In Other Words...

One of the things we learned in our training with Autumn was about the different phrases or term that Ghanaians use. Almost 3 months here and we still hear new ones occasionally.

Last Tuesday the P4 (4th grade) and P6 (6th grade) classes were loading the bus for our excursion (field trip) and one of the teachers leaned into the window and said, "Remember, we carry each other here!" I was puzzled by this until I realized that he was telling them that they needed to sit on each other's laps. There were 47 people on a bus that was designed to hold 25-30! We passed two police points and they never looked twice at it. Some things that would never be allowed in the states are no big deal here. 

Here are a few of the other terms/phrases we hear:

You're invited - When you pass someone who is eating they will say this to you, but it doesn't mean they necessarily want you to come share their meal. They are just being polite and we just say, "Thank you!" and go on. 

It is paining me - It's hurting me

It is my own - It's mine

Spoiled - ruined/broken

So sorry - This is said all the time. If someone gets hurt or really any situation where someone is sad...even losing a game of Uno! 

I am going and coming - This means I'm leaving and will be back at some point (not necessarily soon!)

Mad - If you say mad in this culture, they think you mean crazy. The CORM kids are pretty used to Americans though, so they usually understand that you mean "angry". 

Am I among? - This means "Am I included?" 

Goggles - Glasses

Ghana was a British colony, so many of their terms and phrases have a British influence. They also tend to misuse their pronouns. Many will use "she" and "his" in the same sentence, in reference to the same person. They also don't use contractions so instead of saying "it's", they will always use "it is". Understanding their speaking and accent has become much easier, but there are still many times when we have to ask someone to repeat something. We have learned a few things in Twi (pronounced chwee), but would like to learn more. Most of the kids and adults speak other local dialects in addition to Twi so we have a lot to learn!

Dawn