Language as Culture in Ghana, Part 2

I was not surprised, of course, when we arrived in Accra, to see that almost all media was in English:

But this was the case in all the parts of Ghana I visited, including areas where people speak almost exclusively in local languages:

In fact, I think that the only place I ever saw words printed in a language other than English (aside from names) was in my Fante language workbook.

Almost everywhere, however, Ghanaians spoke to one another in indigenous languages, unless the speech was part of a conversation that included us visitors.  And I did meet at least one person in Accra, the mother of a student Bonnee and I befriended in Takoradi, who did not speak English.

While we were in Takoradi, Bonnee and I received lessons in Fante, the dominant local language, almost every day.

Here we are with our Fante teacher, Mama Albs.  Alberta is one of the assistant headmistresses at APGSS, and she has taught Fante and other Ghanaian languages to Peace Corps volunteers and others.  She's a talented, warm and patient teacher!

Bonnee and I both worked hard to improve our Fante and to use it to greet people and ask basic questions while we were at APGSS.  Students and others were almost always surprised to hear us attempting the language.  I could produce peals of laughter by saying "mema wo ace" (good morning) to folks I encountered on campus or in town.  But there was appreciation there, too, and no derision. From conversations I had about this, I learned that the surprise and appreciation was partly because they didn't expect Americans to put effort into learning and speaking the language.  

But I also noticed that most of the students at APGSS spoke English to one another.  I imagine that some of this comes from the fact that these students grew up in different parts of the country and speak different local languages, but they all at least know some Twi and/or Fante.

Of course, I asked some students about their use of English versus local languages.  During the meeting we had with the editors of the school magazine, one student said, "my local language is my identity."  But another admitted that she didn't know any Ghanaian languages.  She grew up in Accra in a home where English was spoken, so English was her first language.  Her parents are Ewe and Twi and she can understand some things in those languages, but not speak, read, or write them.  There seemed to be some embarrassment on her part as she told us this; and there was some laughter among the other girls.  Even in this generation who went to primary school under the English-only educational policy, this lack of Ghanaian language seems to be seen as unusual and even a bit shameful.