Ghanaian Pidgin English

Pidgin language

Ghanaian Pidgin English

kru brofo (Akan)
kulu blofo (Ga)
Native to| Ghana

Native speakers

| 5 million (2011)[1]
(not clear if this number includes L2 speakers)

Language family

English Creole

* Atlantic
* West African Pidgin English
* Ghanaian Pidgin English

Language codes
ISO 639-3| `gpe`
Glottolog| `ghan1244`
Linguasphere| `52-ABB-be`
This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.

This article is about an English-based creole. For standard English spoken in Ghana, see Ghanaian English.

Faisal Ali speaking in Ghanaian Pidgin about the language's Wikipedia project

Ghanaian Pidgin English (GhaPE)[2] is a Ghanaian English-lexifier pidgin also known as Pidgin, Broken English, and Kru English (kroo brofo in Akan). GhaPE is a regional variety of West African Pidgin English[3] spoken in Ghana, predominantly in the southern capital, Accra, and surrounding towns.[4] It is confined to a smaller section of society than other West African creoles, and is more stigmatized,[5] perhaps due to the importance of Twi, an Akan dialect,[6] often spoken as lingua franca.[7] Other languages spoken as lingua franca in Ghana are Standard Ghanaian English (SGE) and Akan.[8] GhaPE cannot be considered a creole as it has no L1 speakers.[9][10]

GhaPE can be divided into two varieties, referred to as "uneducated" or "non-institutionalized" pidgin and "educated" or "institutionalized" pidgin. The former terms are associated with uneducated or illiterate people and the latter are acquired and used in institutions such as universities[11][12] and are influenced by Standard Ghanaian English.[6][13]

GhaPE, like other varieties of West African Pidgin English, is also influenced locally by the vocabulary of the indigenous languages spoken around where it developed. GhaPE's substrate languages such as Akan influenced use of the spoken pidgin in Ghana.[6][13][14] Other influencers of GhaPE include Ga, Ewe, and Nzema.[6] While women understand GhaPE, they are less likely to use it in public or professional settings.[13] Mixed-gender groups more often converse in SGE or another language.[15] Adults and children have traditionally not spoken GhaPE.[13]

In some cases, educators have unsuccessfully attempted to ban the use of pidgin.[15] Although other languages of Ghana are available to them, students, particularly males, use GhaPE as a means of expressing solidarity, camaraderie and youthful rebellion.[6][7] Today, this form of Pidgin can be heard in a variety of informal contexts, although it still carries a certain stigma.[16] Specifically, GhaPE still carries stigma in academia which may explain why "few structural or sociolinguistic descriptions of the variety have been published".[12] Contemporary GhaPE is spoken by 20% of the population with 5 million speakers.[17] In general, pidgins are spoken in a wide range of situations and occasions including: "educational institutions, work places, airports, seaports, drinking places, markets, on the radio, popular songs, and on political platforms".[6]

GhPE, like other varieties of West African Pidgin English is influenced locally by the vocabulary of the indigenous languages spoken around where it developed, in this case, as around the Greater Accra Region, largely Ga. When spoken, it can be difficult for Nigerian pidgin speakers to understand Ghanaian speakers – for instance, the words "biz" (which stands for "ask"), "kai" (which means "remember") and "gbeketii", meaning "in the evening", in the Standard Ghanaian English.[citation needed]

Also, young educated men who were raised outside Accra and Tema very often do not know it until they come into contact with others who do at boarding-school in secondary school or at university.[citation needed] But that might be changing, as Accra-born students go to cities such as Ghana's second city Kumasi to study at university and so could help gain the language new diverse speakers.[citation needed]

Over the years, some young Ghanaian writers have taken to writing literary pieces such as short stories in GhPE as an act of protest.[18] GhPE has also seen expression in songs and movies and in advertisements.

## History

[edit]

The first European contact on the Gold Coast in West Africa was by Portuguese settlers in 1471 (15th century).[19][20][21] A Portuguese pidgin was used in parts of Africa throughout the 16th and 17th centuries.[22] This pidgin first developed when native speakers of West African languages were taken to Portugal in order to learn Portuguese for translating purposes during voyages.[20] It is speculated that the Portuguese settlement on the Gold Coast may have been reason for the pidgin's continuation in West Africa.[20] This Portuguese pidgin was used for 300 years along the Gold Coast "but probably never (developed) far beyond the jargon stage".[19]

Nearly two-hundred years later the following their independence the Dutch "took over all of Portugal's possessions in West Africa by 1642" in the 17th century, however "few linguistic remnants" remained in West African Languages, dialects, or varieties.[20] This could be because the Dutch did not settle amongst the West Africans they traded with.[20]

The British colonized the Gold Coast of West Africa (now Ghana) in the 19th and 20th centuries from 1844 to 1957.[23] The British had greater linguistic impact in West Africa as they were in greater contact with the indigenous people. GhaPE developed as masters required communication with their workers and was initially spoken by police corporals, watchmen, labourers, and domestic staff who were trying to keep pace with fast-paced English speakers.[20]

Northern Ghanaians were some of the first to become pidgin speakers as they were late in accessing formal education and were employed by masters.[20] "Migration of West Africans to and through Ghana in search of work"[24] have impacted GhaPE development greatly in the last century. Migrant workers came to Ghana in the 1920s, and during a Nigerian oil boom that brought Ghanaian workers to Nigeria.[20] Usage of GhaPE peaked in the 1980s as foreigners, including Ghanaians, were expelled from Nigeria.[20] Nigerian settler influence has played a major role in the development and use of the language.[20]

## Geographic distribution

[edit]

### Official status

[edit]

This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (April 2025)

|

### Dialects and varieties

[edit]

GhaPE is a variety of West African Pidgin English, signifying relationship with other regional pidgin varieties such as Nigerian Pidgin English.[25] Though some word formations are regional in GhaPE, words are also sometimes borrowed from other regional varieties. GhaPE most commonly borrows "abi", "dey", and "ein" from Nigerian but uses its own word, "commot" frequently as well.[citation needed] Because of Nollywood influence, it is fairly common for Ghanaians to understand Nigerian Pidgin. Furthermore, unlike Nigerian pidgin, the use of Ghanaian pidgin is gendered.[citation needed]

Student Pidgin originated in prestigious Ghanaian all-male secondary schools in the 1960s–1970s,[26] and there has been an ever-increasing number of female students now also using SP.

A particularly basic variety used by illiterate speakers is sometimes called "'Minimal Pidgin', (which was) sometimes used between Europeans and servants".[27]

## Phonology

[edit]

Phonology reflects the L1 of the speaker, in the case of GhaPE this includes Ghanaian languages from the Kwa language group.[28]

For example, L1 speakers of Akan or Hausa replace /v/ with /b/ or /f/. Therefore, "seven" would be pronounced /sɛbɛn/.[29]

## Grammar

[edit]

### Morphology

[edit]

GhaPE has no standardized orthography, research into morphology, syntax and phonology is limited.[30]

#### Derivation

[edit]

Morphological processes of reduplication can derivate words in GhaPE. This process "affects verbs, nouns, attributive adjectives, time and manner adverbials, adverbs, and numerals".[31] Reduplication can also show inflection by showing plurality of action amongst verbs.[31]

#### Inflection

[edit]

GhaPE nouns can also show plurality similar to substrate Ghanaian languages by adding the suffix -s.[31]

#### Articles

[edit]

* Definite article: dɛ[31]
* Indefinite article: sɔm[31]

Sometimes with singular nouns, the GhaPE indefinite article sɔm varies with the SGE "a" (/ɛ/), or is replaced with the Nigerian Pidgin English wan.[31]

### Syntax

[edit]

#### Sentence Structure

[edit]

The following example shows the declarative sentence structure SV(O).[32]

sabi

know

buk.

book

A sabi buk.

I know book

"I am literate."

## Lexis

[edit]

Amoako (2011) finds that most of the GhaPE lexis and some of its syntax comes from English,[30] however it has likely been re-lexified by the more current Ghanaian English.[33]

### Examples

[edit]

* "biz" (GhaPE) "ask"
* "kai" (GhaPE) "remember"
* "gbeketii" (GhaPE) "in the evening"[citation needed]

## Writing system

[edit]

GhaPE is primarily spoken and, like many pidgins, is rarely written and has no standardized orthography.[30]

## See also

[edit]

* Coz Ov Moni \- a musical film entirely in Ghanaian Pidgin English

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Ghanaian Pidgin English at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
2. ^ Huber (1999), p. 2.
3. ^ McArthur, Tom (23 April 1998). The English Languages (1 ed.). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9780511621048.008. ISBN 978-0-521-48130-4.
4. ^ Huber (1999), p. 3.
5. ^ Huber (1999), p. 254.
6. ^ a b c d e f Amoako, Joe K.Y.B. (1992). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: In Search of Synchronic, Diachronic, and Sociolinguistic Evidence" (Ph.D. Dissertation). University of Florida at Gainesville.
7. ^ a b Dako, Kari (24 February 2004). "Student Pidgin (SP): the Language of the Educated Male Elite". Research Review of the Institute of African Studies. 18 (2): 53–62\. doi:10.4314/rrias.v18i2.22862. ISSN 0855-4412. S2CID 146536980.
8. ^ Yakpo, Kofi (1 January 2016). ""The only language we speak really well": the English creoles of Equatorial Guinea and West Africa at the intersection of language ideologies and language policies". International Journal of the Sociology of Language (239). doi:10.1515/ijsl-2016-0010. ISSN 0165-2516. S2CID 147057342.
9. ^ Huber, Magnus (19 December 2008). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: Morphology and Syntax". In Kortmann, Bernd; Schneider, Edgar W. (eds.). A Handbook of Varieties of English: A Multimedia Reference Tool. Vol. 2\. Berlin, Boston: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 866–878\. doi:10.1515/9783110197181-123. ISBN 978-3-11-019718-1. S2CID 241854285.
10. ^ Huber, Magnus (1 January 1995). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: An Overview". English World-Wide. 16 (2): 215–249\. doi:10.1075/eww.16.2.04hub. ISSN 0172-8865.
11. ^ Huber (1999), pp. 139–42.
12. ^ a b Huber, Magnus (2008). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: Phonology". In Kortmann, Bernd; Schneider, Edgar W. (eds.). A Handbook of Varieties of English: A Multimedia Reference Tool. Vol. 1\. Berlin, Boston: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 866–873\. doi:10.1515/9783110197181-053. S2CID 243085546.
13. ^ a b c d Ewusi, Kelly Jo Trennepohl (2015). "Communicational Strategies in Ghanaian Pidgin English: Turn-Taking, Overlap and Repair" (Ph.D. Dissertation). Indiana University.
14. ^ Amoako, Joe (2011). Ghanaian Pidgin English: Diachronic, Synchronic and Sociolinguistic Perspectives. New York: Novinka. ISBN 978-1-5361-1284-9.
15. ^ a b Huber (1999), p. 150.
16. ^ Huber (1999), p. 159.
17. ^ Michaelis, Susanne; Philippe Maurer; Martin Haspelmath; Magnus Huber, eds. (2013). The atlas of Pidgin and Creole language structures. [Oxford], United Kingdom: APiCS Consortium. ISBN 978-0-19-969139-5. OCLC 839396764.
18. ^ flashfictiongh (8 April 2016). "'Ebi Time' by Fui Can-Tamakloe". Flash Fiction GHANA. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
19. ^ a b Huber, Magnus (1 January 1995). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: An Overview". English World-Wide. 16 (2): 215–249\. doi:10.1075/eww.16.2.04hub. ISSN 0172-8865.
20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Amoako, Joe K.Y.B. (1992). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: In Search of Synchronic, Diachronic, and Sociolinguistic Evidence" (Ph.D. Dissertation). University of Florida at Gainesville.
21. ^ McArthur, Tom (23 April 1998). The English Languages (1 ed.). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/9780511621048.008. ISBN 978-0-521-48130-4.
22. ^ Naro, Anthony (1978). "A Study on the Origins of Pidginization". Language. 54 (2): 314–347\. doi:10.2307/412950. JSTOR 412950.
23. ^ Huber, Magnus (2008). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: Phonology". In Kortmann, Bernd; Schneider, Edgar W. (eds.). A Handbook of Varieties of English: A Multimedia Reference Tool. Vol. 1\. Berlin, Boston: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 866–873\. doi:10.1515/9783110197181-053. S2CID 243085546.
24. ^ Ewusi, Kelly Jo Trennepohl (2015). "Communicational Strategies in Ghanaian Pidgin English: Turn-Taking, Overlap and Repair" (Ph.D. Dissertation). Indiana University.
25. ^ McArthur, Tom (1998). The English Languages. p. 164.
26. ^ Dako, Kari (24 February 2004). "Student Pidgin (SP): the Language of the Educated Male Elite". Research Review of the Institute of African Studies. 18 (2): 53–62\. doi:10.4314/rrias.v18i2.22862. ISSN 0855-4412. S2CID 146536980.
27. ^ Criper, Lindsay (1971). "A Classification of Types of English in Ghana". Journal of African Languages. 10: 6–17.
28. ^ Amoako, Joe K.Y.B. (1992). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: In Search of Synchronic, Diachronic, and Sociolinguistic Evidence" (Ph.D. Dissertation). University of Florida at Gainesville.
29. ^ Huber, Magnus (2008). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: Phonology". In Kortmann, Bernd; Schneider, Edgar W. (eds.). A Handbook of Varieties of English: A Multimedia Reference Tool. Vol. 1\. Berlin, Boston: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 866–873\. doi:10.1515/9783110197181-053. S2CID 243085546.
30. ^ a b c Amoako, Joe K.Y.B. (1992). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: In Search of Synchronic, Diachronic, and Sociolinguistic Evidence" (Ph.D. Dissertation). University of Florida at Gainesville.
31. ^ a b c d e f Huber, Magnus (19 December 2008). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: Morphology and Syntax". In Kortmann, Bernd; Schneider, Edgar W. (eds.). A Handbook of Varieties of English: A Multimedia Reference Tool. Vol. 2\. Berlin, Boston: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 866–878\. doi:10.1515/9783110197181-123. ISBN 978-3-11-019718-1. S2CID 241854285.
32. ^ Huber (1999), p. 176.
33. ^ Ewusi, Kelly Jo Trennepohl (2015). "Communicational Strategies in Ghanaian Pidgin English: Turn-Taking, Overlap and Repair" (Ph.D. Dissertation). Indiana University.

## Bibliography

[edit]

* Amoako, Joe K.Y.B. (1992). Ghanaian Pidgin English: In Search of Synchronic, Diachronic, and Sociolinguistic Evidence (PhD dissertation). University of Florida, Gainesville: University Press of Florida.
* Ewusi, Kelly Jo Trennepohl (2015). Communicational Strategies in Ghanaian Pidgin English: Turn-Taking, Overlap and Repair (PhD dissertation). Indiana University: Indiana University Press.
* Huber, Magnus (1 January 1995). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: An Overview". English World-Wide. 16 (2): 215–249\. doi:10.1075/eww.16.2.04hub. ISSN 0172-8865.
* Huber, Magnus (1 January 1999). Ghanaian Pidgin English in its West African Context: a sociohistorical and structural analysis. Varieties of English Around the World. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. doi:10.1075/veaw.g24. ISBN 978-90-272-4882-4.
* Huber, Magnus (2004). "Ghanaian Pidgin English: morphology and syntax". In Schneider, Edgar W.; Burridge, Kate; Kortmann, Bernd; Mesthrie, Rajend; Upton, Clive (eds.). A handbook of varieties of English. Vol. Morphology and syntax. Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 866–73\. ISBN 3-11-017532-0.
* Huber, Magnus (2004). "Ghanaian English: phonology". In Schneider, Edgar Werner; Burridge, Kate; Kortmann, Bernd; Mesthrie, Rajend; Upton, Clive (eds.). A handbook of varieties of English. Vol. Phonology. Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 842–65\. ISBN 3-11-017532-0.

Ghanaian Pidgin edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

* v
* t
* e

Languages of Ghana

Official language|

* English

Creole languages|

* Ghanaian Pidgin English

Government-sponsored|

* Akan
* Twi
* Asante
* Akuapem
* Fante
* Dagaare
* Dagbani
* Dangme
* Ewe
* Ga
* Gonja
* Kasem
* Nzema

Indigenous languages|

| Gur|

* Birifor
* Buli
* Chakali
* Chala
* Deg
* Delo
* Frafra
* Hanga
* Kabye
* Kamara
* Kantosi
* Konkomba
* Konni
* Kusasi
* Mamprusi
* Moba
* Mooré
* Nabit
* Notre
* Ntcham
* Nuni
* Paasaal
* Safaliba
* Sisaala
* Talni
* Tamprusi
* Tem
* Vagla
* Wali
* Winye
* Yobe

|

Kwa|

* Adele
* Ahanta
* Anii
* Animere
* Anyin
* Avatime
* Bono
* Bowili
* Chakosi
* Cherepon
* Chumburung
* Efutu
* Gua
* Jwira-Pepesa
* Kebu
* Kposo
* Krache
* Larteh
* Lelemi
* Likpe
* Logba
* Mpra
* Nkami
* Nkonya
* Nyangbo-Tafi
* Santrokofi
* Sehwi
* Siwu
* Wasa

Mande|

* Bambara
* Ligbi
* Tonjon

Others|

* Gbe
* Hausa
* Mpur
* Nafaanra
* Yoruba

Sign languages|

* Ghanaian Sign Language
* Adamorobe Sign Language
* Nanabin Sign Language

Immigrant languages|

* English
* French
* Punjabi
* Spanish
* German
* Italian
* Hindi
* Hebrew
* Arabic
* Chinese
* Portuguese
* Japanese
* Romani
* Russian
* Danish
* Dutch

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template