek New Testament and the mother-tongue translations of the New Testament. This will allay the fears of students who get scared at the start of the study of New Testament Greek, and motivate them to get interest in the discipline from the unset. Further, it will help students to apply what they learn to their study of the New Testament as a whole. Key words: Kristos, Klristo, Klisto, Dangme orthography, Dangme mother-tongue translation of the New Testament. Introduction The word Christ appears in English and most European languages. It is derived from the Greek Kristos, transcribed in Latin as Christus in the New Testament to describe Jesus. Christ is now often used as a name, one part of the name “Jesus,” but is actually a title, the Messiah. Its usage “Christ Jesus” emphasises its nature as a title (Doniger, 1999: 212; Pannenberg, 1977: 30-31). In the Septuagint (LXX) version of the Hebrew Bible, the word Kristos is used to translate the Hebrew mashiach, Messiah, meaning “anointed” (Zanzig, 1999: 314; Etynonline, 2013).