By Kwesi Atta Sakyi
7th June 2013
Onuapa, fa bi nantsew. Fa bi y3 serew. Kasapa kum kom, ntsi hy3 nkuran. Onky3ree biara, nna nky3 y3wo Mfantse mbuukuu asorotow mapa wo h3n nkwaado ha a, nky3 no mu y3 d3w d3 biribi. Nd3, h3n Fantse kasa na h3n boadze kasa ahorow piinara wo h3n nkwaado ha rehera ma oy3 atseetsee. Aso, ana y3nnyi mbuukuu etsimtsimbea ahorow wo h3n man yi mu ha anaa? Aso, akyer3wfo na akyer3kyer3fo asa wo Ghanaman yi mu ha anaa? Mese hom taferbanyinmbom d3 owo d3 yekenyan h3n ho tsimtsim mbuukuu pii wo h3n kasa ahorow mu.
H3n suapon a owo Simpa, oy3 me kurow a aborofo fr3 no Winneba no, wo suapon farba a wokyer3 kasa horow a owo h3n Ghana nkwaado nyinara. Emi me y3 Effutunyi, naaso osiand3 mekor skuul a, mey3 askalanyi ntsi, menyiwa gye h3n Mfantse kasa ho. Seisiara menye hom retwetwe nkombo d3w yi fi Lusaka, Zambia. Matsena akwantumu mfe porpor eduasa ebien, no mu dubiako wo Alataman mu. Tsie na atse. Ebisa na omona tse.
Me egya a owoo me no, Papa Kweku Nnekyi a, onoara so no borofo dzin dze James Sackey no, otsenaa Cote d’Voire, anaa Ivory Coast beebi a od3 wofr3 no Grand Bassam, Debu, Grand Lahoe na dza okekaho mfe pii a woabesen ko no, b3y3 1910 ho no. Od3 hon a wotsena akwantu mu pii a, wonko hon ekyir no, wofr3 hon pwafoka. Megya a woenya no beebi ko no, wo afe 1971 no, sua Edwukur anaa Baulefo kasa.
Nna oy3 kupa(cooper) edwuma a woy3 ankora wodze ndz3mba gu mu, ma wusiwh3n ko amanadze koton. Nna od3 wofr3 mpuwa kanka diborobi. Mifi ekyirekyir nna woka no, musu pwepwepwe. Nokwars3m woka no kyeky3mky3. Mifi ekyir woka no musupwepwepwe.
Simpa suapon no ne farba a owo Edwumako no dzi mu adontsen wo d3m dwumadzi k3se no ho. Wokyer3 kasa horow a owo Ghana, meky3r3 kasa asorotow tse d3 Ga-Adangbe, Twi, Nzema, Dagbani, Ewe, na Hausa. Onky3ree biara na Ghanaman Obenfo Kofi Asare Opoku a, merekasa yi, owo America no kyer33 me adze wo Legon, oy3 Afrostads anaa d3 African Studies wo afe 1975. Ono na okenyan me do wo h3n kusum na atormuadze, na Akan amambra ho suahu na nyimdzii.
Ghanaman faa ne tam pa furaa wo mfe b3y3 eduesia na ne ekyir no. Meky3r3 1940s, 1950s, 1960s na 1970s. Kwame Nkrumah boo mbodzen pii gyan ara d3 obobo h3n boadze kasa ahorow ho ban amma woanhera. Nd3 h3n Guan kasa horow a owowo h3n man yi mu ha, bi tse d3 dze a woka wo Senya Beraku, Larteh, Anum Boso, Nkonya, Lolobi, Simpa, Kyerepong, Gonja, Awukugua, Bono, Bawjiase na dza a okeka ho no rehera.
Iyi nom nye boadze kasa asopon wo h3n man Ghana ha. Iyi ntsi na Kwame Nkrumah Showboy na aber do no, otsewee aban edwuma farba bi a wofr3 no Ghana Bureau of Languages. D3m aban edwuma farba no hw33 ma wotsimtsim mbuukuu pii na dawurbo nkrataa pii wo h3n Ghana kasa ahorow mu. Owo d3 Ghana Information Service bo mbodzen kenyan d3m dwumadzi no bio.
Mekae so d3, ber a me ko skuul wo afe apem ahaakron eduesia no mu no, na nky3 woton dawurbo krataa bi a woentsimtsim no wo Fantse kasa mu a, wofr3 no Nkwantabisa. D3m krataa no, nna no mu y3d3w mapa, osiand3 na kodzi, wiadzemu ns3m and suahu na abodze nyansap3 ho ns3m piinara wo mu. Nna meedzi mfe dubiako.
D3m Nkwantabisa dawurbo krataa no maa muhun adze mapa, osiand3 omaa menyaa nyimdzee k3sek3se nara wo h3n ara h3n kasafuwa mu. Ehw3 a, nna enyigye nye b3n? Mekae so d3, ber a me ko skuul no, oy3 1957 k3pem 1966 no, Mfantse mbuukuu a mekenkanee no, piinara asofo na wokyerewee. Hon mu bi nye J.A. Annobil, F.C.F Grant, F.L. Bartels, E. Bannerman-Richter, J. Yedu Bannerman, A.B. Dickson, Sofo Parker, Sofo Anaman, na hon a wokeka ho.
Hon mu fa nara y3 nwomasua mu akakabenfo wo Methodist Asor mu, na hon mu piinara na wofi Anomabo, Oguaa, Ekumfi, Esuehyia, Abora na Simpa na no nkwaado. Ghanaweb akenkanfo, medze hom besi ha. Mber ay3 mber. Dza a medze gya hom nd3 nye Mfantse mbuukuu asorotow a, mekanee no mu bi, mfe pii a woabesan ko no.
Nna nky3 Ghana dawurbo akasanoma a, oy3 GBC anaa Radio Ghana no, dze simaba, anaa donhwer bi si ho ewimber ewimber biara a, nky3 woto f3n, anaa d3 kodzi wo radio do. Nna nky3 wotaa y3 d3m dwumadzi no ewimber, ber a omaandam dze no ho aka ha no. Woreb3hy3 dwumadzi no ase a, nna nky3 wotow ndwom bi d3,
Kweeku ee Kweeeku eee, Hmmm DC
Nd3 a Kweeku eee, Okyena Kweeeku eee
Owo na odaban ehia wo yi ………
Ndwom no y3 d3w papa bi, osiand3 nna nsamubo so ka ho wo radio no do, ma adagyer biara nnyi mu. Ama Abokoma na Araba Saasaku na hon dom ma etsiefo hon asua mu y3 hon d3w, ma woh3n hon nsa kutu ab3n, ma hon ho sep3w hon papa bi.
Mbuukuu a mekae no, hon dzin na nyia a okyerewee, na afe a wokyerewee wo mu na odzi do wo ase ha no. Me ma hom mbo na y3. Wogye me yaa Eyeh. Me hua dzin nye Kwesi Bodua, anaa Atta Kakrah, Opesaw Kaakeeku. Me ebusua nye Nsona, womper kwa. Kwaakwaadebi nye h3n ahy3nsew. Onuapa a erekenkan iyi, mano ato. Wo d3 nyimpa dzidzi wie, na mbom onkasa nwie.
Hmmm. Oy3 hu d3, ber a mey33 Ordinary Level no wo 1970 no, maamfa Mfantse anko nsohw3 no bi. Iyi y3 esintow bi a oy3 a ohaw me pii. K3tseanky3 bi a nky3 me dzii nkonyim anaa so nky3 me dzii nkogu, osiand3 d3m aber no nna WAEC nsohw3 no na naano y3 ndam d3 adar a woasew no hwiromhwirom bi. Eso, oy3 me d3 menyiwa gye h3n ebibir kasa yi ho mapa. Hmmm. Tsie na atse. Onuapa, ma adze pa nkye h3n. S3 ep3 d3 y3twetwe nkombo hwanhwam bi a, kyer3w me krataa wo: kwesiattasakyi449@gmail.com
N.B. Mep3 d3 obi kaakaa madwen wo buukuu bi a nky3 wofr3 no Prama no. Metsee ne dzin, naaso mennya bi ankan.
LIST OF FANTE BOOKS OF YESTERYEAR
1. Nana Bosompo by J A Annobil 1965
2. Nana Bosompo by E. Bannerman – Richter 1961
3. Nana Bosompo: dze h3n esie by E.K. Agim 1976
4. Kenkan Me Hwe by H.C Neill, J.E.K Korsah, Winifred Townshend 1963
5. Kenkan Me Hwe by I.S Beveridge, E.O Ayee, J.E.K Korsah 1944
6. Mfantse Kodzisem ho adzesua by D.E.K Krampah 1977
7. Obra woto bo bo by D.E.K Krampah 1977
8. Nkwantabisa by Ghana Bureau of Languages c. 1960
9. Asoaso Onyasafo by J.A. Annobil, Frank Worthington 1948
10. Abofra Onyasafo by J.A. Annobil, Frank Worthington, D.K. Abbiw 1945
11. Fie na Skuul (books 1 – 8) by J.A Annobil
12. Mfantse Nkasafua Dwumadzi by Francis Ludowic Bartels, J.A Annobil 1945
13. Nana Asaase Efuwa by Sam K. Otoo 1960
14. Mfantse Akan Mbebusem 1974
15. Akan Rites of Passage and their inception into Christianity by Robert Charles Snyper 2003
16. Bu Me Be – Akan Proverbs by Peggy Appiah, Kwame Anthony Appiah, Ivor Agyeman Duah 2001
17. The Cry for Justice in Tema by J. Yedu- Bannerman 1973
18. The Akan (Twi-Fante) language: its sound systems and tonal structure by Florence Abena Dolphyne 1988
19. Mfantse Amambu Mu Bi by J.A Annobil,
20. Prama ??????
Publishers and stockers: books.google.co.zm/books?id=Bdr TAATAA MAAJ