ABSTRACT This thesis sought to investigate the semantics and morphology of Mfantse neologisms, to highlight the most common word formation process used in their formation, the neologism type common in Mfantse and the meanings that are attributed to these neologisms since neologisms form a highly relevant linguistic category for such reasons as follows: they are the elements that make a language living and dynamic rather than dead, they are indicative of language change and they help to show...
ABSTRACT It is widely accepted that in all societies, personal name practices and cultures are intertwined (Ngubane and Thabathe, 2013). However, this reality is more pronounced in the African society where personal names are not just appellations bestowed on individuals to identify them in the community but rather words that reflect the world view of the people. This is also applicable to the Bιrfor people of Ghana. Among the Bιrfor, the name-giver chooses a name that truly not only identi...
ABSTRACT The study investigates phonological and morphological adaptation of loanwords in Dagbani, a Mabia (Gur) language spoken in the Northern part of Ghana. In contrast to existing literature in the language, this study examines a typology of loanwords adaptation in Dagbani. Data of 260 loanwords were drawn from existing literature, Dagbani dictionary, elicitation and my native intuition, and analysis was cast within the theoretical framework of Basic Linguistic Theory of Dixon (1997). The...
ABSTRACT The study is about the Gurenɛ riddle which precedes the narration of the folktale in most instances, among the Farefari people in the Upper-East Region of Ghana. The study examined the types of riddles, their themes, characteristics, composition and performance, and their functions as it pertains during the narration of the folktale and riddles. The riddle is an oral genre performed among the people of the Farefari society. Riddling serves as a major form of entertainment among th...
ABSTRACT This study examines a literary appreciation of fifteen Anaanuurɛ Pɔgesi yuuma (APY), a genre of music among the Farefari people. The Farefari people are the speakers of Gurenɛ; Mmabia language, spoken by about 500,000 people, in the Upper East Region of Ghana. The study established that, women groups that sing these songs are an evolution from a long singing tradition among women in the Farefari community. With regard to the nature of the songs, the songs can be categorized into...
ABSTRACT This study was fundamentally conducted to find the structure and style of libation prayer text among the Ga. It further looked at the concept of libation and its significance among the Ga. Purposive sampling was used to select the Ga Mashie Community for the study. Qualitative research was adopted for the study. The researcher collected data through observation, interview and documentation. The sample population for the study was twenty (20): comprising ten (10) elders in the Ga Ma...
ABSTRACT Be, the unit under study, is realised as /bέ/, /bé/ or /bəʹ/ across the E3eme, T4`u and A`l4 dialects of the E3e language respectively. It has as an equivalent, “that” in the English language, s1 in Akan and ake in Ga. S1 and that have been studied widely as complementizers but be, according to Clements (1975), is a prepositional verb synonymous with the verb gbl4 (to say) in E3e. This study therefore sought to ascertain what kind of unit be actually is on the premise of T...
ABSTRACT This thesis discusses the structure and style of Dagbamba dirges, (a Gur-language spoken in the northern part of Ghana). It examines the significance of these songs to the Dagbamba as part of their social events which seek to usher the dead into eternal life. The study outlines sample Dagbamba dirges (9 dirges in all), examines the logical divisions as well as some literary devices used in these dirges. The study shows that these devices play a vital role in the appreciation of thes...
ABSTRACT This thesis is a literary analysis of fourteen Gonja dirges using descriptive theory as an analytical tool. The Gonja people are the speakers of Ngbanyato, a Kwa language spoken by about 500,000 people in the newly created Savannah regionand other regions of Ghana. The data used for this study was taken from a collection of dirges recorded on funeral grounds from Busunu in the West Gonja district of the Savannah region. Some dirges were also taken from Amidu (2013) (lecture notes...
ABSTRACT This research investigates serial verb constrictions in Gonja, one of the Guan languages spoken in the Savanna Region of Ghana, from the language family called Kwa. The phenomenon of serial verb constructions has not received any serious attention in the Gonja language. This thesis therefore aims to filling in the gap in the literature by looking at the types and the general features of serial verb constructions in Gonja. The research is purely a descriptive one. Primary and second...
ABSTRACT The focus of this thesis is to offer an analysis of the syntax and semantics of phrasal verbs in Nzema, a Kwa language spoken mainly in southwestern Ghana and Ivory Coast, by about 330,000 people. This study demonstrated that the Nzema phrasal verb has two compositional elements: a verb and a postposition. It further showed through the principle of transitivity that Nzema phrasal verb can occur in intransitive, transitive and in both transitive and intransitive constructions. In add...
ABSTRACT The study examines the concept of totemism in Dagaaba clans in the Jirapa Municipality in the Upper West Region. Dagaare is a Mabia spoken language in Ghana. The research was conducted in four communities around Jirapa and its environment. The target communities were Sigri, Ullo, Sabuli and Jirapa Township. The researcher used purposive sampling technique to elicit the data. The instruments used to collect the data were unstructured interview and participatory observation. The ages...
ABSTRACT This thesis examines structure, style and themes in Manya Krobo work songs. The structure, style and theme of work songs used among the people of Manya Krobo have not been investigated as done for other languages. The research discussed the aesthetic values of these work songs among the people of Manya Krobo. Primary data were used for the analysis. The data collection was done through recording and personal consultation through observation. The study has revealed various and varied ...
ABSTRACT The work aims at a qualitative study of Dangme klama songs. The study looked at the style, literary devices, meanings and moral lessons the songs convey to its audience. The study reveals that the songs have many literary devices such as metaphors, parallelisms, repetition and so on. It was found out that there are a lot of respectable literature worthy of consideration that cannot be pushed or glossed over. In translating the songs from Dangme into English, a conscious effort...
ABSTRACT This study investigated the syntax and semantics of Ga phrasal verbs. It examined the basic elements that constitute the Ga phrasal verb and focused on the various manifestations of the phrasal verb in respect of its transitivity. The study also discussed the meanings of the phrasal verbs through the lens of Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), as well as their idiomaticity and polysemy. Data for the study were collected from both primary and secondary sources, and the entire study was ...